Before Cuomo's Renter Tax Credit There Was...

In his 2014 State of the State message to the legislature, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo proposed property tax cuts for homeowners.  Not to leave them anyone out, he also proposed an income tax credit for renters as landlords pass property taxes along to their tenants.

See here for a transcript https://www.governor.ny.gov/press/01092013sostranscript.  The Governor handed out a “free book” http://webiva-downton.s3.amazonaws.com/487/f3/9/4041/2014-SOS-Book.pdf. Not surprisingly, as a Libertarian I read it with dismay but there were some good things. 

Back in 1976, the US Senate killed a proposal by former New York US Senator James L. Buckley (Republican and Conservative) that would have allowed renters to deduct from their federal income tax a portion of their rent which goes to cover taxes.  See http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1291&dat=19760924&id=CA1UAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tYwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5449,3107110


I remembered this proposal because in 1976 I was Chair of Columbia Youth For Jim Buckley.  Amongst other things I did at headquarters was stuffing press kits.  One of the pieces was on the renters tax proposal.


After his defeat by Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Buckley was an Undersecretary of State and at Radio Free Europe during the Reagan Administration.  President Reagan appointed him to the Federal court from which he has retired.   He was one of the nicest political figures I have encountered over the years.