Gov. David Paterson’s budgetary belt tightening is chafing Queens politicians, who warned that the austere budget proposal he unveiled last week to bridge a projected $13.7 billion deficit in the 2010 fiscal year would hurt the middle class. Comment.

Authorities have obtained video surveillance that allegedly shows embattled City Councilman Hiram Monserrate (D−East Elmhurst) pulling his girlfriend’s hair outside his apartment early Friday morning just hours before he was charged with assaulting her, sources told TimesLedger Newspapers. Comment.

Following the arrest of state Sen.−elect Hiram Monserrate Friday, Democratic players in the borough said the East Elmhurst politician is an essential piece to delivering the Senate majority post to Sen. Malcolm Smith (D−St. Albans), but state Republicans have already began the charge to have him removed from his new post, Comment.

The demand for bus service in Queens is on the rise, but improvements for the borough are up in the air as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority faces a $1.2 billion budget deficit. Comment.

Queens students and city education advocates denounced Gov. David Paterson’s proposal to increase tuition at CUNY schools and cut about $660 million in education to the city in an attempt to help pare the state’s $15.4 billion budget deficit. Comment.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced last week that $400 rebate checks for property owners would finally be sent out this week after he previously said he would halt the checks to save the city money amid the economic downturn. Comment.

Two of the borough’s private hospitals have some tough decisions to make as to which services to cut after Gov. David Paterson unveiled his proposal to slash $700 million to institutions statewide. Comment.

Gov. David Paterson’s proposed 4 percent tax on downloadable digital music, movies and games has caused Queens shoppers to rethink their holiday wish lists. Comment.

Curtis “Bugzy−Nite” Taylor and Wesley “GSlim” Brockenberry are the musicians behind Queens Connex, an urban duo with a collaborative hip−hop sound that touches on genres of music ranging from jazz to rock. Beneath the layers of melody and beats, however, lie some powerful messages about social consciousness and the progressive optimism that fuels the duo’s musical ambitions. Comment.

Queens restaurant owners said they were not pleased about Gov. David Paterson’s proposed fee increases on soda and alcoholic beverages, but viewed the taxes as necessary evils as the state economy continues to struggle through a downturn. Comment.

Already squeezed by an economy that has left some Queens residents jobless, or at least concerned about being able to afford holiday presents, consumers were not pleased with Gov. David Paterson’s proposal to tax a wide range of personal services, from hair cuts to trips to the gym. Comment.

The struggling Archbishop Molloy girls’ basketball team hasn’t looked like the same squad that won the CHSAA Brooklyn⁄Queens title last season, ending Christ the King’s 23−year reign as diocesan champion. Comment.

Authorities have obtained video surveillance that allegedly shows embattled City Councilman Hiram Monserrate (D-East Elmhurst) pulling his girlfriend’s hair outside his apartment early Friday morning just hours before he was charged with assaulting her, sources told the TimesLedger. Comment.