While the Working Families Party may not like the proposal by Sen. Jeff Klein, D-Bronx, to raise taxes on the wealthy and provide tax cuts to the middle class through a debit card, he did pick up the backing today of Columbia University Economics Professor Michael Woodford.

“Senator Klein’s proposal provides a two-pronged approach to reducing the harm to New York’s economy from the current economic crisis,” Woodford said in statement from Klein’s office.

“On the one hand, it provides additional sorely-needed revenue to the State, reducing the extent to which essential programs will have to be cut—cuts that at this time would only increase economic distress. And at the same time, it stimulates spending through a novel debit card system, reducing the impact of the recession on local merchants.”

While the Working Families Party may not like the proposal by Sen. Jeff Klein, D-Bronx, to raise taxes on the wealthy and provide tax cuts to the middle class through a debit card, he did pick up the backing today of Columbia University Economics Professor Michael Woodford.

“Senator Klein’s proposal provides a two-pronged approach to reducing the harm to New York’s economy from the current economic crisis,” Woodford said in statement from Klein’s office.

“On the one hand, it provides additional sorely-needed revenue to the State, reducing the extent to which essential programs will have to be cut—cuts that at this time would only increase economic distress. And at the same time, it stimulates spending through a novel debit card system, reducing the impact of the recession on local merchants.”

Gov. David Paterson attributed his falling poll numbers to the state’s budget problems and the ads being run by special-interest groups, and also said he should have handled the U.S. Senate selection process better.

“I’ve tried to be honest,” he told reporters this afternoon. “I think we have made some mistakes here.”

He said the ads being run by health-care groups aren’t telling the full story about his proposed budget cuts, saying, “People don’t spend a lot of money making commercials unless they are getting results. And they are getting the results.”

In retrospect, though, he said he should have made the selection of a U.S. senator more quickly.

“I wouldn’t have changed the senator that I picked. I think I got the right senator,” he said. “I think that there was a point in that process where it started to become a bit of a circus and I probably just should have ended it.”

Paterson said he expects to make additional staff changes as he heads into his one-year anniversary in office next month and that his poll numbers will rebound once the state gets through its budget deficit and he can show the state that he handled it responsibly.

Gov. David Paterson’s approval rating among New Yorkers continues to fall, with a Siena College poll this morning showing the Democratic governor with only a 28 percent job-approval rating—down 23 percentage points from just a month ago.

The latest numbers from Siena comes after similar polls in recent weeks show Paterson’s favorability rating and job-approval rating on the decline after he proposed major cuts to education and health care to close the state’s budget gap and was heavily criticized for the selection of a new U.S. senator in January.

The Siena poll found that Paterson is viewed favorably by 40 percent of voters and unfavorably by 47 percent, the lowest level in a Siena poll, down from last month’s 54 percent favorable rating. In November, his favorability rating was at 64 percent, a high for Siena.

Only 19 percent of voters are prepared to elect Paterson as governor in 2010, when he plans to seek election, the poll reported. Fifty-seven percent prefer “someone else.”

“David Paterson has reached a low water mark with voters since becoming governor,” said Steven Greenberg, spokesman for the Siena New York Poll.

“Between the Senate appointment process, which is still the focus of negative reports one month later, and the attacks being waged across the media by those opposed to his budget proposals, the governor is tumbling in the polls from record highs three months ago to new record lows.”

In a hypothetical 2010 Democratic primary for governor, Paterson trails Attorney General Andrew Cuomo 53 percent to 27 percent, similar to the findings of a Quinnipiac Poll last week. Last month, Siena had Paterson leading Cuomo 35 percent to 33 percent, and in November he led 53 percent to 25 percent.

The poll was conducted Feb. 16-18 by telephone calls to 622 New York State registered voters.  It has a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.

   A few economists who participated in the Legislature’s and Division of Budget’s economic forecasting conference today said they don’t think New York should raise taxes and fees or reduce spending to get the state into a better financial position.  Jonathan Haughton, a senior economist with Suffolk University’s Beacon Hill Institute in Boston, said a higher income tax on wealthy New Yorkers could cost the state about 22,000 private-sector jobs. He also criticized a proposed tax on non-diet sodas, known as the “obesity tax.”

   Sen. Liz Krueger, D-Manhattan, said the state isn’t in private business and has to respond to people who need help.

   Gov. David Paterson’s proposed budget implements or raises a host of fees, including the soda tax. A group of Senate Democrats have proposed a higher income tax on the rich to help get New York out of its $14 billion in debt, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, has indicated his support for the measure. The federal stimulus package money will help alleviate some of the state’s financial problems.

   As part of the budget-development process, the Senate, Assembly and governor’s office have to come to a consensus on economic and revenue forecasts. The forecasting conference took place earlier than usual this year in hopes of completing the 2009-10 budget before the deadline of March 31, when the current fiscal year ends, said Laura Anglin, Paterson’s budget director.

   All sides agree that the Wall Street collapse and reduction in bonuses have hurt state government.  The Assembly Majority budget report said the extent to which the Wall Street landscape will be permanently changed is unclear, which contributes to the ambiguity surrounding the state’s economic outlook.

New York has about 3,400 infrastructure projects that communities want funded as part of the federal stimulus package, but only a portion of them will make the cut, state officials indicated Monday.

