Mayor Bill de Blasio will furlough himself and up to 500 of
his own mayoral staff for a week in a ... عرض المزيدMayor Bill de Blasio will furlough himself and up to 500 of
his own mayoral staff for a week in a symbolic gesture that will save New York City $860,000
as it faces a budget deficit of $4.2 billion.
The mayor's plan will put 495 City Hall staffers - including his wife
Chirlaine McCray - out of work for a week at some point between October and March 2021. De
Blasio has said that he will continue working without pay during his own furlough.
The decision to put his staff out of a job for a week comes after de Blasio threatened to cut up to 22,000 city employees by next month.
He said the furloughs may serve as a 'useful symbol' if the union cannot agree
on cost-cutting measures by then.
The pandemic has cost New York City $9 billion in revenue and forced
a $7 billion cut to the city's annual budget. It also needs
to plug a $4.2 billion deficit in next year's budget.
The city has also asked the federal government for aid,
but so far none appears to be coming.
Rich New Yorkers have been leaving the city in droves amid the pandemic and escalating violent crime.
Between March 1 and May 1, more than 420,000 fled,
many of whom resided in the city's richest neighborhoods,
including SoHo, and the Upper East Side.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has begged them to return, and also
threatened to raise the tax on the wealthy to plug the hole in the
city's budget deficit.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday that he and his entire staff will
take a one-week unpaid furlough
'It was not a decision I made lightly,' de Blasio said.
'To have to do this is painful for them and their families, but it is the
right thing to do at this moment in history.'
De Blasio's announcement to furlough himself was welcomed by his critics on social media, with many blaming him for the rising crime rate in the city.
'Prob the best thing he's ever done for NYC,' tweeted one Twitter user.
'It's about time,' remarked another social media user.
Another Twitter user commented: 'Make it permanent!'
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De Blasio's announcement was welcomed by the mayor's critics on social media.
'Prob the best thing he's ever done for NYC,' tweeted one Twitter user
Another Twitter user wrote: 'Whoa slow down @NYCMayor - a full
one week furlough? You're doing to much #saidnooneever #whatajoke.'
'De Blasio won't work during furlough. Will anyone notice?' Alice Stewart tweeted
'This is a very smart move, Bill de Blasio is not an essential worker,' tweeted one
Twitter user
'Here's an even better idea: furlough de Blasio permanently,' tweeted Nan Hayworth
John Harding Sweeney tweeted: 'Can we make this
furlough permanent???'
'Make it permanent!' tweeted a Twitter user who goes by the name
'Grandpa Arson'
In response to de Blasio's announcement, another Twitter user commented:
'It's about time'
A Twitter user, Josh Perry, said that de Blasio's furlough means that 'NYC will improve'
Another Twitter user remarked: 'You should furlough the rest of your
time in office! YOU RUINED THE CITY!'
'De Blasio won't work during furlough. Will anyone notice?'
Alice Stewart tweeted.
Another Twitter user commented: 'NYC will improve.'
Nan Hayworth tweeted: 'Here's an even better idea:
furlough de Blasio permanently.'
Another Twitter user remarked: 'You should furlough the rest of your
time in office! YOU RUINED THE CITY!'
Another Twitter user wrote: 'Whoa slow down @NYCMayor - a full one week furlough?
You're doing to much #saidnooneever #whatajoke.'
Greg Meyer tweeted: 'This is a very smart move, Bill de Blasio is not an essential
worker.'
John Harding Sweeney tweeted: 'Can we make this furlough
permanent???'
De Blasio has been vocal about raising taxes for the rich over the
last few months to ease the city's woes.
Just two weeks ago, on an appearance on The Brian Lehrer Show, de Blasio said: 'Help me tax the wealthy.
Help me redistribute wealth. Help me build affordable housing in white communities if
you want desegregation,' in response to a question about integrating public schools.
The city has also seen a disturbing rise in violent crime.
The image above shows a man mugging an older woman inside a Manhattan apartment
building last month
Surveillance video taken from the elevator of an apartment building near 1st Avenue and East 3rd Street last month
shows a young man getting into an elevator with a young woman. The man is seen holding what appears to be a screwdriver.
He then takes the woman's money
Governor Andrew Cuomo has blamed police themselves for the rising crime, saying they have done 'very little' to come up with reform plans.
Police are seen responding to a shooting in NYC last month
New York City police officers investigate the scene of a shooting in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn in July.
Shootings in July were up 177 percent
In August, an innocent bystander was shot in broad daylight in Brooklyn while he walked with his wife to buy toothpaste
from a nearby store. Doctors fear he will never walk again after
the bullet struck his spine
And on Monday, de Blasio told owners of local sports stadiums, such as Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium,
to pay more taxes to help aid the city's bounce-back.
'Let's be clear - sports franchises have gained incredible value over the
years,' de Blasio said during a press briefing.
'They clearly have the resources. I think the history in this city and pretty much all over
the country was stadium deals were not good deals for the public, by and large.
Some of the more recent ones have been better, but mostly they haven't been that
good.
'Everything should be reevaluated especially at a point when the city is going to need resources for our recovery.'
Other top city officials have also started urging the wealthy to pay higher taxes.
