Politics on the Hudson

   Gov. David Paterson’s budget director, Laura Anglin, is resigning from her position July 16 to become the seventh president and first female chief executive of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities. She will succeed Abe Lackman, the commission’s president since 1992. Lackman’s contract ends in November, and he will work with Anglin during a transition period, a spokesman for the commission said.

   The commission’s trustees voted unanimously today to hire Anglin, state budget director since January 2008. CICU represents the CEOs of ore than 100 private, not-for-profit colleges and universities in New York.

   New York University President John Sexton, chairman of CICU’s Board of Trustees, said Anglin is a talented professional who understands how to advance policies through consensus building and outreach. Anglin has two decades’ experience in important state-government positions and a deep knowledge of the budget process, he said.

   “Beyond all this, Laura displayed an eagerness to focus on the needs and goals of independent education in New York State, recognizing the importance of this sector to the future of this state,” he said.

   Anglin makes $178,000 as budget director. CICU would not disclose what her salary will be there. Lackman made $280,605 in from July 2006 through June 2007, according to IRS documents.

   “New York’s private colleges and universities have historically played an important role in the economic an social well being of New York—and they will be essential partners for helping to rebuild New York State’s economy for the future,” Anglin said in a statement.  

   Sexton said Lackman positioned the commission as “one of the most important voices in higher education policy, both in Albany and in Washington, DC.” Lackman was secretary of the state Senate Finance Committee from 1995 until he took the CICU job and was a special adviser to now-former Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno. In 1994, he was now-former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s budget director, and he previously worked in other capacities for the state Senate.

   Anglin has led the Budget Division during the state’s current fiscal crisis. New York had a budget deficit of nearly $18 billion that lawmakers had to close in the 2009-10 budget. The governor has announced nearly 9,000 state workers will be laid off this summer.

   “Laura Anglin is a consummate professional and true public servant who has been an invaluable adviser to me and my administration during a time of extraordinary public upheaval,” Paterson said in a statement. “Her sage advice and fiscal acumen have helped guide the state through uncharted waters.”

   Anglin was a deputy state comptroller before being appointed deputy budget director for now-former Gov. Eliot Spitzer. She took over for Paul Francis. Paterson kept Anglin as budget director after Spitzer resigned.

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