New York voters support NYC millionaire tax hike, barely

(CN) — A slim majority of New York voters support increasing personal income taxes on New York City millionaires, according to a Siena Poll of Empire State registered voters released Wednesday.

Overall, 54% of registered voters support the New York Legislature allowing New York City to raise personal income taxes on city residents who earn at least $1 million, according to the poll by the Siena Research Institute at Siena University in Loudonville, New York. Meanwhile, 29% oppose increasing taxes on millionaires.

Support was higher among New York City voters, 62% percent of whom support the tax hike for millionaires, compared to 21% who are opposed. While 72% of Democrats support the move, 51% of Republicans oppose it.

“As we enter budget month for the state, neither Hochul nor either house of the Legislature has indicated public support for [New York City Mayor Zohran] Mamdani’s request to allow New York City to raise personal income taxes on city residents earning at least $1 million,” Siena pollster Steven Greenberg said in a release issued by the university Wednesday. “While Republicans disagree, voters overall prefer New York City raise income taxes on its millionaires, rather than raise property taxes on all New York City property owners.”

Mamdani said in a statement issued last month there are only two paths to close the gap between the city’s revenue and expenses. The first path involves raising taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers and corporations. “If we do not go down the first path, the city will be forced to go down a second, more harmful path of property taxes and raiding our reserves — weakening our long-term fiscal footing and placing the onus for resolving this crisis on the backs of working and middle-class New Yorkers.”

While there is support among New York City voters for raising income taxes on wealthy residents, the proposal has less support among voters in downstate New York suburbs, where 50% of respondents supported the move compared to 32% who are opposed, and even less from upstate New York respondents, where 48% support and 35% oppose.

Registered voters also weighed in on how they view New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat seeking reelection in November, and the leading Republican candidate, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

Hochul’s favorability rating fell three points since January to 46%, with 42% viewing her unfavorably. Blakeman has a 21% favorability rating, up from 18% in January, and those who view him unfavorably fell improved from 20% to 18%. However, 61% of New Yorkers have either never heard of Blakeman or have no opinion about him, according to the poll.

The Siena Poll was conducted Feb. 23-26 among 805 registered New York state voters. Of the 805 respondents, 530 were contacted by landline and cellphone, 161 completed via text to web, and 275 respondents were drawn from a proprietary online panel. The poll has an overall margin of error of +/- 4.5 percentage points including the design effects resulting from weighting.

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