| After Governor David Paterson released his Executive Budget yesterday, many groups came forward to criticize the budget (see here, here, here, here and here) and the lack of "shared sacrifice" in Paterson's proposal.
However, Governor Paterson did gain some support today from Tom Golisano, founder of Responsible New York. In a press release, Golisano commended the governor for the budget, spending cuts and "making the hard choices" for New York's fiscal future.
"Responsible New York commends Governor David Paterson for making the hard choices that New York needs. These are difficult economic times, times that call for sacrifice and difficult choices.
These spending cuts are a key step toward balancing the budget but they are only a first step. The Executive Budget still increases spending $1.3 billion at a time when we desperately need spending to go down and while Governor Paterson is doing the right thing in not increasing income tax rates, his budget includes too many new taxes and increased fees. In total dollars the tax burden to live and do business in New York is simply too high-and we cannot afford to make it any higher.
Governor Paterson is on the right path with reasonable, targeted cuts but his budget illustrates the institutional challenges New York faces as we strive to reform and renew. After major cuts in school aid, school funding is still up 42 percent in 5 years; after major cuts in Medicaid and health care, health care spending is still up 3.8 percent and still the highest per capita in the nation; and after 521 difficult layoffs our state workforce is still up 8,927 in five years while the population has declined or stayed static.
In the next few weeks the Governor and the Legislature will be under enormous pressure not only to eliminate these cuts but to increase spending or to pass new burdens onto local governments and school districts. Responsible New York urges them to stay strong, follow Governor Paterson's lead and make the difficult but necessary decisions for New York's future.
This is notable. Golisano has not been shy about his support for spending cuts and I could see why Governor Paterson's budget would please him. This could also be good news for both Responsible New York and Governor Paterson. Responsible New York might have a partner in Paterson moving forward and Paterson certainly could use the help going forward, especially in 2010. |
