Note to New York: Cut Lawsuit Abuse First

As New York Governor David Paterson and the New York State Legislature battle over ways to address the state’s staggering budget deficit, a new report by the Pacific Research Institute suggests that raising taxes and cutting programs are not their only options. 

New Yorkers are indirectly – and unnecessarily – shouldering the burden of an excessively expensive and inefficient tort liability system, according to the study.  It is impacting New Yorkers through “higher product prices, higher insurance premiums, higher taxes, lower wages, lower returns on investment in capital and land, reduced access to health care and less innovation,” according to Dr. Lawrence McQuillian of the Pacific Research Institute. 

The full study is expected to be released in the near future, and will “identify specific reforms which would generate more than $1 billion in new revenues, and create tens of thousands of new jobs without raising any taxes or fees.”  Instead of cutting services ranging from education to health care (and dealing with potentially sticky political consequences as a result), the Governor and Legislature may want to take a serious look at the study’s recommendations. 

The study was commissioned by New Yorkers for Lawsuit Reform (NYLR).  NYLR is a statewide coalition of large and small businesses, farmers, doctors, and other health care professionals.