New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, pressed by critics including Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, dropped a plan meant to give pension-cost certainty to local officials that may have left the system unable to pay benefits.
An alternative measure agreed to by Cuomo, DiNapoli and lawmakers supplements a way that pensions can choose to defer some payments, allowed by the comptroller since 2010. The new method was included in an accord reached March 20 on a $136.5 billion budget. Lawmakers may begin voting on the spending plan as soon as today.
