No Deficit Deals In NY Legislature Special Session

MICHAEL GORMLEY

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — With New York drowning in deepening deficit spending and running out of cash to pay huge bills due next month, the Legislature met in special session Tuesday and put off what Gov. David Paterson called the "tough decisions to save our state."

Instead of acting on Paterson's Oct. 15 plan to reduce the $3.2 billion deficit with politically dicey cuts to schools and health care protected by Albany's strongest lobbies, the Senate and Assembly convened briefly.

Hours later, Paterson set two additional extraordinary sessions for next week to again try to act on the deficit.

"We are about to cross the Rubicon of fiscal responsibility to becoming irresponsible," Paterson said. "I have come to the conclusion that in the three great lies that people tell we can add a new contender, which is, 'We'll work it out and we'll vote on it when we get to Albany.' Because it never seems to happen."

He singled out the Senate's Democratic majority, which he said "didn't cut a dime from anybody" and proposed unwise and unrealistic one-shot revenue gimmicks.