LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Let's make up budget deficits

Posted

To the editor:

New York state currently faces a budget deficit of approximately $15 billion. Gov. Cuomo’s default response has always been an austerity budget which has benefited the top 5 percent of earners, heavily taxing working families, and leaving the poor with little or no safety net.

This is especially true for many Bronx residents.

Gov. Cuomo seems to be relying upon a federal COVID-19 relief package, and a purely cosmetic adjustment to the tax rate for the wealthy, which does not raise nearly sufficient income to offset New York’s shortfall. The extent of any federal bailout or grants of any kind is unpredictable. Indeed, the 2009 federal bailout offset the deficit by 28 percent.

New York has resources. We ought to employ them.

The Riverdale and Long Island chapters of Bend the Arc: Jewish Action, in alliance with Invest in Our New York — formerly Budget Justice — are supporting a series of bills which could be incorporated into the state budget.

These proposals align with what we see as the Jewish obligation to pursue social justice.

Society has a responsibility to its citizens to help them attain their basic needs — affordable housing, food security, basic health care, education, and basic social services.

The wealthy should pay their fair share after decades of reaping unfathomable wealth. Those whose income is more than sufficient have an added responsibility to contribute more.

Invest in Our New York is working for a series of tax bills that, if taken as a package, would raise approximately $50 billion. These include, but are not limited to:

• An inheritance tax that would affect inheritances more than $250,000
• A progressive income tax that differs from the present rate only for those above the $400,000 bracket
• A bill that would progressive tax investments much the same way wages are currently taxed
• A small tax on financial transactions

We encourage readers to have a fresh look at the details of these proposals at Invest in Our New York’s user-friendly and informative site at InvestInOurNY.com.

It is only fair for those who have flourished in these terrible times to make a relatively greater contribution to provide a decent standard of living to those who have suffered the most from current circumstances. We need to not only balance our current budget, but also redress years of budgeting that have failed to provide equitable services to less fortunate New Yorkers.

Hillel famously said, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I care only for myself, what am I?”

The second question is to our point.

Anyone interested in working with the Riverdale chapter of Bend the Arc can email bendthearc.riverdaletaskforce@gmail.com.

Bart Schiavo
Deborah Schiavo

The authors represent the Riverdale chapter of Bend the Arc: Jewish Action.

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Bart Schiavo, Deborah Schiavo,

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