The Empire Page

A new organization has been making noise in Albany and around the State.  It's called Unshackle Upstate and its origins are in the economically challenged western part of the state.  To learn more about UNY, we talked to its executive director Brian Sampson.

 

Q#1: Tell us about the origins of Unshackle Upstate -- when was it formed, who formed it and why was it formed?

A: Unshackle Upstate was founded in 2006 by leaders from the Buffalo Niagara Partnership (BNP) and the Rochester Business Alliance (RBA).  The reason for the formation is quite simple:  The voice of Upstate NY was being drowned out by the interest and needs of downstate and NYC.  If Upstate was going to survive, the collection of voices needed to be combined and amplified.

The mission is simple and straight forward:  To raise awareness of the political and governmental issues that hamper economic recovery in New York State and work toward effective solutions. Since 2006, Unshackle Upstate has been focused on bringing much needed help to the troubled economy of New York, Upstate in particular.

Andrew Rudnick, the President and CEO of the BNP and Sandy Parker, President and CEO of the RBA, set out to grow the name and stature of Unshackle by bringing in new members.  They worked with private businesses to raise necessary capital and other Chambers of Commerce and other business groups to reach more and more business leaders.  Soon, the coalition stretched from Buffalo to Albany, up to Plattsburgh and down to Binghamton and the Southern Tier.  The brand name of Unshackle Upstate began to take hold and the organization took on a greater and greater role in the debates taking place in Albany.  Today, we represent more than 45,000 businesses employing more than one million people.

Unshackle Upstate has been working hard to educate taxpayers about what takes place in Albany and why they need to get involved.  New York residents have consistently paid some the highest tax rates in the country. And during an economic recession, the last thing we should have to deal with is more taxes. However, that is not the case. By passing the Deficit Reduction Plan and the 2009-10 state budget, lawmakers in Albany added to our already suffocating burden.  Instead of cutting spending and reducing taxes, they passed a budget that increased spending nearly 9% and raised more than $8B in new taxes and fees.   That is an unacceptable set of circumstances and we must push for change…and soon.

 

Q#2:  When he became governor Eliot Spitzer promised to help the Upstate economy and even created a co-commissioner position within Empire State Development who was based in Buffalo.  What has become of those efforts under Gov. Paterson?

A: We at Unshackle Upstate would like to see Gov. Paterson do much more to get our economy moving. We appreciate that he has released promised money from the Upstate Revitalization Fund for some specific projects, but that alone will not have a significant impact. The 2009-10 budget is very harmful to Upstate and all of New York state. We wanted to see significant cuts in spending. The governor instead promised to hold spending flat, and the budget that was passed instead raised spending a whopping 8.7 percent. And those revenue enhancing fees tagged on insurers and utilities are just being passed on to already overburdened taxpayers in the form of higher premiums and bigger utility bills. Meanwhile, the Empire Zone program, which we acknowledge is in need of reform, is being allowed to simply fade away with nothing in its place. With such tremendously highly taxes, high energy costs and no significant incentive program in place, there's no way New York can attract and retain the jobs needed to revitalize it economy. Upstate needs targeted support aimed at promoting this region and help from the state in reducing its high property tax burdens before we'll see any major turnaround.

 

Q#3:  In terms of reducing property taxes, two positions have been advocated -- the property tax cap and the so-called "circuit breaker".  Specifically, how would Unshackle Upstate handle the property tax issue?

A:  Let’s set the record straight about property taxes in New York:

• The average homeowners property taxes are 78% higher than the national average
• According to the Tax Foundation, New York’s combined state and local taxes are second highest in the nation.  And we have ranked first or second every year since 1977
• Upstate NY is home to 9 of the 10 highest county property tax rates in the nation as a share of home value

So clearly, we have a problem and it needs to be addressed quickly.

With regard to the cap or a circuit breaker, Unshackle Upstate does not subscribe to the theory of a circuit breaker.  In our opinion, that is simply a tax shift and you will ultimately continue to have the same problems that exist today.  The concept of a cap is much more appealing, although where that cap should settle still requires more review.

The fundamental issue with regard to property taxes is that there continues to be far too many unfunded mandates coming out of Albany.  Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi chaired a commission examining the myriad of cost drivers in the property tax system.  His commission came up with a series of recommendations that we support.  They include items such as the creation of Tier 5, a new employee retirement system that is estimated to save the sate more than $47B over 30 years, having the Comptroller’s Office issue an annual report outlining the costs of mandates on municipalities, amend Triborough, repeal the Wick’s Law.  

Unshackle Upstate, along with some of our statewide partners, has asked that the Commission's report be turned into a legislative bill so that it can be debated in committee and on the Senate and Assembly floor so that we can finally get some relief for our homeowners and businesses.  

