10 things to watch for in the state budget

There’s less than one week left until the state budget is due, and Albany is abuzz with activity as all the key parties try to secure the best possible deal. Here are 10 things to watch as the April 1 deadline approaches.

On-time budget

Since he took office in 2011, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has prided himself on delivering timely state budgets and end-of-session agreements after years of missed deadlines and budget extenders. This year, the state Legislature will be in session for five days the final week before the April 1 budget deadline, which has not happened in nearly six years. Legislative leaders involved with the budget negotiation talks will likely face pressure from their members to clinch a deal so they can leave for the weekend. However, the much-loathed five-day workweek in Albany highlights legislators’ push for a pay raise. Currently, state legislators earn $79,500 annually for a part-time job, but they are allowed to make outside income. A task force set up by Cuomo last fall declined to recommend a pay raise for legislators, though Cuomo has said he would support the move if legislators became a full-time legislature and limited outside income. There have been some rumblings that lawmakers would revolt against Cuomo over the failure to approve a salary increase last year by delaying the budget, but it could be a risky move.

Will it happen? LIKELY

Ride-hailing

Ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft have tried and failed to push for a change in the state’s insurance laws to allow ride-hailing services outside of New York City. While there are bills in both the Assembly and state Senate to do this, legislative leaders have been unable to come to an agreement on the level of insurance to be required for drivers and companies. This year, the proposal has a higher chance of passage now that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has fully thrown his support behind the measure and included it in his executive budget proposal. It also doesn’t hurt that a recent poll found 77 percent of respondents support the expansion.

Will it be in the budget? LIKELY

RELATED: Is this the year for ride-hailing in upstate NY?

Free tuition?

Cuomo stood alongside liberal icon U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders in January to announce a plan to provide free tuition at SUNY and CUNY institutions for families making up to $125,000. Many legislators in both parties have expressed concern about how the state will pay for the program, estimated to cost $163 million a year once fully phased in. Given the financial implications, the measure will have to be taken up during the budget process and not pushed off until June. While it is a lofty goal, Cuomo has managed to pull off similar big-ticket issues, such as paid family leave and raising the minimum wage.

RELATED: How will Cuomo pay for his free tuition proposal?

In the budget? HIGHLY LIKELY

Ethics reform

After the arrests and convictions of two disgraced legislative leaders and the indictment of Cuomo’s own former associate, Joe Percoco, on bribery allegations, the governor once again proposed several ethics reforms this year. Cuomo is pushing to close the so-called “LLC loophole,” which allows limited liability corporations to avoid contribution limits and to limit legislators’ outside income, among other proposals. But like previous years, proposed reforms often fail to be included in the final agreement. Little has been said about ethics reforms since Cuomo’s State of the State speeches, but the recent indictment of state Sen. Robert Ortt may change that.

In the budget? UNLIKELY

Millionaires tax

With New York facing potentially severe cuts in federal funding from President Donald Trump’s administration, the debate over an expiring 8.82 percent tax on household incomes above $2.1 million (and individual filers’ income above $1.1 million) has become a sticking point in budget discussions. The tax has support among Assembly Democrats and Cuomo supports the measure, but he opposes the Assembly’s effort to raise the tax. State Senate Republicans are the main opposition to the proposal. Cuomo has said much of his 2017 agenda hinges on the revenue from the tax and losing it would create a $4 billion gap in the budget.

In the budget? HIGHLY LIKELY

Mansion tax

One of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s top priorities this year is a 2.5 percent tax on homes sold for more than $2 million. As is the case with many funding issues in the city, he must win support from Albany – and it doesn’t look like he will, with the governor focusing on the millionaires tax and state Senate Republicans dismissive of de Blasio’s proposal, which would raise an estimated $336 million. Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Independent Democratic Conference state Sen. Diane Savino are on board, but even some Democrats are questioning the mayor’s push.

In the budget? HIGHLY UNLIKELY

Property taxes

Since taking office, Cuomo has taken steps to hold the line on property tax hikes, first with a tax cap and then with a tax freeze. This year, he is once again targeting property taxes by allowing voters to approve locally designed plans that eliminate duplicative services with the goal of lowering local government costs. The proposal has received much criticism from local government officials, even though high property taxes are a perennial complaint. Meanwhile, state Senate Republicans are pushing to make the property tax cap permanent. Cuomo’s proposal could pass, since opposition is not very fierce in the state Senate and Assembly Democrats could horse trade for an issue they care about more.

In the budget? MAYBE

Nuclear power plant bailout?

In August, the state Public Service Commission approved Cuomo’s $7.6 billion subsidy to help keep upstate nuclear power plants open, which he says is needed to meet the state’s clean energy goals. The move – which would be paid for by higher utility rates – comes around the same time Cuomo has announced an agreement to close the Indian Point nuclear power plant, which he’s long sought to do. The Assembly’s one-house budget plan included a proposal to halt the subsidy, which goes into effect April 1, until more research can be done on the subsidy’s impact on ratepayers. However, given the governor’s powers in the budget process, it is unlikely to be halted.

In the budget? UNLIKELY

RELATED: Indian Point timeline

Raise the Age?

The proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 18 has failed in recent years. Currently, 16- and 17-year-olds can be tried as adults. New York and North Carolina are the last states that do this. As Cuomo tries to build up his progressive credentials on the national stage, he has thrown his support behind the proposal along with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, but state Senate Republicans have funding and safety concerns. However, the powerful state Senate Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein said he would not support any agreement that does not include Raise the Age.

In the budget? MAYBE

RELATED: Heastie talks IDC, Raise the Age

Voting reforms

In his proposed budget, Cuomo included voting reforms to combat New York’s low voter turnout. A recent report found New York ranked 41st in voter turnout in the 2016 general election. Some of the reforms Cuomo has proposed include allowing early voting before Election Day, allowing people to register to vote the day of an election and a proposal to create a process to automatically register people to vote. However, Cuomo recently told reporters that the voting reforms were not likely to make it into a budget agreement and would continue to be discussed before the end of session.

In the budget? MAYBE

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.