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APRIL 2005

Legislature Rejects Pataki’s Education Cuts, Even As Gov. Continues Stalling On CFE

By Assemblyman Steven Sanders

Despite our best efforts, the Governor refuses to acknowledge the most recent findings of the courts, and despite our most vigorous objections, the Governor has entered into another round of frivolous appeals, doomed to failure, but timed to delay and defer this issue for yet another budget. We have a Governor who claims education is his first priority and then has his lawyers argue in court that an 8th grade education is sufficient.  He spent millions of taxpayer dollars and wasted 10 precious years fighting the historic Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) ruling in the courts. He lost, and he lost his appeal, yet he still avoids taking action. And regrettably, the Senate Republican majority cheers him on.

But even in the face of this irresponsibility and abdication of leadership, we have succeeded in securing historic changes with the Senate in the funding of capital and infrastructure projects for the 200 high-needs school districts across the state.  And for the first time in history, New York City will be reimbursed for over 50 percent of the cost of its five-year capital plan. This, coupled with the third largest increase in State school aid, makes this a budget worth passing. If we can reach agreement with the Governor and enact this budget this week, you can be sure that the Assembly majority will go right back to working out a CFE solution—this year.

The joint Assembly/Senate education budget subcommittee reached an agreement on spending that will provide $840 million more in funding to public schools than was provided last year, far more than the Governor proposed.  We restored the Governor’s cuts for various expense-based aids—funds that local schools have already spent and for which they are entitled to State reimbursement, including transportation costs and services for students with disabilities.

You can be sure that we in the Assembly will again vote and pass legislation in this session that fulfills the CFE mandate—ensuring that each and every student can receive a sound, basic education from pre-K through high school.  That remains our constitutional as well as our moral obligation.

The Legislature was dealt a terrible blow this year affecting our budgetary powers.  The Court of Appeals, where plaintiffs and every student won such a huge victory in the CFE suit, in another historic decision reached this year, has thrown off the balance of power in our State government and given the executive—the Governor—nearly unlimited power in the budget process, more authority than even the President can wield. The decision permits the Governor to change laws without legislative amendment, so long as he joins those changes with budget appropriations.

No longer can the Legislature simply reject the Governor’s budget proposals and pass our own.  We must either reject the appropriation in total or accept it in full and then add to it, our additions being subject to being vetoed.  It is either that, or we can refuse to pass any budget and be subject to the Governor’s emergency spending bills, which would likely provide no new education increases at all and probably cut programs.

Still, we can be proud of what we have accomplished, even under the threat of vetoes by the Governor. We will continue to implore the Governor to meet his obligations in the CFE suit and are committed to getting legislation on the Governor’s desk—this year—to implement the CFE ruling, so that every child, across the State, will receive the sound education guaranteed by our State constitution.#

Assemblyman Sanders is chairman of the Education Committee.  E-mail him at sanders@assembly.state.ny.us or phone 212.979.9696.  His mailing address is 201 East 16th Street, New York, NY 10003.#

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