Taxes and Spending
Five Retired New York Educators Collect Over $300k In Pensions
The average state pension benefit for newly retired educators with at least 30 years of service was $78,097 in 2024-25, according to data released recently by SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website.…
Mamdani Gets an Important Tax Fact Wrong
At a hearing in Albany last week, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani lobbied state lawmakers to help him balance the city’s finances with a two-percentage-point hike in the city’s income tax on people making over $1 million.…
If Fraud In Minnesota Looks Bad, Wait Till You See Gavin Newsom’s California
Newsom’s budget gimmicks ignore the core issue: expanding programs without safeguards, then begging for bailouts when the math implodes. As a former California state assemblyman who spent four years on the Budget Committee, I…
Ninety New York Educators Receive $300k+ in Annual Pay
Ninety employees from New York’s school districts (outside New York City) received more than $300,000 during fiscal year 2025, according to new salary data posted today at SeeThroughNY.net, the Empire Center’s transparency…
NYC Employees Receive $300k+ in Overtime
Two New York City employees received more than $300,000 in overtime payouts, according to fiscal year 2025 payroll data posted on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website. The city paid a total of…
Parsing the Impact of Mamdani’s Tax Hike Plans
The front-running candidate for New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, has said he can finance his costly campaign promises – including free buses and universal child care – by taxing only a sliver of the city’s residents and…
Why New York’s Health Premiums Keep Going Up
New Yorkers continue to face some of the costliest health premiums in the U.S., and the insurance industry’s recently finalized rate applications shed light on why that is. In summaries filed with the state regulators,…
Harris County Strikes Out – Texas Public Policy Foundation
On August 26th, 2025, the Harris County Commissioners’ Court held a public hearing to discuss various agenda items, including one highly questionable expenditure that spurred a great deal of controversy. In fact, the public’s…
A City Official’s Japanese Junket Illustrates the Need for Reform
A new Dallas Morning News investigation uncovered a left-leaning Dallas city councilmember’s taxpayer-funded foreign trip, raising questions over how and why city officials spent public money meant for pandemic relief.…
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