|
-
November 10, 2008
The "people's right to know" is a hollow concept when government can withhold vital information until it is too late for the people's voice to be heard. Unfortunately, that is what happens all too frequently in New York State, when details of collective bargaining agreements with public employee unions are kept secret until it is too late for them to be debated or altered.
Multi-year deals on public employee wages and benefits typically account for much of the annual growth in local government and school district budgets. However, government officials routinely refuse to divulge important aspects of tentative contract agreements —including long-term fiscal impacts—until the contracts are ratified by both sides.
-
April 17, 2008
The state's Contracts for Excellence (C4E) program—centerpiece of former Gov. Spitzer's 2007 education reform program—has been seriously hobbled by flaws in its assumptions about the mechanisms of reform, by misguided beliefs about “what works” in achieving excellence, and by a compressed timeline for adoption and implementation. For better or worse—mostly worse—C4E could now more accurately stand for “Commitments for Expenditures.” Spitzer’s “contracts” have ended up looking more like a typical government grants program, draped with the jargon of reform.
-
March 20, 2006
In the face of high and rising health insurance premiums, pressure seems to be growing in some quarters to return to the empty promise of health insurance price controls in New York State.
-
February 15, 2006
The state-funded share of Medicaid costs will escalate rapidly over the next few years as Albany assumes responsibility for a greater share of county and New York Medicaid costs, according to projections explained in a new report from the Empire Center for New York State.
-
By Tarren Bragdon
NY Health Points Policy Briefing No. 1
February 15, 2006
New York State has long stood alone in forcing local taxpayers to pay up to half of all Medicaid costs not reimbursed by the federal government. This divided financial responsibility is a key reason why New York easily leads the nation in Medicaid spending.
-
By E.J. McMahon
Policy Briefing No. 3
October 19, 2005
After failing to adopt a budget on time for 20 of the last 21 years, New York State legislative leaders are seeking voter approval of a constitutional amendment that they insist on characterizing as "budget reform."
-
By Jay Greene
Policy Briefing No. 1
March 08, 2005
The Campaign for Fiscal Equity decision ordering more than $5 billion a year in additional spending on New York City schools is likely to have little effect on student achievement in the city. Because lack of money is not a primary explanation for the city's low student performance, additional money by itself will do little to improve the situation.
|
