Doug Schneider and Joseph Spector report on Pressconnects.com - “New York’s unemployment might be at near-record levels, but the number of state workers earning six-figure incomes continues to grow significantly and reached a record level last year.

More than 23,000 state employees - including hundreds in the Southern Tier - were paid more than $100,000 in 2009. In a year when unemployment figures hovered near double digits and a multi-billion-dollar budget deficit loomed, the number of six-figure earners on the state payroll increased by 16 percent after jumping 28 percent the previous year.”

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Craig Wolf of the Poughkeepsie Journal reports - “A new series of computers based on IBM Corp.’s POWER7 microprocessors that are made in East Fishkill is being introduced today.

The rollout of four new systems aimed at widening IBM’s hefty share of the $14 billion Unix server market will take place at an event in New York City. But a good part of the hardware and software development work took place in Poughkeepsie, said Ross Mauri, general manager of Power Systems for IBM who is based in Poughkeepsie.”

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Brian Meyer of the Buffalo News writes - “Leaders of a group that represents hundreds of liquor stores will meet Tuesday with Buffalo lawmakers as part of a campaign to block a state plan that would allow supermarkets and grocery stores to sell wine…

Supporters argued that the bill contains incentives for liquor stores that were not included in a plan that was killed last year. Under the new law, liquor stores could begin selling gourmet foods, snacks, gift baskets, cigars and other products. The measure also would allow liquor stores to install automatic teller machines, sell directly to restaurants and other retailers and band together to buy products in volumes. Store owners also would be allowed to operate more than one outlet.

“The new bill is dramatically better than the old one,” said Paul Speranza, vice president and general counsel of Wegmans.”

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Pressconnects.com reports - “The Obama administration intends to withdraw a proposal that would have increased costs for U.S. firms that export and import wine, according to Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-Fairport.

The proposal would have limited the ability of firms to use their exports of U.S. wines as an offset to import duties they are charged for foreign wine.

Slaughter, Sen. Charles Schumer and members of the congressional wine caucus had protested the proposal as potentially harmful to wineries in New York and other states.”

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Michael Gormley of the Associated Press writes on LoHud.com - “New York Gov. David Paterson has met privately with key Democratic leaders about his re-election plans even as questions continue to swirl around the state capitol about a variety of unproven accusations involving the Democratic governor’s personal conduct.”

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Jimmy Vielkind of the Times Union reports - “Gov. David Paterson will introduce a “compromise” bill to restructure ethics enforcement in state government in an attempt to head off a legislative override of a measure he vetoed last week.

“This bill is to send a message that we’re willing to compromise,” Larry Schwartz, Paterson’s top aide, said late Saturday. “We want to sit down and talk and negotiate, and we want to compromise on an effective bill that will reform the way Albany does business.”

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Alex Nussbaum and Meg Tirrell on Bloomberg New writes about the possibility of major merger in the wake of what may come in the next version of health care reform.

“Insurers, drugmakers and hospitals will likely slash costs and merge companies to maneuver through a U.S. health-care landscape marked by rising medical expenses and the loss of millions of potential paying customers.

With Congress’ sweeping overhaul of the health system stalled, industry will seek its own answers to a push by government and the private sector to rein in costs, said Curtis Lane, senior managing director at MTS Health Partners, a New York-based equity fund. An aging U.S. population will spur demand for services and, at the same time, boost pressure to control spending, he said.”

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As the house starts to take another look at health care reform this week, the Los Angeles Times provides some insight as to how to do a better job of cutting costs this time around.

“The House is about to take up healthcare reform again, but not in a meaningful way. Lawmakers are expected to pass a bill this week that would repeal the federal antitrust exemption that insurance companies have enjoyed since 1945 — a move that makes for little more than a good sound bite.

Meanwhile, Democratic leaders in both chambers continue to talk about how to make the comprehensive reform bill passed by the Senate acceptable to enough members of their party in the House to push it to the president’s desk. That’s a better focus than the antitrust exemption. But if lawmakers hope to revive the more ambitious bill, they have to convince the public that it will slow the growth of healthcare costs without sacrificing quality.”

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Shailagh Murray of the Washington Postwrites on Sunday - “President Obama sketched out an alternative approach to passing health-care legislation that would enlist Republicans and potentially extend debate into the spring, a strategy seemingly in conflict with the fast-track talks among Democrats on Capitol Hill.”