Cuomo: No 'reason or appetite' for income-tax change

ALBANY - Gov. Andrew Cuomo isn't interested in a push to boost taxes on the rich this year.

Last month, Assembly Democrats unveiled a plan to boost the tax rate for those who make more than $5 million a year, a change they say would put an extra $1 billion in the state coffers. The middle class would see a modest income-tax cut under the proposal.

Speaking to reporters Monday, Cuomo said there's little interest in changing the state's income-tax structure this year. A surcharge on the state's highest-earners isn't set to expire until next year.

"I don't believe there's any reason or appetite to take up taxes this year," Cuomo said.

The Assembly plan would extend the state's surcharge on high earners, which pushes the income-tax rate for those making more than $1 million to 8.82 percent. The proposal would add a new tax bracket for those making $5 million (9.32 percent) and those making more than $10 million (9.82 percent).

The Republican-led Senate, however, has been cool to the proposal.

Cuomo, meanwhile, also showed little interest in making any significant changes to one of his signature initiatives: the state's property-tax cap.

Under the current cap, local governments and school districts are limited to increasing their property-tax levy by 2 percent annually or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower. This year, schools are limited to a 0.12 percent increase because of slow growth in inflation.

School groups and Assembly Democrats want to eliminate the inflation provision and make the cap 2 percent outright.

When asked about the push, Cuomo said he hasn't discussed it with the Legislature. He pointed to the cap's override provision, which allows schools to override the cap with approval from 60 percent of budget voters.

"It has just gotten to a point where you have the highest property taxes in the United States," Cuomo said. "It's crushing upstate New York. And the point of the tax cap is you want to raise taxes, think twice."