<body><div>From 1905 to 1981, New York State collected a tiny one-tenth of one percent tax called the stock transfer tax on the sale of corporate stocks. <figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0NcW0z_0vkWEWkQ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0NcW0z_0vkWEWkQ00" width="400" height="324" ><figcaption>Ray Rogers Corporate Campaign New York, New York</figcaption></figure>But since 1981, New York state began giving back one hundred percent of these tax revenues, estimated to be $14 billion annually or $56 million per trading day. Ray Rogers is a veteran of corporate campaigns – pressuring corporations to recognize unions and stop blocking progressive legislation. Unions have hired his organization Corporate Campaign in battles against Farah Slacks, J.P. Stevens &amp; Co., Hormel, International Paper, American Airlines, Inc., Campbell Soup Co. and Coca-Cola. Now Rogers has launched a campaign to repeal the stock transfer tax rebate. The face of the campaign is a website called – greedvsneed.org.“While infrastructures throughout New York State are crumbling, homelessness is rising, and critical public services for healthcare, housing, education, transportation, and public safety are grossly underfunded or non-existent, the message emanating from the offices of New York’s Governor Kathy Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins is ‘Now is not the right time,’” Rogers says.“Maybe now is not the right time for them but most certainly it’s the ‘right time’ for millions of suffering New Yorkers. In fact, it’s long past time to repeal the stock transfer tax rebate and return billions of dollars to the state treasury. Common sense, compassion and fiscal responsibility demand nothing less.” Rogers has launched his greed versus need campaign to pressure legislators to repeal the rebate.Rogers has produced a four page flyer that berates nine “corporate fat cats” who serve on the boards of the Citizens Budget Commission, Partnership for NYC and Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association who all vehemently oppose repeal of the tax rebate legislation.The combined compensation of the nine top executives we name in the flyer for the three years of 2020-2022 totaled $2,351,203,948.“Not one of the corporations they head, contrary to their claims, acts in a socially responsible manner,” Rogers said. “It would take a library of books to describe the well-documented unscrupulous and criminal behavior of these companies which are in the forefront of opposing repeal of the rebate.”“How do these corporate fat cats who are raking in obscene pay and benefits sleep at night knowing that 119,320 students experienced homelessness during the 2022-23 school year, the eighth straight year in which more than 100,000 public school students in NYC alone were identified as homeless? How do they sleep when Coalition for the Homeless reports approximately 123,000 people stayed in homeless shelters in 2023 while thousands of unsheltered homeless sleep on New York City streets, in the subway system, and in other public spaces, a large majority of whom are people living with mental illness or other severe health problems. And this doesn’t include the sadness of tens of thousands of asylum seekers staying in emergency facilities across the city.”The New York Times has not covered the story in recent years. Type stock transfer tax and New York Times into Google and what comes up first is a story from the Times titled “Stock Transfer Tax” dated March 14, 1905.The article opens with this: “The Assembly bill imposing a tax of 2 cents upon the transfer of every share of stock sold in the State of New York seems to be vicious from every point of view, and the one argument made in its favor, that it will produce $5,000,000 of annual revenue, is probably unsound and illusory.”Why has the Times ignored the problem?“The Times is the voice of the corporate interests,” Rogers told Corporate Crime Reporter in an interview last month. “This legislation is not in the interests of the corporations. But we will be seeing more press coverage coming soon. I wrote an op-ed a couple of months ago. No newspaper would run it.”The repeal the rebate legislation has been introduced by Assemblyman James Steck and Senator James Sanders.What’s the history of it?“From 1905 to 1981, New York State collected a minuscule tax on the sale of corporate stocks,” Rogers said. “It’s called the stock transfer tax. Astonishingly since 1981, the state began rebating these badly needed tax revenues, estimated to be $14 billion annually or $58 million a day to wealthy Wall Streeters. It is estimated that right now, if we were to repeal this rebate, we would be collecting $13 billion to $20 billion or more into the state – money that could be used for social good.”“The billions and billions of dollars that we should have been collecting since 1981 could have done a lot of good. We wouldn’t have bridges falling apart, we wouldn’t have affordable housing falling apart, we would have much more money for front line workers in healthcare and education. You name it.” “The opposition against the rebate are the big institutions that represent some of the largest, most powerful corporations here in New York. The Citizens Budget Commission, the Partnership for New York City, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) – they all vehemently oppose repeal of this tax rebate.”They say the securities companies will leave the state.“That’s bogus,” Rogers said. “Both Phil Steck and James Sanders have made it very clear that there is no way that the New York Stock Exchange or the big brokerage firms are going to leave New York simply because the state is no longer willing to rebate this tax that it collected for 75 years. That’s just a bogus argument. And it’s not going to affect workers’ pension funds.” “This tax will affect the stock speculators. It’s not going to affect people involved in long term investments – like pension funds.” “But the political leaders being bought off by these giant corporations are repeating this bogus line. The political leaders that oppose the repeal of this rebate need to be held accountable.”We are doing this interview on Labor Day. My understanding is that the head of the labor federation in New York – Mario Cilento – is opposed to this repeal. Why is that?“I haven’t spoken with him. Labor leaders have told me that Mario is not pushing this thing. This is not something that he’s on board with. I can’t tell you for sure that he is against it.”