The coronavirus pandemic has led to a gaping hole in New York's finances -- billions of dollars in lost revenue that Gov. Andrew Cuomo is seeking to recoup from the federal government to avoid deep cuts to schools, health care and local governments. 

But one of the federal lawmakers opposing that move is Florida Sen. Rick Scott, a Republican and a former governor of that state. 

"These states like his, they don't live within their means," Scott said in an interview with Spectrum News on Friday.


What You Need To Know


  • New York is seeking billions of dollars in relief from the federal government.

  • The state's finances have been damaged by the pandemic and the economic toll.

  • Sen. Rick Scott says Florida taxpayers shouldn't be on the hook to bail out New York.

  • Gov. Cuomo calls opposition un-American.

The opposition to the aid push from Scott and other Republicans in Washington has been blasted by Cuomo, sending them into a public battle with nothing less than the future of how New York state government affects the lives of its 19 million residents. 

Cuomo has warned across-the-board cuts of up to 20 percent are possible for the costliest items in the budget -- education and health care -- if money from Washington doesn't come through for the state.

Also potentially on the chopping block is state aid to local governments, who have also seen their budgets ravaged by the economic fallout from the pandemic. 

Tax revenue has dried up in New York and billions of dollars in benefits and support have been paid out to the newly unemployed. For now, Cuomo has avoided calls to hike taxes on the richest New Yorkers to generate more revenue. 

Cuomo is looking to Congress's next pandemic stimulus bill to include aid to states that have been affected by the pandemic. With more than 20,000 deaths, New York has seen the worst of the crisis in the United States.

Scott argues Cuomo should not be asking Florida taxpayers to foot the bill to bolster New York's finances, either. New York as a whole has already been ticketed for receiving aid packages for areas like mass transit, small business smart and health care. 

Getting aid from the federal government for, say, a hurricane is different, Scott argues. That funding doesn't cover 100 percent of the costs, he said.  

"It never covered any of my lost revenue or any of my budget items," he said. 

Scott believes covering the cost of government outside of the immediate effect of the pandemic is not the job of the federal government.

"He (Cuomo) ought to get his economy open, get his revenues back up, just like what I had to do after a hurricane instead of asking the federal government to bail him out," Scott said.

Scott represents a state a lot of New Yorkers have fled to over the last generation, attracted to its year-round warm weather and far lower tax burden than New York. 

Cuomo, meanwhile, has blasted Republicans, including Scott by name, for opposing the call for aid, calling it "ugly" and "an un-American response." 

"There cannot be a national recovery if the state and local governments are not funded," Cuomo said this week. "That is a fact."

And he's countered that New York, with its wealthy citizens, have paid a disportionate share of taxes compared to what it gets back from the federal government. 

"That’s nice, but it is also filled with more baloney than an Oscar Mayer plant," Cuomo senior advisor Rich Azzopardi said of Scott's opposition. "New York has been Washington's favorite ATM, sending $29 billion a year more than it gets back while Florida receives $30 billion more than it pays. I'd say give us our money back and we'll call it even, but since Florida's budget ballooned 42 percent when Rick Scott was Governor and 82 percent over the last decade, they probably wouldn't go for it. The federal government needs to act, and they need to pass legislation to help the state and local governments hit by this pandemic." 

Florida's budget overall remains lower than New York's spending as it surpassed the Empire State in population (some fiscal watchdog dogs have argued this is an apples and oranges comparison between very different states). 

But Scott says New York has received aid from the federal government, including billions for transportation and FEMA support. 

"You are responsible as a governor to live within your means," Scott said. "He's just never done that. And he's created an environment where people want to move out of there."

A multi-year budget gap of a combined $61 billion is projected for New York in the coming years.