THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK, Thoughts of an older American on Constitutional Government in the USA Options

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"Lawmakers set Friday goal for finishing state budget"

By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press

Last updated: 6:52 p.m., Thursday, April 3, 2008

ALBANY -- The state budget will include a $29.6 million increase in aid for cities to help New Yorkers struggling with local property taxes, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said Thursday.

"Despite the fact that we faced a budget gap of over $4.6 billion, providing additional aid to cities was a priority in this budget," Bruno said.

The state Senate is also expected to reject a "car tax" proposed in the executive budget that would have permanently raised the motor vehicle law enforcement fee from $5 to $20.

Instead, they're proposing extending the current fee of $5 for one year only.

The Senate also is expected to reject a nearly $5 million plan to expand broadband Internet access in New York.

Senate Republicans say they support making broadband available to more people, but the additional money isn't urgently needed because $5 million that previously had been allotted for that purpose was just released last month.

After two weeks of negotiations, lawmakers are still trying to agree on the $124 billion state budget plan, which was due Tuesday.

The Senate and Assembly hoped to complete the budget by late Friday, but they haven't agreed on a number or difficult areas including education.

The Senate passed a bill Thursday that would require judges to sentence repeat violent felons to life in prison without the possibility of parole after three offenses.

The Assembly did not immediately return calls about budget measures passed by the Senate.

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"Residents fret over Colonie red ink"

By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer, Albany, new York Times Union

Last updated: 11:51 p.m., Thursday, April 3, 2008

COLONIE - The town faces a sixth-month deadline to start reforming its finances or it could default on millions in financial obligations, officials told a packed meeting of residents Thursday night.

The spillover crowd of more than 150 heard Supervisor Paula Mahan and town fiscal advisor Robert Sikora lay out a 10-year plan they said can help the town avoid that disaster, which would almost certainly herald the arrival of a state control board.

A key component is deficit financing state-sanctioned borrowing to reduce the deficit and improve the town's credit rating so it can extend some $16 million in short-term obligations in October, or convert them to longer-term bonds.

"The nightmare scenario is we come into Oct. 3, we can't roll over that $16 million, then what are we going to do?"

"You don't have too many options," said Sikora, president of Munistat Services, a municipal advisory firm.

As soon as next week, the Democrat-controlled Town Board could ask the state Legislature for permission to pursue deficit financing, at which point the state Comptroller's office would decide how much the town could borrow.

After that, the town would have to submit quarterly reports and its annual budgets to the state for approval.

Thursday was the public's first chance to question town officials at length about Colonie's $18 million deficit as well as their plan to climb out of it.

The meeting lacked the rancor that has marred previous discussions of Colonie's fiscal decline.

Jack Tabner, a longtime resident and attorney, questioned the wisdom of incurring more interest costs now with the deficit financing when some of the money, such as that needed to close the landfill, won't come due for years.

Michael DeMartino, an attorney who ran as a Republican for Town Board, likened the measure to "robbing Peter to pay Paul" and also questioned the soundness of the advice.

Loudonville resident Larry Farbstein, like many, wanted to know how the town planned to balance its budgets without a substantial tax increase.

Mahan, a Democrat, said her staff is looking at options ranging from slashing the capital budget by 50 percent this year, gradually increasing employee healthcare contributions, consolidating services and reviewing outdated contracts.

A tax increase is an option, Mahan said, declining to speculate about the potential size but said the goal is to spread it over several years to mute its impact.

But raising taxes, she said, will not alone solve the problem.

"I don't think anyone would want to live in the town of Colonie, that's how high they would have to be," Mahan said.

Democrats and Republicans praised the large turnout and the spirit of the meeting.

For some, it was their first trip to Town Hall in years.

Garry Boomhower questioned why the town bought 57 acres on the Mohawk River last year if it was so strapped for cash.

Town officials said residents wanted green space.

"We thought everything was going so well for 36 years," he said later, "there was no need to be here."

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"Pawn or planner? Competing claims in NY lawmaker's bribe trial"

Associated Press

Last updated: 6:22 a.m., Friday, April 4, 2008

NEW YORK -- A state lawmaker accused of taking bribes was guilty of nothing but naivete in dealing with a developer bent on luring her into an illicit bargain, her lawyer says.

But prosecutors say state Assemblywoman Diane Gordon knew exactly what she was doing: trying to get her dream home for $1 in exchange for helping the builder get rights to some city-owned land.

Closing arguments began Thursday in Gordon's trial.

The Brooklyn legislator, who was re-elected after her 2006 indictment, faces a maximum prison term of 5 to 15 years if convicted of second-degree bribe-receiving.

On videotapes played earlier in the trial, Gordon described the home she wanted to developer Ranjan Batheja, told him he could "make it happen" and suggested, "One hand washes the other."

Batheja, who was working with authorities in hopes of improving his lot in an unrelated legal case, secretly recorded his conversations with the legislator.

Gordon ultimately called off the deal, and Batheja didn't get picked to develop the city property he sought.

Gordon's lawyer said the assemblywoman was manipulated by authorities and their informant, saying Batheja "hunted her down" to try to seal the agreement.

"My client was naive."

"There is some evidence that maybe she thought it was a legitimate transaction," attorney Danielle Eaddy said.

Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney Michel Spanakos said Gordon was specific and deliberate in her discussions with the developer and eventually became reluctant only out of fear of getting caught.

"Ms. Gordon was committing crimes directly related to the abuse of her public office month after month after month," Spanakos said.

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"Lawmakers edge closer to sealing state budget"

By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press

Last updated: 11:02 p.m., Thursday, April 3, 2008

ALBANY -- The state budget will include a $29.6 million increase in aid for cities to help New Yorkers struggling with local property taxes, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said Thursday.

"Despite the fact that we faced a budget gap of over $4.6 billion, providing additional aid to cities was a priority in this budget," Bruno said.

Dan Weiller, a spokesman for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, confirmed that the city aid would be included in the new budget.

Both Assembly Democrats and Senate Republicans pushed for more aid for cities than was proposed in the executive budget.

Gov. David Paterson, who took office after former Gov. Eliot Spitzer was linked to a prostitution ring and resigned in disgrace, had previously proposed cutting city aid growth by 2 percent.

The Assembly and Senate have agreed to restore that cut in growth and add another $29.6 million.

