In the last year, politicians in Manhattan have been trying to reduce the number of businesses that have to pay the commercial rent tax, or CRT. It’s a provision from the 1960s that adds a 3.9 percent surcharge to any business below 96th street paying more than $250,000 a year in rent, which, as turns out, is a pretty easy threshold to meet.
The New York Hospitality Alliance, a trade group representing restaurants and bars, has been trying to change the tax for years. It was originally intended to target big businesses, but with how crazy rents have gotten in Manhattan, it’s now impacting lots of mom-and-pops, too.
More than 40 of the 51 City Council members have signed on to the bill that would raise that $250,000 threshold to $500,000, reducing the number of businesses (including restaurants) that would have to pay by some 40 percent.
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