Lanza: 'New Yorkers are overtaxed'

 

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

By ROB HART

ADVANCE ALBANY BUREAU

State Senate hopeful Andrew Lanza and Rep. Vito Fossella said they've signed on with Americans for Tax Reform, an organization that supports a national, single-rate, flat income tax, to pledge they won't support higher taxes.

"New Yorkers are overtaxed," said Lanza, the South Shore city councilman, outside their Grant City campaign headquarters. "Whether it's at gas pump, cell phones, or property taxes, everywhere you turn you pay a tax."

Although Lanza has since mended his relationship with Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the two had a falling-out a few years back when Lanza stormed out of a Gracie Mansion dinner to protest the mayor's property tax hike.

"Over the last five years, I've always put the people I've represented first, and that won't change," he said.

He added that, if elected, he would take a package of tax reform to Albany, and strive to lessen the impact of income and property taxes, among other initiatives.

Fossella (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) took the press conference as an opportunity to lob an attack at his opponent, Democratic Brooklyn attorney Stephen Harrison.

"If the people of Staten Island want someone who will help reduce their tax burden, they will vote for me," he said. "If they want higher taxes, they will vote for my opponent."

Harrison shot back that the country's debt now numbers in the trillions of dollars, and the bulk of tax cuts during the Bush administration were for the rich and oil companies. The upshot, he said, is that state and local governments are forced to increase taxes due to lack of funds from the federal government.

"I would have no problem reversing the Bush tax cuts," he said. "When you cut taxes on the rich, you increase taxes on the middle class and the poor.

Rob Hart covers state government for the Advance. He may be reached at rhart@siadvance.com.

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