Saturday, May 2nd 2009, 4:00 AM
Watts/News Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty joins others in Madison Square Park to announce the introduction of legislation that will place a 5 cent fee on plastic carry-out bags.
Mayor Bloomberg wants to balance the budget with nickels and dimes - but in times like these, New Yorkers say they can't spare the change.
"How much more are they going to squeeze from the little guy?" asked Reggie Hines, a 52-year-old tour bus driver from the Bronx.
The mayor's new budget would raise the sales tax to almost 9%, charge sales tax on clothes and shoes, and put a 5-cent levy on every plastic bag you take home from the store.
"It's 5 cents to go shopping now!" Hines said. "They're going to force the working class out of the city."
The sales tax hike would charge 50 cents on a $100 purchase, but merchants say it sends the wrong message to shoppers who are already keeping their pocketbooks shut.
"The $175 leather jackets are now $99. We can't go any lower. We've got rent to pay," said Gregory Bennett, manager at Delaney Leather in Brooklyn's Fulton Mall.
At Mitchell's Bar & Grill on nearby Flatbush Ave., manager Mike Issa gazed at the empty tables and said Bloomberg should pay more taxes out of his own pocket.
"Give people a break," said Issa, 45. "I'm overtaxed. People are not making money, and you want to increase taxes? He should pay more taxes."
Bronx restaurant worker Derek Banwell, 32, said he'll start shopping at warehouse clubs to save money and skip the name brands - but higher taxes will pick his pocket either way.
The hiked sales tax would raise $552 million, while eliminating the clothing exemption would garner another $394 million, Bloomberg said.
The plastic bag tax would raise about $100 million while also keeping the streets cleaner, Bloomberg said - but some New York shoppers took the idea like a slap in the face.
"We have the right to get a plastic bag!" said Lachon Evans, a teacher's aide from Brooklyn. "The city always says it is broke."
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