Friday Headlines: Budget Deal Or No Deal Edition
There is a general agreement on the state budget that includes her disastrous changes to insurance law, common sense street safety legislation and straightforward reforms of infrastructure regulations, according to Gov. Hochul.
But if you ask the leaders in the state Senate and Assembly she has been negotiating with, they don’t know what the hell she’s talking about.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, surly as ever, had a full-fledged crash out in front of reporters yesterday following Hochul’s premature announcement of a state budget deal. It’s normal for governors to announce a handshake agreement on core policy in the state budget even when other details are still up in the air, but Hochul’s declaration of a “general agreement” appeared to hit a nerve because there were still big questions on fiscal matters, Heastie’s focus during the budget process. The speaker fumed that the numbers had largely been set aside in favor of the governor’s policy priorities.
“We signed off on nothing major,” he told reporters. “And this is what I’m telling y’all is wrong with this process. And I’m saying this to y’all very clearly, I’m never doing this again. Budgets are supposed to be about money, not policy.”
Hochul told reporters earlier in the day that details were being worked out, but overall, the budget was largely agreed upon, with bill printing likely next week. But Heastie said he isn’t planning on conferencing the budget with members until they make headway on fiscal policy.
Maybe there is a method to the madness. Hochul joked that she was slow rolling details on the budget so that the press corps had something to write about for the next few weeks.
“There’s a lot of details I didn’t mention,” she said.
More news:
- The MTA and LIRR unions aren’t any closer to avoiding a strike after their latest meeting. (Newsday)
- An MTA superintendent got busted for using a DIY placard and was permanently demoted.
- Cornell’s president is under investigation after footage of him backing his car into students became public. (The New York Times)
- A swastika was found carved into a LIRR station window. (The New York Post)
- Heastie is far from the only lawmaker fed up with how the state budget system operates. (NY1)
- Carl saw the light on street safety and worked with members to get the Stop Super Speeders Act out the door, even if he is as surly as ever. (Hell Gate)
- The Capitol region’s bike share system is thriving in its 10th year. (The Times Union)
- New Jersey Transit fares to catch World Cup games will merely be expensive, as opposed to incredibly expensive. (Gothamist)
- The final budget will have subway safety measures included. (The Daily News)
- Expect heavy roadwork in downtown Syracuse to accommodate I-81 changes. (The Syracuse Post-Standard)
- How would Waymos work in New York City? (Vital City)
Read More:
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