Tony Avella (City Council, 19th dist.), speaking at a recent meeting of a local political club, said that tax increases would not be considered by the City Council as a means of generating the revenue needed to offset the looming deficit predicted for the city budget in the coming fiscal year. Avella, cozy with the political establishment in this metropolis for his entire political career, attempts to appear otherwise notwithstanding, can be regarded as a completely reliable source on this issue.

Absent from his remarks about the budget was any mention of rescinding the large tax breaks corporations have become accustomed to extorting from the city in the past fifteen years, among other inequities in the city?’s tax code which could and should be corrected immediately. As anyone who has had any acquaintance with Mayor Bloomberg?’s FY 2003 city budget presentation would know, more service reductions (in addition to ones we?’ve been having to endure for the past 27 years) are forecast, trash recycling among the more visible of those. And, we?’re expected to believe that the current membership in the City Council is providing the vision and leadership we need?



By Harvey Baylis