New York State Floats a Tax Credit for Renters

Last month, a high-profile panel in the state of New York issued a set of recommendations for reining in the state's high property and business taxes. The group, led by former Governor George Pataki, identified some $2 billion worth of proposed tax cuts, half of it earmarked for property-tax relief for homeowners in suburban New York City and more rural upstate New York. The plan offered virtually nothing to New York City itself.

The city doesn't have a property tax cap, making its residents ineligible for a temporary freeze on taxes under the proposal, which was embraced by current Governor Andrew Cuomo. And the majority of New York City residents don't own their own home anyway. Fully 69 percent of households in the city are renters, a rate unmatched by any major city in the country.