De Blasio in Albany (photo: Rachel Silberstein/Gotham Gazette)
Mayor Bill de Blasio journeyed to Albany Wednesday to rally with Democratic legislators and activists for the extension of the “millionaires’ tax,” set to expire this year, as well as the “mansion tax,” a proposal the mayor has been pushing since 2015. De Blasio and his allies called for both to be part of the new state budget due by April 1.
Citing the threats of deep federal budget cuts from President Donald Trump’s administration and a Republican Congress and the likelihood of tax cuts for the wealthy, de Blasio struck a populist tone as he pushed for the two taxes. The millionaires’ tax would continue across the state and is being backed strongly by Governor Andrew Cuomo, while the mansion tax would only apply to New York City: an additional 2.5 percent marginal tax paid by the buyers of homes valued at $2 million or more, the revenue from which would directly fund rental subsidies for up to 25,000 seniors in New York City. Cuomo has not given a clear position on the mansion tax.
When he spoke from the steps of the State Capitol’s historic “Million Dollar Staircase,” de Blasio was flanked by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and surrounded by dozens of Democratic lawmakers and advocates. The mayor said that the 2016 presidential election centered around issues of income inequality and the plight of the working class. However, he noted, the young Trump administration has responded with proposed tax cuts for the wealthy, corporations, and insurance companies.
“There is an anger in this country and anger in this state as people feel they are being lied to. They thought they were going to get some relief from their economic distress,” said de Blasio. “What they are finding is quite the opposite, that the rich are getting richer.”
Funds generated by the mansion tax, which has a steep road to passage through the Republican-controlled state Senate, would be earmarked for seniors 62-years-old and older who earn less than $50,000 per year. Citing recent sales data, the de Blasio administration says the policy would affect the top 4,500 residential real estate transactions in the upcoming year and generate approximately $336 million in 2018.
The millionaires’ tax requires anyone earning more than $2.1 million a year to pay a state rate of 8.82 percent, rather than 6.85 percent, as is the rate for those making $40,000 per year. Gov. Cuomo has included a three-year extension of the sunsetting tax in his executive budget. In their one-house budget resolutions, the two legislative majorities took very different stances on the millionaires’ tax. Senate Republicans want to see the tax expire.
The Assembly majority on the other hand, proposes an expansion of the current millionaires’ tax with additional tax brackets for the mega wealthy who earn more than $5 million, $10 million, and $100 million a year. The Assembly budget resolution also included the mansion tax that de Blasio wants, with the chamber’s bill sponsored by Brooklyn Assemblymember Steven Cymbrowitz, who chairs the housing committee.
Speaker Heastie called the tax plan “fiscally and socially responsible.” "A tax for New York City’s highest earners to help fund critical services like education, healthcare, and infrastructure,” Heastie said, “is more important than ever as we are starting to see the true devastating effects of the radical leadership in our new federal government.”
Cuomo, who wields significant influence in the deliberations over the state budget, made no mention of the mansion tax in his executive budget plan, and though he wants to extend the millionaires’ tax, he has expressed concern that expanding it as the Assembly has proposed could drive New York City’s wealthiest from the city.
“People will take a certain amount of abuse and then there is a point,” Cuomo said during a meeting with the New York Daily News editorial board. “The question is, what is that point? Nobody knows for sure, but you don’t want to reach that point.”
Prospects for de Blasio’s mansion tax appear grim without the support of the governor, and given fierce opposition from Senate Republicans -- Majority Leader John Flanagan has declared the mansion tax a “non-starter.”
Yet, de Blasio offered a series of points in arguing that the mansion tax is very much alive in the final week of budget negotiations.
At a press appearance after the rally, de Blasio said he is confident support from civil rights groups and senior organizations like the AARP will have a mobilizing effect on the governor and Legislature. “AARP has enormous power to influence people on both sides of the aisle,” he said.
Addressing naysayers, de Blasio reminded reporters that people used terms like “dead on arrival” about other progressive policy measures he’s championed in Albany, such as the city’s universal pre-kindergarten program, a $15 minimum wage, and paid family leave, each of which was passed in some form.
