Property taxes are a mess in New York City, and officials – even the mayor – appear reluctant to mess with them.
In fact, May Bill de Blasio said during an interview on radio station WYNC this past week, tinkering with the creaky property tax system could put too big a strain on an already strained city.
By Howard M. Riell
A report is expected shortly from a commission that the mayor and City Council put together in 2018 to look at the labyrinthine system of real estate excises. He warned the caller, though, that he would not permit any reforms that might be called for to strain the budget and keep the city’s expansive workforce from further expansion.
“We cannot end up with a system that reduces our revenue substantially, unless people want to see a change in the services provided by the city,” de Blasio said on air. “Right now I believe the city is at a point of some equilibrium: crime has continued to go down, the economy is strong, more jobs, city services are stronger in many ways than they’ve been. But we still have a lot of giant problems to address. And we can’t—in my view—reduce revenue without really negatively affecting the quality of life, and negatively affecting the economy and our safety.”
“For decades, tax laws have prevented assessments from rising more than 6% a year, even though property values in certain areas—such as de Blasio’s home neighborhood of Park Slope—have increased far more,” Crain’s New York Business recently reported. “Advocates argue this has forced a disproportionate burden on rental buildings, commercial properties and houses in outer-ring neighborhoods which are more likely to belong to minority homeowners.”
“We’re going to have to figure out how to make the system better, but not lose substantial revenue in the process. So it’s not going to be a panacea to say the least,” de Blasio told the radio audience. “In the end, I gotta go with what is the quality of life of New Yorkers? How safe are we, how strong is our economy, how good are our services, what is the quality of life—and what do we need to sustain it?”
If the mayor was taking heat for the tax and budget picture, he was more concerned with the summer heat searing the city. He, Emergency Management Commissioner Deanne Criswell and Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot updated New Yorkers on the heat emergency. The Mayor signed an Executive Order proclaiming a state of local emergency due to the extreme heat.
“New York City is dealing with a major heat emergency with temperatures in the high 90s this weekend,” said de Blasio. “Every single New Yorker must take this seriously. Drink plenty of water, stay cool and seek help if you need it. To limit strain on our energy grid, I have ordered both City government buildings and private office buildings to limit their energy consumption by turning thermostats to 78 degrees. Everyone must do their part to ensure safety until this heat wave passes.”
