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Cuomo to Focus on Limiting Spending in New Budget
Jan 22nd 2013, 21:00

ALBANY — Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo proposed on Tuesday to balance the state budget with a combination of spending cuts, gambling revenue and new or extended taxes and fees.

Over all, the $142.6 billion budget announced by the governor represents a 5.3 percent increase over the current one, largely driven by a jump in federal aid to pay for the recovery from Hurricane Sandy and the cost of carrying out the new health care law championed by President Obama.

The increase in state operating funds would be held to 1.6 percent, if the governor's plan is approved by the Legislature. The state's fiscal year begins on April 1.

Education spending rises 4.4 percent under the plan, which includes money for new programs the governor has proposed. One program would help poorer districts offer extended school days and full-day prekindergarten programs.

A number of tax and fee changes are in Mr. Cuomo's plan, including several that would affect drivers. The governor is proposing to restrict them from pleading down the cost of speeding tickets and would add an $80 state surcharge to lesser traffic offenses. He would also establish new minimum fines for violating state laws related to texting or using cellphones while driving.

One change, however, is more likely to cheer motorists: The Department of Motor Vehicles could start opening its offices on Saturdays under the governor's plan.

Mr. Cuomo is also proposing to extend for three years a law that limits charitable deductions made by taxpayers who have an adjusted gross income over $10 million, and he also wants New York companies to start paying taxes on royalty income.

The governor would extend an assessment on electric, gas, water and steam utilities, which would raise $236 million in the new fiscal year, a cost likely to be passed on to ratepayers.

Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat who championed legislation aimed at bringing Las Vegas-style casinos to New York, continues to pursue gambling revenue. In his budget, he proposes allowing more stores to sell Quick Draw lottery tickets.

In his first two years in office, Mr. Cuomo put relatively austere spending plans in place, and he has sought to get the state's troubled finances in order. This year, he faces a budget gap of $1.35 billion, a relatively modest amount by Albany standards.

In his budget speech, the governor emphasized his fiscal centrism, saying, "The taxpayer's pocket is not a bottomless piggy bank."

He also noted that since he took office two years ago, budgets have been passed without the long delays that were common under his predecessors.

"The budget was historically the flash point for dysfunction," Mr. Cuomo said. "People are now seizing on the budget as a sign of a government that is now functioning once again."

Some of Mr. Cuomo's spending cuts will undoubtedly be the subject of intense lobbying over the next couple of months. Among other moves, he is proposing to defer cost-of-living increases, as well as an annual aid increase for health and human service providers.

Mr. Cuomo also focused on economic development initiatives for upstate New York that he sketched out in his State of the State address earlier this month. Those include the creation of a new marketing campaign, tax-free stores that would sell New York-made products and "innovation hot spots," where start-up businesses will not be subject to taxes.

The governor also outlined plans for the use of federal money that is headed to New York, for rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

At least some of his proposals are likely to be met with skepticism from budget watchdogs. One would give local governments and school districts a new way to defer a portion of their pension payments and then pay more, with interest, later. A similar plan, already in place, has been criticized for allowing the government to delay dealing with runaway pension costs.

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