NYS budget delay may fuel understaffing The state budget is long overdue again this year, and PEF continues to take advantage of the extra time to tell state lawmakers and the public more about how budget proposals could affect state services. But, for the first time, the budget deadlock appears to be so intractable that Republicans Gov. George Pataki and state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno have been talking about the possibility of going without a budget in 2001 and just letting government survive on a succession of short-term extensions of last year’s budget. “No one wants the state Legislature or the governor to rush into hasty budget decisions,” says PEF President Roger Benson. “Usually, state agencies defer any changes in programs or services until after a budget is adopted,” says PEF Legislative Director Brian Curran. “But if they expect their budgets to be cut, programs ended or facilities closed, they may let attrition run staffing down without asking the Division of Budget for permission to fill the vacancies.” However, agencies would not go ahead and begin staffing for proposed new or expanded programs until a budget is in place, he says. “This is a game of political leverage in Albany, with each side trying to get the advantage,” Benson says. “But our main concern is for the services that have been going short-staffed for far too long, and for our members who are expected to bridge the gap and keep programs afloat.” — Sherry Halbrook The Communicator Home Page