State GOP Senate: Read Our Lips
Republicans in the state Senate said today they will oppose Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s proposal to increase the motor vehicle insurance fee from $5 to $20 on cars registered in New York.
Republicans seem to have found their war cry for this year’s elections: Oppose all new taxes and fees.
Already, the GOP is opposing an Assembly plan to increase income taxes on the rich. They are, however, joined by Spitzer on that one. Spitzer has said he will oppose any new taxes.
But the Republican senators, who hold just a one-seat majority in the Senate, are also taking aim at about $1.7 billion in new fees and “loophole” closers that Spitzer wants to enact to increase state revenue. They say the measure equates to a tax increase, yet they haven’t laid out how they would close the state’s $4.6 billion budget gap without it.
Still, they are starting their fight over what they’ve labeled the “Spitzer Car Tax.”
The car insurance fee is collected annually from for each insured motor vehicle. The fee was increased from $1 to $5 in 2003, Senate Republicans said. It has been scheduled under current law to be reduced to $1 on July 1.
“Upstate New York’s drivers represent 32 percent of New York’s population and 44 percent of New York’s drivers,” said Sen. Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, who heads the Senate Transportation Committee. “This is clearly a misguided tax on upstate that hardworking New Yorkers can’t afford.”
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Joe, you’re a good kid… good reporter, but come on…
“Already, the GOP is opposing an Assembly plan to increase income taxes on the rich.”
What’s rich? A better statement would have been, “Already, the GOP is opposing an Assembly plan to increase income taxes on those earning more than $....”
Learn to not parrot press releases, it’ll be good for you in the long-run.
No to a car tax, no to toll hikes on the NYS Thruway, no to personal income tax hikes, but YES to congestion pricing (=tax)? Get rid of Bloomy’s traffic tax and then the Senate Majority is doing its job right. Consistency is key in politics, and a good policy to boot if the Senate Majority hopes to resonate at all with New York State voters this November.
Bloomy has given Bruno & Company 1 million dollars since last year. As recently as last week he gave them $500,000.
How do you think they are going to vote?
Meaning yes on “Congestive Pricing” (Above comment)
Congestion Pricing = Another Taxation on the Middle Class
Don’t let these New York Pols fool you. They want MORE of your money to spend on silly wastfeul projests.
Congestive pricing is just ANOTHER form of a Taxation!
These Tax & Spend Liberals just want to dip into the pockets of the Middle Class Commuters to grab another $2,000 per year!
The same group of Liberal Politicians who promised the tolls would be removed from the bridges once they have been paid off (Varazzano come to mind?)
No matter what “Spin” they tell you, these politicians are trying to Please their Upper Westside & Eastside Liberal pals and find money to spend at the same time.
Congestion Pricing = Another Taxation on the Middle Class
But Steve, press-release journalism is so much easier than applying critical thinking skills and making an effort to identify, and then set aside, one’s biases. And does anybody rationally doubt that the vast majority of the working press around here are sympathetic to class-warfare politics, like calls to “tax the rich”?