ALBANY New York state's unemployment rate was unchanged in April from March at 8.5 percent but the state has won back all the private sector jobs lost during the recession, the state Department of Labor said on Thursday.
New York's jobless rate is up from 8 percent in April 2011 and is above the national rate for April of 8
ALBANY— "After the passage of Tier VI pension reform, a fiscally responsible budget and other business-friendly initiatives, the Assembly has taken a step in the wrong direction. Raising the minimum wage to $8.50 per hour would cost an extra $2,900 per full-time employee in 2013. It's unconscionable to place this burden on small-business owners, who are already struggling under state-imposed mandates
ALBANY—With New Yorkers preparing to vote on school budget propositions next Tuesday, the Empire Center today released the latest data for its Internet-based tool — BenchmarkingNY's Property Taxes by Location — allowing taxpayers to compute and compare total school district, municipal and county tax burdens in thousands of communities across the state
ALBANY (05/10/2012) — The Public Policy Institute (PPI), the research arm of The Business Council of New York State, today released an in-depth study on the challenges in attracting and retaining private-sector jobs and companies in New York's lucrative bioscience sector.
Based on interviews with 30 industry experts as well as existing research, Cultivating the Next Generation of Discoveries and Development in New York Bioscience explores the opportunities and barriers facing companies in various stages of development and offers three public policy recommendations to foster public-private partnerships and make New York more competitive with other states:
Create a Governor's Council to spearhead development and marketing of the state's bioscience industry
Albany N.Y. — Increasing the state's minimum wage is the wrong approach for promoting the economic well-being of New Yorkers. The costs — recently estimated at up to $1 billion per year — will fall most heavily on small businesses. At a time when most business income is flat, state-imposed costs, such as a higher minimum wage, will result in increased prices, less investment and fewer job opportunities for New Yorkers
ALBANY—“The cost of health care remains the number one cost concern for businesses across New York. Governor Cuomo's action creating the New York Health Benefit Exchange will allow New York to have greater control over how federal health care reform will affect its citizens.
By taking these steps today we hope to see a health exchange system that will better define the cost of health care for New York's small businesses and their employees
ALBANY— “The Business Council is pleased that Governor Cuomo and legislative leaders are continuing on the path to bringing fiscal stability back to New York.
For the second year in a row, New Yorkers will be pleased that our state leaders have enacted an on-time budget with controlled spending and no new taxes
ALBANY—“New York State is routinely hailed as one of the most adverse environments in the nation for creating jobs, retaining jobs, or attracting jobs. To change that, New York needs to examine its own regulations and red tape that deter private sector growth and investment – beginning with the state's burdensome Scaffold Law,” said Senator Patrick M
ALBANY—“The pension reform agreement reached today is an important step in the right direction. For the first time, we have a public employee pension system that contains the option of a defined contribution plan for some future non-union public employees. The private sector has already moved to these plans as a response to financial realities, and we expect the public retirement system - which we support with our tax dollars - to do the same
ALBANY—The Business Council of New York State, Inc. is now on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The premier business group says that by joining the online communities, it can interact more closely with members, quickly letting them know how political issues and policies affect their businesses