After two weeks of negotiations, lawmakers are still trying to agree on the $124 billion state spending plan, which was due Tuesday.

The Senate did not go back into session Thursday to address other pressing budget issues, including transportation and education.

The Assembly had a majority conference about New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's plan to charge drivers extra tolls in congested parts of Manhattan, but nothing was resolved and they didn't go into session Thursday.

Silver said he still needs to hear from about 40 Assembly members on the so-called "congestion pricing" issue and no decision would be made at least until Monday.

Silver, Bruno and Gov. David Paterson met privately Thursday evening, but it was unclear what issues they were discussing.

The state Senate is also expected at some point to reject a "car tax" proposed in the executive budget that would have permanently raised the motor vehicle law enforcement fee from $5 to $20.

Instead, they're proposing extending the current fee of $5 for one year only.

The Senate also is expected to reject a nearly $5 million plan to expand broadband Internet access in New York.

Senate Republicans say they support making broadband available to more people, but the additional money isn't urgently needed because $5 million that previously had been allotted for that purpose was just released last month.

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Storonske Cooperage ....

Down there in Schodack, New York ....

REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive John L. Buono's home town ....

And he was livid .....

That the news had gotten out ....

Spring of 1986, and there it was, right on the cover of Capital Land magazine ...

"DON'T DRINK THE WATER ..."

A story detailing how an unsuspecting expectant mother was drinking chemical-laden water that may have played a part in birth defects of her child ....

And not a word was ever said to her of the danger by either the corrupt Rensselaer County Department of Health, or the corrupt New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, both of which knew of the hazards ....

But did nothing to protect the public health ....

It's all about protecting profits, instead ...

And that is what had Buono livid .....

The publicizing of this fact by this "LIBERAL, LEFT-LEANING YUPPIE" magazine .....

Here was Buono's REPUBLICAN-controlled Schodack right in the middle of a "LAND BOOM", and now this .....

It wasn't that people would be drinking chemicals or sewage down in Schodack, or anywhere else in Rensselaer County that had Buono so upset to the point of apolexy ...

It's that people might find out, and that would kill the land boom before he and his CRONIES had a chance to make the killing that they had positioned themselves to make .....

And so ...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE - FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

JUNE 30, 1989

On October 6, 1988, "an Ad Hoc Engineering Committee" held a closed door meeting in the Rensselaer County Office Building which started at approximately 4:00 p.m. and which was the result, according to PLAINTIFF, of a "deal" between [DELETED BY F.B.I. CENSORS] and the Rensselaer County Developer's Organization.

In PLAINTIFF's view, the purpose of this "Ad Hoc Engineering Committee meeting" was to tell PLAINTIFF how to do business in the Health Department, or else he "would not do business".

According to PLAINTIFF, he was instructed as to how business was done in Rensselaer County in 1983 and was further instructed to abide by agreements made in 1983 wherein, PLAINTIFF understood, Health Department officials certified projects in return for contributions to various politicians.

******

Shortly thereafter, PLAINTIFF was placed on thirty days sick leave and the Rensselaer County Executive went on local television announcing that PLAINTIFF was suffering from stress related to his service in Viet Nam.

PLAINTIFF was replaced, in the Health Department, by one Claude Rounds who, according to PLAINTIFF, immediately certified many of the projects which PLAINTIFF had refused to certify because in PLAINTIFF's view they were uncertifiable.

PLAINTIFF stated that he was told by Rensselaer County Public Health Director Kenneth Van Praag on October 12, 1988 that he, (PLAINTIFF) had "upset some of the most powerful men in Rensselaer County" and that Van Praag could no longer "protect" PLAINTIFF.

PLAINTIFF noted that he advised the Ad Hoc Engineering Committee on the evening of October 6, 1988, he intended to go to the New York State health Department concerning this meeting which he considered to be an outrageous violation of ethical and professional standards.

Subsequently, the county held formal hearings, the purpose of which was to remove PLAINTIFF from office for insubordination and other charges.

A Special Agent of the FBI at Albany attended some of these hearings.

Initially, the county sought to have these hearings private despite the fact that PLAINTIFF waived his right to a private hearing and desired that the proceedings be public.

This issue was brought before a State Judge, however, the county agreed to have open hearings before the judge had an opportunity to rule on the merits of this case.

The judge, however, did comment, that Rensselaer County had made a "wise decision" in deciding to have open hearings.

- EXCERPT from pages 202,203 of the O'Connor BIBLE submitted to the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City in this matter on behalf of defendant REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino and her co-defendants, in or about November of 2005

'Misconduct cited in crane testing - State worker accused of giving certifications to operators who failed"

By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, April 3, 2008

ALBANY -- Misconduct by a Department of Labor employee led to the improper certification of more than 200 crane operators between 1985 and 2000, an investigation by the state Inspector General found.

In a 32-page report released Wednesday, the Inspector General said Frank Fazzio, a 60-year-old safety and health program manager who still works for the department, granted certification to people who had failed a crane-operation examination.

Why he did so remains unclear.

The investigation does not claim the longtime department employee and one-time member of the Crane Operating Examining Board received kickbacks or other benefits.

Fazzio could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

The investigation also found that officials at the Labor Department were told of Fazzio's conduct but did nothing to correct it.

The report says that in 2002, Martha Waldman, head of the licensing and certification unit, discovered nearly 45 crane operators had received a failing grade on their examination but had nevertheless received certification.

Waldman says she passed the information on to her supervisor, Anthony Germano, the department's health and safety director, but no action was taken, according to the report.

The report says Germano denies he was made aware of Fazzio's conduct.

Leo Rosales, spokesman for the Labor Department, said Germano no longer works there.

Rosales said the agency has taken corrective action since becoming aware of Inspector General Kristine Hamann's investigation in November.

It immediately removed Fazzio from the crane board and suspended 197 crane operator certifications, he said.

As of today, 75 of the suspended operators have retaken the test, but just 38 have passed.

Rosales also said "appropriate disciplinary action" will be taken against Fazzio.

Last month in Manhattan, a crane crashed into an apartment building and killed four people.

Stephen DelGiacco, a spokesman for the Inspector General, said the office has no evidence that improper certifications by Fazzio led to crane-related accidents.

