With merchant surcharges allowed, merchants surcharge excessively, resulting in too little holding and usage of cards.
As California's drought conditions improved and members of the state board mulled changing its rules, many of the districts did away with their excessive-use surcharges, allowed residents to resume watering their lawns more days per week and returned to voluntary conservation.
The leaders were discussing establishing one or more new tax rates for the highest-earning New Yorkers, which would still be lower than their rate this year, when there is a temporary surcharge in place, but higher than it would have been if the surcharge were allowed to end.
Extending the surcharge would allow the payment to be made.
Federation members grumbled that it is unfair for Governor Cuomo to demand sacrifices from them while giving wealthier New Yorkers a break by allowing a surcharge on higher-income earners to expire at the end of the year.
"It's not uncommon in situations where the electric service is included in the monthly rent for the lease to contain a provision allowing for a surcharge for air-conditioner usage," Mr. Abramson said.
So far, nearly a dozen other cities have allowed surcharges averaging about $1.50 a ride.
States in turn have allowed surcharges ranging from 28 cents to $3 a month, and have set varying requirements for how the money can be used.
If the title and summary does not make voters aware that the measure will allow surcharges, voters will be misled into thinking that Proposition 17 simply allows insurers to offer a new discount.
Her "preliminary calculation" was that the £1.7bn (€2.1bn) surcharge would qualify for a €1bn rebate, allowing the chancellor to claim that he had succeeded in halving the bill.
