BALCONY PANELISTS FROM YOUNG UNINSURED ADULTS FORUM FEATURED IN NEW YORK TIMES

Two panelists, Hogan Gorman and Dr. Barbie Gatton from BALCONY’s Uninsured Young Adults Forum, held in October 2008, were featured today in the New York Times front page article “For Uninsured Young Adults, Do-It Yourself Medical Care” . The adoption of a law granting health care coverage to those between the ages of 19-29 is a priority of BALCONY.

          

Dr. Barbie Gatton             Hogan Gorman

Click here for NY Times article

Click here to read the forum report

DiNapoli: Stimulus Package is Not a Bail Out

From the office of the New York State Comptroller.

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said the federal stimulus should not be used as a bail out for the state’s fiscal crisis. He said the state must find long-term solutions to align spending with revenues and the governor and the legislature still face difficult choices to restore fiscal integrity.

To ensure effective use of federal stimulus money, DiNapoli announced his office will make information public on how New York spends federal stimulus money on www.openbooknewyork.com. Open Book New York will allow the public to see the contracts awarded and the companies receiving the contracts. DiNapoli said his office was already in contact with the State Division of the Budget to ensure that there is a clear audit trail of the federal stimulus money.

Read the entire release: NY State

A State Grab on NYC Hou$ing Would Fund Fresh Debt

From Comptroller William C. Thompson

The state government is looking to raid a fund that was established specifically to build affordable housing in New York City. As New York City’s comptroller, I certainly understand that our state is facing a massive budget deficit
and must consider every revenue source. But the city finds itself in the grips of both a severe economic recession and an affordability crisis.

Even as Wall Street’s implosion dealt a crippling blow to our economy, personal expenses in our city remain wildly uneven with the rest of the country.

In January, my office reported that our real gross city product fell an estimated 5.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. Meanwhile, a study released last week by the Center for an Urban Future found that New York City today is by far the most expensive city in the country.

Read the entire release: Housing

New York gets big slice of President Obama’s stimulus package, thanks to state’s congressional bigs

By David Saltonstall

Rarely has a bigger tidal wave of cash come rolling out of Washington than the stimulus bill President Obama is due to sign Tuesday – and rarely has New York been better positioned to ride it.

In a confluence of seniority, hard work and some luck, New York’s congressional delegation is now stacked with power players, and it shows in how the massive, $787 billion stimulus package will soon be carved up.

Indian Point and a License to Disagree

By Peter Applebone

BUCHANAN, N.Y.

Remember Indian Point? No, not the friendly Energy Center version advertised during Yankee games, but the scary nuclear plant version that New York State officials vowed to shut down after 9/11 as an unacceptable risk.

Yes, we all sort of do, in our short-attention-span way. But then in the current Madoff/bailout/exploding 401(k) moment, we sort of don’t. That’s one reason, if timing is everything, that the decision to be made next year on whether to relicense the plant for 20 more years feels close to a foregone conclusion.

Lubin: 40 Years Of Leading

by Bernie Mulligan

Like a watch that keeps ticking, Alan Lubin continues his fight for NYSUT members that began 40 years ago this month.

First elected as a United Federation of Teachers district representative from Brooklyn in 1969, he now patrols the halls of the Capitol as NYSUT’s executive vice president — pursuing a fair budget for union members and those they serve.

The Brooklyn native is tireless, whether advocating for members with elected officials or strategizing at a legislative breakfast with union members about the best ways to approach representatives in Albany and Washington.

Bob Astrowsky, assistant secretary of UFT, also was elected in February 1969 as a union district representative.

Astrowsky smiles when he remembers that Lubin told him the part of the district representative job he hated the most was the “political part,” as Lubin is now a major force behind one of the nation’s best organized member-driven union political action efforts.

“We are the only two still working from the original group elected then,” said Astrowsky. “That demanding new job made all of us close. It’s like our kids and families grew up together.”

Lubin’s commitment to civil rights and social justice began with for AFT and UFT President Al Shanker in the 1960s.

His work has touched the lives of many members, including Rachel Moyer, a retired NYSUT member from the Port Jervis schools, whose son’s death at school could have been prevented by an Automated External Defibrillator. She worked with Lubin to tell her story to legislators and staff.

In 2002, the effort brought a new state requirement that every instructional building have at least one functional defibrillator and staff trained to use it.

“That law is one of the greatest things unions have done in this country,” Moyer said. “Alan told legislators that prisons had to have AEDs and asked them why the schools in their districts didn’t.”

Lubin’s style and willingness to dialogue has earned him many friends and few, if any, detractors.

“No one in my 12 years in the New York State Senate has been more accessible, thoughtful and committed to his ideals than Alan,” said Sen. Neil Breslin, D-Albany. “I value his insights and, more importantly, I value his friendship.”

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Congress, President Obama reach deal on landmark $789 billion economic recovery package

BALCONY hails the passage of the federal stimulus package by both the Senate and the House of Representatives.  BALCONY is especially pleased that infrastructure improvements were a major component of the stimulus, the funding of health care and the creation of jobs were one of its main goals, and New York State received its proportionate share of the targeted stimulus.  

WASHINGTON – Three weeks into office, President Obama scored one of history’s richest legislative wins Wednesday – a $790 billion stimulus plan designed to boost jobs while remaking much of America’s infrastructure.

