Search
Showing 21 - 40 of 43
Blog
City Budget
The End of The Retiree Trust Fund
July 22, 2013
Tthe Financial Control Board (FCB) certified New York City’s Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2014 is balanced. As the FCB mentions in its report, the 2014 budget is balanced with $2.8 billion in surplus funds from fiscal year 2013 and $1 billion withdrawn from the Retiree Health Benefits Insurance Trust Fund.
Report
Public Workforce
7 Things New Yorkers Should Know About Municipal Labor Contracts
May 19, 2013
This brief lists seven things New Yorkers should know about New York City collective bargaining and labor relations.
Blog
City Budget
The Giant Slice: Legacy Costs in the New York City Budget
May 09, 2013
“Legacy costs” will claim almost 25 percent of the budget by fiscal year 2015 – leaving fewer dollars for other budget priorities.
Video
Pensions & Benefits
Deputy Mayor Caswell Holloway
CBC Breakfast Series
April 17, 2013
CBC Breakfast with NYC Deputy Mayor Caswell Holloway in April 2013.
Blog
Taxes
A Disappointing Tax Deal
March 20, 2013
The NYS Enacted FY2014 Budget includes an extension of a personal income tax surcharge that is disappointing and should be reconsidered.
Blog
Pensions & Benefits
A Busy Day in Albany
February 19, 2013
Eight bills introduced in the NYS Assembly enhance pension benefits of public employees and retirees. These bills would add at least $1.35 billion in costs to State and local employers.
Report
Pensions & Benefits
Everybody’s Doing It
Health Insurance Premium-Sharing by Employees and Retirees in the Public and Private Sectors
January 27, 2013
This report analyzes New York City’s health premium policies for employees and retirees and suggests options to generate savings by implementing premium-sharing in the City's largest plans.
Testimony
State Budget
Testimony on Improving the State Budgetary Process
Delivered to the Select Committee on Budget and Tax Reform
December 17, 2009
In this testimony the CBC assesses the effectiveness of provisions in the New York State Budget Reform Act of 2007 and makes additional recommendations for improving transparency, forecasting, and flexibility.
Report
Pensions & Benefits
Out of Balance
A Comparison of Public and Private Employee Benefits in New York City
December 16, 2009
The CBC and the Partnership for New York City surveyed large private firms in New York City to provide a basis for comparing the health insurance and pension benefits of private sector workers with those of municipal employees.
Letter
Pensions & Benefits
CBC Commends Legislators Who Voted Against Postponing Pension Contributions
July 14, 2009
CBC commends legislators for voting against A9037/S52204, a bill that would have allowed state and local governments to postpone paying the full required annual contributions to their employee pension funds.
Report
Pensions & Benefits
2009 Benefits Sweetener Scorecard
June 02, 2009
The 2009 edition of the scorecard developed by the CBC that highlights legislative activity related to pension costs. The scorecard will track the introduction, progress, and sponsors of legislation designed to sweeten existing pension benefits of government employees, as well as any pension reform efforts to reduce future pension liabilities.
Letter
Pensions & Benefits
CBC Encourages Legislatures to Avoid Pension Sweetener Legislation
June 02, 2009
This letter notifies the Legislature that the CBC has issued a "Pension Sweetener Scorecard" that tracks legislative and gubernatorial actions regarding pension benefits and highlights those actions for the media and the public. These sweeteners are often enacted over the objections of elected heads of local governments and always at the expense of taxpayers.
Letter
Pensions & Benefits
CBC Urges the Governor to Veto a Benefit Sweetener for Police and Firefighters
May 29, 2009
This letter from the CBC urges the Governor to veto A3426/S1409, a bill that would extend Tier II provisions to all police officers and firefighters who join a public retirement system on or after July 1, 2009 to July 1, 2011.
Letter
Pensions & Benefits
CBC Urges Governor Paterson to Veto Costly Mandate for Retired Teachers
May 12, 2009
This letter from the CBC urges the Governor to veto A4628, a bill that would renew the provision that prohibits school districts from reducing the health insurance benefits offered to retirees unless the changes are approved by the local teachers union.
Report
Pensions & Benefits
The Explosion in Pension Costs
10 Things New Yorkers Should Know About Retirement Benefits for New York City Employees
April 06, 2009
In recent years, one of the fastest growing expenses for New York City government has been retirement benefits for municipal workers. This growth is driven mainly by investment losses in the pension funds and the enrichment of retirement benefits. As New York taxpayers have a critical interest in understanding the reasons behind the explosion in retirement benefit costs and what can be done to limit future liabilities, this report summarizes 10 facts about retirement benefits for New York employees.
Testimony
Taxes
Testimony on NY State Tax System
Delivered to the Senate Committee on Budget and Tax Reform
March 12, 2009
This testimony emphasizes two key points about New York’s personal income tax (PIT) and offers a framework for thinking about tax reform in the current fiscal context: 1) New York’s PIT is progressive, but its overall tax structure is not; and 2) New York’s economic competitiveness should be an important factor in considering changes to its tax rates.
Letter
State Budget
10 Do's and Don'ts for Spending the Federal Stimulus Funds
February 25, 2009
This letter to the Legislature warns that the federal aid to New York is limited and temporary, suggests ten do’s and don’ts for using the federal funds and closing the budget gap while avoiding harmful cuts and tax increases, and highlights possible allocation of the funds.
Letter
State Budget
Recommendations for FY 2009-2010 State Budget
February 02, 2009
This letter to the state legislature suggests two strategic directions to guide budget policy and offers a roadmap that avoids harmful tax increases and makes spending better serve New Yorkers by suggesting reforms in five key areas: Medicaid, school aid, correctional facilities, public employee benefits, and programs like STAR and Empire Zones.
Report
Pensions & Benefits
Six-Figure Civil Servants
Average Compensation Cost Of New York City Public Employees
January 08, 2009
In fiscal year 2008, the average compensation cost per New York City full-time employee was $106,743; this figure represents a system out of sync with the private sector and an opportunity to limit the growth of the City’s liability in the future while continuing to provide fair and adequate compensation to the City’s employees. Three factors that have driven the growth in compensation among City employees are: 1) Pay increases are directly attributable to contract settlements with unions; 2) More generous terms of the health insurance benefits offered by the City, as compared to the private sector and other state and local governments; and 3) The benefit retirement plans offered by the City that lock in the City’s future payouts to retirees based on the employee’s pay, years of employment and age at retirement among other factors. CBC offers three recommendations in response to these factors.
Report
Taxes
Local Taxes in New York State
Easing the Burden
December 06, 2007
A background paper for the third session of a 2007 stakeholder conference to “fix Albany.” The process by which the next budget is prepared and debated, as well as the substantive decisions it embodies, are critical to the movement for political and fiscal reform in New York State. This paper focuses on a more equitable and affordable local tax burden.