ALBANY, NY — “Today, the Governor outlined his Executive Budget Proposal, giving us all an idea of what his priorities are for the coming fiscal year.
The Governor has again jammed some policy initiatives into the budget conversation that are unnecessary. He’s also proposed tackling a number of real budget items. Changing the public school Foundation Aid formula to provide additional funding to higher needs schools may bode well for Northern New York.
“Conversely, threatening impoverished areas of our state, by shifting Medicaid burden onto counties, may have devastating consequences in the areas of New York with the highest Medicaid enrollment. The Governor said there will be ‘…zero impact on local governments…’ but then in the very next breath he says counties will pick up the Medicaid costs on anything over three percent.
Additionally, it seems the Governor is open to making changes to the bail reforms he crammed into last year’s budget. Because our safety is at stake, I’ll continue to pressure the Executive to take action to repeal ‘catch & release.’
“While these appear to be steps in the right direction, it’s clear to me the devil will be in the details.
“There’s a lot to chew on here but one thing is clear; we can’t tax our way out of this deficit. I’ll be thoroughly reviewing the Governor’s full proposal in the coming weeks, collecting input from the public, listening, and looking for solutions to closing the $6.1 billion budget deficit.”