Albany Reaches Deal on This Year's $1.6 Billion Deficit

Now there's just the $13 billion deficit in next year's budget to deal with.

Governor Paterson, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith announced a deal (click for press release with details of the plan) this evening to close the remaining $1.6 billion hold in the current fiscal year budget, and both houses of the legislature approved the plan shortly thereafter.

Here's Paterson discussing the cuts they settled on, and what they decided not to do in closing the budget gap:

But Smith says the real work will begin Wednesday, when lawmakers start trying to craft the 2009-2010 budget.  That budget has a $13 billion deficit by Paterson's latest projection.  Says Smith: "Health care, education, everything will be on the table."

Meanwhile, State Senate Republicans are taking a cue from their House counterparts in Washington, presenting a united front against the Democratic proposal.  All 29 Republicans in the Senate voted against the agreement on this year's budget.  From the AP:

"[Senate Republican Leader Dean] Skelos, surrounded by a dozen Republican senators, said he didn't see the budget-cutting bill until noon Tuesday. He said the package was designed by three Democrats from New York City and that it was done without transparency -- something the Republicans had been accused of by the Democrats last year."

All 32 Democrats, in control of the Senate for the first time in four decades, voted for the agreement.  (There is still one empty seat in the chamber, as the election in the 11th State Senate District in Queens has yet to be resolved...though it looks more and more likely that incumbent Republican Frank Padavan will emerge as the final winner.)

One big question as negotiations on the next budget get underway: will Silver and Assembly Democrats push a millionaire's tax, which they've previously passed - but Paterson opposes?