De Blasio also revealed that a Senate version of the mansion tax bill would be introduced by Senator Diane Savino, a member of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) whose district includes a sliver of southern Brooklyn and parts of Staten Island. “We think with her leadership, that will help us to draw more support in the Senate and continue this momentum,” de Blasio told reporters.
The eight-member IDC has a coalition agreement with Senate Republicans and the IDC is often able to push through its pet agenda items because of the leverage it has with the majority.
When asked how she would get the GOP conference on board with the mansion tax, Savino said via email, "Like all legislation that I carry, I plan to lobby my colleagues on the mansion tax which could bring needed revenue to the city."
Senate Republicans, who cling to a sliver of a majority in the chamber, appeared to be unmoved by the groundswell.
Senate GOP spokesperson Scott Reif did not respond to a request for comment but tweeted at a Politico reporter Wednesday morning, writing, “Appreciate that @BilldeBlasio can still find his way to Albany, but this idea has already been rejected.”
Later, Reif added in response to a Gotham Gazette reporter, “We support cutting taxes, not raising them.”
Cuomo was in New York City during the Wednesday rally for the funeral of legendary New York Daily News journalist Jimmy Breslin. While Cuomo and de Blasio are engaged in a long-running feud, de Blasio acknowledged that he needs the backing of the governor to get the mansion tax passed. De Blasio urged Cuomo to consider the senior citizens who stand benefit from the rental subsidy the tax would fund.
“I want the governor and everyone else to remember this is to benefit 25,000 seniors,” de Blasio said. “We need the Governor’s support. There are a lot of seniors depending on him. And look, the voices of seniors are going to be felt. And I know in terms of the New York City Senate delegation, they are all going to hear from AARP. They are all going to hear the strong voices of seniors on this matter...I think that is going to be a game-changer.”
The expansion of the millionaires’ tax and creation of a mansion tax would signal wins for the first-term mayor, who is up for reelection this November. De Blasio, who has been talking up the mansion tax since 2015, again laid out his case last week while on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show, putting it into the larger context of his fight against inequality, especially in the Trump era.
“That is the kind of thing – bluntly – that we’re going to have to do. And if we don’t start addressing this reality of a growing senior population needs affordable housing we will rue the day, and the way we do that is by taxing the wealthy in fair ways and devoting those resources to senior housing,” de Blasio said in the March 10 radio interview.
On Thursday, de Blasio is scheduled to be back in New York City, visiting two senior centers to promote the mansion tax proposal.
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by Rachel Silberstein, State government reporter, Gotham Gazette
@RachelSilby @GothamGazette
Marjorie Velazquez (photo: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)
In a February special election, Harlemites voted then-state Senator Bill Perkins to fill a City Council seat vacated by Inez Dickens, who had been previously elected to the state Assembly. Heading toward the regularly-scheduled September primary elections and November general, there are now seven “open” City Council seats in the 51-seat body. These are seats in which the current occupants are term-limited and unable to run for reelection.
Council Members Rosie Mendez (District 2), Dan Garodnick (District 4), Melissa Mark-Viverito (District 8), James Vacca (District 13), Annabel Palma (District 18), Darlene Mealy (District 41), and Vincent Gentile (District 43) will be replaced by fresh faces in the chamber at the beginning of next year. (Mark-Viverito is also the Speaker of the Council; the new class of Council members will select her successor in January.) There may also be several other competitive Council races where an incumbent is being challenged, either in the primary or the general. But, most of the competition will certainly come in the seven “open” seats.
Additionally, the primaries - in almost all cases the definitive contest in the seven largely Democratic seats up for grabs - loom in less than six months. As the races progress, there are few clear metrics by which to assess them. Along with things like endorsements from political clubs, unions, advocacy groups, and elected officials, fundraising numbers can give some indication of how well a candidate is doing in drumming up support and how able a campaign will be to execute its game plan to entice a winning number of votes.
While money certainly isn’t everything, it can and does help candidates to pay staff, rent office space, send communications to potential voters, and more. The city also has a renowned public campaign finance system where small donations are matched 6-to-1 with public dollars, allowing candidates who raise a fairly modest amount of money to compete.
In January, Gotham Gazette reported on the money race in the seven “open” seats and the District 9 special election. Now, a more recent deadline has passed, making filings with the New York City Campaign Finance Board available for the latest disclosure period, January 11 to March 11, and the entirety of the campaign in sum.
