Cuomo Proposes $168.1B FY 2018-19 Budget
Gov. Andrew Cuomo took on his most challenging budget year since 2011, proposing a $168.1 billion spending plan that closes a $4.4 billion shortfall and caps spending at less than a 2 percent increase.
Education & Foundation Aid
The budget increases spending for education by 3 percent — a $769 million hike. Foundation aid is propose to increase by $338 million. Legislators typically attempt to add more money to education during the budget negotiations.
Revenue Actions
Cuomo’s proposal also includes a variety of “revenue actions” — tax and fee increases. Those include a tax on vapor products, a 2-cent per milligram tax on opioid prescriptions framed as a way to combat the heroine addiction epidemic, and a “windfall profit fee” on health insurance companies.
Healthcare Proposals
- The state's Medicaid budget is expected to cost more than $70.2 billion in the next fiscal year, a 2.5 percent increase over what the state spent this year. New York has the second-largest Medicaid budget in the nation, behind California.
- Health Insurance Windfalls—The administration wants a new 14 percent surcharge on health insurer gains. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that's fair because the tax plan, recently passed by Congress, cut insurance company tax rates by 40 percent. Cuomo would use the money to pay for the health care shortfall fund.
Child Victims Act
The inclusion of the Child Victims Act, which would make it easier for survivors of child sex abuse to bring cases as adults, is a huge victory for advocates who have lobbied hard for it.
Including the measure in the budget could provide more leverage against Senate Republicans, who have blocked passage of the bill for a dozen years, by allowing it to be tied to issues the GOP is seeking during the budget talks.
"Free-standing" Article VII Bills
A number of non-fiscal measures range from good government reforms including same-day registration, early voting, closing the LLC loophole and oversight of economic development contracts.
Cuomo is also expected to include a panel to study the legalization of recreational marijuana.
The budget season is expected to be one of the more challenging negotiations that Cuomo has faced.
He has signaled he wants to change how the state collects taxes through a payroll tax to replace the personal income tax as a way to respond to the capping of state and local tax deductions by the federal government.
The budget is expected to be approved by March 31.
Executive Budget Legislation and Fiscal Plan Released
The Division of the Budget has released the legislation for Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive budget. The budget is composed of the standard five appropriations bills and five Article VII language bills.
In addition, there are six "freestanding" Article VII bills. One contains Cuomo's good government and ethics proposals, and another is his women's agenda. The four others are constitutional amendments, and deal with topics such as legislators' outside income and the addition of "sex" to the categories covered by the state constitution's equal protection language.
- View the bills here.
- The fiscal plan can be found here.
- And more information about this year's budget can be found here.
Tax And Finance Releases Report Assessing State Tax Picture
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration on Wednesday released a preliminary report outlining various models the state could adopt from altering charitable contributions to allow for the deduction of state taxes and the various permutations for a statewide employer-based payroll tax.
View the report here.
2018 Joint Legislative Budget Hearing Schedule Announced
(Hearings to be held in Hearing Room B, Legislative Office Building, Albany)
January 23 —9:30 AM—Higher Education
January 24—9:30 AM—Housing
January 24—2:30 PM—Workforce Development
January 25 —9:30 AM—Transportation
January 29—10:30AM—Economic Development
January 30—9:30 —Public Protection
January 31—9:30 AM—Elementary and Secondary Education
February 5—10:00 AM—Local Government Officials/General Government
February 6—10:00 AM—Human Services
February 7—9:30 AM—Environmental Conservation
February 8— 9:30 AM—Taxes
February 12— 10:00 AM—Health/Medicaid
February 13—9:30 AM—Mental Hygiene
Who Gets Blamed for the Federal Government Shutdown? Here's What the Polls Say
The last time the government shutdown in 2013, polls showed Republicans took the brunt of the blame.
It looks like history might be repeating.
Pre-shutdown polls from last week showed nearly half of respondents said they’d hold President Donald Trump and/or congressional Republicans responsible for a shutdown, compared to less than one-third who said they would blame Democrats in Congress.
A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll, conducted Thursday and Friday also found more voters would blame Republicans in Congress for the government shutdown, 41 percent, than would blame Democrats, 36 percent. Democratic and Republican voters, by wide margins, held the other side responsible. But more independents said they would blame Republicans, 34 percent, than Democrats, 27 percent.
Yet the shutdown is no clean political win for Democrats. Americans don’t necessarily approve of the party's strategy to insist on a legislative solution for undocumented immigrants brought here as children before voting to reopen the government. In fact, both parties’ immigration stances — Democrats’ efforts to protect the so-called Dreamers and Trump’s insistence on funding a border wall with Mexico — are viewed by voters as less important than keeping the government open.
Read more here.
Cheektowaga Supervisor Diane Benczkowski: Town’s aggressive pursuit of state grants paying dividends
In my first two years, I have aggressively pursued additional funding for Cheektowaga through state and federal grants. Cheektowagans certainly pay our fair share of taxes, so why don’t we try and get some of that money back to benefit projects right here in our town. This has been an area of huge success, and it is important in trying to limit the burden on our taxpayers.
