NEW YORK,NY March 06, 2007 —The Bloomberg Administration's top budget expert told the City Council Finance Committee today that Governor Elliot Spitzer's proposed budget was a real looser for the City. WNYC's Bob Hennelly has more

REPORTER: Office of Management and Budget Director Mark Page said that Governor Spitzer's attempt to close corporate tax loopholes actually amounted to a hefty tax hike that could cause big banks like Citicorp to reduce their presence in the City.

PAGE: He's proposing to significantly increase the tax burden on New York City businesses that are he cornerstone of our local economy which is by the way the cornerstone of the state's economy.

REPORTER: Page said that City taxpayers currently send 11 billion dollars more to Albany than they get back. He said that imbalance would only grow with plans to zero out hundreds of millions of dollars in state revenue sharing with the City. The Bloomberg budget guru also told the Council that Governor's budget if enacted would continue the long standing practice of Albany short changing the City's public schools. For WNYC I am Bob Hennelly