State lawmakers are scrambling to possibly pass the New York State budget before their two-week recess starts on Monday, coinciding with the holiday of Passover. With a computer snafu slowing things down even more, Rockland State Senator Bill Weber of the 38th District says there’s a lot of paperwork to go through…
Meanwhile, though environmentalists were hoping the New York HEAT Act would be part of the budget to help reduce natural gas use in the state, it’s reportedly been dropped as budget negotiations continue. Weber called that “common sense” and “a victory for all New Yorkers.” Patrick McClellan of the New York League of Conservation Voters laments lots of people still have a preference for natural gas, though other challenges made the legislation hard to digest…
Governor Kathy Hochul is talking up the budget after her surprise announcement of a “conceptual agreement” earlier this week. Hochul says, for example, the budget would add new initiatives to crack down on organized retail theft and protect frontline retail workers…
Lawmakers were to have voted yesterday on a 6th extender bill keeping the government operating and state employees paid. The $237 billion 2025 fiscal year budget reportedly includes plans for new housing construction, addresses the migrant situation and cracks down on illegal marijuana shops. It was due April first. The legislative session ends June sixth.