#new Outrage has erupted in New York as Socialist Zohran Mamdani announced that the five taxpayer funded grocery stores will set food prices “30% below retail” despite the 2% grocery margin of profit
Critics point out the local grocery stores will be put out of business, taxpayers will lose at least 28 cents on every dollar, subsidies will soon be slashed, and his government run grocery stores will be shut down – just like in Chicago. Mamdani says the prices will be set once a month with no exceptions allowed.
The city projects the discounts will cut grocery bills by about 15%, or about $90 a month and $1,000 a year.
However, experts point out that the initial cost to taxpayers to build the stores will be at least $70 million, with an annual tax burden of at least $60-$100 million – not including lost tax revenue from rent, and taxes for the stores.
Mamdani said the policy is a response to food prices that have risen about 30% to 33% nationwide since 2019 – which is a direct result of the Biden administration’s record high inflation.
Republicans, economists, and independent grocery owners have warned that this model will damage the private food retail sector.
Past American experiments, including a taxpayer supported supermarket in Kansas City that closed after repeated six-figure annual losses and 7 taxpayer supported stores in Chicago that are shutting down, show that taxpayer-funded grocery stores become money pits and fail.
The first store is still more than a year away from opening, and full taxpayer costs for the ongoing price subsidies are expected to raise substantially
#ChristinaAguayoNews
