A state government that for years was both "expansive" and "expensive," and
a continuing imbalance of tax dollars sent to Washington compared to aid
received, have helped keep New York's economy trailing the nation's, according
to U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
In this year's edition of his annual look at the federal budget and the
states, Senator Moynihan recalled the "vibrant and growing regions" of upstate
New York when he began his career in politics in the mid-1950s
The Business Council is asking the state's elected leaders to set their sights
on further business tax cuts in 1999-and is soliciting business leaders' ideas
on where the next round of tax reductions should focus.
Council President Daniel B. Walsh wrote Governor Pataki and legislative leaders
this week, urging continued efforts to cut New York's still-high taxes
The Business Council has formed an Independent Contractor Work Group to consult
with business representatives on the Governor's Independent Contractor Task
Force. The new work group will hold its first meeting at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday,
Nov. 4, at The Council's Corporate Woods Office in Albany
Council members are invited to a discussion of industry self-regulation of
online privacy Tuesday, Nov. 10, in New York City.
The meeting is sponsored by the Online Privacy Alliance, a group of global
corporations and associations committed to promoting principles that foster
an online environment that protects individuals' privacy
ALBANY, N.Y. Despite a decline in motor vehicle accidents in New York, auto insurance
rates are increasingand a new study by the Public Policy Institute of New
York State says an increase in liability claims and New York's unchecked lawsuit
industry are to blame.
Auto accident-related litigation has increased in New York even though it adopted
"no-fault" insurance to minimize such lawsuits, according to Driving
Force: The role of lawsuits in pushing up the cost of car insurance in New York
State
Local business and government leaders will discuss the effects of government
mandates on the costs of local government in "roundtable" meetings Nov.
18-20 in western New York.
These are the first "Mandate Reform Roundtables" that the new Coalition
for Mandate Reform will conduct to explore how mandates affect the operations
and costs local governments-and the taxes they impose to pay these increased
costs
The Business Council has expanded its workers' compensation committee to include three
sub-committees that will work on specialized issues.
The full committee includes more than 600 individuals representing members with many
different interests related to workers' compensation, said Stacey Hengsterman, The Council's
workers comp specialist
Smaller businesses in New York seem confident that problems making computer
systems year 2000-compliant will be minor, an informal survey of Business Council
members shows.
However, respondents showed less confidence in the ability of their suppliers
and distributors to meet the challenge.
The Council published a brief survey in the September 4 issue of The Wire
and asked members to fax responses
New York State's tax cuts just keep going and going.
First steps in two major tax reductions-elimination of the state's added estate
tax and reduction of the gross receipts tax on utility bills-took effect Oct.
1. Both cuts were top priorities for The Business Council, which lobbied successfully
for their adoption
By Lewis Golub
I'm excited about The Business Council's prospects for the next 12 months.
We really are poised to do even more to improve New York's hospitality to
business. But in the year ahead, we'll face new challenges. Our potential for
progress is at least matched by the danger of setbacks