Mamdani: Use of ‘Richer and White Neighborhoods’ in Explaining Tax Reforms Are Just ‘Descriptors’

EXCERPT:

MAMDANI: "It was more of a description of the neighborhoods that are currently being undertaxed, as opposed to the intention of where we would tax New Yorkers. Nothing can be worked backwards from some kind of racial goal in this city. It has to be a system that is actually equitable. And what we’ve seen time and again is that the property tax system is something that is unfair, and it is something that even Eric Adams acknowledged when he was running in 2021, something that he promised to rectify within 100 days of becoming the mayor, and then what he did instead was to defend it at every single juncture in court and to lose. And the reason that he lost is because we know it’s inequitable. This is something that is a glaring example of city governments inability to meet the moment. And the use of that language is more of a descriptor of the neighborhoods, as opposed to an intention of the goal."