The report found Fazzio also issued himself both a crane operator's certificate and a blaster's certificate, allowing him "to supervise or perform the preparation for and detonation of any blast."

He was not qualified for either certification, the report says.

Chris Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.

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"$3,000 in fake taxi rides alleged"

By JAY JOCHNOWITZ, State editor, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Friday, April 4, 2008

ALBANY -- A Health Department assistant director whose job included disciplining other employees for misconduct billed the state for more than $3,000 in taxi rides she never took, the state Inspector General's Office said Thursday.

The office said Luella Kelley, 62, assistant director in the Bureau of Employee Relations and Staff Development, had been filing expenses since 1995 for taxi fares from her home to the Amtrak station even though she drove her car.

The charges ran upwards of $30.

Had she billed for mileage, the cost would have averaged $9.

According to the inspector general, Kelley charged the state for "taxi fare in lieu of mileage" and when asked about it responded, "I was never told that I couldn't or shouldn't do that."

Health Department policy states that an employee traveling on state business can bill only for actual expenses, the inspector general noted.

Kelley also billed for her parking at the train station and for meals "to which she was not entitled," the state says.

Kelley, who has been with the state for 40 years and earns $87,000 annually, has been temporarily reassigned while the Health Department weighs disciplinary action.

The inspector general also faulted the Health Department's travel unit staff for failing "to follow proper procedures and to detect the inappropriate expense claims."

The agency is reviewing its internal controls, has installed an electronic travel reimbursement system, is going back through past claims of taxi expenses and will perform audits.

The inspector general also recommended training so that people traveling on state business know the reimbursement rules.

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"Hamann quits amid criticism - Inspector general to resign after fallout from Spitzer, travel scandals"

By IRENE JAY LIU, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Friday, April 4, 2008

ALBANY -- State Inspector General Kristine Hamann, who had been brought in by Gov. Eliot Spitzer to be the state's internal watchdog, became the latest official to resign after being embroiled for months in the travel records scandal.

Hamann submitted her resignation Thursday, effective April 10.

Hamann made no reference to the controversies surrounding her or Spitzer, saying that her office "has achieved a substantial record of accomplishment of which I am most proud."

In a terse statement through spokesman Errol Cockfield, Gov. David Paterson "thanked Ms. Hamman (sic) for her service to the State of New York."

The governor has asked Dennis E. Martin to serve as acting inspector general until he makes a permanent appointment.

Martin currently is special deputy to the inspector general.

Hamann, who became inspector general in February 2007, came under fire from Republicans who faulted her for not completing her investigation of last summer's travel records scandal.

Hamann said there was a conflict of interest because the probe involved her direct supervisor, Richard Baum, who was Spitzer's secretary.

Hamann concurred, however, with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's July 2007 report on the matter.

Hamann and other Spitzer officials have been under increasing pressure to leave office since Spitzer's resignation last month amid a prostitution scandal.

Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, repeated his criticism of Hamann for shutting down the inspector general investigation.

He again called for legislation that would remove the office from investigations that present a conflict of interest and hand them to the attorney general.

Winner added that he looks forward to reviewing the findings of a probe by the State Commission of Investigation, which is investigating the investigations by Albany County District Attorney David Soares, the inspector general and the State Commission on Public Integrity into the travel records scandal.

The attorney general's investigation will not be in the commission's investigation.

When asked whether Hamann resigned because of the probe, office spokeswoman Kate Gurnett replied, "No."

"We actually welcome that investigation."

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"$250M give and take in budget - State to borrow money for Aqueduct racino, then get it back as 'one shot' revenue"

By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Friday, April 4, 2008

ALBANY -- Budget negotiators have come up with a $250 million "one shot" by giving a video slot operator at Aqueduct the money to build a racino in exchange for getting the money back to help pay for this year's budget, a government official said Thursday.

Legislative leaders and Gov. David Paterson also discussed ways to split up $1.1 billion for economic development projects, including funds for the Advanced Micro Devices project in Saratoga County, according a person briefed on the plan.

But details of the projects were being kept mostly under wraps.

Lawmakers grew testy as they, like most members of the public, have been kept in the dark on the week-long negotiations on the $124 billion budget.

Legislators also suffered their first pay period without a paycheck.

The money is being withheld under state law because the budget is late.

The deadline was April 1.

On the Aqueduct VLT facility, budget planners agreed the state should borrow $250 million that would be paid back over 30 years.

The video slots would produce an estimated $300 million in gambling revenues annually for education spending.

The Aqueduct VLT operator would have to pay the state $250 million as a fee by March 31, 2009, the official said.

The arrangement allows the state to plug a hole in the budget.

Former Gov. Eliot Spitzer had proposed a $250 million franchise fee from the operator of a VLT parlor at Belmont, but Assembly Democrats refused to allow the gambling hall at the Nassau County track.

Two development teams, Capital Play LLC and SL Green, are competing for the Aqueduct development rights.

Neither has indicated that the rights for Aqueduct are worth as much as the rights for Belmont, so the budgeting plan may hit some snags.

Spokesmen for Gov. David Paterson would not confirm the arrangement, expected to be inserted in a budget bill.

Although some observers say the plan amounts to a fiscal gimmick, Sen. John Sabini, D-Queens, a member of the Racing and Wagering Committee, said he likes it.

"If it gets Aqueduct moving and we get the money back, it's alright with me," he said.

When the deal will be voted on is unclear.

Negotiations on several elements of the budget were still incomplete Thursday, a week after Paterson, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno announced their agreement on a $124 billion budget framework.

With talks going on in secret, the Assembly canceled its session Thursday because budget bills were not ready for action.

The Senate postponed its session until late evening.

Even budget bills that have been passed were missing key ingredients.

For instance, both chambers passed a public protection bill late Wednesday.

But none of the local assistance money -- typically filling numerous pages of such legislation -- was included in the measure.

"The only thing worse than negotiating a budget in secret is having a week of secret negotiations and no budget," Sen. Martin Connor, D-Brooklyn, said.

Besides budget delays, leaders in both chambers were weighing what to do about Mayor Michael Bloomberg's congestion pricing legislation, which Paterson and Bruno strongly support but many lawmakers in the New York City metropolitan and suburban area dislike.

Lawmakers suspected that the measure, which calls for charging motorists $8 to enter much of Manhattan during weekday work hours, lacks the support needed for leaders to allow a vote on the floor.

