By Mark Scott
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-917341.mp3
Buffalo, NY – Last week's approval of the final revenue bill in the state budget ended one of the more contentious legislative sessions in years. As WBFO's Mark Scott reports, a would-be governor sees "lost opportunities," while the man who puts the budget together saw some positives.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Cuomo doesn't like the higher taxes and fees included in the budget. He supports a property tax cut -- an idea State Assembly Democrats reject. Overall, Cuomo gave state legislator poor grades.
"I do not believe this was a legislative session to be proud of," Cuomo said. "I think there were lost opportunities at a time when the state really needs help and advancement."
But Paterson administration budget director, Robert Megna, is more generous in his assessment. He says the budget does include spending reductions.
Megna praised lawmakers for approving a contingency plan for the possible loss of Medicaid funding from the federal government.
"That was a step forward," Megna said.
Just days after the contingency plan was approved, the U-S Senate broke a Republican filibuster, allowing billions of dollars in additional Medicaid funding to begin flowing to states, including New York.
Megna admits there are parts of the budget that deserve criticism. But he says overall, the state's elected leaders closed a more than $9 billion deficit in "a responsible way."