I've written before about the rollout of Mayor Mamdani's pied-a-terre tax. The tax itself was supported by a lot of progressive New York City residents but the mayor's rollout was another matter. Scott Galloway was just one of the people who seemed shocked that the DSA mayor was implying the wealthy had done something wrong.
"He's implying we've done something wrong because we're successful?...New York is the New York is the the last place you want to demonize success. The reason people move to New York is they think, 'I want to be successful on Broadway. I want to be successful in business. I want to be successful in the arts. And no one's going to get in my f***ing way if I'm really talented and work hard.' We're going to celebrate it. We're not going to we're not going to put a big R on your door and say you've done something wrong because you're successful."
Galloway compared his inclusion on the mayor's list of people who might need to pay the tax as doxing. Last week a group of three NYC homeowners filed a lawsuit about the rollout.
Three petitioners, Simon Hedley, Rachel O’Brien and Carmine Morano, allege “the City incorrectly identified their homes as potentially subject to the surcharge despite those properties serving as their primary residences,” according to a news release.
Though the lawsuit itself does not challenge the legality of the surcharge, it does scrutinize the city’s release of a tax roll that included names and addresses of over 900,000 New York City homeowners, even if they were not subject to the tax, as well as the distribution of notices sent to some of those residents.
According to the city’s Department of Finance, the roll includes family homes as well as co-ops and condominium units but noted “the vast majority of properties and units listed” are not subject to the surcharge. 17,000 property owners received the letters alerting them that they were possibly subject to the tax.
One of the homeowners bringing the lawsuit says she was wrongly listed on the property roll.
“It is absolutely absurd that the City publicly identified our home as a possible second residence when my husband and I live here, raise our family here, and have made it our permanent home,” petitioner Rachel O’Brien said in the news release. “The City had records available that could have confirmed that before publishing our name and address. Families should not be forced to correct the government’s mistakes because the administration rushed a politically convenient rollout.”
Mamdani was asked about the lawsuit this morning and shrugged it off with a joke.
This afternoon the mayor may not be smiling anymore. A judge issued a temporary restraining order which put a pause on implementing the tax.
Staten Island Supreme Court Justice Wayne Ozzi entered a temporary restraining order mandating that the Department of Finance remove the tax roll of 960,000 properties that it published last month as part of the pied-à-terre tax rollout.
The court also banned the city from taking any additional enforcement action on the tax warning notices that have already been mailed to 17,000 homeowners.
The next hearing is scheduled for the afternoon of Aug. 31.
The NY Times has more on today's hearing.
In the courtroom on Monday afternoon, the judge, a Democrat, said that the city had created conditions that met the standard of irreparable harm.
“Sending out notices to 17,000 homeowners who might be subject to a surcharge doesn’t satisfy the intent of the legislation,” he said.
“Notices should state what the records show. They are a treasure trove of information,” he added. “I can’t unring the bell, but I can stop any further notices going out.”
In other words, sending out a letter and telling people they may owe the tax and have to prove they don't owe the tax isn't good enough. If the city wants to tax people it can do the work and make an affirmative case for each individual they believe owes them. So that's probably where this is headed. The 17,000 notices will probably get dropped and the city will have to start over.
What's not at stake here is the city's right to put the tax in place. That's not being challenged and it's unlikely it will be struck down according to Jonathan Turley.
...The legality of the tax is unlikely to be successfully challenged, but the Mamdani administration appeared to take the view that they would list thousands of New Yorkers and let their central planners sort them out...
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) August 10, 2026
But Turley did have a good time mocking the rollout of the tax on Fox News. As he puts it, people who wound up on Mamdani's list of names seem shocked the DSA mob they supported turned on them.
🚨 NOW: Ugandan Mayor Mamdani is officially being SUED for enacting a ridiculous second home tax against property owners, after he made a PUBLIC LIST of the "wealthy" — which opens them up to targeting
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 10, 2026
A judge is about to hear the lawsuit. STRIKE IT DOWN!
JONATHAN TURLEY:… pic.twitter.com/0Iwf9QQPEk
It seems Mamdani hasn't said anything about this yet. A spokesperson for City Hall said the city would appeal the TRO.
Editor’s Note: New York City is now facing the consequences of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s socialist takeover.
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