Last week, we penned an editorial, This Is My New York Christmas List, which listed our desires from the State Legislature next year. At the end, we cheekily said, “if these gifts can’t be fulfilled, cash is fine, we suppose…”
Well, the editor of this fine publication received his long-awaited $200 inflation rebate check in the mail after last week’s issue went to print.
Ask and ye shall receive, we suppose…
The memo on the check reads, “Governor Hochul and the New York State Legislature are providing you with this Inflation Refund as part of broader, ongoing efforts to help address the rising cost of living.”
The average cost of living in New York requires about $4000 to $7000 a month including rent and the index sits at 123.5, 23.5% above the national average. According to consumeraffairs.com, New Yorkers spend $266.40 per week on groceries.
The question for most New Yorkers, will $200 make a difference?
The statistics largely point to a resounding no, as all this check will cover for the average family is maybe most of one week’s worth of groceries – hardly a dent in the fiscal struggles at all. All the while, more affluent New Yorkers – with Long Island being home to quite a few – won’t even notice the difference. For State-sanctioned inflation rebate checks to make a noticeable difference, they’d need to come in once a month, which is hardly feasible with a state as fiscally mismanaged as ours.
Moreover, the one-time rebates are funded through the State’s sales tax revenue, and Hochul’s logic was to give back to the residents the money they paid in higher sales taxes due to inflation.
Between 2020 and 2024, sales tax receipts surged by $54 billion. We think it would have made more sense to reinvest those funds into State services and infrastructure because in the long run, that’s New York’s greatest problem at the moment.
Of more concern to us, our proviso on last week’s Christmas list was answered. We hope that doesn’t mean the rest of our wishes go unfulfilled come January…