 

Q#4: Attorney General Cuomo and others have argued that one of the reasons that taxes in New York are so high is that we have such a large number of local governmental jurisdictions.  The Legislature recently passed and Governor Paterson signed a law that will make it easier for citizens to force local governments to consider consolidation.  Does Unshackle Upstate support the movement to encourage sharing of services as well as outright consolidation?  If so, do you see it as being a small, medium or large piece of the puzzle?

A: Excessive layers of government definitely contribute to New York's high taxes, so Unshackle Upstate has always been supportive of efforts to look for ways to consolidate and to share services. In fact, we have pushed to have the report of the New York State Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness, also known as the Lundine report, drafted into a bill so its key recommendations can be debated - and hopefully adopted into law - by the Legislature. We believe the Cuomo bill is a good start, as it will get the electorate engaged in determining their communities' own futures. But we would have liked to see that bill address school district consolidations as well. So the elected officials aren’t off the hot seat as we will continue for more consolidation.

Having said all this, however, simply consolidating and finding places to share services won't be enough to bring New York's spending in line. Our elected officials are going to have to make some tough decisions on what they fund and how they pay for it.

 

Q#5: The Brennan Center at NYU and others have pointed out that the State Legislature can pass a law without disclosing its fiscal impact.  In one instance the Assembly relied on information provided by a union official claiming a pension bill would have no fiscal impact when in fact it would have cost taxpayers millions.  New York City and Congress both have independent budget offices charged with providing lawmakers and the general public impartial data on budget bills.  Has Unshackle Upstate considered or taken a position on that concept?

A: This is a critical issue for our coalition and for the taxpayers of this state.  Time after time, we see unfunded mandates that come from Albany that ultimately drive up property taxes and the overall cost of living and doing business in New York.  Clearly, something has to be done to address the issue.

Earlier this year, Governor Paterson issued and Executive Order (#17) titled ESTABLISHING MEASURES TO EVALUATE COSTS OF MANDATES ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT TO ADVANCE PROPERTY TAX RELIEF.  The directive was that any state agency that required a local government to institute a mandate needed to do a cost benefit analysis in order to get the mandate submitted.  Now, while that is a good start, it doesn’t go far enough.  This order is only applicable to state agencies.  It does not apply to the Legislature where, unfortunately, we see many of the mandates originating.  So it leaves a loophole for agency directors to go directly to a member of the Legislature and ask them to submit a bill creating the mandate.

What we do need is accountability to the taxpayers.  What shape that takes and how it is implemented we feel needs to be explored without adding more cost to the taxpayers and creating more patronage jobs.  As an example, the Office of the State Comptroller is supposed to provide an independent view of state finances.  Why can’t this office then review the proposed mandates and weigh-in with an independent view?  That is one potential option.

Regardless of how it is achieved, there needs to be transparency and accountability for all state agencies, authorities and the Legislature.  Without it, there will continue to be widespread abuses and a legitimate mistrust of those that are elected to represent and protect taxpayers.

 

Q#6: Final question. It appears from various polls that the public is paying more attention to what goes on in Albany than it has in the past and they don't like what they see.  While that could portend for the election of more responsive legislators in 2010, isn't the real obstacle the fact that Albany is dominated politically by New York City?   How can Unshackle Upstate advance its platform when its goals of lower taxes and a smaller state government run counter to the political philosophy of the city-based Democratic Party?

A:  The reality is that while there is a New York City bias in the Legislature, the issues that are hurting the state now expand beyond Upstate.  The overwhelming taxes, the loss of jobs, and a stagnant economy are now hitting regions like Long Island, the Mid-Hudson, and Westchester.  As a result, we’ve now been able to cultivate relationship with groups from those areas and we have agreed on a common platform and a set of operating principle.  So, unshackle can carry the message from West to East and conversely they take it from East to West.  What this affords us is the inability of elected officials to divide us using regional tactics.

But, the reality is that we still need to engage and educate the taxpayers.  Without them actually pulling the levers of people that support them and their needs, we won’t be successful.  So Unshackle Upstate and our partners are going to be waging an aggressive campaign to educate the masses.  For far too long, we have just accepted the fiscal burden and not fought back.  People need to understand how their specific elected official is representing them. 

We, as taxpayers and business owners, need to use the anger that has been created due in large part to the enacted state budget as a driving voice for reform.  What people may not understand is that there are a series of “nickel and dime” taxes in the budget that will cost the average family of 4 an additional $1,300 this year.  If you have a child in a SUNY or CUNY school, that goes up to nearly $2,000.  And what’s worse, we get nothing for the extra money.  It doesn’t matter if you if talk to people in Buffalo or Plattsburgh…Middletown to Glen Cove, people are mad as hell. 

Unshackle and our partners are going to keep educating the taxpayers and raising our issues and concerns.  And if our concerns are not addressed, then use our voting power to put people into office that will represent us.