The New York State Assembly passed a bill Wednesday that would allow Congress to get President Donald Trump’s state tax returns.

The Assembly voted 84-53 to require New York’s tax commissioner to release any state tax return requested by the Joint Committee on Taxation, the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee for any “specified and legitimate legislative purpose.”

“Transparency is essential, especially when it comes to the conflicts or potential conflicts of those who craft public policy,” Assemblyman David Buchwald (D), the bill’s sponsor, said during the floor vote, according to Bloomberg.

The Assembly also voted Wednesday 85-49 on an amendment to the bill directing the New York Tax Department to give Congress state tax returns specifically for elected officials. The original bill would have let Congress request any New York resident’s state tax returns.

The passage means Congress is one step closer to finally viewing some of Trump’s tax returns. His state returns are expected to contain information similar to the federal returns he’s refused to release.

The New York State Senate passed a bill earlier this month with the hope of helping Congress obtain some of the president’s tax returns.

The Treasury Department has broken federal law in continuously refusing House Democrats’ request for six years of Trump’s personal and business federal tax returns.

“Donald Trump has broken forty years of political tradition by not releasing his tax returns. Now, his administration is precipitating a constitutional showdown by shielding the President from Congressional oversight over those returns,” state Sen. Brad Hoylman (D), who sponsored the Senate bill, said in a May 8 statement. “Our system of checks and balances is failing. New York has a special role and responsibility to step into the breach.”

The legislation now heads to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s desk. Cuomo, a Democrat and frequent Trump critic, said in April that he planned to support the state legislature’s efforts to enable the release of the president’s state tax returns. </s> New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed a bill on Monday that would allow New York’s tax authority to hand over state tax returns to the U.S. Congress.

The bill would allow the state’s Department of Taxation and Finance commissioner to release state tax returns to Congress’ Ways & Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, or the Joint Committee on Taxation.

“Tax secrecy is paramount — the exception being for bonafide investigative and law enforcement purposes,” Cuomo said in a statement. “By amending the law enforcement exception in New York State tax code to include Congressional tax-related committees, this bill gives Congress the ability to fulfill its Constitutional responsibilities, strengthen our democratic system and ensure that no one is above the law.”

After Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin refused to comply with the House Ways and Means Committee’s request for President Donald Trump’s tax returns, New York’s state legislature passed the bill in an effort to mitigate Mnuchin’s stonewalling.

The House Ways and Means Committee sued Mnuchin and Internal Revenue Service chief Chuck Rettig last week for the President’s tax returns.

However, committee chair Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) is reportedly reluctant to ask the state for Trump’s tax returns because he fears jeopardizing a potential court case in the battle for Trump’s federal tax returns. </s> New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, signed a bill Monday to allow Congress to access President Donald Trump’s state tax returns.

The bill requires the state to release the president’s state tax returns—along with the returns for certain other federal officeholders—for any legitimate purpose upon request from the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, or the Joint Committee on Taxation.

As Mother Jones reporter Russ Choma wrote when the New York state legislature approved the bill in May:

Just days after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin refused—in apparent violation of federal law—to give Trump’s tax filings to a congressional committee, lawmakers in Trump’s home state stepped in with a possible solution. On Wednesday, the New York state Senate passed a bill that would allow state officials to provide Congress with the state tax returns of seven different types of state and federal elected officials—including the president. Federal tax law already allows congressional tax committees to obtain a copy of any American’s tax returns—and such a request has been made by the Democratically controlled House Ways and Means Committee. But on Monday, Mnuchin said he would not permit the Internal Revenue Service to comply. The committee requested the documents as part of what members said was an investigation into how the IRS audits presidents, but the administration has argued that the move was an unfair, politically motivated attempt to embarrass the president.

The bill is effective immediately, according to the New York Times, but it is unclear whether Congress will take advantage of the new law. </s> The California Legislature is attempting to force presidential candidates to publicly disclose their tax returns — a move that could bar President Donald Trump from appearing on the state's primary ballot if he does not make the documents public.

The state Senate voted 27-10 on Thursday to require anyone appearing on the state's presidential primary ballot to publicly release five years' worth of income tax returns. The proposal is in response to Trump, who bucked 40 years of tradition by refusing to release his tax returns prior to his election in 2016.

California's presidential primary is scheduled for March 3. If the bill becomes law, Trump could not appear on the state's primary ballot without filing his tax returns with the California secretary of state.

"We believe that President Trump, if he truly doesn't have anything to hide, should step up and release his tax returns," said Sen. Mike McGuire, a Democrat from Healdsburg and the co-author of the bill along with Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat.

