The $131.8 billion the state is slated to spend in the 2009-10 budget seems almost too big to comprehend.

And so although the Empire Center’s ”Spend-O-Meter” is a bit of a gimmick, it serves a purpose in helping us measure just how much money that really is.

E.J. McMahon, director of the Empire Center, a project of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, released figures late last week showing that to burn through the $131.8 billion in one year, the state needs to spend at a rate of $4,179 per second, $250,761 per minute, $15,045,662 per hour, $361,095,890 per day, $2,534,615,385 per week, $10,983,333,333per month.

That simply is staggering.

It is all the more galling knowing that Democrat Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who no doubt controlled the secretive budget talks between himself, the governor and the Democrat leader in the Senate, to finally get what he has wanted all these years, bombarded the news media late last week with press releases like these:

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Ways and Means Committee Chair Herman D. Farrell, Jr. today announced that the SFY 20092010 budget includes $502 million for the Public Housing Capital Fund … Silver and Farrell said the state budget restores $48.5 million in critical funds to programs that help community-based organizations preserve and restore housing in depressed areas.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver … announced that despite the global economic crisis, the SFY 2009-2010 budget maintains funding for crucial transportation priorities and infrastructure projects. The Assembly leaders fought hard to keep many projects while incorporating $4.74 billion from the federal stimulus package for various new shovel-ready projects across the state.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver … announced today that the SFY 2009-2010 budget expands the state’s Returnable Beverage Law to include water beverage containers … In addition, 80 percent of all the unclaimed nickels on beverage containers would be remitted to the state.

He also sent out releases announcing the restoration of $16 million in cuts Gov. David Paterson had wanted to make to reduce funding of the Offices of City MedicalExaminers, the restoration of $49.9 million in Paterson’s proposed cuts to the Tuition Assistance Program and providing $3.9 billion in funding for the SUNY and CUNY systems, and ”hard-fought restorations” to fund legal services for New Yorkers. Silver also proclaimed the addition of provisions that require the state to completely fund capital projects at Medgar Evers College and restoration of $1.1 billion to school districts and $376 million for universal pre-kindergarten.

And while the state budget includes tax increases that surely will hurt small businesses – which he never mentions in the press releases Silver announced with pride that ”in order to preserve and stimulate one of New York’s most important and vibrant industries … the budget includes $350 million for the New York State Film Production Tax Credit program.”

Yes. He is proud to have given millions in tax credits to the film industry while New Yorkers will be hit with the largest tax increase in state history and $12 billion in new spending.

How will the residents of the Empire State ever manage to survive this one-man-in-control New York state government?

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