In a Long Island speech yesterday, Governor Eliot Spitzer suggested for the first time that he might be willing to consider a state-imposed cap on property taxes. If the governor is serious, it could be a turning point for heavily burdened New York property owners. Read More
A Spitzer administration plan to add at least 60,000 kids to the state's government-subsidized Children's Health Insurance Program now hangs in limbo in the wake of new regulations issued recently by the Bush administration. Read More
New York ranked second in the nation for total benefit payments to state and local government workers in fiscal 2005-06, with $18.7 billion in total payments, according to new Census Bureau data. New York's average benefit payment of $24,293 per r Read More
The Taylor Law was designed to create a comprehensive framework for orderly resolution of labor-management disputes in state and local government. After a rocky start, it succeeded. Read More
What does Rep. Charlie Rangel have against his hometown, anyway? Anyone who didn't know better would think the "mother of all tax reforms" unveiled last week by the House Ways & Means chairman from Harlem was designed by rural populists to suck more juice out of the Big Apple. Read More
As teammates on the New York Yankees, Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez get to perform on a stage suited to their outsized talents. But Jeter's dispute with state tax officials highlights the price such stars must pay to strut their stuff in Gotham. Read More
Eliot Spitzer’s first year as governor of New York has seen the state workforce grow to its highest level since Mario Cuomo’s last year as governor, according to payroll data from the state Comptroller’s Office. Read More
Gov. Spitzer's second annual State of the State message yesterday featured what may ultimately stand out as his Nixon-goes-to-China moment. Annoying a powerful ally - and embracing a concept he had rejected during the 2006 gubernatorial campaign - Spitzer said he would form a special commission to recommend a "fair and effective cap" on school taxes in New York. Read More