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Report
Education
More Money, Little Accountability
New York Continues to Increase State School Aid
October 03, 2022
New York State’s schools spend nearly twice the national average per student, without delivering above-average results in achievement.
Report
Economic Development
Improving New York City’s Land Use Decision-Making Process
September 06, 2022
This report examines and identifies why New York’s land use decision-making process impedes action to address New York’s needs and recommends improvements.
Report
Transportation
Prioritizing the MTA's Critical Capital Needs
What to Do When You Can’t Do It All
August 23, 2022
The MTA has significant needs for capital investment, from signal modernization and track improvements to new subway and train cars to making stations across the system accessible.
Statement
Transportation
Statement on the Empire State Development General Project Plan and Letter of Mutual Agreement with the City for the Penn Station Area Civic and Land Use Improvement Project
July 26, 2022
Catalyzing development in the Penn Station district and renovating the station itself should help New York’s competitiveness and enable future growth.
Statement
Transportation
Statement on NYC Ferry Forward Plan
July 14, 2022
The Adams Administration plans to take some important, positive steps to improve the finances and transparency of NYC Ferry.
Statement
State Budget
Statement on Economic Development Database and Film Tax Credit in the Fiscal Year 2023 Enacted Budget
April 08, 2022
For too long New York has been a leader in economic development spending, but not a leader in economic development program results.
Report
Economic Development
Determining an Appropriate Buffalo Stadium Subsidy
Don't Just Wing It
March 21, 2022
New York does not have a good track record of demonstrating that its economic development programs yield benefits exceeding their costs.
Statement
Taxes
Statement Regarding the New York State Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Taxes
February 16, 2022
The enacted State budget should allow the business tax increase to sunset and should restrain spending to allow the personal income tax increase to sunset sooner or at least as scheduled.
Statement
Economic Development
Statement Regarding the New York State Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Economic Development
February 16, 2022
Without improvements in the State’s allocation decisions, oversight and reporting, and evaluation, New Yorkers are unlikely to get the value and economic impact they deserve.
Report
Transportation
Recessions and Revenues
The Case of the MTA
December 16, 2015
This policy brief considers the implications of a recession for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) current financial plan.
Report
Public Workforce
Twenty Years Later
Integrating Services In The New York City Fire Department
December 09, 2015
The FDNY responds to more more medical emergencies than fires. The department needs a fundamental transformation.
Report
Economic Development
An Assessment of Performance Reporting by Regional Economic Development Councils
November 29, 2015
This brief assesses the performance of New York State's Regional Economic Development Councils over the past four years and offers recommendations for further improving data collected on projects and on the economic performance of the regions.
Statement
Transportation
Statement on MTA Funding Agreement
October 09, 2015
The announcement of an agreement for funding the MTA’s 2015-2019 capital plan is an important step in maintaining and enhancing the region’s most vital transportation assets. However, additional steps must be taken.
Report
Transportation
Taxis, Taxes, and the MTA Funding Gap
August 25, 2015
This policy brief suggests alternatives for taxes on services regulated by New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission as a potential source of filling the gap in the MTA's proposed 2015-2019 capital plan.
Report
Economic Development
Bigger Not Better
New York’s Expanding Economic Development Programs
February 18, 2015
Although some modest reforms have been made, many economic development programs have grown significantly without the improvements needed to address widely noted shortcomings.
Report
Capital Spending
How Public-Private Partnerships Can Help New York Address Its Infrastructure Needs
December 11, 2008
This report explores the application of public-private partnership (PPPs) in New York by explaining its definition of such a relationship and offering in-depth guidelines, potential applications (including highway bridges, New York City school buildings, New York City parks, and higher education facilities), examples on a global, national, and local level, and potential missteps and cautions.
Report
Economic Development
It's Time to End New York State's Empire Zone Program
December 02, 2008
The Economic Development Zone program has become a vehicle for giving tax breaks to a variety of corporations with no clear, consistent, verifiable justification for the public investment. This report describes the benefits enjoyed by participating firms and how those benefits are distributed among economic regions of the State and types of firms; identifies and elaborates on the three serious problems that compromise the program’s efficacy; and asserts that the Empire Zone program cannot be fixed, citing past failures to do so, and should end.
Report
Taxes
The Citizens Budget Commission Review of Circuit Breakers
February 04, 2008
CBC recently looked at the option of expanding New York’s existing circuit breaker program to provide targeted relief to the neediest taxpayers as background for a forum on local tax relief convened on December 6, 2007. Based on that review of options the following points, outlined in this report, can be highlighted: 1) Circuit breakers are common; 2) New York’s circuit breaker needs reform; and 3) The poorly crafted School Tax Relief Program (STAR) would work better as a circuit breaker.
Report
State Budget
New York's Endangered Future
Debt Beyond Our Means
September 21, 2005
New York State's debt obligations will require current and future taxpayers to bear a burden that creates a competitive disadvantage with the other states. The core issue is that New York has no effective legal limits on the amount of debt it can assume. CBC advocates for short-run and long-run measures; in the near term, voters should reject bond referendums such as the Transportation Bond Act of 2005 until debt is brought under control, and in the long-run the State must strike a balance between adequate infrastructure investment and a competitive debt burden.
Report
Economic Development
Encouraging Small Business Success in New York City and Northern New Jersey
What Firms Value Most
July 29, 2005
This survey of small businesses in New York City and Northern New Jersey finds that these businesses broadly agree on the three most important factors to success: 1) Overall cost of business; 2) Proximity to clients and markets; and 3) Access to a skilled labor force.