Closed Meeting On Budget Nets No Results
Governor Paterson, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Nassau County, met Sunday afternoon in private at Paterson’s Manhattan office to see if any agreements could be reached.
But apparently little progress was made.
“I want to thank the speaker and the majority leader for meeting with me today,” Paterson said in a statement. “It was clear from the meeting that Majority Leader Skelos has not changed his position. He did say he plans to conference with his members and I hope that by Tuesday we will have a constructive package of spending reductions for this year.”
The Democratic governor wants the Legislature to cut $2 billion from the current state budget, which runs until March 31, to close this year’s budget gap. In mid-December, he plans to release his 2009-10 budget proposal—a month earlier than usual.
John McArdle, spokesman for Senate Republicans, said the governor’s office has yet to even release budget bills for legislators to review.
Republicans have opposed midyear cuts largely because the governor hasn’t provided details of the 2009-10 budget. Republicans have said that it doesn’t make sense to cut the budget now, only to get a new set of cuts in a month when Paterson releases next year’s budget.
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I’m sure our Republican friends will figure out how to spin this onto the Democrats—even tho’ it’s the “conservative” Republicans who are balking at spending cuts.
They’ll cut the schools and then the schools will have their revenge on local taxes. This gets these geeks in Albany off the hook. They’re shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic, as is their history.
The voters have spoken they want the Democrats to make the financial decisions. The dem’s control all 3 branches of the state government. What will they do. They can’t blaim the Repub licans on this. Will they cut services or raise taxes. They are a loser anyway you look at it.
that is that because the “voter” know little or nothing
about finances..that is why they got themselves into
the situation in the first. place…and they are asking
for a bailout for themselves from the government…which
they will get..but they may get a hangover the next morning
when they understand the impact of the rescue on their
wallets
Let’s see how the Democrats handle this situation. They always blame the Republicans for everything. Now the Republicans will have no say with the 3 men in the room. Let’s see the disfunctiopn. Let’s see how they handle it. As a New Yorker I hope they do well. This last election they all said that they will lower our property taxes. They also said that they will not cut services. They like the idea of taxing the rich. OK. Let’s see how they do. The voters have not forgotten that we want tax release. I don’t think they care if it is capping property taxes or a circuit breaker. It is the Democrats chance let them run with it.
Run with it, or run from it?