NEW THIS MORNING

A BITTER BILL: Albany is deeply divided on how to respond to the mounting death toll from prescription drug abuse in New York, the New York World reports: http://bit.ly/yJgwNP NEW THIS MORNING: * Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver says his conference has "problems" with Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposed pension reforms, but is willing to curb overtime and disability abuses, the Daily News writes: http://nydn.us/zOQf6s * Assemblyman Jack McEneny introduced a bill to let public employees retire at age 55 after 25 years of service, adding $167 million to state pension costs, at the urging of the Civil Service Employees Association and Public Employees Federation, the Post says: http://nyp.st/yo4Q1C *  Black and Puerto Rican legislators at caucus weekend disapprove of Cuomo's proposed competitive education grants as unfair to poorer school districts, the Times Union writes: http://bit.ly/yNaf7l *  New York counties left to shoulder election costs are scrambling to prepare for the state's possible extra primary, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reports: http://on.rocne.ws/w4blof * Westchester school districts are struggling to explain the 2 percent property tax cap to voters, who thought it would limit their rising property tax bills, Gannett's Westchester bureau reports: http://lohud.us/zYqRWP * Liam McCabe, the director of community relations for Staten Island Rep. Michael Grimm, has been suspended from work after he was arrested for assaulting his 14-year-old son after the boy was caught with suspected marijuana at a Brooklyn school, the Post says: http://nyp.st/zTfhTo