News

30
May
2007
Kenneth Adams, president and CEO of The Business Council, has been asked by Governor Eliot Spitzer to serve on a panel aimed at helping New York retain its status as the world's financial capital. “The financial world has changed and we must change with it to retain our leadership position,” Governor Spitzer said
24
May
2007
New York spends more per pupil in schools than any other state, and its per-pupil spending is 62 percent above the national average, data released May 24 by the U.S. Census Bureau show. The data, for 2004-2005, show that New York's per-pupil spending was $14,119, compared to the national average of $8,701
22
May
2007
Governor Eliot Spitzer and the first lady, Silda Wall Spitzer, have announced an initiative called "I Live New York" designed to stem the growing tide of young New Yorkers who leave the state and to create new job and business opportunities in New York
15
May
2007
ALBANY—New York State's per capita state and local tax burden in 2005 was the highest in the nation, according to a new analysis by the Public Policy Institute. The Institute analyzed state and local finance data provided by the Census Bureau. The numbers, which covered the 2004-2005 fiscal year, showed that New York's per-capita state and local tax burden was the highest in the nation at $5,770 – 56 percent above the national average of $3,699 and 7 percent above the next highest per capita burden in Connecticut
07
May
2007
Ed Reinfurt, vice president of The Business Council, has been nominated by Governor Eliot Spitzer to serve as executive director of the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR). "This is a wonderful and well-deserved opportunity for Ed, and we're very happy for him," said Kenneth Adams, president and CEO of The Business Council
03
May
2007
Editor's note: For a PDF file of tables showing proposed tax and spending increases in individual school districts in New York State, see www.ppinys.org/taxes/schooltax2007.pdf. Or, to receive e-mailed information on any specific school districts. ALBANY—Armed with a record increase in state aid, school districts across New York State plan to increase average per-pupil spending by twice the rate of inflation, a new "School Tax Watch" study by the Public Policy Institute finds
30
Apr
2007
Governor Eliot Spitzer has proposed broad changes to the state's Wicks Law and other mandates that increase local taxpayer burdens. “This legislation enacts necessary measures to reduce the heavy financial burden, ease the cumbersome workload, and roll back the excessive mandates that for too long have handcuffed New York State's local governments,” said Governor Spitzer
30
Apr
2007
The state Department of Insurance has made "substantial progress" in its efforts to put administrative policies in place that are considered key components of the landmark workers' compensation reform agreement announced earlier this year
26
Apr
2007
New Yorker's will celebrate Tax Freedom Day on May 16th this year – the second latest freedom day in the nation, according to an analysis from the Taxpayer Foundation. The analysis, America Celebrates Tax Freedom Day, calculates the date on which taxpayers have earned enough to pay federal, state and local taxes
24
Apr
2007
G. Thomas Tranter, president of Corning Enterprises and chairman of The Business Council's government affairs council, has been appointed to a newly-created commission studying local government consolidation. The Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness was created by Governor Spitzer through an executive order on April 23