Posted on 07/31/2008 6:05:48 AM PDT by Libloather
New York economy officially in recession, state budget director says
The Business Review (Albany) - by Adam Sichko
Wednesday, July 30, 2008 - 2:58 PM
Gov. David Paterson and his budget director said today the state faces "the specter of stagflation" as it tries to cut more than $1 billion in spending.
Budget Director Laura Anglin has concluded the state's economy is officially in a recession.
Paterson has called state legislators back for an "emergency economic session" on Aug. 19. He wants them to cut about $600 million in state spending in the current budget, on top of measures he announced today.
That includes a hiring freeze and a 7 percent reduction in spending at state agencies. That will generate most of the $650 million Paterson said he can save with such unilateral actions.
"These are essential areas we're looking at cutting. That's how bad our economic situation is," Paterson said at a press conference in Manhattan.
"We've been running a deficit, but we've been bailed out by Wall Street many times," Paterson said.
Those times have ended, he said.
Another way Paterson wants to raise or save money is by developing public-private partnerships for state assets, including lease-back programs. In such a case, the state would sell an asset--a bridge or tunnel, for instance--to a private investor, who would then immediately lease the asset back to the state.
Unlike his predecessor, Eliot Spitzer, Paterson said he is not going to sell any state assets. Spitzer wanted to privatize the state lottery to start an endowment for the state's public universities.
"I don't want to sell the Thruway," Paterson said. "But we need to look and think creatively about how to create long-term revenue streams and provide opportunities for the state to grow."
He declined to elaborate.
Anglin, the budget director, outlined several negative trends in the state's economy, including $225 billion in subprime mortgage loans that banks have written off, enabling them to take that money off their bottom lines.
"It's a fairly dramatic shift," Anglin said. "We don't think it's done."
Several unions criticized Paterson's call for spending cuts and a hiring freeze.
CSEA, the state's largest public employee union, said reducing the state's 200,000-member work force would be a "sham."
"When the governor talks about families who can't afford to heat their homes, can't afford to put gas in their cars and can't afford groceries, he is describing his own workers and their families who will only be hurting more after he takes away their jobs," said president Danny Donohue.
Pelosi's fault.
The good people of New York (snicker) made their bed (i.e., elected liberals); now they should be made to lie in it.
WELL, just like George W. Bush, the Governor of the STate of New York needs to write everyone a check, give them MORE money...ain’t that the easy solution, come on...where are the Congressmen when they could stimulate by just sending ‘em more money. shucks...vote OBAMA
Don’t worry, they will tax their way to prosperity!
Same thing where I live...after years of waving a magic wand and feeding at the trough of my steadily rising property taxes, local government is now stone cold sober over where all the money they pi$$ed away on the "public good" went now that it is time to fund the give aways with shrinking dollars. Hooboy!
Looks like NY has slipped into a state of michigan.
That is how liberals always do it. Cut the things sure to make the people scream the loudest and then relent with "Well I guess we will just have to raise taxes. We really, really don't want to(wink,wink) but we are being FORCED to".
What absolute BS.
State unions already squeeling like stuck pigs...
the ny economy must be
sichko!
Hmmmmm...Michigan, California, and now New York all have one thing in common in their demise. Tax and spend, with emphasis on spend Liberals.
I know, it’s only a matter of time before the children are hauled out in front of the TV cameras to plead and whine. Still, I actually couldn’t believe what I was hearing during Patterson’s speech; a Democrat calling for cutting government spending and using the analogy of a family living within their means.
They will soon think they have to. States are still in for a $*itload of trouble. After property valuations finally settle at the end of the housing bubble, states will be faced with lower projected revenue from property taxes. Those anticipated revenues undergird States' bond ratings (lower bond rating = higher borrowing costs). Faced with lower anticipated revenues and higher interest costs, states that don't trim their bloated spending now will have to kill their citizens in order to maintain spending (spending = government jobs = votes).
We're still in for more screwing from our friends who are only there to help us.
See post #8
yes.
governor brown2 made all state employees union.
governor davis was unelected partly because he gave the prison union more than it was due, and the indian casinos everything, the latter as is governor ah-nold.
trial lawyers also run the state.
the only people buying houses along the coast are: union members, rich baby boomers, foreigners, etc.
if you’re young, uneducated and not one of the above, you probably can’t make it in california.
New York’s collapse can be blamed on big government liberals and big government RINO’s who have taxed and spent the state into depression.
The ALL sold out to every single union interest which has only added to the crushing tax burdens.
Last one out, turn out the lights.
they already have the highest income, sales and cigarette tax rates in the country
This is news? When I left New York in 1993 they were in a recession. It took them 15 years to recognize it?
Most of rural and small-town Upstate NY is always in an economic depression.
They are still waiting for the jobs Hillary promised in her first campaign “Listening Tour”.
State Democrat legislators and governors (and most republicans) consider anything outside of NY City and Albany as fly-over country where they only venture when it is time to make their standard, hollow, re-election promises.
The state always goes democrat in national elections, thanks to the NY City welfare culture, so presidential candidates rarely concern themselves about anything outside the greater NY City metro area.
Based on the most recent economic figures, the stimulus does seem to have had a positive impact. Of course, a plain old tax cut would have worked better.
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