Blaz pushes mansion tax

ALBANY — Mayor de Blasio isn’t giving up on his proposed “mansion tax” on high-priced home purchases.

Speaking at an annual conference of black and Puerto Rican lawmakers in Albany Saturday, de Blasio tried to rally support for his proposal, which has met stiff resistance from the GOP-controlled state Senate.

“If the wealthy pay a little bit more, the mansion tax will allow us to provide affordable housing for 25,000 more senior citizens,” de Blasio said. “Do you believe in that?”

De Blasio said passing the mansion tax would “even up the score” for wealthy people and big corporations likely to get a tax break courtesy of President Trump and congressional Republicans.

The mayor also urged lawmakers on Saturday to renew the state’s so-called millionaire’s tax, which is set to expire at the end of the year.

“All of our constituents think it is fair to ask those who have done

All of our constituents think it is fair Mayor de Blasio

better than ever — the 1% has done better than ever — it’s fair to ask them to pay their fair share,” de Blasio said.

Senate Republicans oppose both the extension of the millionaire’s tax and de Blasio’s mansion tax, which Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R-Suffolk County) has termed a “non-starter.”

“We support cutting taxes, not raising them,” Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif said Saturday.

Unveiled last month, the mansion tax calls for a 2.5% levy on home purchases worth $2 million or more. City officials estimate that it would produce $336 million to fund affordable housing for seniors.

Later Saturday, de Blasio spoke to a luncheon hosted by the City University of New York and said the school, with its belief in an equal education for all, “epitomizes the things we are fighting for” in the battle against the Trump administration’s policies.

“CUNY matters because right now we are fighting for the very concepts of democracy,” de Blasio said.