ALBANY – State leaders in Albany have agreed to a budget plan that includes much-debated reforms to the education system and ethics standards for lawmakers.
That’s according to a joint-statement from Governor Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders, who say the tentative deal was struck late Sunday night.
Cuomo lauded new ethics measures which he describes as “putting in place the nation’s strongest and most comprehensive rules for disclosure of outside income by public officials.”
Other ethics reforms include changes to the per diem expense system, with lawmakers required to prove they are in Albany in order to claim expenses, creating the ability to revoke public pensions, stopping the personal use of campaign funds, and addressing transparency of independent expenditures.
Cuomo also promised to push ahead with controversial education reforms that have pitted him against powerful teachers’ unions.
Cuomo proposed a $142 billion plan in January that keeps spending growth below 2 percent and promises money for big-ticket infrastructure projects while cutting property taxes.
The deal, which comes ahead of the budget deadline of April 1, would mark the fifth consecutive on-time budget in a state previously known for fiscal dysfunction.
Full details of the budget, including state aid runs for individual school districts across the state –will be released Monday.
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