‘Manhattan Mom & Pop Tax Relief Act’ suspends tax on small businesses

State Sen. Brad Hoylman and Assembly Member Harvey Epstein introduced the “Manhattan Mom & Pop Tax Relief Act,” legislation that will suspend collection of the Commercial Rent Tax (CRT) during the COVID-19 pandemic from small businesses with a base rent of less than $1 million per year.

The CRT is charged only to commercial tenants in Manhattan south of 96th Street and is a 3.9% effective tax on rent paid. The bill would provide additional relief to small businesses amid current and possible future government-ordered restrictions on businesses to combat the increasingly rapid spread of COVID-19.

The bill serves as companion legislation to a local bill introduced by Council Member Keith Powers to suspend the CRT.

From March 1 to Aug. 1 over 2,800 businesses permanently closed in New York, with the Partnership for New York City estimating as many as one-third of the city’s 240,000 small businesses may shut down during an extended pandemic. Small businesses currently employ more than 3 million people, half of the city’s workforce.