The number of projects has soared from the initial 1,900 that the state identified earlier this year as communities have found hundreds of more projects that they deem ready for construction.

“I now have list of about $18 billion worth of projects that fit into about a $4 billion pot,” said Timothy Gilchrist, the governor’s point person for the stimulus money.

The flurry of activity and uncertainty about the stimulus money comes as the state today designated $41 million for highways projects in upstate New York to be funded by the stimulus package, including two in Steuben County.

Bridges in Steuben, Onondaga, Oneida and Herkimer counties are expected to be funded because they have already been through most of the federal approval process, Gov. David Paterson said.

The state is expected to get $24.6 billion in stimulus aid, of which about $4 billion will be for highways, bridge, mass transit and energy projects.

State officials said transportation money from the federal government will be distributed through the same process that all federal transportation funds follow: through the state’s 13 regional transportation planning agencies.

Speaking to the New York Conference of Mayors this morning, Sen. Charles Schumer said the stimulus package will also include $96 million to restore funding for community-policing programs, $110 million for technology upgrades for local offices and $31 million for energy efficiency initiatives.

He also announced it includes a provision to more than double the current college tuition tax break to $2,500 per student per year.

“It’s more help from Washington in difficult times than we have ever seen in our lifetime,” Schumer said. “Other recessions haven’t been as deep … I’m optimistic this will certainly make the recession less severe.”

Officials from cities across the state said they are still sorting out how the stimulus package will affect their budgets and project lists.

The projects approved today include:—Replacement of the I-86 Bridge over Rte. 415 in the Town of Erwin, Steuben County.—Reconstruction of Delaware Avenue and Madison Avenue, Albany County.—Bridge Replacement of the Rte. 415 Bridge over Wolf Run Creek in the Town of Campbell, Steuben County.—Replacement of the Bartell Road bridge over I-81 in the Town of Cicero, Onondaga County.—Resurfacing of I-690 City of Syracuse.—Drainage Improvements in Steuben County.—Rehabilitation of the Route 169 Bridge over CSX and the Erie Canal, Herkimer County.—Resurfacing Routes 5a and 69 in Oneida County.—Bridge repairs in Oneida County.—Bridge Maintenance including cleaning in Allegany, Steuben, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Madison and Montgomery counties.—Culvert repairs in Jefferson and St. Lawrence counties.

About 75 wineries in New York are opposing Gov. David Paterson’s proposal to let grocery stores, delis and convenience stores sell wine, saying it would not lead the stores to sell New York wines as the Paterson administration has hoped.

“Winery owners know a bad deal when they see one, and we know this plan will hurt our businesses and hurt our partners in the wine and liquor stores,” said William Ouweleen of Eagle Crest Vineyards in the Finger Lakes Region.

“Big Box stores like Walmart and Whole Foods will stock the most popular, lowest priced brands on their shelves, leaving little space for New York wines. At the same time, wine stores around the state will be forced out of business – severely curtailing our ability to reach our customers. We urge the Legislature to reject this job-killing plan.”

The wineries have joined with the Coalition for the Last Store on Main Street, which includes small business owners, independent wine sellers, and wholesalers, who are opposing Paterson’s plan.

“Wineries in New York have grown tremendously over the last 20 years, in large part to the wonderful partnership we have with wine sellers and liquor stores,” said Bill Merritt from Merritt Estate Winery in the Chautauqua-Lake Erie Region. “We need to look for ways to build on this partnership so wineries and wine sellers alike can continue to thrive, not tear down a successful system just to benefit a few Big Box stores.”

Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Charles Schumer in a letter today are asking President Obama to direct unwanted funds from the economic recovery package to New York, if some Republican governors don’t want the money.

In the past week, Govs. Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Rick Perry of Texas, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, Haley Barbour of Mississippi and Sarah Palin of Alaska have all discussed plans to refuse economic recovery funds for their state, the senators said.

“New York receives 78 cents from the federal government for every dollar we send to Washington,” wrote the senators.  “If other states are willingly refusing federal support in this time of economic crisis, New York should benefit given our ‘donor state’ status.”

“If any governor – Democrat or Republican – leaves stimulus money on the table, then we respectfully request that funds be distributed to New York,” wrote the senators.  “We will put the money to good use, investing in education and new infrastructure, such as health care IT and high speed rail.”

The governor’s poll numbers continue to sink, but will help be on the way?

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Laureen Oliver, who helped found the state’s Independence Party and was its first chair, was honored by the party last week and unanimously named its first chairman emeritus.

“Be it resolved that Independence Party of New York recognizes Chairman Oliver’s great work on the party’s behalf,” the one-page resolution states.

The resolution comes as Oliver and close ally Tom Golisano, who founded the party in the early 1990s, are working with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to revamp the party. Golisano ran three times for governor under the party’s banner, allowing it to gain the third position on the state’s ballot.

Oliver teamed up with Golisano last year to start Responsible New York, which with Golisano’s money pumped nearly $5 million into state legislative races last year.

“I’m very happy about it,” Oliver said of the recognition. “It’s nice to know that after 15 years they recognize my role in reform with the Independence Party and Responsible New York.”

Party chairman Frank MacKay said the honor is “long overdue” and “without her and without Tom we wouldn’t be here.”

MacKay said he welcomes the involvement of Bloomberg and Golisano in their party’s future.

“I think we’re going to have a much better party with their involvement,” he said.