Zeldin vows bill to repeal payroll MTA tax

State Sen. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) vowed Sunday to introduce a bill during the current state legislative session to repeal the unpopular Metropolitan Transit Authority payroll tax.

Zeldin made the pledge -- reiterating a campaign promise he ran on -- during a rally in Ronkonkoma at Pride Products, a manufacturer, before about 75 supporters. At the same time, a spokesman for the Senate Democrats criticized Zeldin and some of his Republican colleagues for campaigning on promises to repeal the MTA tax and thus far failing to deliver.

An MTA spokesman also said Sunday that the agency cannot afford to give up the $1.4 billion in annual revenue provided by the tax. State Sen. Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) has also said it will be difficult to repeal the tax this year.

The MTA faces a $100-million budget gap this year and $250-million gap next year, an authority source said.

But Zeldin said he will introduce the bill during the second half of the legislative session -- which began April 4 and runs into June. "We must find a balance that will allow us to get this tax repealed responsibly," he told the crowd.

The payroll tax, implemented in 2009 to help bail out the financially troubled authority, charges employers 34 cents for every $100 of payroll and has been described as a "job killer" by opponents.

Zeldin won election to the State Senate in November in part by campaigning to repeal the tax. Austin Shafran, a spokesman for Senate Democrats, said the promise has turned out to be "all talk and no action."

Zeldin said he wants to work with Democrats to bring the MTA into fiscal solvency without the payroll tax.

But, he added, "You hear nothing from them on a policy end in regards to repealing the MTA tax."

There is a similar bill in the Assembly currently before the Ways and Means committee.

MTA spokesman Sam Zambuto said the agency would have been in dire financial straits without the payroll tax last year even after enacting cost-saving service cuts.