APNewsBreak: Federal judge continues to block NY governor’s bid to furlough state workers
By APFriday, May 28, 2010
APNewsBreak: Judge blocks NY state worker furlough
ALBANY, N.Y. — A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction blocking New York’s governor from imposing furloughs on about 100,000 state workers and withholding their raises.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Kahn had temporarily blocked the furloughs two weeks ago. He is barring Gov. David Paterson and lawmakers from submitting or enacting short-term funding bills with those provisions.
The unions challenged the provisions as violations of the U.S. Constitution.
One-day-a-week furloughs were part of one short-term funding measure approved by the Legislature, and raises have been withheld in several.
Kahn says in his order Friday that he’s not saying the state can’t take steps to address a fiscal crisis, but he doesn’t believe these measures would be upheld.