Read the article: Stimulus

Budget Options for NYC – 2009

The New York City Independent Budget Office, aware that the city is facing shortfalls of $4.3 billion in 2010 and an additional $7 billion in 2011, has taken a long and hard look at all the city-funded programs, suggested cuts in many of them, and concisely summarized the reason FOR and AGAINST each of these rollbacks. Under the watchful eye of the IBO, no program is a sacred cow and all must make adjustments to the tightening vise of the new American economy.

Read the entire Independent Budget Office report: IBO

GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES THE ESTABLISHMENT OF STATE CABINET TO OVERSEE DISTRIBUTION OF ECONOMIC RECOVERY FUNDS ACROSS NEW YORK

Creates Cabinet to Help Municipalities Access Federal Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Funds

Command Center in the Capitol will Ensure Cross-Agency Coordination, Broad Regional Representation

Governor David A. Paterson today announced the creation of the New York State Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Cabinet to manage the development of State and local infrastructure projects financed through the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The cabinet will be composed of State agency heads and senior staff from the Governor’s Office. Timothy J. Gilchrist will serve as Senior Advisor for Infrastructure and Transportation, a position created to lead the cabinet. Mr. Gilchrist, who had been serving as Deputy Secretary for Economic Development and Infrastructure, will oversee the distribution of federal funds throughout the State for projects involving transportation, water and sewer, energy, technology and other infrastructure. Under Mr. Gilchrist’s leadership, the Cabinet will work closely with local governments to ensure federal dollars reach critical projects and put people to work as quickly as possible.

“These economic recovery funds provide a unique opportunity for New York to embark on State and local projects that will have a lasting impact on all aspects of our infrastructure, from schools to highways,” said Governor Paterson. “Now that the Senate has passed the economic recovery bill, I encourage both houses to work quickly to reach a compromise, and will make the distribution of these funds a top priority. As we struggle to close our $13 billion budget deficit, this Cabinet will ensure that critical projects move forward and that our local governments are fully prepared to put these funds to use and get people back to work.”

In preparation for the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act package, the Governor’s Office has been actively engaged in outreach to municipal leaders and county executives throughout the State, including the New York State Association of Counties, the New York Association of Towns and the New York Conference of Mayors. Through this outreach, the Governor’s office has received requests for stimulus project financing from localities across the State for roads, bridges, water/sewer infrastructure, community development projects and broadband infrastructure, among others. These projects have been forwarded to the relevant State agencies, and the agencies are evaluating the projects and determining whether they meet the requirements of the federal economic recovery and reinvestment package. Local government officials and leaders may continue to submit project information and financing requests to the Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Cabinet via email at EconomicRecovery@chamber.state.ny.us.

The Cabinet will continue this active outreach through regional and trade meetings in close collaboration with the Governor’s Washington, D.C. office. Once the key differences between the House and Senate bill are resolved the Cabinet will provide each county, city and town in the State with a letter outlining federal programs and requirements, and will work with New York’s Congressional Delegation and municipalities on identifying eligible projects. Project selection will be made by the relevant agencies in consultation with the Cabinet, based upon the federal project selection criteria outlined in the final American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Cabinet will utilize a designated suite on the Second Floor of the Capitol as a stimulus command center, complete with computer-aided mapping equipment. State agencies will assign staff to work in the command center to ensure cross-agency coordination.

The Cabinet will be charged with identifying project delivery problems such as permits or regulatory approvals and resolving the problems to speed project delivery. The Cabinet will also oversee the distribution of funds to ensure an equitable geographic distribution of federal funds.

State Agencies in the Cabinet include the Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Empire State Development Corporation, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Thruway Authority, the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Environmental Facilities Corporation, Department of Labor, the Department of State, the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation, the Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Office of Parks and Historic Preservation, the Division of Housing and Community Renewal, the Department of Education, the Department of Health, the State University of New York, the Division of Criminal Justice Services, the Office of Homeland Security, the Dormitory Authority, the Office of General Services, the New York Energy Research and Development Authority, the New York Power Authority, the Long Island Power Authority, the Public Service Commission, the Office for Technology, the Office of Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Coordination and the Division of the Budget.

Prior to his appointment as Senior Advisor, Mr. Gilchrist served Governor Paterson as Deputy Secretary for Economic Development and Infrastructure, overseeing the major economic development, infrastructure and transportation agencies and authorities in the State. Before he joined the Executive Chamber, Mr. Gilchrist served for over 26 years at the New York State Department of Transportation in a variety of management roles including the Director of Strategic Planning. Mr. Gilchrist earned his Bachelors of Arts from the State University of New York at Oswego and his Masters Degree from Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.

SUNY Chancellor to Build a Strategy by Consensus

By Lisa W. Foderado

ALBANY — Nancy L. Zimpher, who is leaving the University of Cincinnati to become the chancellor of the State University of New York, has a long and ambitious to-do list: raise academic quality, find new funds for research, improve student transfer options and develop a strategic plan.

But topping her agenda as she prepares to take over the largest university system in the nation under a single governing board, with 440,000 students, is perhaps a more daunting goal: personally visit all 64 campuses in the first few months of her tenure — from the sprawling research universities to the smallest technical colleges.