News stories tagged with "budget"

(03/06/12) In a new poll released Monday, voters give Governor Andrew Cuomo mixed reviews on his education policies. They say they like a new agreement on teacher evaluations, but a narrow margin say the governor is overall making the problems in the education system worse. more

(03/05/12) Gov. Cuomo's Mandate Relief Council continued its statewide tour Friday with a three-hour hearing on at Lake Placid's new conference center.

The council consists of state lawmakers and members of Cuomo's administration. The group listened to concerns about unfunded mandates presented by officials from across the North Country; the system "is broken," they told the council.

Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy moderated Friday's hearing. He said the forums have been educational, and he hopes mandate relief can be accomplished as quickly as possible.

Chris Morris has our story. more

(03/05/12) There's a new effort in Albany to pass a bill that would bring about a major expansion to the New York's DNA databank.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys agree that having more DNA can help solve more crimes, but not everyone agrees that this bill does enough to ensure justice. WMHT's Marie Cusick reports for the Innovation Trail. more

(03/05/12) Canton Central and other north country school districts are asking the community's opinions on where to make budget cuts for the coming year.

Canton faces a $2.5 million budget deficit. School leaders largely blame the gap on the state aid formula. The district has scheduled two community forums open to all residents. The first is set for Thursday evening.

Potsdam Central is also holding public forums, to deal with its projected $1.2 million budget shortfall.

(03/01/12) New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg and mayors and county leaders from around the state came to the state Capitol to support Governor Andrew Cuomo's push for pension reform. They say they are "crashing and burning" under the rising costs. In Albany, Karen DeWitt reports. more

(02/16/12) North Country Public Radio has been checking in with schools around our region that are struggling with major budget shortfalls. Many districts have seen sharp declines in state aid over the last two years.

They also face rising costs for pensions and healthcare. And now they're also trying to live within the new two percent cap on property tax increases.

Around 200 people from various St. Lawrence County school districts gathered in Canton Central's high school auditorium last night to talk about how to bring about change in the way New York distributes state aid. The Watertown Daily Times reports some suggested filing a class-action lawsuit against the current formula.

Two busloads of students and adults are planning a bus trip to Albany to lobby lawmakers later this month.

Brian Mann was in Ticonderoga for a public meeting last night, where locals rolled up their sleeves and tried to sketch out a future for their public schools. more

(02/15/12) Ask just about any politician these days, and he'll likely tell you that a big part of his job is to create jobs. So how does the government do that? Here in New York, Industrial Development Agencies are one of main job creation mechanisms for local communities.

The Innovation Trail's Marie Cusick explains how these obscure economic development tools work, and just how much it can cost taxpayers when they don't work. more

(02/15/12) Governor Andrew Cuomo says he's trying to make government more efficient by taking pre audit oversight powers away from the State's Comptroller in his state budget proposal. more

(02/14/12) More than 100 demonstrators representing 50 environmental groups were in Albany yesterday, hoping to protect the state's Environmental Protection Fund. The EPF is traditionally a target in state budget negotiations. Martha Foley has more. more

(02/10/12) NCPR kicked off election coverage with a series of stories this week. See below for more on the 23rd district race for the House of Representatives.

Politics are everywhere these days, from the bitter Republican primary fight that's playing out on our TV screens to the redistricting battle in Albany that could shake up politics right here in our own backyard. As 2012 goes on, the news and conversation will only get louder and more intense.

Most high school students can't vote, but politics plays a big role in their lives, too. And they're paying attention, at least the teens are who gathered recently in Peru to talk about government and politics. Our correspondent Sarah Harris sends this report. more