New Yorkers Favor Tax Increases Over Health, Education Cuts, Poll Shows
More than half of New York state voters oppose spending cuts in education or health care, “even if it means raising taxes,” according to a Siena Research Institute poll.
Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo, who faces a $9 billion budget gap next year, “is going to have his work cut out for him” said Siena pollster Steven Greenberg. Opposition among legislators to spending cuts delayed approval of this year’s budget until August, four months after the start of the fiscal year.
Cuomo was elected Nov. 2 with 61 percent of the vote after campaigning on promises to freeze taxes and state workers’ salaries. He is required to submit a budget by Feb. 1 for the fiscal year that begins April 1.
At a press conference last week, Cuomo, a Democrat, repeated his opposition to raising tax