In 2016, I asked the Town Board to hire Sue Ann Barnes of Grantmakers Advantage to be the town’s grant writer. We also needed eyes and ears on the ground in Albany communicating with state officials on a minute-by-minute basis about our needs, which is why we retained the government relations firm of Bolton-St. Johns. The power duo of Sue Barnes and Bolton-St. Johns has provided record-breaking grant results, with the town receiving rewards in the millions in just two years.
We also owe a huge thanks to state Sen. Tim Kennedy and Assemblywoman Monica Wallace. Their additional efforts, hard work and advocacy on behalf of the town and our projects helped make our efforts a success.
In each of the past two years, we received two separate $5 million grants from the state to address our Department of Environmental Conservation consent order by relining the sanitary sewer system and removing the inflow and infiltration of stormwater. The town received an additional $15 million interest-free loan from the state in 2016, saving the town millions of dollars in interest. Cheektowaga has relined nearly 30 percent of the consolidated sanitary sewer district, and this is producing real results. In 2017, there were only seven main sewer backups, which is a great record based on miles of residential sanitary sewers and the amount of rain we received.
Cheektowaga was also the second “large” community in Western New York to receive a Clean Energy Community designation, which opened the door to receiving an additional $250,000 to complete additional clean energy projects. The town submitted a proposal to invest in electric vehicles and electric charging stations that incorporates solar technology to offset electrical costs that would otherwise have to be paid for charging. The idea is to phase out older gas vehicles for new electric vehicles greatly reducing the cost of gasoline and traditional mechanical maintenance.
With the $250,000 Zombie and Vacant Properties Remediation and Prevention Initiative grant, Cheektowaga finally has the financial resources to tackle vacant and abandoned properties with full force. Newly added code enforcement officers and clerical staff completed house-by-house inspections, evaluating more than 26,000 homes and identifying 528 vacant structures. We are actively pursuing full code violation orders on the vacant properties to make the owner, banks and service providers responsible for the maintenance and compliance with all town ordinances.
Other grants received include $133,019 for a new roof at Julia Boyer Reinstein Library; $100,000 from the state Dormitory Authority and Kennedy to replace the drain culvert at Winston and Vegola avenues; and $50,000 for security cameras at Town Hall.
The Road to 2018: The Latest on Campaigns Across the State
Kolb’s Gov Campaign Has $15K In Cash On Hand
LG Hochul Rebuffs Speculation About Congressional Run
Special Election in Senate District 37
SD-37: Mayer Endorsed By Building And Construction Trades
A Look at This Week's News
- Cuomo Seeks To Reassure Outer Borough Residents With Congestion Pricing
- Talking to Trump: A How-To Guide
- NY Corruption Trial: Feds Say Email Trail Lays Out Crime in Syracuse
- Bon Jovi: Donald Trump's 'evil genius' helped torpedo Buffalo Bills bid
- U.S. Top Court Rejects Former New York Lawmaker Silver's Appeal
- 10 Burning Questions After Cuomo’s State of the State and Budget
Important Upcoming Events
- January 23rd—Human Services Council and Fiscal Policy Institute host press conference slamming lack of funding for human services in Executive Budget
- January 23rd—Business Council of New York's 2018 Legislators' Reception
- January 24th—Senate Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee will meet to discuss the potential of sports betting in NYS.
- January 30th—President Trump Delivers State of the Union Address to Joint Session of Congress
Upcoming Receptions
- Reception honoring Senator Rich Funke (R)—January 23rd @ 5:30 PM-Albany
- Reception honoring MOA David McDonough (R)—January 23rd @ 5:30 PM-Albany
- Reception honoring Senator Sue Serino (R)—January 23rd @ 5:30 PM-Albany
- Reception honoring MOA Phil Steck (D)—January 23rd @ 5:30 PM-Albany
- Reception honoring Senator Patrick Gallivan (R)—January 23rd @ 6:00 PM-Albany
- Reception honoring MOA Andrew Hevesi (D)—January 24th @ 8:30 AM-Albany
- Reception honoring Comptroller Tom DiNapoli (D)—January 24th @ 8:30 AM-Albany
- Reception honoring Senate Republican Campaign Committee—January 24th @ 5:30 PM-Albany
Featured Read: McConnell and Schumer Hit Rock Bottom
Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer were supposed to bring a new, more productive relationship to the Senate after years of bitterness and dysfunction at the helm of the chamber.
Instead, it’s been a year of slights and one-upmanship between the two men. While there may not be the level of vitriol that marked McConnell’s dealings with former Democratic leader Harry Reid, a new era of bipartisan comity this is not.
“The relationship is not helpful. We were all hopeful that changing the dynamic there would have somebody more interested in solving the problem than Sen. Reid generally appeared to be. And if anything, at this moment, it appears worse, not better,” said Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.).
