June 1st is 10 days away. 1 in 4 people didn’t pay their rent in May and all indications show that June will be worse. Two months later, Governor Cuomo still hasn’t provided adequate protections for tenants.
Friend,
June 1st is 10 days away. 1 in 4 New Yorkers didn’t pay their rent in May and all indications show that June will be worse. Two months later, Governor Cuomo still hasn’t provided adequate relief for tenants. Be in solidarity with your neighbors. Click here and sign our Rent Strike pledge.
While leaving tenants behind, the Governor has made corporate landlords a central part of his reopening plans. Cuomo chose real estate executives like Bill Murrow, Senior Managing Director at Blackstone to oversee reopening our state economy.
Now more than ever, we need to stand together make sure tenants voices are heard. That’s why this morning we “moved in” to Blackstone’s headquarters. Our goal was to highlight the homelessness that will be caused if we continue to bail out Blackstone at the expense of tenants.
Across the country, corporate landlords like Blackstone own large apartment complexes, office buildings, hotels, single-family homes, and a significant chunk of our mortgage debt. Corporate landlords do not pay their fair share in taxes. Here’s why: for decades, they have successfully lobbied to put their needs first. They've worked to create loopholes, special statuses, corporate welfare programs and to boost their profits.
The CARES Act alone provided a $170 billion dollar tax benefit to real estate and millionaires. And that's on up of $300 billion dollars in existing federal tax benefits. Corporate landlords are expressing excitement about the potential for profiteering post-pandemic, using our collective suffering to grow their own wealth.
Suspending evictions is not enough. Thousands of New Yorkers already lived paycheck to paycheck before the crisis. When people are able to return to work they will only be able to make enough for the month ahead, not to pay back months of back rent.
Corporate landlords’ bill is long past due. New York must make them pay for the cancellation of rent, mortgages, and utilities for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic.Click here and sign our pledge.
Best,
Jonathan Westin, NYCC
Sent via ActionNetwork.org.
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