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| Vol.25, No. 11 | Jan. 21, 2000 |
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| Vol.25, No. 11 | Jan. 21, 2000 |
By Ellen S. Smith
At the state and federal levels, respective budgets are being outlined for fiscal year 2001. Gov. George Pataki's State of the State address on Jan. 5 sketched the broad areas of his budget, which he released on Jan. 11.
President Clinton's State of the Union address will be delivered on Jan. 27, and his budget submitted to Congress the following week, but some information has been leaked to the press.
A review of what is known about these budgets and issues related to them follows.
The State Budget for Fiscal Year 2001 (Apr. 1, 2000-Mar. 31, 2001):
The Governor's proposed $76.8 billion budget is presently before the legislature where the Assembly and the Senate will hear testimony on it. The budget emphasizes economic development, environmental, social and health/mental health programs, and elementary and secondary education. Recent budgets failed to meet the deadline for adoption, but this year's budget process is expected to be faster than in the past.
Highlights of the New York State budget include: Higher education programs fare better than in past years, although TAP remains level-funded, suggesting that changes to eligibility requirements and increases in graduate and undergraduate TAP are needed. HEOP would be funded at $16.4 million; STEP/C-STEP receives $7.5 million; Bundy is funded at $42.25 million, and a 25 percent increase is included for the Scholarships of Academic Excellence Program ($14 million). Teachers for Tomorrow would pay college tuition at state institutions and provide an equivalent sum in tuition assistance at private institutions for those who commit to teaching tech-critical subjects in disadvantaged schools of the state.
More emphasis is placed on the economic development of upstate regions through the creation of high-technology enterprise zones, but there is also a tax credit to spur job creation in cities. Tax credits for biotechnology firms, for Brownfield development and for the construction of environmentally friendly buildings are some of the other areas mentioned. Ten million dollars would be used for a biotechnology industry growth fund; $14 million for existing operations of CATs; $10 million for special incentives for CATs; $7.6 million to assist universities in recruiting and retaining world-class research faculty, and $5 million to support university-based technology transfer initiatives. $5 million is also provided for the SUNY/Albany RPI Focus Center (New York Semiconductor Program).
For environmental programs, $1 million is provided to plan the development of the Henry Hudson Institute for Riverine and Estuarine Research and Education to study fish, plant life, pollution technology, water quality, upland habitats and other aspects of rivers.
The Power for Jobs program would be expanded, although it appears the program would be directed at upstate areas.
Mental health services will also be expanded even as 18 residency positions are eliminated at OMH facilities.
Federal Budget for Fiscal Year 2001 (Oct. 1,2000-Sept. 30, 2001):
At this stage, President Clinton's budget is being finalized, so hard information about it is scant. Rumors circulating in Washington say, however, that the National Science Foundation will receive a double-digit increase, and NIH will get a hike of more than 5 percent. Last year the NIH budget increased by 15 percent.
The State of the Union speech on Jan.27 and budget submission a week later will reveal the details.