Gov. Andrew Cuomo and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced federal approval today of New York’s recovery plan to help struggling homeowners and businesses following Superstorm Sandy and tropical storms Irene and Lee. The plan, which will be funded through HUD’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery… Read More →
Three years ago, spending for Social Security exceeded dedicated tax revenues, and the gap has been growing since then, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Spending will exceed tax revenues by 20 percent by 2030. President Barack Obama has proposed changing the inflation measure used in the Social Security program,... Read More →
A proposal that would end taxpayers’ ability to deduct state and local taxes—including on their property—from their federal taxes would cost New York taxpayers nearly $15 billion on their annual tax bill, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. He called on Congress and the Obama administration today to reject proposals included in federal… Read More →
President Barack Obama’s $3.8 budget proposal would further increases taxes on wealthy Americans and trim Social Security and other popular benefit programs in an attempt to rein in runaway deficits, USA TODAY reports. The tax and spending plan is two months late, which the administration says is due to the intensive “fiscal cliff” negotiations… Read More →
The $85 billion in budget cuts sequestration brings boils down to a debate between Democrats and Republicans about taxes, The Journal News/lohud.com reports today. Democrats and President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress believe new tax revenue should be part of the solution, but Republicans disagree, Gannett Washington reporter Brian… Read More →
Roughly 12,000 civilian employees for the Department of Defense will be furloughed if the sequester takes place, according to a report released yesterday by the White House. Their gross pay would be reduced by nearly $61 million. Army base operation funding would be cut about $108 million in the state. The… Read More →
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has proposed regulations that would save nearly $676 million a year, and $3.4 billion over five years, that would eliminate regulations on hospitals and health-care providers that have been identified as “unnecessary, obsolete, or excessively burdensome,” Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. secretary of health… Read More →
The U.S. Senate is scheduled to vote at 5:30 p.m. on a $50.5 billion Superstorm Sandy relief package, Gannett’s Washington Bureau reports. The Senate had planned a vote on the legislation last week, but it was delayed because of a debate over filibuster rules. If passed and signed by President… Read More →
If President Barack Obama and Congress do not act to avoid the fiscal cliff, school districts throughout New York could lose $164 million in federal funding, or an average of $243,000 per district, according to an analysis by the New York State School Boards Association. Districts in the Lower Hudson… Read More →
As Americans tiptoe closer to the fiscal cliff, more are growing concerned about the impact going over the cliff – if Democrats and Republicans fail to reach an agreement or take action to prevent all or some of a batch of tax increases and spending cuts set to take effect… Read More →
