Press Releases

The Empire Center for Public Policy, which originated in 2005 as a project of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, has been re-launched as a fully independent, non-profit think tank, the Center’s president, E.J. McMahon, today announced. Read More

The state’s highest court yesterday agreed to hear the Empire Center’s appeal of lower court rulings that would keep secret the names of pension recipients. Read More

One out of every six police officers and firefighters retiring from state and local agencies outside New York City last year qualified for annual pensions of $100,000, according to state pension fund data posted today at SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website. Read More

What conditions are preventing upstate communities from experiencing a new wave of economic growth? That question will be addressed by Carl J. Schramm, an internationally recognized leader in the study of entrepreneurship, innovation and economic growth, as keynote speaker at an Empire Center policy forum in Albany this Wednesday (June 5). The Empire Center forum, which starts with registration at 9 a.m. at the Albany Institute of History and Art, will examine the economic decline of the upstate region and prospects for its revival, including the possible gains from natural gas exploration. Read More

Average per-pupil spending under proposed 2013-14 school budgets will rise at the fastest rate in five years, according to an analysis issued today by the Empire Center for Public Policy. Read More

Western New York property owners pay the state’s highest median effective tax rate, according to newly released data from the Empire Center. The internet-based tool—BenchmarkingNY’s Property Taxes by Location—allows taxpayers to compute and compare total school district, municipal and county tax burdens in thousands of communities across the state. Read More

The potential economic gains from natural gas exploration in the Marcellus Shale region in upstate New York are highlighted in a new study documenting the impact of hydrofracking on jobs and income growth in Pennsylvania, where nearly 5,000 wells have been hydrofractured since 2002. Read More

The Empire Center for Public Policy will ask the state’s highest court to hear an appeal of a court ruling today that would allow New York State’s public pension funds to keep secret the names of pension recipients, the Center’s director, Timothy Hoefer, today announced. Read More

The complete 2012 New York state government payroll is now posted on SeeThroughNY.net, the Empire Center’s government transparency website. The database includes the names, titles, base pay rates, and total pay of 291,364 individuals who worked in the state’s executive, legislative, or judicial branches at any point in calendar year 2012. Read More

A new Internet application giving New Yorkers ability to instantly access, browse through and download financial details of New York’s state budget was unveiled today by the Empire Center. Read More

Updated payroll files for 62,287 state and local public authority employees in New York have been posted on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website for taxpayers. Read More

Local governments and school districts throughout New York State should adopt long-term financial planning as a core element of their budgeting practices, according to a report issued today by the Empire Center for Public Policy. Read More