James M. Odato can be reached at 454-5083 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com.

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"A distaste for budget pork - Paterson laments what he terms lawmakers' unwillingness to rein in spending on pet projects"

By JAMES M. ODATO and RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, April 5, 2008

A frustrated Gov. David Paterson blasted the Legislature Friday for ignoring the state's economic slide even as he agreed to spend at least $45 million on lawmakers' pet projects this year.

As lawmakers began passing a pork-laden economic development budget of more than $13.5 billion, Paterson told reporters that no matter how he tries to keep spending in check, legislators push for more.

"I don't like this process very much," said Paterson.

"What I found in the last week was that the process is actually very ordinary, very much like Albany has been in the past."

Despite the extraordinary circumstances this year, with an ailing economy and Paterson taking office March 17 after Eliot Spitzer's resignation, lawmakers are acting as if there's nothing different, the governor complained, adding he'd pushed for an on-time budget in hopes of sending a message to the public.

With the $124 billion budget being passed slowly and in pieces, Paterson said he wants to keep lawmakers here over the weekend to finish a budget deal.

Assembly and Senate members are expected to remain in Albany or be on call.

Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said a quick resolution may not be at hand.

"If we don't reconcile what we are discussing, we're going to be here for awhile, and I'm afraid it's going to be a long while," Bruno said, suggesting that tax and borrowing issues remain unresolved.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, maintained that the Legislature took the unusual step of not adding new funds this year for member items because of the tight times.

Instead, the budget will allow new member item spending by "sweeping" unused dollars from the member item accounts of past years, he said.

That will result in $45 million in new expenditures using previously appropriated funds.

Assemblyman James Hayes, the ranking Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, noted that the budget also includes a commitment of $40 million in new member item money for the next fiscal year.

"The revenue budget that's coming I'm almost certain will be a crushing blow to people in this state when we go to pay for this budget," Hayes said.

Typically, the Assembly and Senate add $170 million for member items each fiscal year and split the money 50/50.

The Assembly uses a chunk of its funds for programs while the Senate tends to use most of its money for groups in members' districts.

Both chambers have used the funds in some questionable ways in the past.

The only other time that new money wasn't put into the state budget for member item spending was after the 9/11 attacks devastated the state's economy.

The unused member item funds could have been used for something other than community projects, some lawmakers noted.

That's what became of $125 million in the Environmental Protection Fund.

It was swept and used for other operating needs.

"I would rather there be no member items or capital projects in the budget," said Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward, R-Willsboro.

She was among several members who voiced with the relative lack of progress finishing a $124 billion budget this week.

"We have property taxpayers having trouble buying fuel for heating, and I'm getting $154 per day standing here talking ..."

"It's a travesty."

Sayward has about $100,000 in member items in the budget, for things such as thermal imaging equipment for some small fire departments and funds to help school children get to Fort Ticonderoga for history field trips.

Sen. Dale Volker, R-Depew, said the member item spending represents a fraction of the budget and does a lot of good.

"One way you help the economy is you put that money with some groups," he said.

Spitzer's $1 billion upstate economic revitalization program is obviously being reshaped.

He planned to borrow for 60 percent of it and use cash for the rest.

However, the economic development budget has just $40 million in cash for it.

Hayes said he's worried about a massive borrowing bill coming up.

A source familiar with the plan said $1.1 billion in capital projects are being negotiated.

While Spitzer's initial budget came in with a 5.1 percent spending increase, Paterson said he proposed a 3.7 percent hike, knowing it would probably be negotiated to 4.5 percent.

The trouble is, as things stand, "we have a built-in $3.6 billion budget deficit next year," even with a balanced budget this year, Paterson said.

Also Friday, Bruno announced that the budget will reverse a 50 percent cut in the local share of video slot revenues proposed by Spitzer for next year.

Saratoga Springs and Saratoga County reap about $5 million from VLTs.

The budget will include a 2-percent cut, Bruno said.

James M. Odato can be reached at 454-5083 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com.

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"High prices take toll on optimism - Siena survey of state's metro areas shows sharp decline in consumer confidence index"

By ERIC ANDERSON, Deputy business editor, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, April 3, 2008

COLONIE -- The Siena Research Institute is calling it a collapse.

The latest measure of consumer confidence has produced readings that are 20 to 30 points below year-earlier levels.

And the institute's founding director is blaming everything from energy prices to Eliot Spitzer.

"The first quarter of '08 saw not only high energy prices, a continuing housing slump, little job creation, simultaneous recession and inflation, (and) the Bear Stearns fall, but also an unprecedented political scandal in New York," said Douglas Lonnstrom.

If there were any bright spots in the report released Wednesday, they came in the convergence of readings across the state's metropolitan areas, which Lonnstrom interpreted as a "potential economic bottom."

"It's really a sobering set of figures," said Don Levy, director of the institute.

He, too, called the convergence a "silver lining" that may indicate things won't get worse.

The quarterly survey, launched following the Sept. 11 terror attacks, measures consumer confidence across the state's major metropolitan areas.

The survey gauges both how consumers feel about the current situation, and how they view the future.

Combined, they produce an overall figure.

The index seeks to measure consumers' willingness to spend; consumer spending makes up two-thirds of the nation's overall economic activity.

"It's very clear that consumer spending is slowing," said Hugh Johnson, chairman and chief investment officer of Johnson Illington Advisors in Albany.

He too cited energy prices and the decline in housing prices as factors.

"I don't see any sign that the slowdown in the national and state economy is at a turning point," Johnson said.

"I do see signs that say we may reach a turning point in the not-too-distant future," citing recent improvements in the financial markets as one leading indicator.

Still, higher prices for food and energy are forcing households to cut spending in other areas.

"People are having to make choices, to reallocate their budgets," said Tony Riccardi, a private economist in Albany.

Riccardi talked of an Italian takeout restaurant in Guilderland that was struggling with a doubling of cheese prices and significantly higher prices for flour.

"Every single time you drive past a gas station, you see that 3 at the top of the sign," said Ted Potrikus, executive vice president of the Retail Council of New York State.

"It is an incessant reminder that everything costs more."

"Every consumer has to make a lot of decisions on where to spend money."

Jean Gagnon of Plaza Travel in Latham said customers no longer are opting for larger rental cars when planning trips.