Pushed by an inexperienced, volatile president on one side, and a Democratic base that loathes that president on the other, the two Senate leaders have become the flashpoint for the political breakdown that’s brought the country to a government shutdown, just one year into the Trump presidency. It’s the latest, most glaring evidence to dispel early predictions that Schumer’s ascension to Democratic leader would bring an end to the animosity that marked McConnell’s dealings with Reid.
With the federal government out of money as of midnight Friday, McConnell and Schumer are locked in a stare-down, with the fate of 700,000 Dreamers, who risk potential deportation due to a policy change by President Donald Trump, riding on the outcome.
Yet they’ve continued to try to out-do each other, like two poker players who keep pushing more chips into the middle of the table, figuring one more bet will get the other to back down.
The relationship between the two — one an extroverted New York liberal, the other a reserved Kentucky Republican, both dealmakers at heart — has some history before they assumed their current posts.
Schumer was chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in 2008 when the organization ran TV ads against McConnell claiming he caused an economic meltdown with lax regulations and then bailed out Wall Street. McConnell was angered by the move, and it took several years before he could discuss it with Schumer.
As Reid's top lieutenant, Schumer was in charge of Democratic messaging, often lobbing shots at McConnell from the Senate floor. McConnell made sure to hit back.
Yet they both promised a new beginning when Schumer took over as Democratic leader in Jan. 2017.
It didn't last long. The two got off to a rocky start when Schumer voted against McConnell’s wife for a Cabinet post, a move that stunned senators in both parties. McConnell then changed Senate rules to jam through a Supreme Court nominee, part of an unprecedented effort by the Kentucky Republican to control the makeup of the high court.
Schumer has slowed many of the nominations Trump has sent to the Senate and blocked his spending priorities, especially Trump’s much ballyhooed wall between the United States and Mexico. McConnell countered by employing every parliamentary rule he can to try to repeal Obamacare and push through a tax cut.
Schumer's vote against Elaine Chao to head the Transportation Department is seen as a pivotal moment by some senators. As Schumer faced pressure from progressive activists to take a hard line against the Trump presidency and his nominees, including Chao.
“You don’t have any transportation projects up in New York?” McConnell told Schumer moments after the Democratic leader cast his vote. Republicans aides said the comment was more in jest than a threat.
McConnell and Schumer have been in more frequent contact than most senators and staffers know, including agreeing on procedural tactics before ripping into each other in theatrical fashion on the Senate floor. But allies of McConnell said Schumer’s vote against Chao didn't augur well for their future relationship.
“That was totally uncalled for. I still don’t understand that one. I mean, I’ve heard him explain it to me, but I still don’t understand,” said Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who works out with Schumer regularly and is on McConnell’s leadership team.
Thune was among the Republicans hoping for a sea change after Reid retired and Schumer took over. But the No. 3 Senate Republican said that the Democratic Party’s turn left — at one point, activists showed up outside Schumer’s house and implored him to “resist or resign” — had made it impossible for the centrist-minded new Democratic leader to lead that way.
“Everybody sort of hoped that Chuck was going to be different than Reid was. But, again, I think what we’re finding out is he’s very much driven by the far left,” Thune said.
Durbin, a deputy to Reid and now Schumer, said those criticisms were off base. Asked whether things were as bad as between Reid and McConnell, Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) replied: “I wouldn’t go that far. I know Sen. Schumer is unhappy, as I am” about the chamber’s partisanship.
Other Schumer allies said McConnell, who often spoke of allowing more amendments and debate, has fallen far short of his promises. And that’s driven the Senate’s gridlock and lack of bipartisan agreement, simply because the chamber’s aisle-crossing muscles have atrophied.
“The Republicans have forgotten to get 60 votes,” said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
“All of Leader McConnell’s promises about regular order and every senator having a chance for amendments have been illusory,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.). “It certainly has been, I think, very difficult for Sen. Schumer in the face of a leader who doesn’t want the opposing party to have a single vote on a single amendment on a single legislative measure.”
Schumer clearly has a different style than Reid. He is taking pains to cater to members of his caucus facing disparate but difficult paths to reelection this November. While Republicans assert Schumer has moved left, he’s won plaudits from more moderate members like Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) for paying attention to members across the Democratic spectrum.
In fact, the roots of this current impasse can be traced to McConnell and Schumer’s instincts to shield their caucus from political consequences. Both Schumer and McConnell are former party campaign chairmen, a far different bond than Reid and McConnell shared as former party whips and appropriators.
"They have a better relationship than Sen. Reid and Sen. McConnell had," said Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), who often worked as a go-between with Schumer when Reid and McConnell's negotiations broke down. "The more Sen. McConnell and Sen. Schumer talk, the better the Senate works. And I'd like to see them talk more."
"Let me tell you —most of us get along just fine, including the Democratic leader and the majority leader," added Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). "We talk in the hallways, on the [Capitol subway], we know this [shutdown battle] is nonsense. And we know we shouldn't be here. I don't think the relationship is any more poisonous than in the past."
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