by Sen. James L. Seward
A number of important issues are under discussion in Albany and development of the state budget is at the top of the list.
With just over a month to go before the March 31st deadline to complete work on the 2015–2016 New York State budget, the pace in Albany is starting to quicken.
My goal is to adopt an on-time spending plan that addresses the concerns that individuals discuss with me on a daily basis.
The budget needs to keep state spending in check, encourage economic growth and help create new career opportunities, lower taxes, rebuild our upstate roads and bridges, and direct education aid to our neediest schools.
No budget bills have been passed yet, but a great deal of work is taking place behind the scenes that I believe will lead to a final product that will address these priorities.
Senate subcommittees are now meeting on a regular basis.
Essentially, the committees take a specific portion of the governor’s budget proposal, dissect it line by line, place it under a microscope, and fine tune the plan to make sure it is fiscally sound and in line with public priorities.
I have been named to three of the senate budget subcommittees—education, health, and higher education.
By serving on these committees I am able to have direct influence on state aid to local school districts, funding for SUNY schools and community colleges, and programs that play a role in the health and well-being of all New Yorkers.
The education sub-committee is one of the most meaningful groups.
I have served on this particular sub-committee on a number of occasions and continue to request that I be a part of this panel.
My advocacy on this committee has helped direct additional state aid funding to our neediest schools.
This year, as I meet with my colleagues and discuss the education budget, my leading priority is to eliminate the Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) which has cost schools locally and across the state millions of dollars.
I am also concerned about some of the education reforms advanced by the governor.
A number of the deficiencies he has pointed to simply don’t exist in many schools.
While some steps may be needed to improve our state’s education system, we must be careful not to paint all schools with a broad brush.
The higher education portion of the budget is also vital to our region, because so many SUNY schools and community colleges are located here.
It is imperative that our on-campus facilities and programs are top-notch to attract the best and brightest students and prepare them for success after graduation.
These schools also play an important role in our local economy and that cannot be forgotten.
Under a schedule agreed to by the senate and the assembly, both houses will adopt their own budget resolutions by March 12th.
Then joint senate/assembly budget conference committees will begin their work of reconciling differences between the two plans.
The process provides for a bipartisan budget discussion with a proven track record of success.
We have utilized this open, transparent process quite successfully the past four years.
It has led to the adoption of on-time budgets that achieved our critically important goals of controlling spending, avoiding tax increases and helping to create new private sector jobs.
A couple of weeks ago, I called attention to the special budget section on my website, “Get the facts: 2015–2016 Executive Budget Proposal.”
The web page is updated on a regular basis and includes all of the latest state budget information.
For example, you can now find the senate finance committee analysis of the governor’s budget proposal which breaks down the complicated budget bills into easy to read summaries.
I encourage everyone to log on to my website at, www.senatorjimseward.com, stay informed, and feel free to send me an email through the website to add your voice to the debate.