"They don't want to pay the fuel cost," she said.

Consumers also are paying more when they travel, as airlines boost fees for pets and unaccompanied children to cover higher energy prices, Gagnon said.

Delta has doubled the fee to escort unaccompanied children to $100 each way.

And several carriers now charge $25 to check a second bag.

A separate section of the Siena survey measured consumers' buying plans for major purchases, and may offer some encouragement to retailers.

In the Capital Region, buying plans increased for vehicles, computers, homes and major home improvements, although fewer respondents said they planned to buy furniture, compared with the previous quarter.

The uptick for vehicles didn't come soon enough for Haynes Ford in Hoosick, however.

The dealership closed two weeks ago.

Ford's declining market share has led to a consolidation of dealerships, said company spokeswoman Marisa Bradley.

Eric Anderson can be reached at 454-5323 or by e-mail at eanderson@timesunion.com.

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"Serving state's energy needs - Power plant siting bill, planning funds, pipelines discussed"

By LARRY RULISON, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, April 3, 2008

ALBANY -- The governor's deputy secretary of energy is optimistic the Legislature can pass both a power plant siting law and an energy planning bill this year.

Paul DeCotis' comments came Tuesday the annual energy update breakfast sponsored by the Energy Association of New York State and the Northeast Gas Association, two energy trade groups.

The event was held at the Fort Orange Club.

For years, the Legislature has been wrangling over a new power plant siting bill that would provide a fast-track state review for badly needed new electric generation in the state.

A previous law, known as Article 10, expired in 2003.

Legislators have been unable to reach a compromise on a new law, however, with Democrats wanting to exclude some fuel types such as coal and nuclear.

There also is talk in the Legislature of passing a bill to fund a $2 million energy plan that would help drive energy policy in the state -- and perhaps clarify issues that have been holding up a new siting law.

But DeCotis said he is hopeful a siting law can get passed regardless of a planning bill.

"I think that can happen independent of a planning process," he said.

At the same breakfast, Northeast Gas Association President Thomas Kiley highlighted four new natural gas pipeline projects in the state -- totaling $1 billion in investment -- that will help to increase supplies.

New York produces only 5 percent of the natural gas it uses, and the energy supply is in greater demand -- especially as it is used more as fuel in power plants.

Demand has pushed up natural gas prices, pinching consumers and businesses.

The biggest project is the Millennium pipeline that will help bring natural gas from Canada to the New York City area.

A $600 million section from the Southern Tier to Rockland County is expected to be completed by November.

Patrick Curran, executive director of the Energy Association of New York State, said after the breakfast the new supply flowing into the state would likely have a positive impact on pricing, although he couldn't give exact figures.

"It can only help," he said.

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"'Troopergate' scandal figure put on paid leave"

First published: Sunday, April 6, 2008

ALBANY -- Daniel Wiese, State Power Authority inspector general, has been put on paid leave.

Power Authority spokeswoman Christine Pritchard declined further comment on Wiese's indefinite leave, citing an investigation.

Wiese, a former state trooper, was named in Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares' report on so-called "Troopergate," Spitzer administration disclosures of state aircraft use by rival politician and Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno.

Reports were gathered by State Police.

Soares brought no criminal charges but concluded Spitzer may have lied about his own plotting.

Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, asked by Gov. David Paterson last week, began a new investigation.

-- Associated Press

[Livyjr]

"Schumer 'sold' on AMD plans for Malta site - U.S. senator says company president remains upbeat about $3.2 billion chip-fab plant"

By ERIC ANDERSON, Deputy business editor, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Wednesday, March 26, 2008

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer made his first visit to the Luther Forest Technology Campus Tuesday morning to tell local officials and residents he believes a $3.2 billion Advanced Micro Devices Inc. plant will be built there as planned.

"AMD has had a rough year -- five quarters -- where they've lost money," he said.

But, "AMD and most of their analysts regard this as a bump in the road."

"I'm completely sold on the fact that AMD is going to be here," Schumer added.

"AMD lowers sales outlook, plans job cuts"

By JORDAN ROBERTSON, Associated Press

Last updated: 7:12 p.m., Monday, April 7, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO -- Battered by product delays and acquisition costs, beleaguered chip maker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. said Monday that it will jettison 10 percent of its work force and warned investors that first-quarter sales were lower than expected across all business lines.

The Sunnyvale-based company's job cuts, which amount to more than 1,800 workers out of 18,600 worldwide, were expected.

But the sales miss surprised Wall Street.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial were expecting AMD to ring up $1.61 billion in sales; the company says sales for the three months ended March 29 were closer to $1.5 billion, a 15 percent drop from the year-ago period.

AMD shares fell 14 cents, or 2 percent, to $6.20 in after-hours trading.

The stock had risen 11 cents to close at $6.34 before the layoffs and sales warning were released.

AMD has fallen on hard times as it confronts intensifying competition from Intel Corp., the world's largest semiconductor company, and tries to digest the $5.6 billion acquisition of graphics chip maker ATI Technologies Inc., which AMD recently said is worth about 30 percent less than when it was acquired.

AMD views the acquisition as a key way to attack Intel and incorporate better graphics capabilities into its chips.

Graphics are now a key battleground for chip makers as more and more Internet surfing involves video and as the graphics requirements for computer games are heightened.

Lengthy product delays for its new Opteron server chip, a product critical to the company's financial recovery, also hurt AMD's competitiveness.

Technical glitches pushed back the chip's full release for months after the official launch in September.

Intel has endured its own financial hardships as a result of the battle with AMD, whose restructuring is the latest in a series of aggressive cost-cutting maneuvers by both the No. 1 and No. 2 makers of microprocessors, which act as the brains of personal computers.

Last year, Santa Clara-based Intel cut about 10,500 jobs, or about 10 percent of its work force, in a move to save about $3 billion annually.

The restructuring was triggered by Intel's sharply sliding profits, the result of losing customers to AMD and furiously cutting prices to keep older chips competitive.

AMD's losses in 2007 were staggering, capping a brutal two-year stretch in which the company's market value plunged from more than $20 billion to $3.84 billion today.

In 2007, AMD lost $3.38 billion, $2 billion of which were non-cash charges.

Revenues were $6 billion.

The stock has fallen from over $40 a share in early 2006.