“But we need to pressure the labor leaders to do the right thing. We have a campaign called Greed v. Need. And the web site is greedvsneed.org. We are also in the process of raising money. We want to make sure we have a strong base of labor union support so that nobody will try to block this in the labor movement.” “A lot of these labor leaders will not move on their own unless there is a fire lit under them. And some of these labor leaders are clear that this is something we need.” “We are doing all the homework that needs to be done to help get this passed.”Why would labor be opposed to repealing the rebate?“If any union labor leader were to suggest to me that they are opposed to repeal, I would say – we are going to challenge you on this. If that’s the case, you are engaged in willful negligence to do what needs to be done in the best interest of all workers throughout New York State.”I’ve heard that the reason they are opposed is because they believe the repeal would cost their pension funds money.“That’s what these outfits like the Partnership for New York City and the Citizens Budget Commission and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association say. This gives political leaders a reason not to back it. They say – we don’t want to go against worker interests.” “But in plain English – it’s bullshit. It’s only going to affect the stock speculators, the people who trade in nanoseconds. They do billions of transactions.”The Comptroller of New York is a guy named Thomas DiNapoli who is also opposed to repeal. And he’s tight with these labor leaders and they have formed like an informal coalition in opposition. “If he is against it – and I don’t know that he is against it – and if these labor leaders you say are against it – they are not speaking for workers. Who are they speaking for? They are speaking in support of the corporate state of New York. We’re going to challenge them. Anybody who gets in the way of this, we will challenge them.”On your website is a press release dated March 12, 2024. In it, you say you are sending letters to all 213 New York State legislators – 63 Senators and 150 members of the Assembly. You asked them whether they support the repeal legislation. You said in the press release you would compile the responses and put up on your website who is in favor and who is opposed, who supports greed and who supports need. What were the responses?“So far we have 16 state senators and 44 assembly members are sponsors of the legislation.”“In May, we had a good head of steam moving. And we were hoping to get this thing passed this year. I realized that the allocation of the billions of dollars that would be recouped from repealing the rebate – other than for SUNY and CUNY – did not include money for primary or secondary school education, nor money allocated for health care. The two biggest union lobbies in New York State are education and healthcare. We’ve got to do something on the allocation of these funds. And the leaders of this bill in the legislature agreed with me.” “I’ve been working very closely with Assembly member Steck’s office and Senator Sanders’ office. And they went ahead and redrafted the bills. And how it’s like a gift from God not just to public sector workers, but to all New Yorkers.” “We put the campaign on hold until they redid the allocation. Very shortly, we will have the new amended bill. Now we know what the allocations are. The labor unions have the power to pass this thing. I’m reaching out to a number of these unions. I’ve reached out to eleven of the top unions involved. And I’m reaching out to many more.” Have any of the unions come out to support this?“I had a great 45 minute conversation with John Samuelsen, the head of the transit workers union. He said this is something they very sorely needed. Public transit throughout the state is in dire need of funding. And the biggest chunk of the funds upon repeal of the rebate would go to transportation.” “Let’s look at the lower figure – $13 billion a year recouped if the rebate is repealed.”“Transportation would get 35 percent of that money – $4.55 billion invested in the MTA, highway and bridge capital, local street and highway improvement programs, downstate and upstate transit and Amtrak and the Northeast corridor. That’s $4.55 billion every year.” “In the original bill, there was money allocated for CUNY and SUNY, but there was no money allocated for secondary and primary schools. Now, we have 15 percent allocated – or $1.95 billion to be invested in primary and secondary schools, CUNY and SUNY.” “There was nothing in the bill for money to go to healthcare and mental health. Right now, healthcare will get 10 percent, or 1.3 billion invested every year.” “Affordable housing will get 1.3 billion invested every year. So much money now is needed to repair these buildings.” “Now, there is a lot at stake for a lot of people.”When is the legislature in session next year?“January through June.” What’s the prognosis for getting it passed?“The opposition are those large lobbies that represent big business. There are three key players in Albany – Governor Kathy Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins. Those three we are told are not for it. Why are they not for it? Because they are hearing only from big business and they get a lot of financial contributions. But they are also hearing it from the so-called labor leaders in New York State saying – we are not pushing this bill, we are not for it.” “We are pushing this bill and we are for it. Once the amended bill is completed, we are going back to all of these legislators with another letter. We are looking for them to get on board. They are either for need or for greed. You can’t sit on the fence. If we find legislators in New York who are opposed, we want to go into the districts of the legislators and campaign against them. We will go after them directly and put their backs against the wall.”[For the complete q/a format Interview with Ray Rogers, see 38 Corporate Crime Reporter 35(12), Monday September 9, 2024, print edition only. ]</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Ray Rogers on the Corporate Campaign to Repeal the New York Stock Transfer Tax Rebate

From 1905 to 1981, New York State collected a tiny one-tenth of one percent tax called the stock transfer tax on the sale of corporate stocks. But since 1981, New York state began giving back one hundred percent of these tax revenues, estimated to be $14 billion annually or $56 million per trading day.