October 2022
Weekly Report for October 28, 2022
NYSAR meets with NYC Mayor Adams’ Housing Office
On Thursday, NYSAR staff and the chair and vice chair of NYSAR’s NYC Issues Working Group, Melissa Gomez and Rosanne La Fata, met with Mayor Eric Adams’ Office of the Chief Housing Officer to discuss housing related issues and REALTOR® priorities before the NYC Council. Among the issues discussed were increasing housing development, coop transparency, and concerns related to the prohibition of the use of criminal background checks on prospective tenants by landlords and real estate professionals. NYSAR continues to develop working relationships with Mayor Adams and his administration, as well as members of the NYC Council.
In-Person early voting begins Oct. 29
In-person early voting begins October 29 and runs through November 6. Your early voting polling site will be listed with your county boards of elections. More information on how to vote can be found here.
Gov. Hochul announces launch of $250 Million COVID Tax Credit Program for small businesses
Governor Hochul announced a $250 million capital costs tax credit program for small businesses forced to comply with emergency orders in response to the pandemic. Small businesses can receive a tax credit of 50% of qualifying expenses up to a maximum of $25,000 in tax credits based on qualifying expenses of $50,000. The program is open to all small independently owned and operated businesses operating in New York State with 100 employees or less and gross receipts of less than $2.5 million. In addition, a small business must have incurred at least $2,000 of qualifying expenses between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022. Learn more and apply here.
Watch: Governor’s race debate between Gov. Kathy Hochul and Rep. Lee Zeldin
Governor Kathy Hochul and Congressman Lee Zeldin met Tuesday at Pace University in Manhattan for their first and only scheduled debate for governor ahead of the Nov. 8 election. You can watch the full debate here.
Weekly Report for October 21, 2022
Watch: Senior Election Analysist & NBC Contributor David Wasserman at NYSAR’s Fall Business Meetings
Watch Senior Election Analysist and NBC Contributor David Wasserman’s political presentation, which he delivered during the General Session at NYSAR’s 2022 “Elevate Your Profession” Fall Business Meetings on October 2, 2022. Mr. Wasserman provided in-depth analysis and insight into this year’s General Election. View the video here.
Deadline for requesting absentee ballot is Oct. 24; Early voting begins Oct. 29
Registered voters in New York State have until October 24 to request an absentee ballot either online or by mail. To request an absentee ballot online, voters must use the online Absentee Ballot Application portal at https://absenteeballot.elections.ny.gov/. You may also fill out an absentee ballot application and mail it to your local county board of elections. In-person early voting runs from Oct. 29-Nov. 6. Early voting polling sites will be listed with county boards of elections. More information on how to vote can be found here.
Weekly Report for October 14, 2022
Previewing the 2022 State Senate elections in New York
City and State provides a breakdown of all competitive and non-competitive race for State Senate ahead of the November 8 General Election. Democrats in the State Senate currently hold 43 out of 63 seats with over $3 million in the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee account. Republicans, which currently have just under $1 million in their campaign committee account, are looking to take away seats from Democrats this year in districts on Long Island, in the Hudson Valley, and Central/Western New York. City and State identified 12 competitive districts that you can read about here.
NYC faces potential $10 billion budget deficit
New York City officials are anticipating significant budget risks in the current fiscal year 2023 and beyond. A major factor impacting the City’s revenue and property tax collections is commercial real estate vacancies. Commercial property taxes are over 38 percent of the city’s property tax levy and these properties saw a drop of 17.4 percent in market value in FY2022. In the State Comptroller’s recent review of the city’s Financial Plan, total city revenues are expected to decline by nearly $10 billion due to “lower tax revenues and federal aid for COVID-19 relief.” Mayor Eric Adams has already directed city agencies to cut their city-funded expenses by 3 percent this year, and 4.75 percent the next. Read more here.
DOL proposes new Independent Contractor Rule – does not impact real estate professionals
On October 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor released a proposed rule interpreting how a worker is classified under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).The proposed rule does not impact the classification of real estate professionals as independent contractors under the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. §3508). The DOL has proposed the rule to ensure covered employers are providing workers, including “gig workers,” with minimum wage and overtime pay as required under the FLSA, to ensure consistency with existing judicial precedent and the Department’s longstanding guidance. Read more here.
NAR endorses bill to increase home gain exclusion
Before the House of Representatives left Washington on October 1 for the pre-election campaign season, a bipartisan bill of key importance to millions of homeowners was introduced by Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Mike Kelly (R-PA). Titled the “More Homes on the Market Act,” (bill number pending) the legislation would double the capital gains exclusion for sales of principal residences from $250,000 to $500,000 for single filers and from $500,000 to $1 million for married couples filing a joint tax return, and also index these amounts for future inflation. Read more.
Weekly Report for October 7, 2022
NYSAR to utilize NAR grant for public awareness campaign on state electrification proposals
NYSAR recently secured a $75,000 grant from the National Association of REALTORS® in support of a consumer awareness campaign proposal educating New Yorkers on pending electrification recommendations from the state Climate Action Council. Matching funds from NYSAR’s Issues Mobilization Committee were also approved to support the campaign proposal. The state Climate Action Council is expected to release a final draft Scoping Plan at the end of December outlining recommendations to the governor and state Legislature to reduce carbon emissions across the state. Pending recommendations include:
- No new natural gas service to existing buildings;
- Prohibiting propane, natural gas and oil equipment in new homes in 2024;
- Prohibiting traditional heating systems in existing homes beginning in 2030;
- Ban use of natural gas appliances (dryers, stoves, etc.) in homes beginning in 2035;
- No gasoline vehicles sold in New York in 2035;
- Requiring single & multifamily property owners to obtain and disclose prior year energy consumption and energy performance ratings in real estate listings.
Biden visits Hudson Valley announcing $20 billion investment by IBM; Chip maker Micron announces commitment to $100 billion facility in CNY
On Thursday, President Joe Biden visited the IBM facility in Poughkeepsie announcing a $20 billion investment by the company that could create more than 10,000 jobs statewide. Also, earlier in the week, semiconductor maker Micron announced their commitment to build a $100 billion manufacturing facility in the Town of Clay in Central New York. The project would be one of the first enabled by new federal incentives for producing computer chips in the United States, and would be the largest such facility in the country. Learn more.