IDC Keeps Focus on Minimum Wage, Middle Class in 2015

The Independent Democratic Conference’s policy agenda for 2015 features local control over the minimum wage, increased funding for Mitchell-Lama housing and more than a dozen additional proposals aimed at helping the state’s middle- and working-class residents.   

The IDC this week will unveil its 15-point agenda, dubbed “Invest New York,” which also takes aim at rising tuition and fees for college students, utility costs for senior citizens and child care for families.

“It’s important that we get back to basics and once again understand that we need to invest in New Yorkers,” state Sen. Jeff Klein, the leader of the IDC, said in an exclusive City & State TV interview. “So the Invest New York plan will invest in working people, the person who gets up every day and works hard to support their family. We’re going to be investing in senior citizens, investing in families, really investing in our students—the are things that are very, very important.”

The five-member breakaway caucus in the state Senate was weakened when Republicans, the IDC's governing partners the last two years, won an outright majority in the fall elections. However, new Senate rules laid out an ongoing collaboration with the IDC, and Klein has insisted that the IDC will still be a player in Albany.

One of the most high-profile issues the IDC’s agenda addresses is the minimum wage. The conference calls for local governments to be allowed to raise the state's minimum wage by up to 30 percent above the level set by the state. New York’s minimum wage is already in the midst of a phased-in hike, recently rising to $8.75 an hour with another increase to $9 scheduled at the end of the year, thanks to legislation the IDC supported.

However, there have been continued calls to raise it further. Over the weekend, Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed a $10.50 minimum wage for the state, and $11.50 in New York City, which drew mixed reviews. Klein said he support a statewide increase, but that his priority would be to grant control to local governments, saying it would be the best way to get a wage hike this session.

“We have a very big and diverse state. The cost of living within the state of New York is very, very different,” Klein said. “So I think we’re really allowing localities to choose their own destiny for their workers makes an awful lot of sense.”

Another major issue in Albany this year is affordable housing. With a major battle looming on expiring rent regulations, which primarily cover tenants in New York City, the IDC’s top housing proposal would provide a $650 million boost to the Mitchell-Lama program. The IDC also is calling for $25 million in income housing tax credits for middle-income residents.

“Middle-class workers are really priced out of the housing market in New York City and other big cities around the state,” Klein said. “Right now when we talk about affordable housing, especially downstate, it’s usually families that make under $40,000—that’s low-income. How about the families that make between $50,000 and $125,000 a year?”

Several of the IDC’s initiatives echo priorities of the Obama administration, including a higher minimum wage, paid family leave and relief for college graduates confronting hefty student loans.

The Education Investment Tax Credit, which garnered bipartisan support in Albany in 2014 but failed to pass, is also a top priority for the IDC. A number of the proposals are also virtually unchanged from the IDC’s “Affordable NY” plan from a year ago, which also highlighted paid family leave, the Mitchell-Llama program, daycare subsidies and college affordability.

“We’re going into this legislative session hoping everything is going to pass, because I think these are issues that resonate with all New Yorkers,” Klein said.

Read the IDC’s full, 15-point agenda below:

Investing in a First-Rate Workforce

Raising the Minimum Wage

As demonstrated by years past, the IDC has always been at the forefront of advocating for raising the minimum wage.  Thanks in large part to the IDC, New York was only among a handful of states that agreed to raise the minimum wage in the 2013 budget. Going forward, the IDC believes we can go further and supports giving cities and counties throughout the State the power to decide whether they want to increase the minimum wage in their respective localities. Under legislation originally introduced in 2014 by Senator Savino (S7743A), which will shortly be reintroduced in the 2015 session, cities and counties would be given the power to increase their own local minimum wages by up to 30% higher than the State minimum wage. That means that by 2016, a locality could decide to raise their own minimum wage up to $11.70 per hour, based on the $9 per hour statewide minimum wage.

Establishing Paid Family Leave and Raising Temporary Disability Insurance Benefits

As other states like New Jersey and California have already done, the IDC continues to advocate for the adoption of a meaningful paid family leave program in New York that truly meets the needs of working families. The IDC proposal would allow workers to claim a weekly benefit for up to six weeks per year equal to half their weekly wage to care for a new child or take care of a sick loved one. This plan extends to both public and private sector employees and ensures that businesses do not bear any direct out of pocket costs.

In addition, under a bill sponsored by Senator Tony Avella (S.7752), families would be able to secure greater flexibility by allowing workers to use accrued sick time benefits for the purpose of taking care of ill members of one’s family.

In order to meet the rise in cost of living, the IDC proposes increasing the weekly TDI benefit for workers through a gradual yearly phased-in process. Through a small increase in employee contributions and with the assistance of a State subsidy, working families will gain expanded financial benefits of up to a $250 a week maximum in order to accommodate their time away from work. Under the plan, New Yorkers would still be able to claim the benefit at the current maximum duration of 26 weeks per year.

Agricultural Resurgency Program

The IDC recognizes that agriculture has traditionally been a leading industry in New York State, but could be on the radical decline as the current population of farmers ages and there are no newcomers to fill the gap. Therefore, the IDC envisions the creation of a Agricultural Resurgency Program (ARP), a matching grant program which would be developed to assist new and beginning farm businesses with start-up or expansion costs. Funding would be used to purchase equipment, seed and/or stock, infrastructure, or other expensive capital improvements that present a barrier to opening or expanding a farm in New York and making it a viable business option. This program would ensure that high initial capital costs would no longer be a major impediment, especially to young entrepreneurs who want to open farms or expand existing family farms.

