The state budget – or lack of a finalized budget – was the topic of the day at the latest Queens College Business Forum, as State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli spoke to nearly 200 business and community representatives about the urgency to pass a budget.
“They need to finalize a budget even if there’s going to be less money than we might like for programs; I think everyone understands the economic climate we’re in,” DiNapoli said on Friday, June 4. “Let’s get the numbers, let them be real numbers that will hold up for the entire year, so we can move forward and make adjustments.”
Currently, New York State is facing a roughly $9.2 billion budget deficit, and this year’s budget is already more than two months late. State legislators in Albany are continuing to negotiate, but as of Friday they remained more than $2 billion off from closing the gap.
Meanwhile, the lack of a state budget is also creating unrest downstate as the city is dealing with its own budget deficit and is unsure of how the state budget will affect its own budget. DiNapoli, who has served as the State Comptroller since February of 2007, said the city has recovered faster than much of the state, and it did a good job of putting money away during prosperous times.
“It doesn’t mean that the city is out of the woods in terms of making tough choices on spending, but it certainly means the state is the focal point for where the tough choices have to continue to be made,” said DiNapoli.
In addition, DiNapoli singled out Queens as being especially strong.
“Queens is a bright spot when you look at the city’s situation. The job losses have been less than the citywide average,” DiNapoli said. “You have two very strong components that remain vibrant – healthcare and transportation. The location of the airports here is a very strong factor in keeping the Queens economy moving in a very strong position.”
The Queens College Business Forum is sponsored by the Queens Borough President’s Office, Queens Chamber of Commerce, Queens Courier, Farrell Fritz, P.C., PricewaterhouseCoopers and TD Bank. This year’s theme is entrepreneurship.
During this forum, the college and the sponsors also presented a $2,500 scholarship to Queens College student Anita Sonawane, 20, who is interning at the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston, MA, this summer.
