Democrats in state Senate pass budget
The budget log jam in Albany has ended.
Senate Democrats ended months of debate and stand offs to approve a revenue bill, the last piece of New York State’s spending plan. Gov. David Paterson has indicated his support for the legislation.
The numbers:
Total budget: $136 billion
New taxes: (depends on who’s talking)
The Albany Times-Union: $800 million
The New York Times: $1 billion
Republican state Senator John DeFrancisco: $1.8 to 2 billion
Republican Senate minority leader Dean Skelos: $4 billion
Environmental Protection Fund cut: $79 million and moratorium on land acquisition (source: www.budget.state.ny.us)
Community College Base Aid cut: $56 million (source: www.budget.state.ny.us)
Reinstating sales tax on new clothing and shoes that cost less than $110 (source: NYT)
Even though this tax won’t be in effect until after October 1st – to spare back-to-school shoppers – it’s expected to bring in $330 million (source: NYT)
The final vote Tuesday night was cast just before 8:30 p.m.
32 Democrats voted yes
28 Republicans voted no
The budget was 125 days late – more than four months
It is the second latest budget in New York State history
Some reporting from across the state:
From the Associated Press:
In the end, Democratic Senator William Stachowski of Buffalo, who withheld his budget vote since June to force action on a proposal to empower state universities, changed his mind.
Instead of a law, the proposal became a nonbinding “framework” as negotiations continue. The proposal was intended to give public universities more control over their finances – even allowing them to set their own tuition.
Rick Karlin wrote in the Albany Times Union:
The final party-line vote — 32 to 28 — arrived after the sun had set on a dizzying day of last-minute negotiations, one-house bills that have almost no chance of passage in the Assembly, and frenzied efforts to round up two Democratic senators who spent much of the day missing in action.
In other words, it was a fairly typical day in the Senate, which seems to veer between chaos and inertia due to the Democrats’ razor-thin 32-to-30-seat majority.
From the New York Times’ Danny Hakim:
Lawmakers completed one of the latest budgets in New York State history on Tuesday night, passing legislation that will raise an additional $1 billion — in part by increasing taxes on the sale of clothing and on a variety of businesses.
From Celeste Katz, Daily Politics blogger with the NY Daily News:
After a day of craziness, the budget just got done with a whimper.
They should be a ashamed of themselves.
I’m with Brett, it’s shameful the way our legislature functions (or is that an oxymoron? Referring to it as a functioning body I mean). Justification yet again for term limits.
I feel real bad that Wall St. bonuses won’t return to the $50 billion level until 2015.
PNElba has a good point. How large an effect will the lack of those bonuses have of the income tax revenue for the state?
Hillbilly I totally agree. We should insure Wall Street bonuses get up to the $100 billion level as soon as possible. I for one appreciate those hard working stock brokers and what they contribute to the fabric of our society.
Something wrong with making one’s living by doing nothing more than making money for others.
Who generally do nothing but hire others to find ways to protect it.
Gee, all the lefties still talk about the “surplus” under Clinton in the 90’s and that was simply the result of the tech bubble which was all Wall St.
Make up your mind folks. Either you like a robust economy or you hate “Wall St.” You can’t have it both ways.