Envisioning a dramatically greater role for universities and colleges in the remedial education of secondary students, the Spitzer administration is planning to pump billions of additional dollars into the State University of New York and the rest of Read More
After a 60-hour strike that halted subway and bus service in 2005, a state judge penalized the Transport Workers Union by taking away its most powerful money-raising tool: automatic collection of dues from members’ paychecks. The judge said the Read More
Amid the gloomy talk of subprime mortgage failures, tumbling profits on Wall Street and a cooling real estate market, one powerful force squeezing New York City’s budget has gone largely undiscussed: the sharply rising cost of municipal labor. A Read More
If you ask most New Yorkers about GAAP-balanced budgets, four-year financial plans and the city’s emergency financial control board, you are likely to get only a blank stare. But any city resident who lived through the pain and tumult of the mid-19 Read More
As he girds for battle over next year's state budget, Gov. Spitzer should dig out his old campaign commercials for inspiration. Especially relevant is the spot where he laid out his "day one" to-do list, vowing to boost everything from the middle- Read More
The advice that Governor Spitzer is getting is that he should start hitting singles. After a year of humiliating strikeouts and bench-clearing brawls, the thinking is that the governor needs to rack up small accomplishments in order to rebuild confid Read More
For years, the Plainview water district -- like many other special districts across Long Island -- has offered free dental insurance that paid for the braces for children of employees as well as for part-time commissioners as part of its benefits pac Read More
Expect a lot of talk in Albany this election year about how New York's sky-high property taxes are sucking the lifeblood out of our economy, turning the Empire State into the Vampire State. But don't take any of it seriously until some brave polit Read More