| |
Legislative Budget Proposals
Contact: Ken
Pokalsky
The Senate Republicans and Assembly Democrats each introduced
an alternative budget plan this week. The Senate’s
came out in the form of a legislative resolution (Resolution
number 4655, available online here),
while the Assembly introduced amended versions of the Governor’s
budget bills (available on the Assembly web site here;
note the bill numbers are A.9800-B thru A.9810-B, inclusive).
Both the Senate resolution and the Assembly budget bills
were approved by their respective houses this week. Two-way
budget negotiations, and joint legislative conference committees,
will commence next week.
Key features of these proposals:
Senate Resolution:
- Rejects all revenue measures included in the Executive
Budget proposal.
- Limits total spending to levels proposed in the Executive
Budget.
- Does not include any of the Governor’s economic
development funding proposals.
- Rejects “without prejudice” many of the
Executive Budget spending proposals, including capital
spending proposals for CUNY ($1.7 billion) and SUNY ($2.7
billion).
- Increases state education aid by $381 million over the
level proposed in the Executive Budget.
- Rejects the Executive Budget proposal for a one year
delay in basic middle class STAR rebates.
- Rejects proposed changes to brownfield program eligibility
criteria and tax credits.
- Accepts the proposed one year extender of Power for
Jobs and Energy Cost Savings Benefit programs, but rejects
the Executive Budget’s proposal to create a seven
year replacement program.
Assembly Budget bills:
- Accepts a majority of revenue measures included in the
Executive Budget proposal; rejects or modifies several
proposed business tax changes, including those to: eliminate
the capital base cap on Article 9-A liability; expanding
tax liability of real estate investment trusts; establish
an economic nexus for out of state credit card operations.
(Comparison
of Executive Budget and Assembly revenue legislation is
available here.)
- Proposes to increase to 7.7% the personal income tax
rate on income over $1 million, raising an estimated $1.5
billion per year.
- Increases state education aid by $430 million over
the level proposed in the Executive Budget.
- Proposes to extend (through October 2010) the existing
investment tax credits for certain financial service sectors.
- Adopt the Governor’s proposed $150 million “investment
opportunity fund,” which is primarily an infrastructure
investment fund, while rejecting the remainder of the
Executive Budget economic development initiatives.
- Accepts the proposed one year extender of Power for
Jobs and Energy Cost Savings Benefit programs, but rejects
the Executive Budget’s proposal to create a seven
year replacement program.
- Proposes a $400 million “housing opportunity fund”
within the NYS Mortgage Agency, to provide funds for the
creation and rehabilitation of “affordable, supportive
and workforce housing”.
- Rejects proposed changes to brownfield program eligibility
criteria and tax credits.
- Proposes a “Climate Change Solutions Fund”
to provide funding for public sector emission reduction
projects, funded by revenues from the sale of CO2 emission
allowances.
- Proposes a new state energy planning process.
|
| |
|
