Month: March 2011

No wonder the state has a $10 billion budget deficit. The number of retired state employees pulling down pensions of more than $100,000 surged a startling 43 percent last year, from 1,059 in 2009 to 1,513, according to the state Comptroller's Offi Read More

As states struggle with enormous deficits and exploding pension costs, some analysts are urging Congress to enact a law enabling states to declare bankruptcy the way municipalities can under Chapter 9 of the federal bankruptcy code. Read More

Brace yourself: A budget blizzard is headed straight for the city, yet Mayor Bloomberg sees mostly Bermuda-like skies. "This place not only survives, it thrives," he said Wednesday in his State of the City speech. The next day he launched the NYC Read More