State lawmakers reach multibillion-dollar budget deal

Gov. Andrew Cuomo and lawmakers in Albany have reached a multibillion-dollar agreement on the state's spending plan.  Cuomo announced the $142 billion budget, saying it will take on public education

News 12 Staff

Mar 30, 2015, 2:55 PM

Updated 3,544 days ago

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo and lawmakers in Albany have reached a multibillion-dollar agreement on the state's spending plan. 
Cuomo announced the $142 billion budget, saying it will take on public education bureaucracy and legislative ethics. He said the budget is one that all New Yorkers can be proud of.
The deal includes $23.5 billion in school funding, which is an increase of $1.4 billion. There are also new rules for turning around failing schools, a new process for dismissing ineffective teachers and a plan for the Department of Education to revise teacher evaluations. 
In recent weeks, schools across the borough, city and state have rallied against Cuomo's education demands. Many wanted more money given to public schools and did not want teacher evaluations based primarily on student performance on state exams. 
Another part of the plan is ethics reforms, such as how lawmakers must disclose their income from any outside jobs. 
Items that were left out of the budget include the Dream Act and a proposal to increase the state minimum wage.