Tag: Taxes and Spending

E.J. McMahon, president of the Empire Center for New York State Policy in Albany, said that governors for at least 30 years have used state agencies to fund staff in the executive chamber as a way to conceal the true size of the governor's staff. But having state authorities like NYSERDA, which is funded by utility fees, pay for the governor's staff, is taking that a step further. "I think it's another degree of inappropriateness," McMahon said. "It's just another way of using an authority as a cash cow." Read More

In the eyes of many Broome County residents, nursing homes and transportation services are essential government functions that should remain in public hands. More than 80 people gathered Thursday in the meeting hall at the American Legion Post 80, 75 Main St., Binghamton., to speak out against the possibility of privatizing B.C. Transit or the Willow Point Nursing Home. Read More

High-income New Yorkers are probably the least stable, consistent and reliable segment of the city's income tax base. According to state tax data, there were 49,000 city households with adjusted gross income of more than $500,000 as of 2007. They earned $135 billion that year. Read More

There are budget tricks, and there are budget tricks. Some governors go to enormous lengths and expense to improve the way their finances look. They sell highways or government buildings, delay worker paychecks or tax refunds, or concoct new and costly ways to borrow money. Read More

What teachers in New York state make the most money? The Scarsdale School District in Westchester County pays a median salary of $137,017, according to state Education Department data for the 2012-13 school year. Read More

From 2008-09 to 2012-13, the statewide median teacher salary rose by 10 percent -- and the median for downstate suburban districts increased almost twice as much. Read More

Statewide median teacher salaries in the region increased by more than 10 percent from 2008-09 to 2012-13, according to a report released by the conservative think-tank Empire Center for Public Policy. Meanwhile, the report released Monday notes that while student enrollment, especially in upstate schools, have largely decreased, staff reductions haven’t kept up with the rate at which students have left. According to the study, more than 76,000 students have left New York state schools from 2008-09, while districts have cut 25,350 positions. Read More

Statewide, median teacher salary increased by about 10 percent between the fiscal years 2008-2009 and 2012-2013, according to a new report from the Empire Center for Public Policy, a fiscally conservative government finance watchdog. Read More