A new proposal would have New York City residents pay an extra tax on packages ordered online that aren't medicine or food, NBC New York first reported on Tuesday.
Robert Carroll, a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly, proposed the bill. The summary says it "adds a three dollar surcharge on online delivery transactions terminating within the city of New York to be used to fund the operating costs of buses and subways in the city of New York."
The response online was critical. "Maybe instead of taxing people who need baby formula and essential goods, we tax those who have profited billions from a global pandemic?" Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.
You know why all this backlash happens when we say “Tax the Rich?”
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 8, 2020
Because the unquestionable norm is to tax the poor & working class.
Maybe instead of taxing people who need baby formula and essential goods, we tax those who have profited billions from a global pandemic? https://t.co/daAXNMAQD0
In a New York Daily News op-ed article published Monday, Carroll and John Samuelsen, the international president of the Transport Workers Union, said the proposal was designed to target e-commerce companies like Amazon that had profited during the pandemic.
"The delivery siege will only get worse," they wrote. "Online commerce is booming. Amazon's profits are up 53% compared to last year."
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos saw his wealth grow by nearly $70 billion since March, an analysis by the Institute for Policy Studies recently found. Billionaires in the US have added $637 billion to their portfolios during the pandemic, Business Insider reported in October.
Carroll and Samuelsen said that while shopping online is "cheap and convenient," they hoped the bill would encourage people to shop at local small businesses.
Some people on Twitter noted that online shopping is more than a convenience for some groups, such as people with disabilities or older people.
Feel like someone should address how adversely this effects many persons with disabilities, and elderly persons. As someone with a disability I do all of my shopping online, especially in this time of COVID. This would hit many of us very hard.
— Rachel Miner (@RachelMiner1) December 8, 2020
E-commerce has grown significantly this year, spurred by the pandemic and store closures. The New York Times reported last year that 1.5 million packages were delivered in New York City every day, and that figure has likely grown since.
The US Department of Commerce said last month that e-commerce sales totaled $209.5 billion in the third quarter, an increase of more than 36% from the same period in 2019.
The numbers so far have fallen in line with analysts' predictions. eMarketer projected overall e-commerce growth of 35.8% this year as people shop online for the holidays and beyond. Shipping companies and online retailers have warned customers of a "shipageddon" if they cannot keep up with the surge of packages.
Tim Minton, the communications director for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said in a statement: "We have been clear only $12 billion in federal relief can prevent drastic service cuts, layoffs and gutting our historic capital plan that would devastate our colleagues and customers. While the MTA welcomes creative solutions and any new revenue, the proposal is subject to the state legislative process and cannot itself solve the problem, which is why we urge continued advocacy in Washington."
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio did not immediately to Business Insider's request for comment. A representative from Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office said they would review the bill.
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