Budget means more for our children and students, and quality, affordable health care for our families

Providing a substantial down-payment toward a brighter future

The budget provides over $848 million more in funding to public schools than last year – $327 million more for New York City schools. It also addresses inequities in the state’s building aid formula that have shortchanged the city by making more New York City school building projects eligible for state reimbursement, and increasing the reimbursement rate for city and other low wealth school districts by 5 percent – helping provide our children with a safe, modern environment conducive to learning. Together, these achievements provide a solid down-payment to help New York City schools provide our children with a sound basic education.

The budget also includes $4.5 million in additional aid to local library systems vetoed by the governor last year.

	“While it’s frustrating fighting the governor tooth and nail to provide our children with a quality education, it’s a battle I won’t quit. I fought the governor when he said that an 8th grade education is all our students need. And I spoke out against him when he repeatedly appealed court decisions that would have finally given New York City schools sufficient funding. When it comes to giving our children an education that prepares them for success, I’ll stand up every time.”

Protecting access to quality, affordable health care

The governor’s budget would have cut a hole in our families’ health care safety net. The Assembly fought for a budget that ensures quality health care while protecting taxpayers by:

• reducing the governor’s sick tax on nursing homes and cutting his tax on hospitals in half

• creating a Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century to determine the best way to protect services by eliminating costly excess capacity in the state’s health care facilities

• creating a preferred drug list with the strongest consumer protections in the nation that ensures physicians have the final say in prescribing medicine

• scaling back the out-of-pocket expenses that the governor sought to impose on Family Health Plus enrollees through significantly higher co-pays, as well as his attempts to cut basic benefits like vision, dental and hospice care

Easing the burden on New York City taxpayers

The budget includes a soft cap on the growth of local Medicaid costs, which is estimated to save the city $523.6 million in the coming year – vital funding that should be reinvested in the city’s schools.

Improving New Yorkers’ commute

The Rebuild and Renew New York Transportation Bond Act is part of the budget. If voters approve the bond act this November, $2.9 billion will be available to preserve, renew and improve the state’s transportation infrastructure, including:

Helping working families keep more of their hard-earned money

The budget rejects the governor’s speeded up tax break for those earning over $500,000 a year to ensure the wealthiest New Yorkers contribute their fair share, and gives working families a break by:

• providing two weeks free of sales tax on clothing under $110 and a permanent return of that sales tax exemption effective April 1, 2007, unless the governor proposes a tax cut sooner, in which case the exemption starts next April 1

• rejecting the governor’s proposed SUNY and CUNY tuition hikes, a 50 percent cut to the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), and his cuts in opportunity programs

• creating memorial scholarships for the families of American Airlines flight 587 that crashed in Belle Harbor, New York on November 12, 2001