They say no good deed goes unpunished. In New York it seems you can be punished twice.
Samaritan’s Purse, who went to NYC to help with the overflow of COVID patients, were protested and slandered by Councilman Corey Johnson and activists from the LGBTQ community forcing Mt Sinai to ask them to leave.
It was bad enough healthcare workers were disrespect by the same city they were trying to help, but to add insult to injury, they’re being handed a bill on the way out.
Governor Cuomo announced yesterday the organization along with other volunteer groups will be subjected to New York State taxes for the time that they were there.
“We’re not in a position to provide any subsidies right now because we have a $13 billion deficit,” Cuomo said.
Apparently any organization that comes to NY is obligated to pay state taxes after being there for 14 days or longer.
Lawrence Spielman, a partner at the accounting firm Spielman, Koenigsberg and Parker explained that “these other states will have to register in New York, and do withholding here.”
This came as quite a surprise for the folks at Samaritan’s Purse who had no idea that they could be taxed for volunteering to help in a time of need.
NY sure has a funny way of saying thank you.
“Our financial comptroller called me,” according to Ken Isaacs, a vice president of the organization, “and he said, ‘Do you know that all of you are going to be liable for New York state income tax?’
“I didn’t know that,” Isaacs told PIX11 News.
Before the coronavirus, New York state was already facing a six billion dollar deficit from years of mismanagement and fiscal irresponsibility.
Still, to penalize an organization in the form of a tax for your own incompetence is a new low, even for Cuomo.
More concerned with banning plastic bags, bail reform and failed alternative energy policies along with providing free health care, college tuition and drivers licenses to illegal aliens in his sanctuary city. It’s no surprise that NY has such a deficit.
While the Governor is seeking a bailout from the federal government, it seems that he might have his hands full trying to receive it.
The President said that he’s not too keen on the idea of taxpayers having to foot the bill for another State that mismanaged funds, especially ones that have sanctuary cities.
“We’re not looking to recover 25 years of bad management and give them the money that they lost. That’s unfair to other states,” Trump said.
He added: “If we’re going to do something for the states, I think we probably want something having to do with sanctuary cities.”
After Hurricane Sandy the Governor waived the state tax on emergency workers for 90 days, something that Samaritan’s Purse hoped he would consider this time around.
“If we can find a way for the governor’s office to look at this tax issue the way they did during Hurricane Sandy,” Isaacs said, “that would be an enormous benefit.”
One thing is for certain, if the Governor insists on payment of taxes from Samaritan’s Purse and other relief organizations who so selflessly came to help when NY needed them most. They might just not get the help they need for future disasters.
In other words, stop biting the hand that feeds you or eventually they’ll stop offering.
