N.Y. Plans $5.9B GO Deal for Capital Plan; Budget Almost Done

New York expects to sell $5.9 billion of bonds to partially finance $10.87 billion of capital spending approved in the fiscal 2011 budget, which lawmakers said is nearly finished.

The state plans to sell approximately $600 million of general obligation bonds. The remainder will be sold through public authorities.

Lawmakers approved the state’s capital program in emergency spending bills, called extenders, that kept the state running in the absence of a budget for the fiscal year that begin April 1. The capital program was also included in two budget bills passed on Monday rather than in a separate bill.

As of Thursday, the budget was all passed except for the revenue bill, which may not be approved until after the July 4 holiday. The Senate adjourned without voting on the revenue bill and had not set a date to return.

Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli urged legislators not to break for the holiday.

“In the face of fiscal uncertainty, New Yorkers need action,” DiNapoli said in a statement. “Stay in Albany and get the job done.”

The Senate on Thursday was pushing to include a measure that would allow institutions in the State University of New York system to set their own tuition levels, a proposal that received a cool reception in the Assembly. Lawmakers were also working on a contingency plan to deal with the possibility that Congress may not approve an additional $1 billion of Medicaid assistance funds for the state under the FMAP program.

Total fiscal 2011 capital spending increased by $105 million due to greater economic development spending, according to the state Division of Budget. The increase was due to the Legislature’s rejection of a proposal by Gov. David Paterson to cut already approved economic development projects, budget spokesman Erik Kriss said in an e-mail.

A final tally of capital spending from the extender and budget bills has not been completed but Kriss said aside from increased economic development spending, it was essentially the same as it was in February estimates.

“These estimates … will be updated for actual results to date, plus other known developments, when the budget is finalized,” Kriss said. “So the final capital spending may, and likely will, change prior to enactment.”

Almost half — $4.95 billion — of the capital program is devoted to transportation. Higher education and economic development were the next highest sectors at $1.93 billion and $1.14 billion, respectively. Capital spending on other sectors include $765 million for environment and parks, $484 million for mental health, $523 million for health and social welfare, $409 million for public protection, $211 million for primary and secondary education, and $350 million for miscellaneous.

On Thursday, Paterson spent hours vetoing spending added on to budget bills passed by the Legislature on Monday. Paterson webcast himself Thursday putting his initials on some of the 6,900 items he said he would veto.

The state operating budget, including expected vetoes, totals $136.5 billion, which includes $2.1 billion of school aid payments for the previous fiscal year that were pushed into the current fiscal year. If the delayed funds are counted in fiscal 2010 rather than fiscal 2011, the budget would be $134.4 billion, a 2.4% year-over-year increase.

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