Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Preview of a Budget Fight
(Richard Perry/The New York Times)The Empire Zone Danny Hakim
Doesn't it feel good to be finally talking about the budget battle ahead....health care is going to be the epicenter of some very strong and stormy legislative battles ahead...........andy
The Empire Zone checked in with the budget proceedings this morning, only to find legislators on both sides of the aisle picking apart Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s health care proposals during a joint budget hearing held by the Senate and the Assembly.
Lawmakers peppered the governor’s acting health commissioner, Dr. Richard Daines, with questions, but kept it cordial since Dr. Daines has only been on the job a few days.
The hearing, though, set the groundwork for what will arguably be the most controversial and hard fought part of the governor’s $120.6 billion budget.“In the short-term this will be devastating” said Senator Martin Golden, a Brooklyn Republican. “In the long term this might work out to some degree, but I don’t quite see that.”
“Between you and the federal government, I don’t know which is going to be worse, but joined together I think we’re going to get really hurt,” he added.
Lawmakers peppered the governor’s acting health commissioner, Dr. Richard Daines, with questions, but kept it cordial since Dr. Daines has only been on the job a few days.
The hearing, though, set the groundwork for what will arguably be the most controversial and hard fought part of the governor’s $120.6 billion budget.“In the short-term this will be devastating” said Senator Martin Golden, a Brooklyn Republican. “In the long term this might work out to some degree, but I don’t quite see that.”
“Between you and the federal government, I don’t know which is going to be worse, but joined together I think we’re going to get really hurt,” he added.
for the rest of this article...click here..........andy
