Assemblymember Kevin Cahill (D-Ulster, Dutchess) announced today that the Legislature closed a $17 billion deficit and enacted a spending plan that maintains funding for education while reflecting the State's fiscal challenges. With Federal assistance, the budget includes an additional $1.2 billion for schools statewide and restores many of the proposed cuts in the Executive Budget.

"Despite an unprecedented deficit, the Assembly put forth a plan in which the needs of our families take precedence above all else," said Assemblymember Cahill. "Not only is it unacceptable to jeopardize the future of our children, but any reduction in state-aid would further burden property tax payers, which is the last thing we should to do in this economic climate."

"The spending reductions that were initially proposed in the Executive Budget would have resulted in severe cutbacks, layoffs and regressive property tax increases," said Assemblymember Cahill. "By making education a top priority, we were able to pass a budget eliminates those cuts and preserves the STAR property tax relief exemption allowing us to keep our commitment to provide a quality education to all of our children."

Under the plan, aid to public schools will total $21.9 billion. Using funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the final budget completely eliminates the $1.1 billion in cuts included in the Executive Budget. The Assembly also blocked a proposal to shift 15% of the costs of pre-kindergarten special education to the school districts, representing $185 million in local savings. The budget preserves formula-based aid, which includes BOCES, transportation and construction costs. The final plan includes $3.3 billion in funding to continue basic and enhanced STAR, while rejecting the recommended changes to the STAR program to adjust the floor exemptions.

In addition, the budget includes targeted increases in federal aid for special education and districts serving low income families. Schools with high percentages of disadvantaged children will receive $906 million state-wide and the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act provides $794 million, ensuring that mandatory early intervention, special education and related services offered to students with disabilities.

In order to close the deficit while maintain funding for education, the budget imposes a temporary income tax on high earners, which will generate an additional $4 billion in revenue. "I have long advocated for the inclusion of progresivity in our income tax in order to facilitate the full state takeover of education funding, as opposed to the current regressive property tax structure. In spite of the circumstances in which this proposal is being considered, it is encouraging that the State is realizing that we can no longer afford to place the burden solely on our working families," continued Assemblymember Cahill.

"Our work can not stop with the budget, we must strive to go further by advancing the consolidation of services through our BOCES systems, including special education, administration and transportation, to lower destabilizing property taxes," said Mr. Cahill. "I remain committed to working towards the promise of providing an excellent education for every child, regardless of where they reside or their family's income."

Assemblymember Cahill outlined the nearly $6 million more local districts will receive this year over last: