Studies continue to recognize New York as the state with the highest tax burden in the nation.
In April, for example, the personal finance website WalletHub compared the tax burden in all 50 states. According to the study, “To determine the residents with the biggest tax burdens, WalletHub compared the 50 states across the three types of state tax burdens — property taxes, individual income taxes and sales and excise taxes — as a share of total personal income in the state.”
You can find the results at https://wallethub.com/edu/
The overall bottom line is that New York’s state and local tax burden remains an unfair and unreasonable drain on the resources of individual taxpayers, families, farmers, employers and workers.
Let’s focus on farmers, so many of whom, particularly within the dairy industry, are fighting to just hang on.
Back in 2016, many of us voiced strong concerns over Governor Andrew Cuomo’s relentless, so-called progressive push to enact the state-imposed higher minimum wage ultimately approved as part of the 2016-17 state budget. We continually warned about the negative impact this higher wage would have on New York farms, small businesses, school districts, not-for-profits, human services providers and others. While our calls for caution went unheeded, one counteraction that we successfully achieved was the establishment of a Farm Workforce Retention Credit. This credit allows eligible farm employers to claim a refundable tax credit for each farm employee employed for 500 or more hours each year.
Last week, recognizing the constant need for state government to take actions trying to ensure that our farmers won’t be taxed and regulated out of business, the Senate approved legislation I co-sponsor to significantly increase the Farm Workforce Retention Credit. Under the legislation, the phased-in tax credit would double to $600 per eligible farm employee in 2018, $800 in 2019, $1000 in 2020, and $1,200 in 2021.
It’s a small action, granted, but at least it represents a move in a more positive direction. It would at least strengthen the bottom line. The Senate also approved legislation to:
Ø help some farmers invest in facilities and buy equipment by providing a tax credit for dairy farmers to encourage investment in facilities and equipment that will allow them to take advantage of a growing demand for “value-added” dairy products, like flavored drinks, yogurts, and other products; and
- Ø lessen the burden on small farm goods transportation by creating a 10% discount on New York State Thruway tolls for trucks transporting food produced by farms. The legislation would help farmers struggling with rising costs by allowing single unit trucks or other larger vehicles to transport food and other produce to grocery stores and dinner tables across the state at a lower cost.
The moves are among the latest efforts by the Senate Majority to stay focused on keeping key state and regional industries strong. Since 2011, including this year, we have withstood Governor Cuomo’s repeated attempts to cut farm-related programs and services, and restored more than $68 million for agricultural-based initiatives and investments in cutting-edge agricultural research, support for the next generation of family farmers, environmental stewardship, and protections for plant, animal, and public health.
These proven priorities have earned our continued support. We cannot let an ongoing commitment to a strong New York State agricultural industry get lost in the increasingly frantic shuffling of state government priorities underway in Albany at the moment.
We can’t, and we won’t.
