Killing American Indians & stealing their country not enough; NY Gov wants federal help on reservation taxes.
Major Debacle
NEW YORK, Oct 21 (Reuters) - New York is seeking federal law
enforcement help over the state's failure, over 30 years, to
collect taxes from stores on Native American reservations,
Governor David Paterson said on Wednesday.
This is a new strategy for the state, which estimates losses of
about half a billion dollars a year on uncollected taxes on
tobacco and fuel from reservation stores. A series of court
decisions and legislation have not settled the issue.
It is unlikely that the federal government will resolve the
thorny problem in time to close the state's more than $3 billion
deficit or avert a cash crunch that hits in December.
For details on the coming shortfall, please click on:
[ID:nN21486522] and [ID:nN15315226].
"It is a question of law enforcement, that's why we are
approaching federal law enforcement," the Democratic governor
told a Webcast meeting with legislative leaders.
Native American tribes say that as sovereign nations, they are
immune from tax claims.
Representatives of the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S.
Bureau of Indian Affairs were not immediately available for
comment.
Other states have the same problem, Paterson said. No state has
received more than $75 million a year in these kinds of taxes,
Paterson estimated.
New York's last serious enforcement effort dates back to 1997,
when former Republican Governor George Pataki backed down after
12 state troopers were injured during protests by two upstate
tribes.
Last year cigarette-maker Philip Morris (PM.N) supported a state
Assembly bill to solve the problem by collecting the levy from
wholesalers who sell cigarettes to reservation stores. New York
City Mayor Michael Bloomberg sued eight Native American
reservation stores on Long Island over the issue.
For details, please click on: [ID:nN29527459].
To help close the deficit, Democratic Majority Conference Leader
Senator John Sampson proposed saving $500 million by refunding
and restructuring tobacco bonds backed by payments from
cigarette-makers.
But Paterson rejected this measure: "That is the kind of thing
that has been tried in the past that damaged our credit rating
the last time, six years ago, and wouldn't produce $500 million
a year more or less in six weeks," Paterson said.
Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch, who will soon meet with
Congressional representatives about the budget crisis, told
reporters that the state comptroller will decide how much New
York can borrow from the short-term investment pool. "On a cash
flow basis, it is appropriate to do it," he said.
Paterson ruled out tapping the Rainy Day Fund, raising taxes or
fees to close the deficit, including revisiting his previous
proposal to raise taxes on sugary soda.
Ian B MacLure
news:c2924211a20515d5...@msgid.frell.theremailer.net:
> http://www.reuters.com/article/companyNews/idUSN2150077320091021
>
> NEW YORK, Oct 21 (Reuters) - New York is seeking federal law
> enforcement help over the state's failure, over 30 years, to
> collect taxes from stores on Native American reservations,
> Governor David Paterson said on Wednesday.
States have no power to tax activity on the Res.
Period. End of story.
IBM