Comptroller Scott Stringer said the city's wealthiest residents should be
prepared to 'step up and help' close the Big Apple's gaping deficit by
paying higher taxes.
Stringer's warning today echoes a similar caution issued by state Governor Andrew Cuomo last week, who said without
additional funding from Washington, DC, he will be left with no choice to raise taxes to save the city from economic ruin.
Stringer also dismissed concerns that raising taxes for those
in the highest percentile would likely drive them out of New York for good.
He said that people have fled many times over the years during various crises
but inevitably return.
'There will be some that leave,' he said. 'Why would
you risk your life going to Texas or Florida or any place
where you have governors who just ignore health and safety laws?
You've got to be nuts to go there.'
Cuomo had long been reluctant to the idea of raising
taxes on the wealthy.
New York City's wealthiest residents should be prepared to 'step up and
help' close the Big Apple's gaping $4.2 billion deficit
by paying higher taxes, Comptroller Scott Stringer said Tuesday
New York City already holds the unfavorable distinction of being first in the nation for the highest combined burden of state and local income taxes,
at a total rate of 12.7 percent
A woman wearing a protective mask takes
a photo of a lion sculpture wearing a protective mask at the New York
Public Library's Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on Monday
In August he begged the rich to return to NYC and save the city
from economic ruin.
He also warned against tax hikes, saying it would likely lead the wealthy to permanently relocate elsewhere.
However, late last week he appeared to changed his
tune.
Cuomo said that if Washington fails to provide additional crisis funding to offset losses
incurred by the coronavirus pandemic, he will have no choice but to
increase the burden on New York's already heavily taxed residents.
'This will be a hole in the financial plan so large that it
will be impossible to fill,' Cuomo said Thursday
of the mounting debt.
'What would we do to try to fill it? Taxes, cuts, borrowing,
early retirements [of government workers]. All of the above.'
According to the governor, that scenario will not play out until others have been exhausted.
The ideal scenario would be for the federal government to provide relief, Cuomo
said, before adding that 'Washington is doing absolutely nothing.'
The second-best option would be for the US government to increase taxes nationwide, so that New York is not put at a competitive disadvantage when compared to other states
and cities, the Democratic governor added.
New York City already holds the unfavorable distinction of being first in the nation for
the highest combined burden of state and local income taxes, at a total
rate of 12.7 percent, according to Tax Foundation.
That works out to be an average annual hit of $2,877,
the foundation said.
And only last month, the American Legislative Exchange Council ranked
New York State's economic outlook as the worst in the country for the seventh year in a row, mainly on account of its burdensome
taxes.
Governor Andrew Cuomo issued a desperate plea urging the richest residents to return to the city to help save it
from economic ruin
Cuomo's new threats to raise taxes comes as a stark reversal on his previous warning that such a motion would put New
York at a competitive disadvantage without states and lead to an exodus among high
earners
The governor has projected a deficit of $30 billion in the
state over the next two years, due to the deadly impact of
COVID-19
Cuomo's new threats to raise taxes comes as a stark reversal on his previous
warning that such a motion would put New York at a competitive disadvantage with other states and lead to
an exodus among high earners.
New Yorkers have been leaving the city in droves since the pandemic began. Between March
1 and May 1, more than 420,000 fled, many of whom resided in the
city's richest neighborhoods, including SoHo, and the
Upper East Side.
By the end of June more than 16,000 New Yorkers had permanently changed their
address from NYC to a Connecticut address.
In the months since, others have fled to Vermont, Idaho and Ohio in abundance in search of pastures new.
The moves away were driven, in part, by an increased fear of living in densely populated cities amid the
pandemic.
But in addition to grappling COVID-19, New York City in particular has also struggled with escalating
crime and homelessness in recent months, with encampments taking
over affluent areas of the city, including Chelsea and the West Village.
The city's up-scale Upper West Side neighborhood experienced an exodus of its own across August, with dozens of moving trucks seen lining residential streets and long-lines forming outside
of U-Haul stations.
The exit came in response to a surge in crime, random violence,
drug use, public urination and open prostitution following City Council's decision to move thousands of homeless people into boutique hotels in the area
to try and stop the virus spreading.
In addition to grappling COVID-19, New York City in particular has also struggled with escalating crime and
homelessness in recent months
Homeless encampments have been seen cropping up across the city, often in affluent areas (Pictured: homeless encampment can be
seen along West 38th Street between 9th and 10th Avenue in Manhattan)
A group of presumably homeless people pass around a bottle of alcohol out in the
open at the corner of W79th Street and Broadway in the Upper
West Side earlier this month
A homeless man sleeps on a chair at the corner of W80th Street
and Broadway in the Upper West Side earlier this month
Following a public outcry, and threats of legal action, the city has since placed the scheme on hold.
The city's Midtown region has also been left virtually deserted since the beginning of
the coronavirus outbreak, as companies have shifted to work from home models.
So far, less than 10 percent of NYC's office employees have returned to public workspaces, posing yet another threat to the city's financial health - as office buildings account
for almost 10 per cent of total annual revenue.
The loss in revenue, officials have warned, would cause a ruinous fallout.
Amid the unrest, Cuomo has projected a statewide deficit
of $30 billion in the over the next two years, due to the
deadly impact of COVID-19.
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Mayor Bill de Blasio will furlough himself and up to 500 of
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