


A politically enfeebled Gov. Eliot Spitzer is due to lay out his vision Wednesday of where he wants to lead the state this year. Here are some pertinent facts about the state of the state of New York at the beginning of 2008 (many courtesy of the Public Policy Institute):
• State-local tax burden: $5,260 average per person, highest in the country, and 53 percent above the national average.
• Private-sector employment growth, 1996-2006: 9 percent, 40th out of the 50 states. The national average was 14 percent.
• Portion of work force represented by labor unions, 2006: 24.4 percent, behind only Hawaii (24.7 percent).
• Spending by the state and local governments per person: $11,375, second to Alaska and 47 percent above the national average of $7,728.
• Manufacturing jobs: Dropped almost 29 percent between 1996 and 2006, a bigger drop than all states except North Carolina and Rhode Island.
• Cost of doing business (measures wages, taxes, electricity and real estate): second to Hawaii, 30.7 percent above the national average.
• Per-pupil spending on public schools, 2005: $14,119, tops in the country and 62 percent above the national average.
• Classroom teacher salaries, 2006: $57,354 average, sixth behind Connecticut, California, New Jersey, Illinois and Michigan and 17 percent above the national average.
• High-school graduation rate, 2006: 63.1 percent, 43rd among the states. The national average was 70 percent.
• Crime: Declined 5 percent in the first six months of 2007. New York has the fewest serious crimes per capita of any large state, and the fifth lowest overall.
• Average price of electricity, 2007: 14.54 cents per kilowatt hour, fourth highest and 66 percent above the national average of 8.77 cents.
• Renewable energy, 2007: Almost 22 percent of the total, among the highest of any state, mostly because of major hydroelectric plants near Niagara Falls and along the St. Lawrence River. The state is less dependent on coal, environmentally the dirtiest fuel, than almost any other state.
• Cost of auto insurance, 2003: $1,161 on average, second behind New Jersey ($1,188) and 45 percent above the national average of $821.
• Quality-of-life index: 19th, according to Forbes Magazine (measures crime, amenities, commutes and other factors)
• Percent of adults with at least a high school diploma, 2004: 85 percent, 34th highest but just one percentage point below the national average. Tops was Minnesota at 92 percent, bottom was Texas at 78 percent.
• Percent of adults with at least a college bachelor's degree: 31 percent, 12th highest of the states. Massachusetts was highest at 37 percent, West Virginia the lowest at 15 percent.
• Number of state and local government workers per 1,000 people in 2003: 62, ninth highest in the country. Average wages of government workers in 2003: $51,445, second to California. The national average is $40,717.
• State and local-government debt per capita: $11,377, third highest of any state and 71 percent above the national average of $6,659.
• Parks: The nation's largest state park, the six-million-acre Adirondack Park, and 178 others that attract 60 million visitors a year, among the most of any state. But they need an estimated $650 million worth of maintenance.
• Gasoline taxes: 43.9 cents per gallon, third highest and 55 percent above the national average of 28.4 cents.
• Infrastructure: $50 billion in repairs planned over the next 20 years, $100 billion more needed.
• Medicaid spending per capita: $2,316, highest in the country and 128 percent above the national average. But the expense was flat this year.
• Number of out-of-state students at SUNY and CUNY: 2,296, or just under 6 percent. Lower than all states except Texas and California.
• Taxpayer support for higher education: $488 per person, 45th highest and 21 percent below the national average.
• Mass transit: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is the largest transit agency in the Western Hemisphere, providing about 2.4 billion rail and bus rides a year in the New York City region. It helps (along with New York City's millions of apartment dwellers) to make New York the nation's most energy-efficient state.
• Average cost of health insurance: (family, 2004) $10,397 a year -- 10th highest. On average, employers paid $8,307 of that cost and employees $2,090.
(star-gazette.com)