NEW YORK (PIX11) \u2014 With just days before New York\u2019s state budget deadline, lawmakers are pushing Gov. Kathy Hochul for higher taxes on the wealthy to help close New York City\u2019s budget gap.<\/p>\n
On Sunday, hundreds gathered in the Bronx for a \u201cTax the Rich\u201d rally, calling on state leaders to increase taxes on millionaires and large corporations.<\/p>\n
More News: Politics <\/a><\/p>\n \u201cNow is time to build a New York that works for the working people,\u201d said State Assemblymember Diana Moreno (D\u2013Queens).<\/p>\n U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I\u2013Vermont) also joined the call.<\/p>\n \u201cThe working class in America is being decimated and has been under attack for many, many years,\u201d Sanders said.<\/p>\n State Sen. Kristen Gonzalez (D\u201359th District) framed the proposal as an investment in essential services.<\/p>\n \u201cTaxing corporations really means investing in us, so children can go to school, so we can afford childcare,\u201d Gonzalez said.<\/p>\n Discover more local reporting on our homepage <\/a><\/p>\n The budget gap<\/p>\n The rally comes as lawmakers race to finalize the state budget before the April 1 deadline. A major sticking point: New York City\u2019s finances.<\/p>\n City officials say the city is facing a $5 billion budget deficit, which Mayor Zohran Mamdani argues was left behind by the previous administration.<\/p>\n Hochul has proposed allocating roughly $3 billion from the state budget to help close the gap, but that still leaves about $2 billion unresolved.<\/p>\n The mayor has said he doesn\u2019t want to raise property taxes, so to make up for the difference, he\u2019s been asking the state to tax millionaires and corporations, something he\u2019s been pushing for since his campaign.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a fiscal crisis that was not created by working and middle-class New Yorkers, and should not be placed on their backs,\u201d Mamdani said earlier this year.<\/p>\n