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The Legislature passed a nearly identical bill in 2017, only to have it vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown, telling lawmakers he was concerned the law was unconstitutional. Brown, a Democrat, refused to release his tax returns while in office.

He left office in January and was replaced by Gavin Newsom, who has released his tax returns and embraced his role as a national "resistance" leader to Trump and his policies.

Newsom's office didn't say whether he'd sign it. If the bill reaches his desk, "it would be evaluated on its own merits," spokesman Brian Ferguson said.

McGuire said he has had "initial discussions" with the Newsom administration about the proposal.

"I never want to put words into his mouth, but here's what I'll say: Gov. Newsom has led by example," by releasing his own tax returns, McGuire said.

The bill would also apply to the more than a dozen candidates seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. But many of them have already released their tax returns. They include California Sen. Kamala Harris and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who released his tax returns last month after refusing to do so in 2016.

Candidates would have to submit tax returns to the secretary of state's office, which would work with the candidates to redact some information before posting the returns online.

The bill echoes similar legislation being considered in Illinois, Washington and New Jersey.

In New York, Democrats have examined multiple approaches in hopes of helping release Trump's tax returns, including bills requiring officials to release tax returns to appear on the ballot. State lawmakers last month introduced a bill that would allow the state to release Trump's state tax returns if any of three congressional committees — the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee and the Joint Committee on Taxation — ask for the documents.

Trump is a resident of New York and does much of his business in the state.

'I’m not gonna do it': Donald Trump says he won't give his tax returns to Congress

All of the bills come as Democrats in Washington continue to fight for access to Trump's returns.

Ways and Means Committee chairman Richard Neal officially requested six years of the president's tax returns last month from the IRS but it hasn't been easy. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who also oversees the IRS, has missed two deadlines, imposed by Neal, to hand over the documents and instead said he would wait for the Justice Department to weigh in on the legality before making a decision.

In his latest letter last month to Neal, Mnuchin detailed both the constitutional concerns and his department's worries with releasing the president's financial information. He also accused Democrats of attempting to skirt the law in order to obtain the documents, something they have been after since even before Trump was elected. </s> Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday signed a bill that would allow certain members of Congress to access to President Donald Trump's New York state tax returns.

The bill, which Cuomo had been expected to OK, requires New York officials to release tax returns of public officials that have been requested by "congressional tax-related committees" that have cited "specified and legitimate legislative purpose" in seeking them.

"(T)his bill gives Congress the ability to fulfill its Constitutional responsibilities, strengthen our democratic system and ensure that no one is above the law," Cuomo, a Democrat, said in a statement.

"Tax secrecy is paramount - the exception being for bonafide investigative and law enforcement purposes," Cuomo said.

The tax bill, which was passed weeks ago by the Democratically controlled state Legislature, makes it easier for New York to turn over the state tax returns of certain public office-holders, along with entities those people control or have a large stake in, that are requested by the leaders of the three congressional tax-writing committees.

The laws in place prior to Cuomo's signing of the bill generally prohibit such a release, and those congressional panels — the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee and the Joint Committee on Taxation — could file a request with the state only after efforts to gain access to federal tax filings through the Treasury Department fail.

The bill is seen as a clear shot at the president, who has refused to release his tax returns. But it's been met with resistance from the one Democrat who could actually utilize it.

House Ways and Means chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said he won't request the state returns because he feels doing so would harm his efforts at obtaining Trump's federal returns. Last week, Neal sued the IRS and the Treasury Department for those federal returns.

Meanwhile, Cuomo could act soon on another bill that is aimed at Trump

That legislation would allow state prosecutors to pursue charges against certain people even if they had received a presidential pardon. Trump has spoken about the possibility of pardoning those accused or convicted of crimes stemming from former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. </s> NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York state’s legislature on Wednesday passed a bill that would make it easier for U.S. congressional committees investigating President Donald Trump to get access to his state tax returns.

The Democratic-controlled state Assembly and Senate voted along party lines on the measure, which would circumvent his refusal to hand over his federal tax returns to Congress.

New York Republicans who opposed the bill called it an abuse of power that fed into the political designs of Democrats in Washington, the Albany Times-Union reported. It now goes to Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo for final approval.

Trump has refused to release any of his tax returns, breaking a decades-long tradition of U.S. presidents making their personal finances public to demonstrate that they have no conflicts of interest.

Although the bill does not name Trump, it allows the state Department of Taxation and Finance to share state tax return information with a congressional committee that requests it. Much of the information submitted in New York state tax returns is similar to that on federal forms.

