Cuomo Runs Up $6.1 Billion N.Y. Deficit Despite Strong Economy
- Medicaid spending drives state’s biggest budget gap since 2011
- Fiscal watchdog group says governor failed to heed its warning
Andrew Cuomo
Photographer: Scott Heins/Getty Images
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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo may be spending much of the new year explaining how he was caught off-guard by a $6.1 billion hole looming in his next state budget, caused mostly by rising Medicaid costs.
It’s the largest gap since Cuomo took office. Amid New York’s recovery from recession, he closed a $10 billion gap for the 2011-2012 fiscal year with cuts to health care, education and personnel. This shortfall, disclosed in a report last month, occurred during a strong economy as revenue increased. Critics say the third-term Democratic governor should have known better.