Council District 2, Lower East Side of Manhattan
Carlina Rivera, a district leader and legislative director for Council Member Mendez, continues to lead the money race in District 2, having raised $16,335 in the last period for total of $93,460 in contributions. She has spent $25,600, leaving her with an estimated $67,859 on hand. Rivera was recently endorsed by the Progressive Caucus Alliance, the political arm of the Council’s Progressive Caucus, after receiving the endorsement of Make the Road Action. Mendez has also endorsed Rivera to replace her.
Attorney and Community Board 6 member Mary Silver raised over $20,000 this period for a total of $59,681 in contributions. She’s spent $11,308, leaving an estimated $48,373 in her campaign coffer. Ronnie Cho, who did not previously file a financial disclosure, has raised $25,955, 83% of which came from donors based outside the city.
Council District 4, East Side of Manhattan
District 4 features a crowded field of seven active campaigns. Community Board 5 member Marti Speranza remains the money leader, although her campaign does not appear to have raised any additional money in the latest filing period. In fact, her contribution total is slightly down, from $175,961 to $174,266, seemingly due to a refund being issued. She has spent $53,931 in total, leaving her with a balance just over $120,000. Slightly more than 50% of Speranza’s total contributions have come from donors outside the city.
Keith Powers raised an additional $13,235 this period, for a total of $94,720 in contributions, and has spent a total of $25,489, putting him at just under $70,000 in available funds. Bessie Schachter raised an additional $14,754 to reach $38,696 in contributions and is left with $33,902. Jeffrey Mailman raised an additional $7,270 for a total of $42,545 in contributions and retains $38,580.
Sitting Council Member Dan Garodnick has not endorsed in the race.
Council District 8, East Harlem and part of the South Bronx
The field in the District 8 race remains the same four candidates that filed disclosures in the previous period. Diana Ayala, Speaker Mark-Viverito’s deputy chief of staff and endorsed successor, is still the funding frontrunner, with $11,728 in new contributions bringing her total to $37,911 in private funds. Ayala’s expenditures have been $3,075, leaving her $34,836 in remaining funds. She was also endorsed by the Progressive Caucus Alliance and Make the Road Action.
Community Board 11 member and Department of Education employee Ed Santos raised a similar amount, $11,300, but added that to existing funds of only $2,880, leaving him with $12,328 after expenditures of $1,852.
Council District 13, Eastern Bronx
The District 13 race continues to be a competitive, big-money contest, with contribution totals exceeding $410,000. The lion’s share goes to State Assemblymember Mark Gjonaj, who has raised over $110,000 in the last period for a total of $217,535 in contributions. He has spent over $55,000 in that period, reaching $74,828 in total expenditures and leaving him with $142,707 in remaining funds. Just over 51%, or $111,401, of his total contributions come from donors outside of the city. It does not appear that Gjonaj will be participating in the city’s matching funds program, a move that both eliminates the additional potential funds to his campaign but also the spending limits that come with the program.
Gjonaj is currently the only state legislator declared in the seven “open” seats, though several others are said to be considering runs. Senator Perkins was just victorious in the special CD9 race, of course, beginning what is becoming a typical exodus of state lawmakers to the City Council during an election year.
Meanwhile, in CD13, Democratic District Leader Marjorie Velazquez raised an additional $5,348 for a total of $70,063 in contributions and has about $60,000 left. She was endorsed by outgoing Council Member Vacca, the Progressive Caucus Alliance, and Make the Road Action.
John Doyle, former Community Affairs Director for State Senator Jeff Klein, has raised $64,995 and had $44,963 on hand at the mid-March filing. John Marano, vice chair of Community Board 10, has raised $39,830 and a balance of $33,182.
The lone Republican declared in the race, John Cerini, is watching the Democratic primary play out and had $11,671 in his account as of the most recent filing.
Council District 18, Southeast Bronx
District 18 continues to be a relatively low-dollar campaign, with only two candidates breaking triple-digit contribution totals. Elvin Garcia, the former Bronx borough director for Mayor Bill de Blasio’s community affairs unit, raised almost $13,000 in the last filing period to hit a total of $46,155 in contributions, and has spent $4,794. In a fundraising email, Garcia thanked his supporters for helping his campaign “over-perform once again.”
