New York State Senator Patrick Gallivan says New York remains one of the highest taxed states in the nation and needs to get control of its spending. Senator Gallivan's proposal would cap the amount of income taxes collected by the state at 2% or the rate of inflation, whichever is greater--of the state's annual tax levy. Excess revenues collected would be refunded to taxpayers equally, regardless of income. "If billions of dollars were collected in excess, you subtract that from the top line and divide it by the number of taxpayers. Let's just say that amounts to $300. The person making a million dollars would get $300 back and the person making $20,000 will get $300 back. And so in that sense, it helps the lower income earners more so than the higher income earners, but at the same time helping everybody," said Senator Gallivan. Gallivan said the proposed cap would be an incentive for the state to spend less. Buffalo Niagara Partnership President and CEO Andrew Rudnick said the proposal is elegant in its simplicity. "The way in which you control spending is by controlling revenue. And from the employer community point of view, the more expenditures are controlled and the more your taxes are predictable, the more likely it is that you're going to make an investment in your community, in your business, and I think Senator Gallivan's proposal does just that," said Rudnick. Rudnick said the the Partnership is strongly endorsing Gallivan's proposal.
State Senator Gallivan issues proposal to help the state spend less.
