Millionaire’s Tax Hot Issue

NEW YORK—Community groups and labor leaders gathered on the steps of City Hall Monday to repeat the often-repeated call for a renewal of the millionaire’s tax.

Over the last year, protesters of all sorts rallying for a variety of causes have touted this supplemental tax on wealthy New Yorkers as a sort of panacea.

Whatever cutback they decried, the millionaire’s tax was the ready solution.

It is set to expire in December and Governor Andrew Cuomo refuses to renew it, saying it will drive businesses to lower-tax states. He supports a federal-level millionaire’s tax to even the playing field.

With all the ire directed at the wealthy by Occupy Wall Street protesters, a heightened tension surrounds the issue.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s

On Thursday, the Human Services Council (HSC) called for a millionaire’s tax renewal in a creative way. They held a breakfast in front of Tiffany’s and Co. on Fifth Avenue, where a Holly Golightly impersonator handed out jewelry while announcing how many meals each piece is worth.

HSC is an umbrella organization for several local non-profits. In addition to these non-profits, some wealthy New Yorkers who support the tax attended.

“As a successful businessman and entrepreneur I deeply believe that those well off must share in the sacrifice to get our economy going again,” said Bill Samuels, according to the New York Non-Profit Press.