Amanda Farias, former manager of the Council’s Women’s Caucus, raised $5,168 in the last period to reach $20,775 in contributions, and keeps $19,667 on hand.
Outgoing Council Member Annabel Palma has thus far withheld her endorsement. Many are waiting to see if State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. enters the CD18 race.
Council District 41, Central Brooklyn
The contours of the District 41 race have changed substantial in the last filing period. Alicka Ampry-Samuel, chief of staff to Assembly Member Latrice Walker, who had not even previously filed a disclosure form, is now the fundraising leader. She has raised $27,520 in contributions and made a $15,000 loan to her campaign, bringing her private funds to $42,520, of which she has only spent $799. Ampry-Samuel has also been endorsed by Make the Road Action, the political arm of a community group that can be helpful with getting out the vote.
Second in funds is Henry Butler, the district manager of Community Board 3, who was also not in the last filing. He raised $20,335 and spent $1,795, leaving him with $18,540 in the war chest.
Moreen King raised an additional $2,040 in contributions and made $10,000 in loans to her campaign, bringing her total private funds to $14,040, of which she retains $10,993. Previous frontrunner Deidre Olivera has raised a total of $10,684 and spent $7,277, leaving her with $3,465.
And, Kathleen Daniel, who has the endorsement of current officeholder Darlene Mealy, has raised a total of $3,153; she has spent $59.
Council District 43, Southern Brooklyn
This southern Brooklyn race similarly features a new money leader, albeit by a slight margin: Khader El-Yateem, the Palestinian-American pastor of Salam Arabic Lutheran Church, who did not file a previous disclosure. He has raised $81,611 and spent $4,196, keeping $77,415. In a statement, El-Yateem said that the money was raised “without the support of PACs, special interest groups, or big corporations” and described himself as “an immigrant, a man of faith, and a political outsider.”
Justin Brannan, communications director for Council Member Gentile, who is leaving the seat, raised $16,045 over the last period for a total of $73,430 in contributions, and has almost $68,000 to spend. In a statement, Brannan said that his campaign “[leads] the pack in grassroots, publicly-funded campaigning, and that is just the kind of support that Brooklyn should see from its candidates."
The race features viable Republicans, including new candidate John Quaglione, deputy chief of staff to State Senator Marty Golden, who raised $41,901 and spent $5,788. As evidenced by Golden, the area is one of few in the city where Republicans can win, even though it is home to a Democratic majority of voters like almost all of the city's Council districts.
Another Republican, Liam McCabe, a former aide to U.S. Rep. Dan Donovan who did not previously have campaign funds, raised $45,420 and spent $8,831.
Republican Robert Capano and Democrat Kevin Peter Carroll have each raised about $26,500 in total, though Capano has spent $10,369 and Carroll just $232.
CD43 is another where there is a looming state legislator who may run: Assembly Member Peter Abbate has been rumored to be considering a Council bid.
For Abbate, other state legislators, or anyone else considering a Council run this year, time is running thin to declare one’s candidacy.
The next campaign finance filing deadline is May 11.
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by Felipe De La Hoz, Gotham Gazette
@FelipeDLH @GothamGazette
Note: this article has been corrected to include Kathleen Daniel in the CD41 race and the fact that current Council Member Darlene Mealy is supporting Daniel's candidacy.
Mayor de Blasio (Photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)
Federal and state prosecutors, who had for the last year been investigating the fundraising activities of Mayor Bill de Blasio and his associates, announced on Thursday that they would not be bringing any criminal charges in the two parallel investigations.
The mayor and his aides had been the subject of two probes -- a federal investigation into allegations of quid pro quo in their fundraising for his 2013 campaign and the Campaign for One New York, the mayor’s now-defunct nonprofit, from donors who have business with the city; and a second investigation into the alleged funneling of donations to state Senate Democratic candidates in 2014. The mayor maintained throughout that he and his team had sought and followed the appropriate legal guidance and that they would eventually be vindicated.
