iBankCoin
Joined Nov 11, 2007
31,929 Blog Posts

Cuomo Strikes Tentative Deal on N.Y. Budget With Big Cuts

Well hell, where are all the protesters? Cuomo is is cutting education, health care, and lowering taxes on high-income New Yorkers, and the people aren’t going bonkers in the streets and at the state capitol?

By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE and THOMAS KAPLAN

Published: March 27, 2011

“Culminating weeks of secretive negotiations and intense political jockeying, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and leaders of the Legislature announced on Sunday the outlines of a $132.5 billion budget that would cut state spending, impose no major new taxes and begin a long-term overhaul of the state’s bloated Medicaid programs.

The agreement comes five days before the March 31 budget deadline, offering the prospect of Albany’s first on-time budget in five years, in what Mr. Cuomo and his counterparts in the Legislature said they hoped would signal a new day of responsible budgeting and effective government in a Capitol long criticized for its gridlock and dysfunction. The deal would end a temporary income tax surcharge on high-income New Yorkers, which some have called the “millionaire’s tax” even though it affects incomes starting at $200,000 annually.

Mr. Cuomo’s aggressive and strategic approach to negotiations appeared to have yielded significant victories, including a year-to-year cut of more than $2 billion in spending on health care and education, the two largest drivers of New York’s ever-growing budget. Mr. Cuomo and the Legislature also agreed to create a new Department of Financial Services by merging the existing state banking and insurance agencies, as well as other consolidations.”

Read the rest here.

If you enjoy the content at iBankCoin, please follow us on Twitter