NYC Pizzerias Face Costly New Emissions Rule, Proposed Tax Break Could Help

• New NYC emissions rule requires pizzerias using coal/wood-fired ovens to install costly filtration systems by April 27 to reduce smoke pollutants by 75% • Councilman Justin Brannan proposes tax break to help approx. 130 impacted pizzerias, bakeries comply rather than issue fines or cause closures • Concerned the rule could cause beloved pizza joints to close, raise pizza prices further when NYC pizza already most expensive • Goal is to reduce emissions and asthma/respiratory issues without changing pizza taste, though some question focus on small businesses • Pizzerias facing hardship can file waiver, but no requests yet; Brannan still working on tax break details, says it won't "break the bank"