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The speech, scheduled for 1pm, is likely to include several statewide initiatives.
| (AP) Gov. Andrew Cuomo is getting an earful from protesters as he prepares to deliver his State of the State speech, devoted in part to celebrating his first year in office.
Opponents of hydraulic fracturing are toting signs that say the Democrat can never be president if he can't protect the state's water supply. They're against extracting natural gas from a reserve in upstate New York by injecting water and chemicals into shale formations. Those protesters were joined Wednesday by other progressive groups, including Occupy Albany and the Hunger Action Network. They say Cuomo has served middle class taxpayers and corporations while hurting the poor through budget cuts. Cuomo and the Legislature addressed a $10 billion deficit last spring in part through reduced funding for education and nonprofit social service groups. |
The state had already contributed approx. $100 billion in economic development funds through a series of regional competitions. This new round of funding is believed to be beyond that.
Officials from the Governors office could not be reached for comment, and no formal announcement of the money was made prior to the speech.
His State of the State speech Wednesday before more than 2,000 people in Albany, including Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown , has been kept tightly under wraps. He has tried to downplay expectations for 2012, saying he plans to concentrate on the mundane but critical duty of making government agencies run more efficiently and cheaply.
"He will likely remind listeners of the extraordinary accomplishments of 2011 and talk about how he wants to continue that momentum in 2012," said Steven Greenberg of the Siena College poll.
"I think the emphasis is going to continue to be on jobs and rebuilding New York's struggling economy," Greenberg said. "He will also likely talk about his continued efforts to want to make state government more effective, efficient and responsive to people, with an emphasis on results and outcomes."
