Tagged: New York State 2013-2014 budget

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s proposed 2013-2014 budget includes several changes to the Bottle Bill. Various stakeholders have both praise and concern.

Laura Haight is one who testified Monday at a budget hearing in Albany about the proposed changes to the Bottle Bill. Haight is senior environmental associate for the New York Public Interest Research Group, or NYPIRG. She says there are 20 pages of proposed changes, one of which she applauds, and says would be a first for the state.

A number of cancer organization and anti-smoking groups has penned a letter to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, asking him to bolster what they say are lifesaving programs, and not cut them.  And, the groups contend, for the first time, the programs appear differently in the governor’s proposed budget.

In the governor’s State-of-the-State address, there was no mention of mandate relief, yet several county executives said they were not expecting to hear much about it then, that it would be during the governor’s budget address where they would expect some details about coping with unfunded mandates. Governor Cuomo did speak to unfunded mandates in his proposed 2013-2014 budget address Tuesday, introducing the topic this way.

Stephen Acquario is the executive director of the New York State Association of Counties, or NYSAC.