In the face of a downright dismal economic forecast, Gov. David Paterson needs to hold state agency directors - and himself - more accountable for their hiring practices.

Paterson on Tuesday spoke publicly about the worsening fiscal crisis in New York, predicting that the meltdown on Wall Street and a recession would lead to 160,000 job losses statewide. The unemployment rate will rise, personal income will fall, and the state's deficit could hit $47 billion in four years, he said.

At the same time, the Buffalo News was reporting that - despite the state hiring freeze that Paterson declared on July 30 - state agencies have hired 31,684 workers, with one of those being an addition to Paterson's own staff.

To be fair, the numbers are a bit misleading, because 24,730 of the new hires were for the fall semester of the state and city university system, and state law gives the college system control over its payroll. But that still leaves 6,954 workers hired since Paterson's “hard” freeze on hiring.

In Auburn last week, the office that used to hold Workers' Compensation hearings was shuttered for good. Does this mean that some segments of the state workforce are being downsized while others are being left untouched, or, worse yet, allowed to grow?

Paterson's office defends the new hires as falling within the “narrowly defined purposes” for which agencies can be granted waivers, which leaves us questioning just how closely the waiver requests are being scrutinized.

As Paterson continues to warn New Yorkers that things are going to get a lot worse before they get better, that the Legislature needs to be committed to finding another $2 billion to cut from the state budget, and that “no segment” of state spending must be left untouched, he needs to first make sure he is prepared to back up his talk with decisive leadership.

The state hiring freeze and budget cuts have to be implemented fairly and firmly.