[Livyjr]

And if there was a genesis for this thread on the "PORK" in New York ....

This AMD story would certainly be a part of it ....

From the CORPORATE WELFARE side of it, anyway ....

The MODERN STATE has a DUTY to help out the needy corporations in America ....

To ensure that their stockholders will continue to rake in the fruits of the profits ...

Which is what "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer's new PORKOLOGIST, or PORKMEISTER, or PORK DISPENSER ...

Up from Pennsylvania at $190,000 per year is here to do ...

Keep that money flowing into the shareholder's pockets ....

By taking it out of OUR pockets to do so ...

Which the MODERN STATE sees as being "fair" ....

Since CORPORATIONS are the ones who put the BIG BUCKS back in the pockets of the politicians ...

Who CONTROL the MODERN STATE ...

To ENRICH themselves ...

At OUR expense ...

And so ...

"Money woes muddy plan for Malta site"

By JORDAN ROBERTSON, Associated Press

First published: Saturday, March 10, 2007

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The high-flying Advanced Micro Devices Inc. of 2006 has given way to a company in financial peril, saddled with debt and bleeding from a brutal price battle with its larger and suddenly resurgent Silicon Valley archrival, Intel Corp.

AMD -- which is planning a $3.2 billion computer chip factory for Saratoga County -- finds itself the subject of rumors of a possible takeover or private-equity cash infusion.

While it wasn't long ago that AMD was stealing a big slice of the microprocessor market and emerging as a long-term threat to Intel, those very gains may have left AMD's well running dry.

Industry analysts said both companies are suffering from the need to balance the near-term goals of shareholders and the huge expenditures required to stay competitive.

AMD officials say they are still on track to make a decision about whether to build a 1.2 million-square-foot "chip fab" at the Luther Forest Technology Campus in Malta.

New York state has offered the company $1.2 billion in financial incentives, including $650 million in cash, and AMD has between now and July 2009 to make its decision.

Company executives were in the Capital Region in January talking to community and business groups, political leaders and news organizations and sounded extremely upbeat about the company's chances of building here.

Though the price competition has cut into both chip makers' profits, Wall Street has punished AMD's stock particularly hard.

Its shares have plunged more than 60 percent over the past year on fears about the company's ability to continue gaining share without hurting profit margins.

AMD is currently undergoing a 12-week initial design review of the Luther Forest project to create a rough draft of what the fab will look like.

The company is also undergoing its biannual long-range forecasting process.

Executives will take information from those reviews to make a formal recommendation to the company's board of directors on whether to move ahead with the project this year or to table the decision for a later date.

"AMD, as a company, has enough strong parts that it will survive, but I think it's going to be a rough couple of years for this organization," said Stephen Kleynhans, a research vice president at Gartner Inc.

But analysts are not optimistic about a quick turnaround for AMD.

"AMD cuts follow Intel restructuring"

By JORDAN ROBERTSON, Associated Press

Last updated: 1:03 a.m., Tuesday, April 8, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO -- Advanced Micro Devices Inc.'s plans to jettison 10 percent of its work force are the latest sign that the seesaw battle between semiconductor rivals Intel Corp. and AMD has taken its toll on both companies.

AMD said Monday that its job cuts, which will amount to more than 1,600 workers out of 16,800 worldwide, are slated to start later this month and finish by September.

The cuts were widely expected as the slumping chip maker has been battered by product delays and burdened by heavy acquisition costs.

The Sunnyvale-based company also warned investors that first-quarter sales were lower than expected across all business lines, a miss that surprised Wall Street.

Sales for the three months ended March 29 came in at about $1.5 billion, a 15 percent drop from the year-ago period and short of the $1.61 billion that analysts polled by Thomson Financial were anticipating.

The company is scheduled to report its full quarterly results April 17.

AMD shares fell 18 cents, or nearly 3 percent, to $6.16 in after-hours trading.

The stock had risen 11 cents to close at $6.34 before the layoffs and sales warning were announced.

The news comes as momentum in the notoriously volatile semiconductor industry has turned for the moment against AMD, whose own momentum just a couple of years ago was a major factor in a major restructuring by Intel.

AMD had not been a player in the lucrative server market until the company launched its first Opteron chip in 2003.

Armed with the energy-efficient chip, AMD stole away valuable market share from Intel and eventually captured about a quarter of the worldwide server market.

The competition hurt Intel, whose profits slid sharply, the result of losing customers to AMD and furiously cutting prices to keep older chips competitive.

In 2006, Santa Clara-based Intel said it was cutting about 10,500 jobs, or about 10 percent of its work force, in a move to save about $3 billion annually.

But now it's AMD that's fallen on hard times as it confronts intensifying competition from Intel, which has regained some lost market share with a powerful line of new chips and has lowered its costs with a new manufacturing process.

Meanwhile, some of AMD's most important products are viewed as out-of-date.

Lengthy product delays for AMD's new Opteron server chip, a product critical to the company's financial recovery, have hurt its competitiveness.

Technical glitches pushed back the chip's full release for months after the official launch in September.

AMD is also struggling to digest its $5.6 billion acquisition of graphics chip maker ATI Technologies Inc., which AMD recently said is worth about 30 percent less than when it was acquired.

AMD views the acquisition as a key way to attack Intel and incorporate better graphics capabilities into its chips.

Graphics are now a key battleground for chip makers as more and more Internet surfing involves video and as the graphics requirements for computer games are heightened.

AMD's losses in 2007 were staggering, capping a brutal two-year stretch in which the company's market value plunged from more than $20 billion to $3.84 billion today.

In 2007, AMD lost $3.38 billion, $2 billion of which were non-cash charges.

Revenues were $6 billion.

The stock has fallen from more than $40 a share in early 2006.

[Livyjr]

And to further "flesh that out" .....

THE ALLEGATION THAT NEW YORK STATE HAS A PROBLEM WITH CORRUPTION .....

Let us go ....

For the moment .....

To ARTICLE 460 ....

Of the New York State Penal Law ....

Which is entitled ENTERPRISE CORRUPTION ...

That ARTICLE OF LAW being a part of TITLE X of the New York State Penal Law ....

Entitled ORGANIZED CRIME CONTROL ACT ....

And the relevant part of that state law which pertains directly to this discussion in here ....

Is as follows:

S 460.00 Legislative findings.

