ALBANY, N.Y. (WBEN / AP)-- New York state budget talks collapsed Wednesday night after members of the Senate left the Capitol, with lawmakers from both parties blaming Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo for scuttling
negotiations over the spending plan, now several days late.
What has been at issue for lawmakers and Cuomo is the governor's push to have unilateral
changes over the spending plan after it is approved — a non-starter for the Senate and Assembly, but the only nod the $ 152 billion budget proposal gave to the upheaval in Washington.
John Bercow tells members there is too much noise in the chamber as Gordon Brown and David Cameron clash over spending plans
The New York State School Boards Association has
looked over the spending plan and has found some good work, and a few areas in need of Improvement.
They are the «three men in a room» who battle each other every
year over the spending plan - and always manage to deliver it weeks or months after its April 1 due date.
Labour is in an impossible
position over spending plans: if they match them, they lose the ability to set out a robust criticism of the government's deficit reduction programme, but if they reject them David Cameron and George Osborne will attack them for planning to increase spending.
Labour will also go on the attack against the
Conservatives over their spending plans, with Chancellor Alistair Darling claiming the party has a # 50bn black hole from uncosted spending commitments.
The plan itself isn't expected to come to fruition until after the budget is approved and Felder has no plans to entertain a switch until the
negotiations over the spending plan are adopted.
Watching Ed Balls on Sky on Sunday it was remarkable quite how much of a knot he got
himself over his spending plans.