City Programs Already Feeling Gov's Veto Pinch
To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.
Then come back here and refresh the page.
With some still unfinished business awaiting the State Senate, New Yorkers are beginning to feel the pain of the budget cuts, especially the more than 6,700 vetoed amendments by the governor. NY1's Erin Billups filed the following report.The Hispanic Federation is one of thousands of organizations across New York that won't receive anticipated state funding -- a result of Governor David Paterson's 6,700 line item vetoes, which amounts to as much as $720 million in cuts.
For the Hispanic Federation, that means a loss of $390,000 this year.
"It is dire, it's a real impact on our agencies and our communities and this is when the need is highest because families are hurting in New York," said Hispanic Federation President Lillian Rodriguez Lopez.
The federation represents 90 organizations that serve Hispanic communities across the state. On top of losing this year's funding, they still haven't received last year's reimbursement from the state which is worth nearly a million dollars.
"If you're never reimbursed then there's no working capital. And there's no working capital for all of these non-profits and there's no working capital for our communities to be able to receive these services," Rodriguez Lopez said.
Many of the the vetoes include pork barrel spending known as member items. Harlem Assemblyman Keith Wright says it's unlikely programs he normally funds will get any help this year.
"It could be keeping a swimming pool open, it could be keeping Riverbank State Park open, it could be any number of things, it could be programs for seniors. So it has a direct impact," Wright said.
For the Harlem Junior Tennis Association, the cutbacks are quite tangible. Instead of paying all five of their junior counselors, they can only afford to pay two. The other three volunteer instead of having paid summer jobs.
"It's gonna have a ripple effect in the whole program. Going to the point of being a free program to possibly charging for being in the program," said Harlem Junior Tennis Program Director Dante Brown.
Paterson says while he takes "no satisfaction in disapproving the legislation" he cannot accept the legislature's $400 million of what he calls irresponsible spending.