Paterson's State of the State speech initiatives

In his second State of the State speech, Gov. David A. Paterson outlined initiatives to create jobs, reduce state spending and overhaul governmental ethics and campaign finance. Some of his proposals:

MERGE AGENCIES. Merge state agencies; public tracking of their performance.

USE STATE WORKERS. Have state workers perform tasks done by outside contractors.

LIMITS ON SPENDING. Cap growth in state spending to average inflation rate for the past three years.

ETHICS COMMISSION. Establish government ethics commission whose five members aren't directly appointed by state leaders; commission would enforce ethics and campaign finance laws.

CAMPAIGN LIMITS. Ban campaign contributions from companies and significantly lower limits on those from individuals.

TERM LIMITS. Adopt constitutional amendment to create term limits of eight years for governor and other statewide offices and 12 years for members of the State Senate and Assembly.

JOB CREATION. Replace Empire Zones economic development program with tax credits targeted toward high technology companies and those who create jobs.

RESEARCHERS. Create $25-million program fostering greater cooperation between university researchers and business entrepreneurs.

INSURANCE MARKET. Revive the New York Insurance Exchange, a marketplace for commercial insurers that would also bolster Wall Street.