New York State Assembly, Albany, NY 12248
|
Budget Update
from Assemblyman Kevin A. Cahill |
Governor’s budget is full of wrong choices
Threatens quality education and health care, hikes taxes — and could kill 105,000 jobs
After weeks of promising not to raise taxes, the Governor released a budget
proposal containing $6.7 billion in numerous hidden taxes, fees, and surcharges —
showing that his rhetoric doesn’t match reality.
And the Governor proposed cuts to health care and education that would not only limit medical services and lower academic standards, but could increase unemployment and raise property taxes. The Governor’s $2 billion cut to Medicaid and health care services could eliminate 48,000 jobs, and cuts to elementary and secondary schools, as well as colleges and universities, could cost New York 57,000 jobs.
By taking money directly out of the pockets of working families, jeopardizing education from pre-K through college, and putting quality health care out of reach for the most vulnerable — the Governor is making the wrong choices.
Taking jobs away from working families is the wrong choice
During the years of the Pataki administration between 1995 and 2001, the nation’s employment grew by 15.6 percent, while New York State employment grew by only 9.4 percent. If New York State employment had grown at the same rate as the nation over that period, 476,700 additional jobs would have been created. Now the Governor has proposed a state budget that will put New York even further behind the rest of the country in job growth.
When the Assembly called for a coordinated economic development program to build on New York’s unique regional strengths, the Governor balked and continued pushing his failed policies — leaving New York 41st in the nation in job growth. Now, the Governor proposes eliminating over $3.5 million in funding to local Empire Zone administrators, and originally proposed forcing local governments to pay half the cost of the program. His proposals call into question his commitment to this enormously successful program, and could threaten its long-term viability.
Our economy was already suffering before the devastating effects of September 11. The Governor put us in this position by failing to take advantage of the longest economic expansion in our nation’s history — now we’re left with nothing but tough choices to make.
$1.4 billion school aid cut threatens quality education
For eight straight years the Governor has sought to undermine New York’s investment in education, but slashing education by $1.4 billion this year is an all-out assault.
The Governor’s proposed school aid cut — the largest in state history — will jeopardize the quality of education our children receive. Without adequate state aid, schools will be forced to cut essential educational programs, lay off teachers, and increase property taxes.
The Governor’s plan guts programs that raise academic standards
The Governor’s budget, if allowed to become law, would hurt approximately 240,000
students benefiting from smaller classes and force 60,000 children out of pre-K
classes. The Assembly fought for these programs to give children a strong start for
a brighter future. Research shows that smaller class sizes and pre-kindergarten
benefit children by increasing achievement, lowering dropout rates, and reducing
disruptive behavior. In fact, a study by Chicago’s Child-Parent Centers indicates
that children who attend pre-K are 70 percent less likely to be arrested for a
violent crime by age 18.
In addition to improving classroom environments and helping our youngest students to succeed, the Assembly has fought to fund extended school day and school violence prevention programs; improve school buildings; and attract and train quality educators.
The Assembly will fight for a strong investment in our schools
The Assembly will continue working to rescue education funding from the Governor’s cuts. Children need a quality education and high-tech skills to succeed in today’s workforce. Our economy will never fully recover when tomorrow’s workers are trapped in overcrowded classrooms without the resources they need.
Governor calls for a $1,200 SUNY and CUNY tuition increase and a 33 percent cut to TAP
The Governor’s budget will wipe out the hope of a college education for many by cutting higher education nearly $703 million and increasing tuition at State University of New York and City University of New York colleges $1,200, while slashing the Tuition Assistance Program by one-third. His proposal would make New York the fifth-most expensive state-operated college system in the country.
In addition, he’s cutting community college base aid by 15 percent, or $345 for each student — which will drive up tuition costs and local taxes.
The last time there was a significant tuition increase, attendance at SUNY and CUNY colleges declined by an estimated 30,000 students.
The Governor’s cuts to Educational Opportunity Programs directly hit low-income families
The Governor proposes to slash the Educational Opportunity Program by 50 percent, as well as HEOP, SEEK, and College Discovery. In addition, the Governor proposes to completely eliminate STEP and CSTEP, which have increased college enrollment of under-represented and disadvantaged students. These cuts will significantly reduce the number of students receiving support in their pursuit of higher education.
The Assembly works to preserve an affordable college education for all New Yorkers
The Assembly has consistently fought the Governor’s attacks on higher education — restoring roughly $1.8 billion of the Governor’s cuts over the last eight years, as well as raising the income ceiling for TAP from $50,500 to $80,000; increasing the maximum TAP award to $5,000; and creating the College Tuition Tax Credit to allow families to deduct college costs.
