Archives of the Mayor's Press Office
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Wednesday, March 10, 1999
Release #074-99
Contact: Colleen Roche/Curt Ritter (212) 788-2958
MAYOR GIULIANI ANNOUNCES MEMBERS OF THE
MAYORAL TASK FORCE ON TAX REDUCTION AND RESTRUCTURING
Task Force Will Study Ways To Reduce Taxes For All New Yorkers
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today announced the members of his Mayoral Task Force
on Tax Reduction and Restructuring, whose goal will be to study ways of streamlining
the number of taxes levied on businesses and individuals and to make the tax structure
in New York City and New York State more competitive with other large cities.
John Dyson, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, will chair the Task
Force, first announced by the Mayor during his State
of the City address in January. In addition, the Mayor has allocated $100
million in his Preliminary Fiscal Plan for 1999-2003 for the Task Force to develop
short-term tax reduction plans.
"Since 1994 we have saved New York City taxpayers over $2 billion and reduced taxes more than any administration in the history of the City," said Mayor Giuliani. "Last month in my preliminary Fiscal Plan I announced additional tax cuts that would bring the total value of our tax reduction program through 2003 to $10.4 billion. The Task Force will build on our past tax reduction accomplishments to ensure that this success continues for future generations."
The Task Force will:
- Scrutinize taxes and regulations to determine ways of reducing the number of taxes and creating a more transparent tax system, ending the era in which overall tax hikes were hidden in the sheer number of taxes and by a confusing tax structure;
- Systematically compare New York City's tax policies to tax policies of other cities to determine ways to make them more competitive so we can continue drawing a wide range of businesses to the City;
- Determine which tax cuts could actually recoup money for the City when reduced as eliminating the hotel occupancy tax has done;
- Consider proposing amendments to the City Charter that would limit taxes in the future, such as an amendment that would require a two-thirds majority vote in City Council to pass any tax increase.
"By rejecting the high-tax, anti-business philosophy that guided City government policies for a generation, our Administration has changed the direction of the City," the Mayor continued. "New York is now a pro-business and pro-opportunity City.
We are now aggressively seeking to acquire new businesses in addition to retaining the important private sector companies that already call New York City home. This new approach has helped us create over 300,000 new private sector jobs since 1993. The Task Force will study ways of condensing the number of taxes New Yorkers have to pay and will look at ways to make the tax structure in New York City and New York State more competitive with other large cities. I want to thank all of the members for taking time out of their busy schedules to participate on this Task Force to find further ways of providing tax-relief to thousands of New Yorkers."
While the Task Force is still in formation, current members include:
- Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors John Dyson
- Invemed Associates Inc. President Ken Langone
- DoubleClick Chief Executive Officer Kevin O'Connor
- Former Deputy Mayor Peter Powers
- Opportunity America President Richard Schwartz
- Hutton & Solomon Partner Steve Solomon
- Mendik & Co. Chairman Bernard Mendik
- Citigroup, Inc. Assistant General Counsel Anita Romero
- New York Bankers Association President Michael P. Smith
- Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Deborah C. Wright
- Bell Atlantic Group President Paul Crotty
- McDermott, Will & Emery Partner Peter Faber
- Real Estate Board of New York City President Steven Spinola
- Citicorp Inc. Chairman Emeritus Walter Wriston
- Morgan Stanley Managing Director Paula Dagen
- New York City Partnership President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Kiley
Federal Reserve Bank of New York City Senior Economist James Orr will serve as an Advisor to the Task Force and Bruce Bender, Chief of Staff to City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, will represent the City Council.
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