Nicole Gelinas: Kathy Hochul’s Quixotic Budget Quest Shows the System Isn’t Working

For over two decades, New York governors have successfully used the state-budget process to introduce significant policy reform with little government opposition. However, this practice came into question with Governor Kathy Hochul’s first proposed budget as elected leader. Governor Hochul included too much in her budget and has thus far failed to implement it. The state’s legislative process for enacting laws is supposed to run as follows: laws should usually originate in the Legislature, and once a law passes both houses, the governor can sign it or veto it. Unlike other legal decisions, the governor proposes the budget, legislators make recommendations, and the governor amends it and sends it back to the Legislature. Nonetheless, in the last twenty years, governors have incorporated significant policies not related to taxes or spending into the budget. This practice has reduced the legislature’s influence, and lawmakers now have little power to change the budget except for approving or rejecting it.

However, such a system has become controversial, especially since laws such as bail reform and congestion pricing passed in the budget without sufficient public hearings or insight from lawmakers. New York’s Governor Hochul used the budget to revise bail reform by granting judges increased discretion and intensified the pressure on suburbs to increase the number of residential housing units. However, it is apparent that Hochul’s bid to coerce legislators to convince municipalities to supply housing has failed. Although the state is running on a temporary extension to last year’s budget, the governor could attempt to force a shutdown if the Legislature does not relent. Such a move would negatively affect public opinion on building housing since it is not related to the budget.

The public safety concern raised is over bail reform, which is of more immediate concern than the housing issue. Governor Hochul may win the public’s favor over bail reform in a government shutdown situation, but this might not help those who want bail laws revised and governors to stop exploiting the budget process. Despite good or bad governance tactics, the governor seems incapable of dealing with the Legislature, demonstrated by her recent nearly 30% pay increase implemented without asking for anything in return. 

Therefore, people must urge lawmakers to enact laws, the old-fashioned way, instead of relying on governors using the budget process. This may be a better way of breaking the current impasse.

Nicole Gelinas is a contributing editor to the Manhattan Institute’s City Journal.