New York State Senate and Assembly release one-house budget plans

New York State Senate and Assembly proposed new budget resolutions that focus on helping New Yorkers to recover from the pandemic. 

Assembly Democrats are calling to add $1.25 billion to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. The funding will provide additional support to struggling tenants after the state’s eviction ban expired in the middle of January. The Senate offers to invest $200 million into homeowners assistance to help New Yorkers who are having trouble keeping up with their mortgage payments. 

“The one-house budgets from the Senate and Assembly move us closer to a final state budget that invests in strengthening New York’s communities to make them healthier and safer,” wrote Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and Finance Committee Chair Justin Brannan in the joint statement. 

In addition, New York State Assembly is planning to invest $500 million in a utility arrears program. According to the data collected by the Public Utility Law Project, more than 1 million households in New York are currently behind on their utility bills due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“So many people lost income, family members passed away and we're still not recovered from the economic crisis,” Richard Berkeley, the executive director of the Public Utility Law Project, told Gothamist. “Collectively, New Yorkers owe more than $1.7 billion in unpaid energy bills through the energy utilities. And they have little possibility of being able to pay these back.”

The proposed budget resolutions would require the governor to submit a new five-year housing plan every five years. The governor’s initial housing proposal will receive an additional $1.7 billion, bringing the total to $6.2 billion in spending. 

Both the Senate and Assembly did not include the new version of the 421-a tax abatement program in their one-house budget proposals. The program provides tax exemption to real estate developers who include affordable housing units in new constructions. The current version of the 421-a tax break will expire in June.

The new program was announced by Governor Hochul as a part of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Executive Budget. Critics of the proposal note that the new tax break program is too similar to the current one and does not offer deep affordability. 

Resources:

“Lawmakers propose rent relief but omit 421a,” by Kathryn Brenzel (The Real Deal, 2022)

“NY lawmakers lay out state budget priorities for housing, child care,” by Nick Reisman (Spectrum News, 2022)

“Joint Statement by City Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams and Finance Committee Chair Justin L. Brannan,” (New York City Council, 2022)

“Leading New York Through COVID-19 & Beyond: Senate One-house Budget Resolution,” (The New York State Senate, 2022)

“One-house budget plans leave out 421-a revamp,” by Janaki Chadha and Deanna Garcia (Politico, 2022)

“Assembly Budget Makes Critical Investments in Quality, Affordable Housing Across New York State,” by Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie (NY Assembly, 2022)

“The electric bill is too damn high: Here’s why and what you can do about it,” by Danny Lewis (Gothamist, 2022)