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Upstate, a Suozzi solution

Potential candidate for governor says city schools shouldn't be the only priority if state finds a surplus

BY ERROL A. COCKFIELD JR | NEWSDAY ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF; Staff writer Dan Janison contributed to this story.

February 2, 2006

Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi. (Newsday / Alan Raia)

ALBANY - If the state identifies surplus money, it should only send billions more in aid to New York City schools if it can also come up with dollars to lower property taxes and increase job growth upstate, Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi said yesterday.

Suozzi, who could potentially challenge state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer for the Democratic Party's nomination for governor, said during a Hillary Clinton-styled listening tour in Albany and Syracuse that the state's tax, education and economic development woes have to be tackled in a "global" context that addresses each of the issues simultaneously.

Money to address those problems, Suozzi said, could come through better policing of the state's $45-billion Medicaid program, which Suozzi believes could generate as much as $5 billion a year in fraud recoveries.

Asked how much of that he would dedicate to education spending, Suozzi said that, if he were elected governor, "There wouldn't be $5 billion for the city [schools] right away at all. It would have to be a graduated amount, $2 billion of which I could see going to the city."

The rest, he said, should be dedicated to lowering county property taxes, which Suozzi has made his signature issue as he explores a run.

At present, Gov. George Pataki is appealing a court order to send billions more in aid to the city's schools after an advocacy group, the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, brought a lawsuit claiming the state's aid formula deprives New York City of critical funding. Suozzi said the governor should settle the lawsuit.

Speaking yesterday at a school in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the state is still shortchanging New York City in school funding despite increased investments in capital projects by the city.

"I don't think there's any question that New York City could use more help," Bloomberg said, choosing not to respond directly to Suozzi's comments.

Suozzi's argument on education spending resonated with one of the 15 people at an Albany breakfast.

"The idea of writing a substantial check by the State of New York would have negative long-term consequences," said Frank Brennan, an attorney from an Albany suburb.

Suozzi embarked on the tour, titled "New York: A United State Tour" last month with stops in Brooklyn, Westchester and Rockland. Next week he plans to go to Buffalo and Rochester.

Speaking to reporters after the Albany event, Suozzi said he would not rule out taking money from lobbyists or special interests because such donations were not a guarantee that a Suozzi administration would do business with them.

Suozzi said he could take such donations and still challenge special interests. "It shouldn't influence your decisions," he said.

Suozzi also responded to comments from Spitzer in an article posted yesterday on the New York Observer's Web site that better monitoring of Medicaid would not provide enough money to balance the budget, pay for the court order and lower property taxes.

"It is a great program that helps a lot of people but it's filled with waste, fraud and abuse," Suozzi said. "For him to suggest that it's not an important area to look at for significant savings for the State of New York represents a serious deficiency."

Staff writer Dan Janison contributed to this story.