New York prepares to submit request for Sandy rebuilding effort

Political leaders in the state of New York have determined that the total cost of the damage caused by “Superstorm” Sandy totals $32 billion, $19 billion of when were in New York City, according the Mayor Bloomberg. This is not including the $9 billion New York is hoping to spend on preparations for the next great storm that might come their way. Governor Andrew Cuomo and other members of the New York state government are now preparing to submit a request for financial assistance with the rebuilding effort to the federal government. Raising the taxes of New Yorkers is, according to the governor, unrealistic and impractical. “It would incapacitate the state,” says Cuomo, “Tax increases are always a last, last, last resort.”

It will not be easy. The total damage recovery costs for roads, water systems, schools, parks, individual assistance and more total $15 billion in New York City; $7 billion for state agencies; $6.6 billion in Nassau County and $1.7 billion in Suffolk County, both on suburban Long Island; and $527 million in Westchester County and $143 million in Rockland County. Combine that with the fact that the state was already facing a $1 billion deficit before Sandy struck, and it becomes clear the state government is facing an uphill battle.

“Make no mistake, this will not be an easy task, particularly given the impending fiscal cliff, and a Congress that has been much less friendly to disaster relief than in the past,” said New York Senator Charles Schumer. “We will work with the (Obama) administration on supplemental legislation, to be introduced in the upcoming December session of Congress, that will set us on the road to meeting New York’s needs. This will be an effort that lasts not weeks, but many months, and we will not rest until the federal response meets New York’s deep and extensive needs.”