"By promoting financial and ethical responsibility for all elected officials and committing to meaningful change, Citizens Budget Commission has enriched our democratic society and the quality of life for all citizens." State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
Public education from preschool to grade 12 in New York is a $60 billion enterprise, accounting for one in three state and local tax dollars. Per pupil spending in New York is well above national norms and ranks second among states behind Connecticut. But recent years have not been easy for school districts.
School districts in New York spent $1,100 per pupil on average on transportation in 2010, more than any other state and 140 percent above the U.S. average of $459. Transportation spending by New York City is $1,033 per pupil, while spending in the rest of the state averages a higher $1,141 per pupil – fully 149 percent above the national average. The next highest spending state, New Jersey, spends $908 per pupil.
Amid the extraordinary Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts, city officials continued with important fiscal activities. On November 9, an update to the current year budget and the financial plan for fiscal years 2013 to 2016 was released. The plan does not include any estimates of the fiscal impacts of the hurricane, but it features other important modifications.
This policy brief compares the wages PANYNJ police officers with those of the largest state and local police forces in the region, as well as a federal agency. The major finding of the report is that PANYNJ’s police officers are paid more generously than officers of most other local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
In recent weeks transit analysts and advocates have referred to the share of expenses for subway, bus or commuter train rides covered by the relevant fares (called “fare ratios”) to comment on and critique the MTA’s proposed fare increase options. Fare ratios as low as 36 percent and as high as 76 percent have been cited.
In testimony delivered to the MTA by President Carol Kellermann, the CBC recommended three ways to improve revenue generation and suggests several fare-related adjustments to support finances and enhance services.
CBC President Carol Kellermann pens an opinion piece for the Huffington Post on the importance of creating a new approach to financing the MTA. The op-ed is premised on our latest MTA report, "A Better Way to Pay for the MTA"
CBC President Carol Kellermann pens an opinion piece on the Huffington Post on how New York State's education dollars are spread inequitably among school districts and spent disproportionately on employee benefits, not on improving the quality of education.
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