New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio vows to 'redistribute the wealth of this city'

Embattled New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio took aim at the city’s wealthiest residents on Thursday, calling for taxes that will "redistribute the wealth" and fund recovery efforts following the coronavirus pandemic.

De Blasio outlined his revitalization plans during his final "State of the City" address. The mayor argued that higher taxes on the rich would generate revenue to aid an overhaul of a local economy reeling from the pandemic.

"We’re going to work constantly for a fairer economy, and that means we must tax the wealthy and we must redistribute the wealth of this city to those who do the work," de Blasio said in the address. "Even during the height of the pandemic, we saw the stock market boom. We saw 120 New York billionaires grow their net worth by $77 billion."

De Blasio called for wealth distribution even as he faces criticism from local business leaders over his handling of the pandemic. Advocates for New York City’s restaurant industry and local small businesses have argued that Democratic leaders imposed strict lockdowns and failed to provide adequate support, contributing to hundreds of closures.

Progressive New York lawmakers, including de Blasio and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have repeatedly called for increased taxes on the rich as a means to aid struggling Americans.

Earlier this month, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned the state could raise taxes to address a historic budget crunch without additional federal aid. An estimated 70,000 net residents left New York City from the start of the pandemic in March until last December, costing an estimated $34 billion in lost income, according to a study from analytics firm Unacast.

De Blasio said his administration would "join the fight for higher taxes for the wealthy and a new billionaire’s tax," adding that initiatives would "give us the resources that can build a recovery for all of us."

Aside from his call for higher taxes on the wealthy, de Blasio detailed the launch of a recovery tax credit for small businesses as well as a loan program for entrepreneurs attempting to recover from the pandemic.

He touted the success of his "Open Restaurants" program for outdoor dining, which he said allowed the city to "bring those restaurants back and save 100,000 jobs." Indoor dining is currently banned in New York City, though it is expected to restart soon.

The mayor spoke at length about his plans to combat climate change, arguing that New York City "has to lead the way in ending the use of fossil fuels." De Blasio pledged to commit $50 billion in city pension resources toward renewable energy investments over the next 15 years while pulling any remaining funding for fossil fuel companies.

New York City will add two-way bike lanes to the Brooklyn and Queensboro Bridges, add "bike boulevards" throughout the five boroughs and open more streets to pedestrians and cyclists.

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"These are the kinds of changes that allow us to move out of the era of fossil fuels and the era of the automobile and into a green future as part of our commitment to the New York City Green New Deal," de Blasio said.

De Blasio said New York has set a goal of vaccinating five million city residents by June and of fully reopening schools by September. Additionally, City Hall plans to use federal stimulus funds to create a "City Cleanup Corps," which de Blasio likened to a program from former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s "New Deal" program during the Great Depression.

De Blasio will exit the mayor’s office at the end of 2021 due to term limits.