A BUDGET BILL submitted by the Governor
in accordance with Article VII of the Constitution
AN ACT to amend chapters 50, 53, 54 and 55 of the laws of 2005, making appropriations for the support of government
Purpose: This deficiency appropriation bill amends chapters 50, 53, 54 and 55 of the Laws of 2005 which made appropriations for the 2005-06 fiscal year, to meet essential obligations for which funding was not provided in the enacted budget.
Section 1 amends the 2005-2006 Public Protection and General Government Budget as follows:
The recommended deficiency items for the Department of Audit and Control provide increases of:
The recommended deficiency for the State Board of Elections increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriation in the Regulation of Election Program by $500,000. This increase is necessary to fund additional costs due to enactment of Chapter 406 of the Laws of 2005 which requires the creation of a statewide database for local campaign finance filings.
The recommended deficiency for the Office of General Services increases 2005-06 General Fund appropriations in the Real Property Management and Development Program by $16.6 million to accommodate increased energy costs.
The recommended deficiency for the Temporary State Commission on Lobbying increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriations in the Administration Program by $500,000. This increase is necessary to fund the cost of the Omnibus Lobbying Law Reform Act, Chapter 1 of the Laws of 2005, which enacted comprehensive reforms that will allow for more effective regulation of lobbying before State and municipal entities.
The recommended deficiency items for the Division of Military and Naval Affairs provide increases of:
Section 2 amends the 2005-06 Education, Labor and Family Assistance Budget as follows:
The recommended deficiency items for the State Education Department provide increases of:
The recommended deficiency for the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance in the amount of $50,000,000 is necessary to provide General Fund Local Assistance support to the low-income home energy assistance program for the purpose of assisting low-income households with meeting their heating needs due to rising energy costs.
The recommended deficiency for the State University of New York increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriation by $29.1 million. This increase is necessary to accommodate increased energy costs.
Section 3 amends the 2005-06 Health and Mental Hygiene Budget as follows:
The recommended deficiency for the Department of Health Medicaid program increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriation by $606 million. This increase is primarily associated with the timing of Medicaid payments, with the General Fund financing costs in 2005-06 that were originally budgeted in HCRA, and HCRA financing an equal amount of costs in 2006-07. This timing change has no net impact on HCRA resources over the two fiscal years, but requires a General Fund deficiency appropriation of $500 million. Furthermore, a deficiency of $106 million is required to account for a delay in hospital assessment collections, which are used to offset Medicaid costs.
Section 4 amends the 2005-06 Transportation, Economic Development and Environmental Conservation Budget as follows:
The recommended deficiency for the Department of Environmental Conservation increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriations in the Environmental Enforcement, Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources and Operations programs by a total of $7.5 million. This increase is necessary to support the cost of monitoring due to the detection of Chronic Wasting Disease in New York State.
The recommended deficiency for the Olympic Regional Development Authority increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriation for the Olympic Facilities Operations program by $1 million. This increase is necessary to accommodate an operating deficit caused by various factors including increased energy costs.
The recommended deficiency for the Department of Transportation increases the 2005-06 General Fund appropriations in the Mass Transportation Assistance Program by $45 million and the 2005-06 Special Revenue Funds - Other appropriations in the Mass Transportation Operating Assistance Fund by $200 million. Specifically, these changes increase appropriations made to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to accelerate State aid payments within the MTA's 2006 fiscal year.
Section 5 provides that the bill shall take effect immediately and be deemed to have been in full force and effect on and after April 1, 2005.
Existing Law: This is a new bill.
Statement in Support: Enactment of this deficiency appropriation bill is necessary to provide funding for liabilities occurring in the 2005-06 fiscal year for which no appropriations currently exist.
Budget Implications: The provisions of this bill are accommodated in the current Financial Plan for 2005-06.