STIMULUS

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Formula Grant

EECBG

Billions of dollars remain untouched for education, energy, criminal justice

by Michael Hill

Even as New York rushes to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in federal stimulus money for roads and bridges, billions more awarded for education, energy conservation and criminal justice remain untouched, according to federal officials.

A recent report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office identified more than $3 billion awarded to New York but unspent at the end of June.

The pace of stimulus spending has come under more scrutiny lately as Republicans in Washington ratchet up criticism of the Obama administration’s job-creation plan. With $60.4 billion paid out from the $174.9 billion in stimulus finds made available so far nationally, some critics claim the money is being spent too slowly.

But officials in Gov. David Paterson’s administration said it simply takes longer to ramp up spending in some areas, given the need to bolster transparency and long-term benefits. In at least one case, they say they had not been cleared to spend the money. Administration officials say the spending is on target.

New York has spent about $700 million in stimulus funds so far on transportation infrastructure projects and drawn about $2.6 billion in extra Medicaid money.

Yet the state hadn’t spent a dime from some pots of money by the end of June. None of the $2.02 billion in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds awarded so far by federal education officials to help minimize or avoid reductions in education and other public services had been spent, according to the GAO. Another $862.5 million for disadvantaged and disabled students also hadn’t been touched, according to the federal report.

Paterson administration officials say they are still getting guidance from the federal government on proper, transparent ways to spend the SFSF money.

The GAO report said New York expects to distribute more than a third of the expected $3 billion in SFSF funds before the end of this fiscal year to help save programs and jobs at public schools and two-year colleges.

Paterson administration officials say other unspent money, including $395 million in weatherization funding, will be tapped shortly.

Announces Release of $275 Million in Unemployment Insurance Modernization Incentive Funds to New York

Clifton Park, NY — In a visit to Shenendehowa High School this afternoon, Vice President Biden highlighted the many ways in which the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) has supported Saratoga County. Vice President Biden was joined at the site by New York Governor David A. Paterson and Congressman Scott Murphy.

“I see it everywhere we go: communities being rebuilt, factories being reopened, workers rehired — teachers in their classrooms, cops on the streets, families better able to live a quality life,” said Vice President Biden. “With the Recovery Act, Saratoga County and America are reclaiming our proud past — and, while we’re at it, creating a better future.”

So far, $16 billion in Recovery Act funds have been obligated to New York State, including $2 billion for education, $700 million for transportation and many projects in other categories. These investments are already lifting up Saratoga County by funding new bridges, building low-income housing for seniors, strengthening its criminal justice system and contributing to many other local goals.

“Thanks to President Obama, Vice President Biden and the entire New York State Congressional Delegation, we have been able to utilize significant economic recovery funding for the rehabilitation of numerous roads and bridges that otherwise may not have received immediate improvements to enhancing our energy independence, expanding our educational opportunities and improving affordable health care for New Yorkers,” said Governor Paterson. “In so doing, we have succeeded in both creating and maintaining jobs in Saratoga County and across the entire state and in moving New York’s economy toward recovery.”

In addition, Vice President Biden today announced that the U.S. Department of Labor has certified for release $275,161,405 in unemployment insurance (UI) modernization incentive funds to the state of New York. New York qualified for these funds available under the ARRA by making it easier for unemployed workers seeking part-time work and those unemployed for family reasons to be eligible for benefits. The New York Department of Labor can use the funds to pay unemployment benefits or, if appropriated by the legislature, for administering its unemployment insurance program or delivering employment services.

“The over $200 million of recovery funding that has come into the 20th District is injecting much-needed capital into our local economy while improving the quality of our health care, our schools and our aging infrastructure,” said Congressman Scott Murphy. “By improving our roads, bridges and water infrastructure, we are not only creating jobs in the short term, but building a base upon which we can attract businesses to our area and foster long-term economic growth. I am proud to welcome Vice President Biden to the 20th District and look forward to working with him to continue to implement recovery funds to turn our economy around.”

Overall, the Recovery Act is touching upon all aspects of New Yorkers’ lives, from health care and transportation to education and job creation. Taken together, these improvements mean a more competitive Saratoga County that will attract businesses, families and jobs.

Across the country, $174 billion of the Recovery Act have been committed in its first 130 days, including $43 billion in tax cuts. One third of the act’s total funding is devoted to tax cuts for 95% of Americans. The act is also on pace to save or create 750,000 jobs in its first 200 days, or more than 3,000 jobs per day.

For additional information on the Recovery Act, including breakdowns by category, state and agency, please visit http://www.recovery.gov.

Schumer: Stimulus aid coming soon

NY expected to get cash before April

ALBANY – U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said Saturday New York schools and the state will get much of their federal stimulus cash by the end of this month, a critical timeframe for budgeting that affects state and local taxes.

The New York Democrat said schools will get half of their share of the federal stimulus package as school boards statewide and mayors of the biggest cities prepare 2009-10 budgets. The early release means school districts will have as much as millions of dollars more to help them avoid raising the nation’s highest property taxes.

For New York state government, the cash comes as the Legislature and Gov. David Paterson negotiate a budget. The roughly $120 billion spending plan is projected to have a $14 billion deficit.

New York is getting $24.6 billion over two years in economic stimulus.

Schumer said late Saturday school districts will need to obligate 85 percent of their stimulus funding by the end of 2010, with the remainder needed to be allocated by the end of September 2011.

More can be requested

Albany will get two-thirds of stimulus funding this month to create jobs through public works projects and to avoid raising more taxes. If the state can show the need for more aid, Paterson can request up to 90 percent of the balance.

That will likely create more pressure in negotiating a 2009-10 budget with the Legislature, which has many members fighting cuts to health care and in many other areas of the spending plan.