Investing in Educational Excellence

Student Loan Debt Relief and Prepaid College Tuition

With the cost of student tuition skyrocketing faster than inflation and drowning students in debt, the IDC proposes a grant program that would compensate students who graduated from an undergraduate or graduate school based in New York and are employed in public service in the state. A grant of up to $2,000 per individual would be applied towards the outstanding student loan balance. Additionally, New York would create a state tax deduction for interest paid on an undergraduate loan to match the federal deduction at 100%.

In addition, the IDC proposes strengthening tuition affordability in New York State by enabling parents and students to pre-pay college tuition. This would be accomplished by locking-in present day tuition rates at public and private colleges statewide. Already other states like Florida and Texas have implemented similar programs, and in doing so, will ensure that parents get a head start on financial planning for decades to come. This will ultimately save working families thousands of dollars of their own hard earned money.

Creating an Education Investment Tax Credit (EITC) for Public and Private Schools

When it comes to effectively educating our children, New York’s schools need every dollar they can get. The IDC believes in rewarding New Yorkers which opt to voluntarily donate to their local public or private school by finally making these donations tax deductible. In order to make sure every dollar is spent fairly and effectively, tax deductible donations made to private schools must be used to fund scholarship opportunities that qualify.

School Construction Trust Fund

The IDC proposes $400 million for the creation of a School Construction Trust Fund that would be a dedicated revenue stream for school improvements and expansions. The fund would address downstate issues of overcrowding in classrooms and accommodate upstate issues with regards to aging infrastructure of schools.

Investing in Vibrant and Sustainable Communities

The Sustainable Communities Program

In order to combat the effects of sprawl and decaying urban infrastructure, the IDC proposes the creation of a $150 million fund that would provide matching grants for smart-growth investments that create communities that are more pedestrian focused, use environmentally friendly construction techniques and revitalize waterfront property.

Green Homes Tax Credit

In order to spur development of environmentally efficient and green friendly homes the IDC proposes a refundable tax credit that would be offered to offset the cost of green development or retrofitting.

Zombie Property Act

The Abandoned Property Neighborhood Relief Act of 2014 would expand the 2009 signature law requiring lenders to maintain foreclosed properties from falling into disrepair. It would now require lenders to frequently inspect delinquent properties to determine if they are abandoned, while also requiring to maintain them regardless if a foreclosure judgment has been issued.

Investing in New York Housing

Enhance funding for Mitchell-Lama 2020 & Middle Income Housing Tax Credit

The IDC continues to believe that a cornerstone plank to making New York more affordable is through the availability of affordable middle class housing.  That said, the IDC proposes investing $675 million in middle income housing: $650 million in the Mitchell – Lama 2020 program that would provide capital subsidies of up to $125,000 per unit for the construction of middle class housing that remains affordable for 30 years; and $25 million for the Middle Income Housing Tax Credit which would provide tax credits for developers financing the construction of middle class units.

Public Housing Revitalization Plan

A significant portion New York City Housing Authority units are in vital need of an upgrade. The IDC proposes a three-point plan that will provide much needed funds for NYCHA to repair and maintain current units. This includes (1) $500 million through a Public Housing Revitalization Fund for repairs, rehabilitation and upgrades (2) a restoration of $12 million in annual State operating subsidies for NYCHA, and (3) a long-term revenue generating strategy that will ensure NYCHA’s long-term viability through redevelopment of underused NYCHA land for affordable housing and mixed use.  The IDC also supports giving preferences to disabled veterans (S.1702, sponsored by Senator Avella) and victims of domestic violence who meet all other requirements to apply for a public housing unit.

Making Housing Available for Our Vulnerable Populations

In order to ensure that those who are physically challenged, have mental health issues and our seniors have a safe and comfortable place to call home, the IDC calls for: (1) a $40 million fund dedicated to providing a direct subsidy for developers to incentivize housing for middle and low income seniors; (2) a REPAIR 2015 tax credit of up to $7,500 for repairs to seniors’ homes where the resident cannot afford the cost of the project; (3) the creation of a $25 million housing disability fund that would be used to leverage up to $180 million in private financing to be used to develop or retrofit up to 1,400 housing units for people with disabilities.

Investing in New York Families & Seniors

Dependent Tax Credit

The IDC understands that today’s economy requires both parents to work to make ends meet. Critical to both working parents and single parent families is affordable child care. Therefore, the IDC proposes continuing New York State’s effort to aid these families in their child care costs by increasing the Child and Dependent Care Credit by approximately 50 percent.

Senior Support Package

New York senior citizens face rising costs, yet most have to survive on a fixed income, therefore the IDC proposes reducing their financial burden through a senior utility circuit breaker program. This refundable tax credit would be available starting tax year 2015 and allow senior filers to be able to claim a credit equal to 50% of out-of-pocket utility expenses, over 7% of their income.

The IDC is also proposing providing a 10% discount on senior DMV transactions since one must pay registration and reregistration fees to drive in New York.

Child Care Subsidies

The IDC believes strongly in the importance of affordable child care and is calling for not only a full restoration of funding for the block grant back to 2010 funding levels, but an increase beyond that level to take into account rising needs. The IDC supports spending $100 million more in child care subsidies than we spent in the 2014 budget. The IDC also proposes an expansion of Facilitated Enrollment subsidy to $25 million within the NYS Child Care Block Grant into those cities that have demonstrated both need and momentum.