Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman announced a sweeping tax-cut proposal Tuesday that he says would save New Yorkers $35 billion.
The long-awaited plan would effectively eliminate state income taxes for many households in 45 of New York’s 62 counties, according to Blakeman.
If elected in November, the Nassau County executive said he would exempt the first $50,000 of income earned by single filers and the first $100,000 earned by married couples.
Blakeman said the average income for married couples in 45 counties is below $100,000. As a result, he argued, the proposal could deliver substantial relief to rural communities that believe Albany has left them behind.
Under New York’s existing tax system, a married couple earning $250,000 annually faces a top marginal rate of 6%, resulting in an income-tax bill of about $13,000.
A single taxpayer earning $100,000 is subject to the same top rate and pays roughly $5,000 per year.
Blakeman’s plan would reduce the married couple’s annual income-tax bill to approximately $6,000, while cutting the single filer’s bill in half to about $2,000.
His campaign also proposed lowering the tax rate for earners making between $100,000 and $500,000 to 4%, down from rates ranging between 6% and 6.85%.
New York currently uses a progressive income-tax structure, with rates rising alongside earnings. Rates range from 4% for lower-income taxpayers to 9.65% for individuals and families earning more than $5 million, and 10.9% for those making above $25 million.
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Blakeman’s office estimates that the tax reductions would cost the state $35 billion, but the campaign has not explained how it would replace that lost revenue.
Blakeman is challenging Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, who is running for a second four-year term.
New York has the nation’s highest per-resident tax burden when state and local taxes are combined, according to an analysis released last week by the Citizens Budget Commission.
The nonpartisan watchdog also found that New York spends more than any other mainland state, ranking second nationally only to oil-rich Alaska.
Opponents of New York’s high taxes and spending have taken to calling it the “Vampire State” rather than the Empire State.