|
News
from
Senator
Stachowski
|
| April
2008 Despite The Process, 2008-09 State Budget Beneficial To WNY The 2008-09 New York State Budget may have taken an extra week to finalize, but the end result is a spending plan that is beneficial to Western New York. An increase in aid to local public schools and a commitment for funding of the Upstate Revitalization Proposal are some of the highlights in the 2008 budget for our area. This was no ordinary budget process as the combination of mounting fiscal issues and the change over in the Governor's office caused for unique challenges. On top of that, the process was complicated by issues such as teacher tenure and traffic congestion pricing for lower Manhattan, which I believe should have been dealt with outside of the budget process. Despite these issues we were able to address the growing need for additional resources for our public schools. The cost of educating our youth rises every year. It is critical that we maintain and improve the level of education that has been made available to previous generations. For that reason we have sent a plan to Governor Paterson which increases aid to education by $1.8 billion above last year's figure. Another critical area for Western New York is the Upstate Revitalization Proposal which was originally formulated by Governor Spitzer. Governor Paterson understands the significance of this proposal to our region and I am happy to say that $700 million was earmarked in the new budget to stimulate the local economy. To secure 70% of the funds originally proposed under the Spitzer administration prior to the announced deficit was a major accomplishment of this Governor. The $121.7 billion budget is less than the $124 billion originally proposed and that was made possible by eliminating several of the tax and fee plans put forward by then Governor Spitzer. Plans such as quadrupling the state's motor vehicle insurance fee to $20 was dropped along with the so called "crack tax," designed to tax drug dealers on drugs confiscated by authorities and the tax cap of fuel purchases. Those expecting Star rebates will be happy to know that they will continue although they will be at last year's levels. Senior citizens on the other hand should receive a higher amount that previously provided. Area nursing homes will receive the full $85 million in state funding that was promised in last year's budget agreement. We also will be using state funding to expand Child Health Plus to reach uninsured children in more working families. Regarding the state's infrastructure we are proud of the fact we restored $9 million in proposed cuts and added $51 million in new funding for the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) to pay for capital improvements to local roads and bridges. While these highlights are positive we are aware that this budget is not perfect. We need to eliminate the growing deficit and that means making difficult cuts. In the end I can say that we've done the best we could given the diverse needs of the state and the stalled national economy. -
end -
|
|
For
Information:
Dennis Kozuch 826-3344 senstachowski@yahoo.com |