Byrne says governor’s budget includes more unfunded mandates

ALBANY – Freshman Assemblyman Kevin Byrne (R, Mahopac) says the governor’s proposed fiscal year 2017 budget includes more unfunded mandates.
Byrne said the spending plan includes a shared services property tax saving plan, which would consolidate services countywide. It would require a vote by the public in November. “If the counties refuse, their Aid and Incentives to Municipalities funding will be withheld” Byrne said. “This funding is given to municipalities to spend however they choose.”
But Byrne said the “truth is this program is another unfunded mandate.” He said the “vast majority of county and local budgets are already driven by programs the state requires them to deliver but does not help them pay for. Our property taxpayers can’t afford it any longer.”
The spending plan would allow ridesharing companies to operate across the state, not just in New York City as is the case now. “It comes at a cost, though, and according to the governor’s budget proposal, there will be a special new tax imposed on every fare.”
Byrne said while proposal is taking “step in the right direction, however, it’s not clear how much, if any, of that special new tax is going to support local transit costs.”
Byrne does support the governor’s proposal to include $200 million to fight the opioid epidemic. The spending would include crisis centers operated by BOCES to support high school students with a diagnosis of substance abuse disorder and a commitment to the recovery process.
“Any investment in education, prevent, treatment and recovery, and law enforcement is vital for success,” Byrne said. “We need to make sure we provide support to those struggling with addiction and their families to combat this issue in the Hudson Valley and across the state.”