Paterson also has proposed about $4 billion in new and raises in narrow taxes – not the income tax, for example – and fees. The Democrat has said he’s willing to use some of the stimulus to roll back the tax increases, but warned if the Legislature uses the historic stimulus to ease New York out of its current fiscal crisis, the state, because of overspending, will likely face another crisis in two years.

“These are difficult times for our school boards, and this aid is critical to avoid layoffs and higher taxes,” Schumer said Saturday.

Amid N.Y.’s Budget Crisis, a Scramble to Spend Billions

by Nicholas Confessore

ALBANY — Throughout the Capitol, from the vaulted Assembly chamber to the first-floor cubicles of the Budget Division, officials are frantically slashing budgets, trimming headcounts and freezing salaries to deal with the worst fiscal crisis in decades.

But in Room 246, a high-ceilinged suite recently turned over to Gov. David A. Paterson’s new economic recovery cabinet, there is a different problem to tackle, courtesy of the federal stimulus passed last month: How to spend billions of dollars as quickly as possible.

Nearly every day, officials from 20 agencies meet there to sift through hundreds of proposals, from waste-treatment plants to courthouses to emergency wireless systems. On one wall is a map of New York’s 62 counties, marked with the number of projects each has submitted for approval. On another is a list of the pools of federal money available to the state: $404 million to weatherize homes, $1 billion for highways and bridges, even $75 million for nuclear waste cleanup.

“It’s better than being on the other side,” said Timothy J. Gilchrist, in between hurried bites of a salad. As the senior adviser for infrastructure and transportation, Mr. Gilchrist was appointed by the governor to oversee the distribution of the federal funds. “I’m Captain Asphalt,” he said.

While the stimulus package includes money that New York and other states can use to close their budget deficits, much of it is reserved for large-scale capital projects, money that must be spent quickly — in some cases in a few months — to help jump-start the economy.

New York is expected to receive $4 billion — a sum that has drawn contractors, local officials and lobbyists to the halls of the Capitol to push for a share. And it is potentially a political gift to Mr. Paterson, now facing the lowest recorded approval ratings of any governor in decades. Every new project offers the chance to earn a glowing headline in the local paper and win points with legislators and municipal officials, many of whom are still smarting at the budget cuts that Mr. Paterson has proposed for next year.

But the money also brings headaches. Every project must navigate a labyrinth of regulations or risk being challenged by federal overseers. And if Mr. Paterson and his aides move too slowly, New York could lose hundreds of millions of dollars.

Of course, every new courthouse or sewer is a potential embarrassment akin to the Bridge to Nowhere. Any political fallout from waste or corruption will settle on Mr. Paterson, who, like all governors distributing stimulus money, must approve each project and certify its legitimacy. And even with $4 billion to spend, there is not enough to go around: local officials have submitted 7,675 projects totaling $41.8 billion, with more coming in each day.

“Things have been so bleak for so long, where there was no money for any kind of project,” said Steven B. Weingarten, a lobbyist for several transportation agencies around the state. “Once they saw there was money on the table, they said, ‘We need to take a shot, any way we can.’ ”

At many state agencies, the rush of stimulus spending presents a bewildering dual reality. Since July, there has been a strict hiring freeze. Now officials must find consultants and staff members for new projects, even while they consolidate or close bureaus and offices. Some programs that faced severe budget cuts, like road and highway construction, are now awash in money.

Merely reading through the 1,000-plus-page stimulus bill took Mr. Gilchrist and his staff several days and at least one all-nighter. (The transparency requirements run to 60 pages.)

As the days go by, they must stroke and soothe New York’s Congressional delegation, which played a pivotal role in getting New York’s billions and has a keen interest in how the money is spent. In Albany, lawmakers are already complaining that Mr. Paterson and his team have not consulted them enough.

The complaints are likely to keep coming. Because of the requirements that the money be spent on projects that have already undergone environmental reviews and met other technical requirements, many pet projects will not qualify, no matter who supports them.

Local officials are in much the same position. The stimulus is a gold mine for capital spending, but has relatively little money for operating expenses, which county governments say they desperately need. For many of them, getting stimulus money is like being handed the keys to a brand new car while months of back rent go unpaid.

“The repairing of bridges and building roads are a good thing, and they will help us,” said Steve Levy, the Suffolk County executive, who announced this week that the county could run out of cash by the end of the year. “But they don’t give a county government cash to pay its bills.”

Of course, that doesn’t mean they won’t take as much money as they can get. Erie County, home to more than its share of crumbling highways and bridges, has submitted nearly 700 projects to the Paterson administration, several times more than any other county. And last week, Mr. Levy created his own stimulus team to comb through the stimulus package and determined what projects might qualify.

“These monies,” Mr. Levy noted, “are very competitive.”

PRESIDENT OBAMA FOCUS ON ECONOMIC RECOVERY

President Barack Obama addressed the nation and the congress detailing the administration’s plan for economic recovery, highlights energy, education, and health care initiatives.

Read the entire speech: Obama Feb. 24, 2009

February 23, 2004

GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES FIRST ECONOMIC RECOVERY PROJECTS, CREATING MORE THAN 1,100 JOBS

Outlines Approval Process for Transportation Projects Funded through Economic Recovery Act

State Economic Recovery Cabinet Continues Work to Identify, Prioritize Infrastructure Projects

Governor David A. Paterson today announced the first transportation projects eligible for federal funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be put to bid as early as March 5, creating thousands of jobs in Upstate New York. These projects include the replacement and repair of bridges in Steuben, Onondaga, Oneida and Herkimer counties, and will be fully-funded through the federal legislation. The Governor also outlined the process that will produce the final list of transportation projects to be funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Read the entire release: Feb. 23, 2009