The pension plan covering most New York City government agencies, including the City’s subway system, had 70 members with pension payments of at least $200,000 last year, almost quadrupling 2019’s tally of 19, according to new Read More
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)’s payroll surpassed $8 billion in 2024 – a 2.6 percent increase since 2023, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website. Overtime, as measured using payroll records, tota Read More
Spending by state lawmakers on office personnel and administrative costs varies widely, with some paying out nearly twice as much as others on their office operations, according to the most recent reported, posted to SeeThroughNY.net Read More
Albany steered over $226 million in grant awards to 581 local projects between June 2024 and April 2025 through the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY), according to the Empire Center recently receive Read More
New York’s two teacher pension systems last year had 26 retirees eligible to collect pensions of more than $300,000, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website. Data reported from Teachers’ Retirement System of the Ci Read More
Last month’s local school district votes were notable for what was missing from most ballots — propositions to purchase zero-emission school buses. Cost may be a factor. Read More
Andrew Cuomo picked a portentous day to launch his New York City mayoral campaign. Sunday was the fifth anniversary of his announcement, as governor, of the city’s first confirmed case of Covid-19. Read More
Every business owner in the state, looking at his or her own challenges, their tax bills, their regulatory burden, should be asking the question: How different would things be if my company was a politically favored project being announced by the governor? What favors would Albany do for me? What would Micron get? Read More
A central provision of New York state law — its prohibition on public-employee strikes — is at risk of breaking into pieces, as Gov. Hochul frantically tries to tape the shards back together. Read More
Perhaps the most damning commentary on Gov. Hochul’s Medicaid spending plan — which made up roughly half of the $252 billion state budget she released Tuesday — was the silence of the attack dogs. Last year, the hospital lobby spent millions on TV ads falsely accusing Hochul of “cutting” the state-run health plan, which covers 7 million lower-income New Yorkers. This year, the ad campaign has gone quiet, a sign she is giving hospitals everything they could want and more. Read More
Testimony of Bill Hammond Senior Fellow for Health Policy, Empire Center for Public Policy Before the Joint Legislative Fiscal Committees February 11, 2025 Read More
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmhFZr5ftxs FULL WRITTEN TESTIMONY: Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback on the Foundation Aid Formula. As a parent of New York City schoolchildren, the Vice Pres Read More
Empire Center founding senior fellow E.J. McMahon showed the New York City Charter Revision Commission how the charter can be improved to better protect the public fisc. Read More
Testimony of Bill Hammond Senior Fellow for Health Policy, Empire Center for Public Policy Before the Joint Legislative Fiscal Committees January 23, 2024 Read More
Testimony of Bill Hammond Senior Fellow for Health Policy, Empire Center for Public Policy Before the Committees on Health, Mental Health, People with Disabilities, Higher Education, and Labo Read More