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Report
Energy & Environment
Keys to a Cap-and-Invest Design That’s Earth- and Economy-Focused
Recommendations for a Cost-Effective Program to Meet New York's Ambitious Climate Goals
November 28, 2023
While NYCI provides a great opportunity to reduce emissions in a cost-effective manner and fund critical investments strategically, its success depends on it being well designed and implemented.
Report
State Budget
The Mid-Year Check-in
Six Takeaways from the NYS Financial Plan Update and Quick Start Budget Report
November 20, 2023
The fiscal news of the last three weeks makes one thing clear: This year’s budget process will be unlike those of recent years.
Report
Economic Development
11 Billion Reasons to Rethink
New York's Increasing Economic Development Spending
July 20, 2023
Despite improved disclosure about individual projects, State and local economic development spending continues to increase without sufficient evidence that these programs cost-effectively create jobs or are more beneficial than alternative uses of the funds.
Report
State Budget
Making Hay While the Sun Shines
A Plan to Strengthen New York State’s Rainy Day Fund
June 28, 2023
Today we are left playing catchup with the threats of storm clouds looming on the horizon.
Report
State Budget
Lump Sum Warning
$14.8 Billion in Proposed State FY 2024 Discretionary Lump Sum Spending Authority Invites Waste and Corruption
March 31, 2023
The State’s resources should be allocated transparently and based on clearly articulated priorities, quantified assessments of needs, and the likely evidence-driven benefits of the spending.
Report
State Budget
Steep Incline and Cliffs Ahead:
Unaffordable NYS FY 2024 Spending Proposals Put Future at Risk
March 24, 2023
New York State’s budget has recently grown at an incredible and unsustainable rate, risking future instability and setting the stage for damaging service cuts or counterproductive tax increases.
Report
State Budget
Giving and Getting
Regional Distribution of Revenue and Spending in New York State Budget
December 19, 2011
The report analyzes the regional distribution of revenues collected and dollars spent within the New York State budget by examining actual receipts and expenditures for the 2009-10 fiscal year. It finds that downstate gives more to the State in taxes and revenues than it gets back in expenditures for services and other assistance and that upstate gets more than it gives.
Report
Capital Spending
New York City's Water and Sewer System
Is the Rent Too Damn High?
December 14, 2011
This report provides a history of the City's water rental payment, critiques the current method for setting the rent, and suggests alternative approaches to setting the rent.
Report
Health Care
A Poor Way to Pay for Medicaid
Why New York Should Eliminate Local Funding for Medicaid
December 11, 2011
This paper examines the fiscal inequities and other problems that arise as a result of New York’s largelocal share for Medicaid financing.
Report
Economic Development
Avoiding Past Mistakes
Principles for Governing Regional Economic Development Councils
September 12, 2011
This report examines New York State economic development programs' past mistakes and explores the potential to improve meaningful outcomes via new regional councils designed to streamline and coordinate the current array of state economic development efforts. It warns of the danger that new regional councils will become new heads on the already huge an unwieldy New York State economic development portfolio.
Report
State Budget
The Broken Umbrella
How to Make New York State's Rainy Day Fund More Useful
June 05, 2011
This report explores the reasons why New York has not developed an effective rainy day fund and presents four guidelines for how the State can create a more useful rainy day fund.
Report
Energy & Environment
New York’s Green Policies
Too Much or Too Little – A Competitive Perspective
April 03, 2011
This report assesses how New York compares to other cities in pursuing green objectives and suggests how New York’s leaders can set priorities for taking additional steps to promote environmental goals in ways that align with goals of economic growth and urban competitiveness.
Report
Capital Spending
How Public-Private Partnerships Can Help New York Address Its Infrastructure Needs
December 11, 2008
This report explores the application of public-private partnership (PPPs) in New York by explaining its definition of such a relationship and offering in-depth guidelines, potential applications (including highway bridges, New York City school buildings, New York City parks, and higher education facilities), examples on a global, national, and local level, and potential missteps and cautions.
Report
Health Care
Paying More, But Not Getting Better Care
The Case For A New Payment System For Nursing Homes In New York's Medicaid Program
December 09, 2008
New York’s Medicaid program is the most expensive in the nation, projected to cost $45 billion in fiscal year 2008-09 and to consume nearly one-third of the New York State budget. New York State can provide needy residents with better nursing home care and save about $1.2 billion annually in fiscal year 2008-2009 by changing the way its Medicaid program pays nursing homes. This report explains why the current system is wasteful, perpetuating inefficiencies and inequities without assuring high quality care, and how a better payment system might work.
Report
Economic Development
It's Time to End New York State's Empire Zone Program
December 02, 2008
The Economic Development Zone program has become a vehicle for giving tax breaks to a variety of corporations with no clear, consistent, verifiable justification for the public investment. This report describes the benefits enjoyed by participating firms and how those benefits are distributed among economic regions of the State and types of firms; identifies and elaborates on the three serious problems that compromise the program’s efficacy; and asserts that the Empire Zone program cannot be fixed, citing past failures to do so, and should end.
Report
Taxes
The Citizens Budget Commission Review of Circuit Breakers
February 04, 2008
CBC recently looked at the option of expanding New York’s existing circuit breaker program to provide targeted relief to the neediest taxpayers as background for a forum on local tax relief convened on December 6, 2007. Based on that review of options the following points, outlined in this report, can be highlighted: 1) Circuit breakers are common; 2) New York’s circuit breaker needs reform; and 3) The poorly crafted School Tax Relief Program (STAR) would work better as a circuit breaker.
Report
State Budget
The Armonk Agenda
Next Steps for Fiscal Reform in New York State
October 01, 2006
On April 7–8, 2006, CBC convened a conference in Armonk, New York with the goal of identifying widely supported, high-priority measures for fiscal reform in New York State. This report highlights the realignment of state and local fiscal responsibilities in order to lower local government’s tax burdens, changes in debt management in order to lower the State’s debt burden and make more effective use of borrowing, and improvements in the annual budget process in order to make it more accountable, timely and transparent.
Report
Education
Approaches to School Finance Reform for New York State
Is Robin Hood the Good Guy? Moving Toward a More Equitable School Aid System for New York
September 28, 2006
The report discusses the background of the 2003 New York State Court of Appeals decision in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case, an overview of the issue, explains what is wrong with the current system, provides possible sources of revenue, and provides a discussion framework.
Report
State Budget
Public Authorities in New York State
April 03, 2006
New York State’s extensive reliance on authorities has given rise to four significant problems: 1) Misuse of the power to incur debt; 2) Insufficient oversight and coordination of project revenue backed and private conduit borrowing; 3) Insufficient reporting to support accountability; and 4) Insufficient independence in governance. Each problem is explained more fully in this report, along with five strategies to address them.
Report
State Budget
New York's Endangered Future
Debt Beyond Our Means
September 21, 2005
New York State's debt obligations will require current and future taxpayers to bear a burden that creates a competitive disadvantage with the other states. The core issue is that New York has no effective legal limits on the amount of debt it can assume. CBC advocates for short-run and long-run measures; in the near term, voters should reject bond referendums such as the Transportation Bond Act of 2005 until debt is brought under control, and in the long-run the State must strike a balance between adequate infrastructure investment and a competitive debt burden.