ABSTRACT
The 1980s were good years for the New York economy, perhaps better than even the most Pollyanna futurists would have hoped for. Population and employment increased, reversing the declines of the 1970s, although neither grew as fast in New York as in the rest of the country. Personal income did increase at a higher rate than in other states, and per capita income grew to 17 percent above the national average, about the same advantage the state held in 1972. Taxes as a percent of personal income increased from 14.6 to 15.7 percent over this same period, and tax effort in New York was 65 percent above the national average in 1988. New York can learn much from its experience in the 1980s, lessons that can help the state and its local governments reach a more sustainable fiscal position in the 1990s.
