WHAT can I add to the recent mayoral primary victory this week? Given the strong possibility that Zohran Mamdani will be the next Mayor of New York City, and that his unique policies will require big expenditures by city government, my guess is that ‘Taxing the Rich’ will be his way to pay for it.
I’m all for that idea! ((Taxing the Rich, not the expenditure side)). But not at the Municipal or State level. Sadly, this will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in NYC, as the wealthiest leave permanently for lower tax locales.
‘Good riddance!’ say the fiscally naive, as they cut off their noses to spite their faces. ‘These people (the wealthy) have received all the benefits of NYC since (pick a decade, any decade), now it is our turn to do so.’ Maybe, but who will pay for them?
As we detailed several years ago when similar ‘tax-the-rich’ worries surfaced, anyone with a billion+ has the means to join the ‘182 Club.’ Whereby they can live in NYC for 182 days max (half a year minus one day), and maintain residency in a no/low-tax state. Mike Bloomberg, the wealthiest man in NY, is a perfect example of that. Multiple homes including in zero income tax Florida, a private plane (or two), and what already appears to be a level of comfort moving among them. Per the article below, he could already be a member of the 182 Club, but chooses not to out of what I believe is truly an altruistic choice.
Expect others to be less self-sacrificing. Especially those in the stratum below the billionaire-class, those earning in the low single-digit 7-figures annually. The legal and consulting partners, mid-level hedge fund and private equity executives, in 2025 they can work from anywhere. Will Mamdani’s election lead them to do so?
‘Permanently’ for the two groups above have much lower consequences than for many living in Long Island City. Will we be the only ones left to pay for these expensive new programs?
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