The Associated Press LT. GOV. Richard Ravitch speaks during a news conference at the Capitol in Albany March 10. Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch is a gifted and experienced public servant, well-respected in Albany, an architect of the financial rescue of a near-bankrupt New York City in the 1970s.

But is he a miracle worker?

Earlier this month, Ravitch unveiled a five-year plan to correct structural defects in the state’s finances and reverse the trend of ever-increasing deficits. It’s a bold plan that includes borrowing billions of dollars and imposing strict requirements to curb spending and keep the state solvent. His plan would potentially change the relationship between the state Legislature and the governor, limiting short-term financial fixes like cost-shifting and one-shot revenue-producers. A new financial review board would keep tabs on state spending. The governor and the Legislature would have 15 days to fill any gaps — or the governor could hold funds to keep New York solvent.

The idea of borrowing up to $2 billion a year for the next three years has raised alarms. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli warns that “borrowing to plug a deficit has serious consequences.” DiNapoli wants to end borrowing by public authorities and re-assert voter control over debt. “We need to get the budget in balance and keep it in balance,” he says.

Ravitch would likely agree. “Borrowing is never a good way of solving operating budget deficits,” he said. “But inattention to our problems, a failure to be honest about what we’re facing, will lead to even greater cataclysmic results.”

Fiscal conservative E.J. McMahon of the Manhattan Institute notes the state has borrowed to help erase deficits in the past. California went through a similar exercise in 2004, and remains a financial basket case. McMahon has another solution: curb spending.

State legislators have reacted cautiously and respectfully to Ravitch’s proposal. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Sen. Liz Krueger, D-Manhattan, suggested earlier this month that Ravitch take over budget negotiations from embattled Gov. David Paterson. As for Ravitch’s long-term restructuring proposals, Assemblyman Keith L.T. Wright, D-Manhattan, says, “Let’s go. … I ain’t heard nothing else.”

That’s a good point. With the Legislature’s Easter/Passover break scheduled for March 26 to April 6. Paterson told New Yorkers this week not to expect a final spending plan before the end of April — though he had yet to see any legislative budget proposals. That leaves the governor’s draconian budget, unveiled in January, as the only spending blueprint on the table.

With the state facing a $9 billion deficit and as much as $45 billion over the next five years; with a governor distracted by ethical and legal probes; with a state Senate paralyzed by partisanship; and with both gubernatorial and legislative elections looming in November — New York could use a miracle worker.

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