Cuomo vetoes $640G worth of 'pork' spending

The governor used his line-item veto on 129 items, 122 of which were what he said were member items, also known as pork-barrel spending.

In his veto messages, Cuomo said the items had been inappropriately categorized.

He said in a radio interview, that "the legislature will say these are re-appropriations of old member-item funds . . . [but] I consider them new items."

Michael Whyland, spokesman for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan), said the money had been appropriated for past projects that for one reason or another couldn't go forward and the funds had been redirected to other projects.

"They are worthwhile projects; that's why they were included in the budget," Whyland said in an email. He noted that they were a tiny part of the state's $132.6 billion budget.

Scott Reif, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre), said there were no new member items in the budget.

The member items were mostly for nonprofit groups such as Little League teams and ethnic associations, and most ranged from $2,000 to $10,000. Among the vetoes was $5,000 for the Lindenhurst Junior Soccer Squires, a soccer league in Long Island.

Legislative sources said most of the vetoes were for member items sponsored by Senate Democrats, but it was not apparent from the veto messages who had supported them.