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NY Lawmaker Proposes $3 Tax For Online Deliveries, To Save The MTA And Check Amazon's Power
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Dec 8, 2020
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Peter Foley/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Dec 8, 2020
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As the MTA faces down massive layoffs and devastating cuts to subway and bus service, state lawmakers are reviving a proposal to raise money for the transit agency by charging a $3 fee for every package delivered in the five boroughs.
State Assemblyman Robert Carroll, who represents parts of Park Slope and Windsor Terrace, initially proposed the surcharge in 2019 as a complement to congestion pricing, which was supposed to go into effect next month but now looks to be delayed at least a year.
"Now we're in an existential crisis," Carroll told Gothamist. "This bill raises real revenue for the MTA, it’ll make our streets safer because there will be fewer trucks on the streets, it'll make the air cleaner because it will reduce carbon emissions, and it will help our small businesses."
The bill would impose a flat $3 fee on all online purchases delivered to New York City, except food and "essential medical supplies," to be paid by the customer. Before the pandemic, there were 1.5 million package deliveries in the city every day. Carroll estimates that his bill would raise in excess of $1 billion a year for the MTA—more than congestion pricing.
"We want to make people think before they click," Carroll said, explaining why the fee was $3 and not $1 or $2. "To say look, it’s more than one-way trip on the subway. We have so many small businesses that are having really tough time. If we were more thoughtful and we thought before we clicked, people could support the stores that they love. I can go to that great local hardware store, or I can go to my favorite department store that I only to go once a year now, and there's no $3 fee."
Carroll, who is also a co-sponsor of numerous proposals to tax wealthy New Yorkers, said the legislation would offer a check on Amazon's dominance of the retail landscape.
"Amazon’s business model is 'the everything store.' To buy everything you have from them. What cities are gonna become is, we’re gonna hollow out our shopping corridors, we’re just gonna have Amazon fulfillment centers. That makes for an uninteresting city and uninteresting place to live."
Spurred by record, multi-billion dollar profits during the pandemic, Amazon has hired more than 400,000 people over 10 months, a scale that experts compared to the United States mobilizing its production capacity for World War II.
Reps from Amazon have not yet responded to a request for comment.
The MTA has said that if they do not receive $12 billion in aid from the federal government next month, they will be forced to cut subway and bus service by 40%, and lay off more than 9,000 workers. Congress is currently still debating the finer points of a smaller pandemic relief package that Cuomo has called a "downpayment."
Cuomo's office said they would review the delivery tax legislation.
Tim Minton, a spokesperson for the MTA, said in a statement, "We have been clear only $12 billion in federal relief can prevent drastic service cuts, layoffs and gutting our historic capital plan that would devastate our colleagues and customers. While the MTA welcomes creative solutions and any new revenue, the proposal is subject to the state legislative process and cannot itself solve the problem, which is why we urge continued advocacy in Washington."
"Deep transit cuts are unacceptable. Governor Cuomo should put everything on the table," said Danny Pearlstein, the policy director for Riders Alliance, a transit advocacy group. "The package tax certainly deserves a close look."
Carroll added, "I don't think Amazon can stop this if the people, the legislature, the governor, suddenly become interested, and I think now, crisis creates opportunity."
This story has been updated with comment from the MTA and to correct the size of the MTA's deficit.
Tagged
pandemic
MTA
congestion pricing
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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