From the New York World:Mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner lived up to his reputation as a quixotic lawmaker as he unveiled an ambitious roadmap to take power back from Albany.
Through his “City Bill of Rights,” unveiled on a dark blue carboard placard mounted on a wooden stand, Weiner vowed that if elected mayor he would slash the power of the state capital over New York City on a range of issues that have long remained out of the hands of frustrated city lawmakers.
He vowed to attempt to reclaim New York City’s power to make decisions affecting some essential functions of government, including taxation, rent regulation, the MTA and charter school authorization.
His proposal echoed a position he previously staked out in “Keys to the City,” a policy document he introduced before entering the mayoral race in May.
“Every 4th of July we should not only think about the independence of our country, but we should think a little bit about the independence of New York City from the shackles of Albany,” he said next to the steps of City Hall, noting that he had, for effect, carefully chosen the national celebration as his time to pick a fight with Albany.
Weiner singled out giving New York City authority to raise and lower taxes as his day-one priority. Currently, changes in the city’s income, sales and business taxes must first get the nod of the state Legislature.
0 comments:
Post a Comment