Andrew Cuomo's Business Friendly Puff Pieces Fizzle As Reality And Medicaid Block Grants Close In

The February 7, 2011 post is updated, condensed and Medicaid Block Grant Implications added:   Updates are in purple.

Andrew Cuomo's Business Friendly Puff Pieces Fizzle As Reality Closes In

 Oh what a tangled web we we weave, when first we practice to deceive ~ Shakespeare

    Andrew Cuomo's business friendly with no tax increases puffing is about to burst.   His lackeys got puff pieces in the Wall Street Journal describing Cuomo as a “national spokesman for fiscal sanity” and in the National Review entitled “Cuomo the Conservative”   Cato Institute was fooled with "Cuomo the Conservative." 
They forgot Ronald Reagan's, "Trust, but verify."


   As of January 21, 2011, New York State, one of 30 States, borrowed $3,343,758,375.70 from the federal government for paying Unemployment Insurance.  Six States, Maryland, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas, have repaid their loans in full.    And since Cuomo didn't budget for this in his budget, he must be planning to pass it through to NY businesses. From NY Dept. of Labor, "the numbern average $478 per worker is due from employers."  How much more is New York borrowing this year to add to this $478 per worker?   Is this NY as business friendly?

       Did Cuomo fool his conservative/tea party supporters by having only a property tax cap passed by his request in the NY Senate?    Not really, when a County's Medicaid share is to rise 9.4%.   Where's the money coming from?  "UNYTEA’s Board of Directors has voted unanimously to endorse Governor Cuomo’s proposal for a 2% cap on property taxes, but only if it is accompanied by mandate relief."    And there is a $100 million dollar surcharge tax on medical procedures. passed on through business health insurance premiums

 Now a wake up call concerning Medicaid block grants and the Government posts biggest monthly deficit ever.


     Cuomo's budget plan calls for $30.2 billion to be given to New York by federal government for Medicaid.  New York matches this with $15.1 billion contribution by the State and a $15.1 billion paid by NY Counties paid in property taxes.   New York's 2008 Medicaid per person is $8,961 and the average State per person is $4,307.   If the federal government were generous and gave Medicaid Block grants at the rate received by the average State, NY would receive 4,307 divided by 8,961 x $30.2 Billion = $14.5 Billion.   New York budgets $60.4 billion, so $60.4 minus $14. 5 billion = $44.9 billion additional to be spent out of State money.  And if the federal Government were very frugal and used California's per person rate of $2,386, the block grant would be $8.04 billion  and $50.36 billion additional would need be spent out of State money. 
Any wise businessman would run for the border.



        Ian Welsh describes Cuomo and his cronies as "the people who hollowed out the US economy and caused the financial crash don’t pay the price of their evil, but in fact stay in charge of society despite causing a Depression and being  bankrupt."   Welsh asks, "Andrew Cuomo: stupid or evil?"   It doesn't matter, because he won't continue to fool people for much longer. 


      Bob Brinker, this weekend, after hearing of all the great retirements for government employees, now recommends that people move out of the high tax States with cooked Pension books.     Who's going to be left to pay for Cuomo's plans?  Medicaid recipients, government workers?   So the advice for residents of  budget challenged States is dump their bonds and move out. 
     
   So the advice for residents is to move out and dump the bonds and Andrew Cuomo and his deceived media calls this "Business Friendly."