Press and Sun Bulletin Editorial Sunday, March 3, 2002:
Gallagher: Where New York is headed
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| YANCEY ROY
New York Journal
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ALBANY -- If things continue the way they're going in New York, eventually ...
* Most TV stations will be all Gov. George E. Pataki all the time. During the Olympics he got almost as much face time as Bob Costas, courtesy of New York taxpayers.
Whether he's extolling the virtues of New York as a vacation spot or urging people to sign up for subsidized health insurance, as the November election approaches, he's likely to be on even more.
* We'll be paying corporations to open plants in New York, rather than making them pay taxes.
It seems that every locality in the state wants an economic-development zone in its area, which can totally wipe out taxes for companies that produce new jobs. The arms race to try to lure companies from out of state -- or either other parts of the state -- seems likely to keep escalating.
* Lobbyists will start to directly buy votes.
Now, lawmakers vote on issues in the afternoon and then host fund-raisers in the evening, sometimes literally across the street from the Capitol, where lobbyists who often had an interest in those bills write big checks for their campaign funds. The membrane between decision-making and fund-raising has never been narrower here.
* Legislative districts will be drawn by the political parties.
Now that's essentially what happens, with the majority parties calling the shots in each house to give themselves maximum advantage when the districts have to reconfigured to conform with population shifts. But there are all these annoying public hearings and comment periods and other formalities that have to be observed first.
* All state taxes will be eliminated and local governments will pay for everything.
We hear over and over how many times state taxes have been cut in the past few years but, funny thing, New Yorkers still pay the highest state and local taxes combined in the country.
This year, for example, the state plans to go ahead with $300 million in planned tax cuts despite its tight budget position. One of the ways to perform that alchemy is not to increase aid to schools, despite growing enrollment, crumbling buildings and higher standards. That typically means higher local taxes in wealthy school districts and fewer services in poorer ones.
* A pack of cigarettes will cost a day's pay.
The one tax that is politically correct to raise is the one levied on cigarettes. As Pataki once explained, raising the tax not only generates more money for the government to spend, but also discourages young people from starting to smoke.
The state tax this year is slated to go from $1.11 to $1.50 a pack, making it the tops in the country. In New York City, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has proposed a hike that will bring the cost of a pack there to $7.
* There will be some way to gamble on almost every block in the state.
What's the best way for the government to get more money to spend without raising taxes? Expand gambling.
Pataki and lawmakers last fall approved the establishment of six new gambling casinos as well as letting some race tracks install electronic slot machines and also having New York join a multi-state lottery.
The state is also considering increasing the number of bars and restaurants that can offer the Quick-Draw game from 3,000 to 5,000 and also letting the game be played for 18 hours a day instead of the current 13.
* The state will pile up debt higher than Mt. Marcy.
New York's $38 billion debt is the highest by far of any state, and it has increased by $10 billion since Pataki took over, going up during even flush times. Taxpayers shell out about $4 billion annually just to service the debt. The temptation to use the government equivalent of a credit card rather than cash is likely to grow in tough times.
All of these predictions are offered only for recreational purposes and should not be the basis of wagers (not to give the state any more revenue-raising ideas).
Gallagher covers state government and politics for Gannett News Service. Write to him c/o Press & Sun-Bulletin, P.O. Box 1270, Binghamton, N.Y. 13902-1270.
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