Yesterday, the State Senate voted 34 to 27 to pass Governor Paterson's latest budget extender bill. Three Republicans voted with all of the Democrats—except one, Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. (D-Bronx)—to keep the state government running for another week; the Times Union reports, "In doing so, they also approved more than $325 million in mental health and human services cuts set out by Paterson, who last week started inserting components of his full 2010-11 budget into the weekly extenders. While the Assembly easily passed the plan, the closely divided Senate, where Democrats have a slim 32-seat majority, struggled until the end."
The three Republicans were Hugh Farley (Schenectady), Roy McDonald (Saratoga), and Charles Fuschillo (Long Island) would said that as much as they hated the extender bill, they didn't want the government to shut down. Farley said, "To not pass this extender would drive New York state into a state of chaos," adding, "Don't count on me to vote for any more extenders."
What this means is that the Legislature has to come to agreement on a state budget—which was due on April 1—or else it'll be week after week of government shutdown threats. Senator Conference Leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) tried to remain positive, "Government continues to operate and what you’ve seen bipartisan support that understands how important it is that government continues to operate while we negotiate a fair and responsible budget… next week is next week. We have to concentrate on this week to negotiate a budget so we we’re not into the situation or the same predicament for next week." And Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) said, "We are moving closer and closer on an overall budget plan, and we hope to succeed on that.... I can’t tell you whether the governor is optimistic or pessimistic."