The legislature (of the State of New York) finds and determines as follows:

Organized crime in New York state involves highly sophisticated, complex and widespread forms of criminal activity.

The diversified illegal conduct engaged in by organized crime, rooted in the illegal use of force, fraud, and corruption, constitutes a major drain upon the state's economy, costs citizens and businesses of the state billions of dollars each year, and threatens the peace, security and general welfare of the people of the state.

Organized crime continues to expand its corrosive influence in the state through illegal enterprises engaged in such criminal endeavors as the theft and fencing of property, the importation and distribution of narcotics and other dangerous drugs, arson for profit, hijacking, labor racketeering, loansharking, extortion and bribery, the illegal disposal of hazardous wastes, syndicated gambling, trafficking in stolen securities, insurance and investment frauds, and other forms of economic and social exploitation.

The money and power derived by organized crime through its illegal enterprises and endeavors is increasingly being used to infiltrate and corrupt businesses, unions and other legitimate enterprises and to corrupt our democratic processes.

And so .....

GROUND ZERO ....

In this discussion on "GOVERNMENT PORK" ....

HERE IN THE CORRUPT EMPIRE OF NEW YORK ....

WHICH IS COMPETING WITH YOUR STATE, OUT THERE ....

AND YOUR ECONOMY ...

WHETHER YOU KNOW ABOUT IT ....

OR NOT ....

And so ....

"7 charged in NY Mercantile probe"

By SAMUEL MAULL, Associated Press

Last updated: 6:52 p.m., Tuesday, April 8, 2008

NEW YORK -- Seven people are charged in a probe of illegal trading at the New York Mercantile Exchange -- including a former board member who has pleaded guilty in exchange for five months in jail, authorities said Tuesday.

Steven J. Karvellas pleaded guilty to violating New York's general business law and tampering with physical evidence.

Besides the jail time, he will receive five years of probation and must pay $850,000 in fines and legal costs.

Three other people already have pleaded guilty for participating in fraudulent commodities trading; another three have been arrested and their cases are pending.

Karvellas, who could have gotten up to four years in prison on either of the charges, was scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 9.

From 1990 until this year, Karvellas was a floor broker who traded at the exchange.

Authorities said he owned two Manhattan-based companies: Steven J. Karvellas and Co., a natural gas trading company, and Commercial Brokerage Corp.

Court papers say Karvellas was on the exchange's board of directors from 1996 to 2000.

He also served as chairman of the exchange's Adjudication and Compliance Review Committee from 2000 to 2003.

As part of his plea deal, Karvellas admitted he delayed customer orders to buy or sell natural gas contracts while watching the direction in which the market was moving, prosecutors said.

If the market moved in a direction that made the order profitable, Karvellas took the contract for himself, prosecutors said.

They said customer orders would be executed later at a less favorable price or not at all.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau and Gregory Mocek, director of enforcement of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, announced the charges in a news conference.

Neither would estimate the total value of futures contracts that Karvellas traded.

Morgenthau said Karvellas' methods allowed him "to engage in risk-free investing for his own account and deprived his customers of the profits they would have realized had he made the trades properly."

Because Karvellas had been a member of the NYMEX compliance committee, Morgenthau said, "You've got the fox in the chicken house."

"Here was a guy who was supposed to watch out for fraud."

Mocek said the CFTC is self-regulating and always on the lookout for fraud.

Once Karvellas' illegal activity was discovered, he said, the CFTC took it very seriously because he had been a high-ranking member of the exchange.

The illegal activity occurred between September 2002 and May 2003.

[Livyjr]

"NY Legislature agrees to spending deal"

Associated Press

Last updated: 7:02 p.m., Tuesday, April 8, 2008

ALBANY -- Officials say the Senate and Assembly have tentative agreement on spending bills in a $124 billion state budget scheduled to be approved Wednesday.

The budget proposal would increase spending 4.5 percent and include $1.1 billion in capital projects statewide and about $1 billion worth of increases in narrow taxes, such as the cigarette tax, and fees.

Holding up a vote on the spending bills is a legislative proposal pushed by one of Albany's most powerful lobbyists: The New York State United Teachers union.

The measure that still requires final approval would set parameters for granting tenure to school teachers.

[Livyjr]

"Agency pay is all over map - Salaries among the state's transportation administrators have little to do with a department's size or its responsibilities"

By CATHY WOODRUFF, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, April 8, 2008

ALBANY -- If state Transportation Commissioner Astrid Glynn gets a hankering for a raise, she might apply for Michael Fleischer's job as executive director over at the Thruway Authority.

Fleischer's job at the Thruway, an agency with less than one-third the staff and a far smaller fraction of the infrastructure that Glynn oversees at the Department of Transportation, pays $165,709 a year.

That's nearly $30,000 more than the $136,000 transportation commissioner's salary set by state law.

The job as director of canals at the Canal Corp., a still-smaller agency that operates a 524-mile upstate waterway system, also might hold some appeal.

Director Carmella Mantello's salary there is $141,566.

The disparity illustrates an irregular patchwork of salaries and benefits at New York's major transportation agencies, most of which are governed by boards of directors that operate independently from the rest of state government.

The Times Union acquired records for the top earners at DOT, the Thruway Authority and other agencies through requests submitted under the state's Freedom of Information Law and reviews of other public records.

The records show that salaries at the highest staff levels hold little relationship to the scope of responsibility, size or function of the agency.

Glynn stands out as the only transportation chief executive who cannot claim the highest salary on her staff -- or even a paycheck among the Top 10.

Her annual pay ranks 19th at DOT, behind several regional directors, the department's chief attorney, chief engineer and chief information officer, and her executive deputy, among others.

She makes more than $12,000 less than DOT employees in the top salary tier, which is $148,433 for regional directors and a few others.

But without action by the state Legislature and the governor, neither Glynn nor other department commissioners within Gov. David Paterson's administration have a prayer of seeing a raise.

Their salaries are set in state law and have been unchanged since 1999.

Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, a Westchester County Democrat who chairs the Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, said compensation for chief agency executives throughout state government deserves an impartial outside review.

"It's a consistent problem that the salaries for heads of state agencies have not kept up with what the market is," he said, noting that many are paid less than some of those they hire and supervise.

At the same time, pay levels for chief executives at New York's transportation authorities, where compensation is decided by independent boards of directors, are all over the map.