A quality higher education will prepare students for the jobs of the future and, in turn, will be an engine for economic growth. If we want our kids to be ready for a modern world, we must make higher education affordable and accessible for all students.
Governor’s $2 billion cut threatens access to quality, affordable health care
The Governor’s budget threatens access to quality health care by cutting Medicaid and other health care spending by $2 billion. This will force working families to pay more for health care and further stress health care providers who already face staffing shortages, high staff turnover rates and burnout. Without adequate funding, hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies and health centers will be forced to lay off workers and cut important programs.
The Assembly has continually fought to provide hospitals and nursing homes with
the funding and assistance they need in order to offer New Yorkers quality,
affordable health care. In fact, just last year, we passed the Health Care Workforce
Recruitment and Retention Act, which helps health care providers attract and retain
workers who care for our loved ones. But the Governor’s budget proposal would cause
hospitals in New York State to lose roughly $595 million annually due to major
Medicaid cuts to hospitals and the tax on hospital revenues — threatening their
ability to provide quality care.
Eliminating coverage for New York’s most vulnerable
Under the Governor’s budget, an estimated 234,000 low-income children will lose Medicaid coverage for home care services — meaning low-income kids with severe disabilities will no longer get the care they need.
Further, according to the United Hospital Fund, 47,000 people will lose access to Family Health Plus. In the history of publicly-funded health coverage in New York, Governor Pataki is the first governor to propose cutting eligibility.
Making prescription drugs even more costly
The Governor’s budget also seriously undermines the Assembly’s efforts to provide affordable prescriptions to New York’s seniors by proposing to raise EPIC fees 10 percent and cut EPIC reimbursements to pharmacies by 5 percent. It also rolls back prescription benefits enacted only three years ago (Chap. 57 of 2000).
The Assembly has worked hard to expand the income eligibility levels for EPIC and simplify the program’s fee structure. We will fight the Governor’s efforts to increase the costs to the elderly for this important program.
The Assembly continues to fight for quality, affordable health care
Over the past nine years, the Governor has consistently tried to cut health care and Medicaid. Once again, the Governor’s budget asks us to pay more for health care, and in turn, receive poorer care.
New York State’s current fiscal crisis will call on everyone to make sacrifices. But when it comes to our health, or the health of our loved ones — we will not make the wrong choices that compromise the care our families need.
Pataki Taxes pick the pockets of working families
Despite promises not to raise taxes, the Governor’s proposal includes over $6.7 billion in back-door hikes that will hurt New York’s working families the most.
Shifting an enormous burden on to local taxpayers
Not only will the Governor’s drastic education cuts cheat our children out of a quality education, they will threaten local homeowners with higher school property taxes. Under the Governor’s proposal, the state’s share of education funding would plummet from 42 percent to 37.7 percent — forcing the average school property tax to increase by nearly 20 percent for schools to maintain the current level of services. In addition to cutting school aid, the Governor plans to freeze the basic STAR property tax relief program — meaning there would be no help to offset the higher taxes.
Taxing a higher education out of reach
The Governor’s tuition increase and TAP cuts are thinly veiled tax hikes. In fact, if the impact of the tuition and TAP proposals were translated into the corresponding tax increase amount, a family with two dependents and a household income of $50,000 would see its tax liability increase by nearly 40 percent under the Governor’s proposal.
Reinstating the clothing tax
The Governor’s budget discontinues the tax exemption on clothing and shoes under $110, which would amount to over $13 billion in exempt retail purchases being subjected to state and local sales taxes. This job-killing tax hike would force consumers out of state to purchase clothing and could run many small retailers out of business.
Driving up auto expenses
The Governor’s budget hikes DMV fees, taxes new tires and imposes $51.3 million in surcharges on auto insurance.
Hiking up MTA fares
The Governor is allowing the MTA, which until recently didn’t even acknowledge its deficit, to increase fares to $2 and cut services — making it more expensive to get to work.
Imposing "Sick Taxes"
The Governor’s budget hikes up health care costs by reinstating a tax on hospitals, and imposing a new tax on health care providers. It also raises Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage program fees to $330 and deductibles to $1,887 — a 10 percent jump.
|
Impact of Governor’s tuition hike and TAP
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Budget Progress Though much remains to be done, there is some progress in the budget process. For the first time in two decades the Assembly, Senate and Governor agreed on available revenues on time. In previous years, this was the initial stumbling block in the budget process. |
