Lawmakers, Hochul OK funds to keep state running despite late budget

ALBANY — The State Legislature approved Gov. Kathy Hochul’s $1.98 billion budget “extender” legislation on Monday to keep the state running despite the lack of a 2023-24 state budget, which was due April 1.

The extender gives Hochul and legislative leaders until April 17 to negotiate a full budget. The odds of a deal this week, however, were considered long in part because senators and Assembly members have a scheduled spring vacation until April 17. Another extender could be adopted then.

Meanwhile, all state employees except senators and Assembly members will be paid and employee benefits and state services will continue at a cost of $450 million for the week under the extender. Under law, the biweekly pay of legislators’ $142,000 annual base salary will be suspended until a budget deal is reached. Then, senators and Assembly members will receive their back pay.

A budget extender approved April 3 expired Monday.

Asked by reporters if progress has been made in more than two weeks of closed-door negotiations, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said Monday: “I’d say slightly … We’re still not close … nothing I would consider close."

“Again, we are here passing an emergency budget extender bill,” said Assemb. Edward Ra (R-Franklin Square), “There is just really no reason for it. I hope this is the last extender we do.”

Hochul included several policy issues in her $227 billion spending proposal, which she presented to the legislature on Feb. 1. The thorniest one is her proposal to end the provision in the 2019 bail law adopted before she became governor. That provision requires judges to use the “least-restrictive option” for ensuring a defendant returns to court. The law passed by the Democratic majorities in the legislature has been criticized by Republicans and some Democrats as contributing to an increase in crime, although that claim is rejected by some independent researchers.

Hochul also seeks to increase the affordability and availability of housing in a program that would allow a state board to overrule local zoning officials who reject new housing proposals, particularly on Long Island, where few new housing projects have been approved in recent years.

“This is the price of putting policy in a budget,” Heastie said Monday. “Bail has taken up 90% of the oxygen in the room … budgets aren’t just documents that you do what the governor wants.”

He referred to the constitutional power of governors to include policy in state budget deals. Under the constitution and related court decisions, once a budget is late a governor could impose their budget, including policy measures. That power provides the chief executive with extraordinary leverage during budget negotiations.

But Heastie said he’s not yet worried that Hochul will seek to use the power. “To use a ‘Star Trek’ reference, I’m not putting up a yellow alert yet,” said Heastie (D-Bronx).

Hochul also wants to link increases in the minimum wage to increases in inflation, but the Democratic majorities of the legislature want to raise the wage first. Hochul has also proposed to increase tuition at public colleges, a measure opposed by legislators.

The extender approved Monday frees up more than $350 million in state funds to pay for salaries and operations, but also for several smaller programs agreed to by Hochul and legislative leaders. They include $20 million to make sure capital construction programs aren’t delayed, $35 million to pay the state’s cost to retirees, and $9 million to assure AIDS medications are distributed after changes were made in the federal Medicaid program.

Funding for the extender will come out of the 2023-24 budget when approved.

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.