Council to Begin Review of Mayor's Budget

New York, NY —

The city council is set this week to begin review of Mayor Bloomberg's $60 billion budget. With less than two months to go before the deadline, the council and mayor remain far apart on how to balance the budget. Council Finance Chair David Weprin says the mayor's plan to boost the city's sales tax by a half percent would have the greatest impact on those least able to afford it, and that the measure has no support in the Council. Also on the agenda is Speaker Christine Quinn's proposal to tax the city's wealthiest residents at a higher rate and eliminate the levy on more than 200,000 of the poorest households. The Mayor is opposed to singling out the city's well-to-do for higher taxes, as Albany did in response to its budget problems.