New York State's legislators began voting in the middle of the night on a stack of bills they had no time to read, and missed the deadline for passing the budget by only 11 hours. That's the good news. The bad news is that New York State's new budget is at a record high of $120.9 billion with spending increased by 8.7 percent, more than twice the inflation rate.

Despite the potential budget deficit the state is facing and the soaring state debt, our big spenders in Albany included $170 million in the new fiscal year for "member items," otherwise known as pork-barrel, that legislators distribute within their district.

Long Island's public schools hit the jackpot with a record $2.19 billion in aid, up 10.3 percent from last year but, sadly, not one legislator spoke about the need for school administrators to cut costs.

Where is all this money going to come from if not from the pocketbooks of taxpayers? Do legislators think there is a gold mine upstate?

With all this extra money from Albany, why will school taxes be going up again this year? Because more and more teachers on Long Island are earning over $100,000 plus 30 percent in benefits for a ten-month school year. Typically, Nassau County school districts spend $14,400 for each employee for health insurance, up from $11,000 two years ago, with minuscule contribution from employees. Public schools in Northern Virginia spend nearly 35 percent less per capita than Long Islanders and get better results.

Our Albany legislators failed to demand accountability from school administrators or to require consolidation of Long Island's 127 school districts, each with a superintendent earning close to $250,000 a year. The powerful teachers union, one of the biggest spending lobbies in Albany, came out a winner; now they could negotiate bigger raises for teachers who are already among the highest paid in the nation.

George Rand