Gov. George E. Pataki announced the details of his $88 billion 2002-2003 Executive Budget to the State Assembly on Tuesday, but it was not the points that he touted that have some angry.

Throughout the majority of the speech, Pataki focused on the devastating effect that the attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center had on the state economy. He talked about how conservation and savings would be the key if the state is to regroup from the fiscal aftermath of Sept. 11 and the recession economy.

Although Pataki did not mention Syracuse or Syracuse University during the speech, the budget shows a significant reduction of $155 million from the expenditures of the Tuition Assistance Program. TAP provides need-based financial aid for college-bound New York residents. It also sets a monetary cap of 66% that a student can receive up-front for tuition. The last third is paid to the student if he or she graduates.

“This is a matter of picking your priorities,” said State Assemblyman William Magnarelli of Syracuse.

When contacted on Tuesday, Magnarelli had yet to completely review the budget. He said, however, that proposals such as the TAP reduction and a lack of a raise in other educational funding are issues that will meet opposition from him and fellow Democrats.

Magnarelli said that he hopes that memories of last session, which stretched past its allotted time because of party bickering, and the new sense of unity since Sept. 11 will quell some of the normal partisan rhetoric and facilitate a more productive session this year. He is making no promises, though.

“We will work for something that is fair for everyone living in the state of New York,” Magnarelli said. “But when people start talking about things they feel strongly about, then all bets are off.”

SU’s Director of State and Government Relations Elizabeth Rougeux was unavailable for comment. Rougeux was in Albany reviewing the budget so she can brief the university on what Pataki’s plan means for it.

Aimee Miller, project coordinator of the New York Public Interest Research Group, also said that the new measures proposed by the governor will hurt the poorest New York residents who rely heavily on TAP funding.

“The government is not meeting the needs of the students,” Miller said.

She added that having a cap on the money that can go to a student up-front only serves to make the financial situation harder for students to afford tuition in the first place, let alone make it until after they get a degree.

“This is silly,” Miller said. “Who needs money after they graduate?

Published on January 22, 2002 at 12:00 pm