Rep Hakeem Jeffries Pays 200 in Property Taxes Thanks to Sweetheart Subsidy Law
Heres a fun little detail about one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress.
Rep Hakeem Jeffries the House Minority Leader from Brooklyn pays about $200 a year in property taxes on his brownstone. Two hundred dollars. In Brooklyn. Where the median property tax bill is somewhere north of $5,000.
How? A program called 421-a thats supposed to encourage affordable housing development. The building Jeffries lives in qualified decades ago and the tax breaks transferred to subsequent owners. So he benefits from a subsidy originally intended for a completely different purpose.
Is it legal? Absolutely. Is it a good look for a progressive Democrat who talks about the wealthy paying their fair share? Thats a tougher question.
Jeffries spokesman says he purchased the property without knowing about the tax abatement and that he doesnt control the programs eligibility requirements. Which is true but also kind of beside the point.
The 421-a program has been controversial for years. Developers get massive tax breaks in exchange for including some affordable units in their buildings. Critics argue the math never works out – the subsidies cost the city more than the affordable housing is worth.
When you combine that with situations like Jeffries where the benefits flow to people who clearly dont need them it starts to look like a policy failure.
Property tax reform in New York has been debated for decades but nothing substantial ever changes because too many powerful people benefit from the current system.
The average New Yorker doesnt have access to these kinds of tax breaks. They pay full freight while their elected representatives enjoy subsidized housing. Theres something deeply wrong with that picture even if every individual transaction is perfectly legal.
Jeffries isnt the only lawmaker benefiting from these programs. Hes just the highest profile one. The system is working exactly as designed which is the problem.
