How To Prevent Middle Class Flight, According to Christine Quinn
It seems the middle class is the new lower class, or so implies City Council speaker Christine Quinn. [And she's made it her mission to keep the middle-class in New York City with a new proposal that would offer them money for ][down payments and closing costs], housing assistance for which only lower-income families are currently eligible. Yesterday, in her first State of the City address, Quinn revealed her wish to raise the income ceiling of the citys homeownership programs from a $56,720 annual income for a family of four to anything under $92,000.
Quinn, who has been known for her work as a tenants' rights activist in the past, also announced that she wants to give the city's lowest-income renters a $300 tax credit as early as 2008. But Mayor Michael Bloombergs reaction to her tax credit plan was fairly neutral and vague. He agreed that everyone would enjoy lower taxes, and that the government should only take its peoples money for things that are absolutely necessary. Can't really argue with that.