New York State Downsizes Chicago Area Taxation Dept. Office
ALBANY, N.Y. (CBS) -- It may come as a surprise that the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has operated an office in the Chicago area for more than 30 years, but that office is now in the headlines as it is set to be downsized.
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The Midwestern Regional Office for the New York taxation department is located at 1011 E. Touhy Ave. in Des Plaines. New York Magazine reported in a 1981 item that the office had opened in the late 1970s, to collect revenues from tax audits of Midwest-based companies that do business in New York state.
The New York Daily News reports New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo moved last week to downsize the office, and leaders of the union representing the workers there are furious.
The New York Public Employees Federation says the approximately 40 auditors at the office were initially left with only one hour to choose between losing their jobs and collecting unemployment, or moving to New York state and taking posts at other offices, the Daily News reported. After the union complained, the workers' time to decide was extended to a day, the newspaper reported.
About 10 staffers are moving to New York state and taking jobs at offices in locations such as Buffalo and Queens, while the others' positions will be eliminated on July 15, the newspaper reported.
The office will remain open with only a few non-unionized workers, since state officials have deemed that modern technology has made many of its operations obsolete, the Daily News reported.
