Cuomo Taps Former Gov. George Pataki For Tax Relief Commission
PURCHASE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo has appointed the Republican who defeated his dad for governor to come up with ways to cut taxes for businesses and middle class New Yorkers.
Cuomo named former Gov. George Pataki and former state Comptroller Carl McCall as co-chairmen of a Tax Relief Commission on Wednesday.
"I have to confess, when I got the call from Gov. Cuomo, I wasn't sure he had dialed the right number," Pataki said.
Cuomo Taps Former Gov. George Pataki For Tax Relief Commission
Cuomo said he went to Pataki partly to keep politics out of the process.
The commission has been charged with finding ways to cut $3 billion in taxes as Cuomo readies for a re-election bid next year, WCBS 880's Marla Diamond reported.
The group will focus on property taxes which Cuomo said are a scourge statewide.
"The single largest tax in the state of New York is the property tax. People think the largest tax is the income tax, it's not." Cuomo said. "Our property taxes are grossly unfair and compared to the rest of the country they are a gross burden."
The governor said three of the four counties with the highest property taxes in the nation are in New York.
"Westchester is the single highest-taxed county in the nation when it comes to property taxes; Nassau is number two and Rockland is number four," Cuomo said.
The commission is to report to Cuomo by Dec. 6.
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