Local Officials Weigh in on Gov. Cuomo’s State of the State

Gov. Andrew Cuomo laid out his vision for New York in 2012—which includes mandate relief for local governments and education reform—during his State of the State address Wednesday, and local officials say they are looking forward to hearing more.

“It was an impressive speech and outlined the impressive accomplishments the governor had in the past year, and a lot of ambitious and optimistic plans for the future—which is great to hear, “ said White Plains Mayor Tom Roach, who attended the address in Albany.

Cuomo broke down his plan into three parts: a map for economic growth, a “reimagined government,” and plan for New York’s progressive future.

“New Yorkers had a choice to make,” said Cuomo, in his speech. “We could remain dysfunctional and divided, or we could come together, reestablish our government, and rebuild our great state. We made the right choice.”

Cuomo says mandate relief is key to keeping taxes down in order to compete better, and creating a fiscally disciplined government that works for the people.

Cuomo plans to create a Tier VI in the pension system to reduce the burden of pension costs on localities, as state mandated pension increases have gone up 100 percent since 2009. A Tier VI would increase the retirement age and employee contributions, as well as end "pension padding," according to a press release from Cuomo's office. 

The State’s joint Legislative and Executive Mandate Relief Council will begin to hold public hearings on the pros and cons of mandates, and will issue a recommendation by the end of the session.

Roach said the City’s pension bill goes up between 15 and 20 percent per year.

“It would be great to have some help there,” said Roach. “It’s good to have a focus on that to see where we can make changes that benefit not just White Plains, but all localities.”

Cuomo also plans to implement education reform, including: teacher student accountability, and making schools accountable for results and how they spend funds; creating a teacher evaluation system; and a bipartisan commission to make reform recommendations.

“The future of our state depends on our public schools,” said Cuomo. “A strong, effective school system is the hallmark of a healthy democracy.”

Cuomo also vowed to “wage a campaign to put students first,” and serve as a “lobbyists for the students.”

“I am glad the governor is exercising his leadership role to invigorate the state and make it a better place regarding education,” said White Plains Superintendent of Schools Dr. Christopher Clouet.

“The details of his proposal are still unclear, but I would welcome him visiting White plains Schools so he can see in person what kind of work it is we are doing, and that might help to frame how he chooses the members of this new commission. I commend the governor on his desire to be a lobbyist for the students, I have been a long time lobbyist for students myself—that has been the core of my work as an educator, and I am very happy to have the governor be part of that effort.”

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