Trump and Democrats who control the U.S. House of Representatives are locked in a battle over their ability to investigate him.

The president is stonewalling multiple congressional investigations by ignoring subpoenas, refusing to allow current and former advisers to testify, and not handing over documents.

For example the U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee requested Trump’s federal tax returns by subpoena but the request was denied by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

Trump’s personal home and the headquarters for his business are in New York, requiring him to file state tax returns in addition to his federal returns.

“New York has a unique role to help head off the constitutional crisis brewing between Congress and the White House over refusal to comply with the request for Donald Trump’s tax returns,” said the bill’s sponsor, Senator Brad Hoylman, according to the Times-Union. “We are affirming Congress’ role as a co-equal branch of government and the sacred constitutional principle that nobody is above the law, not even the highest elected official in the land.”

In comments to reporters on Wednesday, Trump criticized Democrats for continuing their wide-ranging follow-up to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.

“I don’t do cover-ups,” Trump said, responding to a charge made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi just moments ago.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the New York legislation. </s> [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.]

ALBANY — New York State lawmakers on Wednesday gave their final approval to a bill that would clear a path for Congress to obtain President Trump’s state tax returns, injecting another element into a tortuous battle over the president’s refusal to release his taxes.

The bill, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, a third-term Democrat and regular critic of Mr. Trump’s policies and behavior, will authorize state tax officials to release the president’s state returns to any one of three congressional committees.

The returns — filed in New York, the president’s home state and business headquarters — would likely contain much of the same information as the contested federal returns, though it remained unclear whether those congressional committees would use such new power in their investigations.

The Legislature’s actions put the state in a bit of uncharted legal territory; Mr. Trump has said that he is ready to take the fight over his federal tax returns to the Supreme Court, and it seems likely that he would seek to contest New York’s maneuver. </s> Democrats in Washington have been unable to obtain Mr. Trump’s federal returns. The Ways and Means Committee has unsuccessfully sought six years of the president’s personal and business tax returns, and last week the House of Representatives sued the Treasury Department and the I.R.S. to try to force them to release the returns.

The state tax documents from New York — the president’s home state and business headquarters — would likely contain much of the same information as the contested federal returns, tax experts say.

Mr. Cuomo, a third-term Democrat and frequent critic of Mr. Trump, said that signing the bill would help Congress “fulfill its Constitutional responsibilities, strengthen our democratic system and ensure that no one is above the law.”

The Legislature had passed the measure in late May; Dani Lever, Mr. Cuomo’s communications director, said that the six-week delay in signing the bill was because the governor’s office needed to do a diligent analysis of the legislation and its amendments.

“Any responsible government would thoroughly review this bill, just as we will with more than 930 bills passed this session,” Ms. Lever said, noting “how high the stakes are of this particular legislation.”

Mr. Trump defied longstanding tradition by refusing to release his tax returns as a presidential candidate in 2016, and has continued to decline to share the documents, citing federal audits of his taxes. Mr. Trump has previously said that he is ready to take the fight over his federal tax returns to the United States Supreme Court.

The White House on Monday had no comment on Mr. Cuomo’s signing of the bill.

Steven M. Rosenthal, a senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, said that there were limits built into the new New York law on revealing federal tax details, but that a state return could still illuminate things like the president’s adjusted gross income. </s> New York State has amended its tax code to make President Donald Trump's state tax returns available to US Congress under legislation signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 08th July, 2019) New York State has amended its tax code to make President Donald Trump 's state tax returns available to US Congress under legislation signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday.

"By amending the law enforcement exception in New York State tax code to include congressional tax-related committees, this bill gives Congress the ability to fulfill its constitutional responsibilities, strengthen our democratic system and ensure that no one is above the law," Cuomo said in a press release.

The legislation directs the New York State tax authorities to provide Trump's tax returns in response to written requests from chairmen of the US Senate Finance Committee or the US House of Representatives Ways and Means committees.

Both panels are responsible for writing and overseeing the nation's tax law.

Trump is the first US president who has not voluntarily released his Federal and state tax returns since the Nixon presidency in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The legislation applies to New York State returns, but not federal tax returns, which have been subpoenaed by the US House of Representatives Ways and Means committee.

The White House has refused to comply with the subpoena, claiming that the effort to examine Trump tax payments lacks a legitimate legislative purpose.
The New York State Legislature passes a bill that will authorize state tax officials to release U.S. President Donald Trump's state returns to Congress.