The best that can be said of New York City's just-negotiated tentative contract with its principal public-employee union, District Council 37, is that it will expire relatively soon, in June 2002. Meanwhile, the agreement sets a costly precedent at a time when the city's budget picture is dimming. Read More
When Mayor Giuliani formally unveils his eighth and final city budget today, advocates of more expansive city spending are sure to attack his proposed tax cuts. Ironically, Giuliani will be accused of cutting taxes too much - when, if anything, he hasn't cut them nearly enough. Read More
It’s official: According to Mayor Giuliani's latest fiscal plan, the next mayor will face a budget gap of $2.7 billion - which, if it actually materializes, will be $400 million more than the one Giuliani inherited from David Dinkins. Read More
Giuliani took office declaring that city government was too big and taxes were too high. His first two budgets cut the headcount of city employees and reduced spending, setting the stage for both tax cuts and a series of surpluses. Read More
In their latest ploy to drag Gov. George Pataki to the budget bargaining table, New York state legislative leaders are preparing a baseline spending plan that pointedly excludes hundreds of millions of dollars for the governor's own pet programs. Read More
The horrific attack on the World Trade Center will deal a severe blow to New York's economy and government revenues for some time. In one day, the city was plunged into its worst fiscal crisis since 1990 - which, if mismanaged, may yet become as bad as the brush with bankruptcy in the mid-1970s. Read More
New York State's decision to roll the dice on more Indian casinos, video gaming and Powerball is ultimately expected to pump another $1 billion into the state treasury annually, but the inevitable court challenge may delay that payoff for several years. In the meantime, the state clearly faces a very real downturn in its economy and revenues. Read More
Will the next mayor restore New York's battered, post-9/11 economy? The candidates' recovery plans don't inspire much confidence. Most of Mark Green's answers come out of the 1930s. And while Michael Bloomberg seems to have learned a few lessons from the '90s, he's still reluctant to embrace the most growth-oriented elements of the Giuliani philosophy. Read More