"The statutory limitations at the Department of Transportation have artificially kept the salaries down," he said.

"The salary levels need to be looked at by outsiders in an intelligent way and not as part of any game-playing or name-calling," he said.

Compensation for other top executives among the transportation agencies also is inconsistent.

At the Thruway Authority, the only agency with responsibility resembling DOT's for upstate roads and bridges, eight of the top managers have higher base salaries than anyone at DOT.

Salaries at DOT top out under $149,000.

At the Thruway Authority, the chief attorney, chief financial officer, director of information technology, chief engineer, director of maintenance and operations and one division director all make more.

Fleischer's chief of staff nears the highest salary tier at the Thruway, with regular pay just under $144,000 a year.

In addition, Thruway administrators qualify for thousands more each year if they take few sick days or choose to exchange vacation time for cash, a benefit not available at DOT.

"It's important to note that many of the authority's executive staff members act on behalf of both the authority and the (Canal) Corporation, therefore essentially doing their respective jobs for both organizations," said Thruway spokeswoman Sarah Kampf.

"The majority of these people do wear two hats."

She said salaries for some top employees reflect long tenure at the Thruway.

She also said the overall rate of pay increases at the authority, including contracts negotiated with unionized employees, has been less over the past decade than that for state workers in other agencies.

A Paterson spokeswoman did not have an immediate response to Brodsky's suggestion, as the governor, legislators and their staffs continued work on a new budget for the fiscal year that started on April 1.

"We're working on the budget right now."

"That's the main focus," said Jennifer Givner.

Cathy Woodruff can be reached at 454-5093 or by e-mail at cwoodruff@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Taking tax cap's measure - Panel examining possible limits on growth of state levy hears from skeptics"

By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, April 8, 2008

COLONIE -- To cap or not to cap.

That will be one of the biggest decisions that a property tax study commission headed by former gubernatorial candidate and Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi makes next month.

And the battle lines on that issue are starting to emerge.

On Monday, during an informational meeting on the Commission on Property Tax's progress, attendees heard some arguments against a tax cap, which has been touted as a way to reduce property taxes in the state, tops in the nation.

A tax cap would place a limit on how much property taxes could increase annually.

While the idea is popular with taxpayers and some politicians, school officials and teachers unions worry that it would create unrealistic limits on spending.

Caps have caused problems in other states, some participants said.

For instance, Colorado's tax cap, instituted in 1992, led to referendums against the practice, said Leif Engstrom, program manager for the Capital District Regional Planning Commission.

He was among the approximately 30 people who showed up to learn what the tax commission was doing and to offer input.

And Morris Peters, a state Division of Budget examiner who hosted the meeting at The Crossings of Colonie's town park meeting hall, said California's Proposition 13 let that state's schools "fall apart," due to its sharp limits on revenue.

That cap was passed in 1978.

Peters, though, said a 1980 tax cap in Massachusetts limiting local levies, or the amount of money a tax can generate, has worked.

With opinions both for and against a state-mandated tax cap, the issue is emerging as a key part of the commission's work.

Some politicians have suggested that a hard cap will be difficult to pass, given the powerful political players like teachers unions that worry a cap could hurt school funding.

But others said much of the impetus for the commission came amid calls for an immediate tax cap.

Rather than pushing for that, former Gov. Eliot Spitzer instead appointed the commission.

Attendees at Monday's meeting said New York's many local governments -- some 1,500 cities, towns and villages in 62 counties -- could do a lot to increase efficiency and lower costs.

Berne town Supervisor Kevin Crosier, for example, said he saved more than 30 percent on oil, bottled water and uniforms by combining purchasing with Albany County, which was buying goods from the same supplier.

But Crosier said he tried unsuccessfully to get his Town Board to consider merging snow plowing duties with the county.

And Shenendehowa school Superintendent Oliver Robinson said some of the state's more than 700 school systems should consider making joint bids for services like health insurance, which could provide bargaining leverage.

"Let's regionalize some of these things," he said.

Other suggestions included ending some of the hundreds of property tax exemptions that exist in the state, including for church-owned property, or placing more reliance on sources such as sales taxes or other revenues to fund the schools.

Ultimately, however, the commission, which is supposed to give Gov. David Paterson a preliminary report on May 22, will have to grapple with whether it wants to recommend a property tax cap.

And whether a tax cap gets enough support may be up to Paterson, said Edmund J. McMahon, director of the Manhattan Institute's Empire Center for New York State Policy.

"He needs to come out at some point and make it clear that what he hopes to see is a real tax cap," said McMahon.

Rick Karlin can be reached at 454-5758 or by e-mail at rkarlin@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"NY moves to edge 26 companies out of tax-break program"

Associated Press

Last updated: 4:23 p.m., Tuesday, April 8, 2008

ALBANY -- New York officials are moving to push 26 companies out of a program that gives tax breaks in exchange for promises to create or retain jobs.

The Empire State Development Corp. -- New York's economic development arm -- says the companies have fallen far short of the jobs or investment projections made in return for Empire Zone benefits.

The $500 million-a-year program has long been criticized as ineffective and state officials last summer vowed reforms.

Officials say nearly 2,400 of the 9,800 companies in the program failed to meet even 60 percent of promised job creation.

The 26 being pushed out of the program are among 171 that provided the least economic return for their tax benefits and didn't explain why when asked.

[Livyjr]

"Poll finds voters ambivalent about Gov. Paterson's performance"

Associated Press

Last updated: 6:32 p.m., Wednesday, April 9, 2008

THE ISSUE: Gov. David Paterson's first weeks in office. Paterson took over March 17 after former Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned amid a prostitution scandal.

------

THE NUMBERS

Voters rate the job Paterson is doing as:

Unsure, 32 percent

Good, 31 percent

Fair, 25 percent

Poor, 8 percent

Excellent, 4 percent

------

OF INTEREST: Three-quarters of registered voters do not think Paterson's admission of extramarital affairs and past drug use will affect his ability to do his job.

Fewer than half think he's changing the way things work in Albany for the better.

Fifty-six percent would like Paterson to run for re-election.

------

The WNBC/Marist Poll of 576 registered voters in New York was conducted by telephone on April 3-4 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

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COMPLETE RESULTS: http://www.maristpoll.marist.edu/