NYC nonprofit groups say they are fighting to end 421a tax breaks. Can we believe them ?

With about three weeks to go before the New York State legislature decides what to do with the 421-a tax breaks for developers, which are set to expire on June 15, government reform activists are waiting to see if an array of nonprofit groups advocating for an end to the scandal-tarnished tax abatement program will stay true to their word.

• Read more :  As deadline for 421-a expiration nears, activists fear electeds are clearing path for renewal [UPDATED] (Progress Queens)

It's URGENT That We End 421--a Tax Breaks This Year

Tell Mayor de Blasio (212) 788-3000 and

Gov. Cuomo (518) 474-8390 that 

we can’t afford to give tax breaks 

to the rich that cause our rents to go up !

Stop421a Tax Breaks

Stop 421a Tax Breaks

Sign the Petition : Cuomo and de Blasio : Give Back Extell Campaign Donations

Petitioning Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio

Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio profited from huge campaign contributions from a wealthy real estate developer now being engulfed in scandals. Following controversies that Extell Development Company had been subpoenaed by the Moreland Commission and that Extell won approval from City Hall to legally segregate low-income residents to use a separate "poor door" building entrance, why are Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo keeping campaign contributions from Extell ? Sign the Petition : Cuomo and de Blasio : Give Back Extell Campaign Donations (Change.org) By some estimates, Mayor de Blasio accepted over $18,000 in campaign contributions from Extell, related entities, or related individuals. For his part, Gov. Cuomo accepted over $300,000 in campaign contributions from Extell-related donors, according to some press reports. If not for the reason that Extell was the target of investigation by the Moreland Commission before the panel was disbanded, then for the reason that Extell is forcing low-income residents to use a segregated entrance -- Mayor de Blasio and Gov. Cuomo need to disgorge Extell's campaign contributions.

RELATED Petitioning Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio : Give Back Extell Campaign Donations (Change.org)

Bill de Blasio voted for "poor door" before he was against it

Extell Development Company, the developer behind the building that won permit to operate segregated entrances based on tenant income, was the target of a subpoena of the now-defunct Moreland Commission.

Now that the U.S. Attorney's Office possesses the Moreland Commission's investigation files, will it expand inquiry into how Extell won approval for de jure segregation at its building at 40 Riverside Blvd. ? One of the wealthy real estate developers that was the target of a subpoena issued by the now-defunct Moreland Commission was Extell Development Company, a developer with notoriously close ties to the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY). Extell is also the developer of the controversial building in the Upper West Side of Manhattan that now segregates tenants to use different entrances, based on income. The use of the "poor door" was approved by the Democratic Party-controlled City Council in a 2009 vote. In a report in The New York Post, it was said that Mayor Bill de Blasio voted for the provision that allowed Extell to force low-income tenants to use the "poor door." During last year's mayoral race, Mayor Bill de Blasio reportedly accepted over $18,000 in campaign contributions from Extell, according to calculations prepared by Mayor de Blasio's rival, Sal Albanese. Mr. Albanese's calculations were published last year by Crain's New York Business. Last year, Extell became the subject of interest for Moreland Commissioners investigating the pay-to-play corruption in Albany. It was reported that Extell made over $300,000 in related campaign contributions to the campaign committee of Gov. Cuomo in the time leading up to when Gov. Cuomo signed into law tax breaks reportedly worth $35 million over a ten-year span for another of Extell's developments, the $2 billion super luxury condominium tower on West 57th Street known as One57. If the corruption-fighting investigators of the Moreland Commission were interested in the corrupt pattern of pay-to-play in politics that invited large campaign contributions to fix legislative outcomes, then will the way Extell won its de jure segregating "poor door" provision approved by the City Council merit the same kind of scrutiny as did the $35 million tax breaks signed into law by Gov. Cuomo ?

RELATED Bill de Blasio voted for luxury building ‘poor door’ (The New York Post) Sal Albanese Blasts Rivals For Accepting Corrupt Real Estate Donations (Crain's New York Business) In Mayoral Race, Attacking Real Estate Industry but Taking Its Cash (The New York Times) Extell, Silverstein, Thor hit with subpeonas over tax breaks (The Real Deal) Extell upped Cuomo donations during tax bill talks : State law granting One57 an abatement could shave $35M in costs (The Real Deal)