On Thursday, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Joon H. Kim, ended any speculation by announcing that his office would not be handing down indictments in the federal case. “After careful deliberation, given the totality of the circumstances here and absent additional evidence, we do not intend to bring federal criminal charges against the Mayor or those acting on his behalf relating to the fundraising efforts in question,” said U.S. Attorney Kim, in a public statement, noting the high burden of proof in public corruption cases and “the particular difficulty in proving criminal intent in corruption schemes where there is no evidence of personal profit.”
[Related: Supreme Court Ruling May Help De Blasio Avoid Charges]
Kim also noted that Thursday’s announcement was an uncommon move by his office but one necessitated by the upcoming municipal election. “Although it is rare that we issue a public statement about the status of an investigation,” his statement read, “we believe it appropriate in this case at this time, in order not to unduly influence the upcoming campaign and Mayoral election.”
On WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show on Thursday, soon after the announcement, according to the New York Times, de Blasio said, “I’ll just say simply it’s been basically a year, I’ve said consistently that we acted appropriately. This confirms what I’ve been saying and what all my colleagues have been saying.”
But, the decisions by prosecutors did not let the mayor completely off the hook. Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, whose office was conducting the state investigation, said that he could not bring criminal charges, but he didn’t stop there. In a 10-page letter to the Board of Elections enforcement counsel Risa Sugarman, who made the original referral for criminal prosecution in the senate fundraising case, Vance wrote, “After an extensive investigation, notwithstanding the BOE’s view that the conduct here may have violated the Election Law, this office has determined that the parties involved cannot be appropriately prosecuted, given their reliance on the advice of counsel.”
Vance emphasized that the lack of an indictment did not mean an endorsement of the mayor and his aides’ behavior, which he said violated the spirit and intent of the campaign finance law and its contribution limits. He also said the relevant election law statutes were ambiguous, making enforcement a challenge, and made three recommendations to the BOE and the state Legislature to prevent similar misconduct in the future.
He noted that the BOE was not precluded from pursuing civil or regulatory action, that the Board should issue an advisory opinion to note which conduct is prohibited or allowed under the election law criminal statute, and that the Legislature should tighten the loopholes in the election law that undermine contribution limits.
De Blasio’s press secretary Eric Phillips, in a statement on Thursday, hailed the prosecutors’ announcement as vindication of the administration. “We have been confident from the moment these reviews began that the actions of the Mayor and our Administration have always been within the law,” Phillips said. “The United States Attorney and Manhattan District Attorney have now put to rest any suggestion otherwise. We thank these prosecutors’ offices for conducting what were clearly diligent and exhaustive reviews – and for making public the conclusions of these probes. New Yorkers deserve honest, progressive government. With this Mayor, they will always get it.”
The cloud of both investigations had hung over the de Blasio administration for months and the mayor’s opponents have been using them to criticize his management style and record, not to mention his personal and professional integrity. Those same opponents, some within his own party, had also been playing a game of wait-and-see with the two probes to decide if they would try to challenge him as he faces a reelection later this year.
Now, with the investigations having come to a close, it looks like mostly smooth sailing ahead for the mayor’s reelection campaign. Potential opponents are likely to be dissuaded to run against him and those who have often cited the investigations to condemn him will have little ammunition left after Thursday.
Comptroller Scott Stringer, a fellow Democrat but frequent critic of the mayor and one bigger name considering a mayoral run, said in a Thursday statement, "The outcome today is a positive one for the city, allowing the important work of our government to move forward without distraction. I imagine these investigations have been a long, difficult process for the Mayor and his staff. On a personal level, I'm very happy that they and their families can move on from this. And for our city, let’s focus like never before on tackling the important issues facing everyday New Yorkers.”
It is now exceedingly unlikely Stringer will challenge de Blasio. The same goes for other potential opponents like Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.
Another regular de Blasio critic, consultant Bradley Tusk, who has been trying to recruit Stringer or another Democrat to challenge the mayor, took sober stock in a statement. “Although the city deserves far better than this, the people best positioned to succeed in a Democratic primary are now unlikely to run, and we should therefore expect four more years of Bill de Blasio,” he wrote. “Perhaps going through multiple criminal investigations will lead the de Blasio team to treat both the law and the job more seriously going forward – and for the sake of all New Yorkers, we very much hope it does.”
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by Samar Khurshid, senior reporter, Gotham Gazette
@samarkhurshid @GothamGazette
Note: this article has been updated with comment from Comptroller Stringer.