Month: May 2018

At least four New York local government retirees appear to have received permission from state or New York City officials to each take home a combined $300,000 in pay and pensions as of January 1, 2018, according to data posted today on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website. Read More

Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday again vetoed a pair of union-backed bills designed to sweeten pensions and discourage use of private contractors by state agencies—a positive signal for his third term. Read More

The already extraordinary cost of a proposed state-run single-payer health plan jumped even higher this week when the chief sponsor, Assembly Health Chairman Richard Gottfried of Manhattan, announced that it would be expanded to cover long-term care. Read More

The stock market's slump—and the economic uncertainty it reflects—should raise a yellow caution flag over New York State's budget outlook. Read More

Urban progressives took over the New York state Senate in November, but the body’s biggest swing group will be suburban Democrats. These Democrats will need to prove themselves to their voters, many of them homeowners in places like Long Island and West­­chester. The most valuable deliverable for the nascent suburban caucus will be a permanent extension of Gov. Cuomo’s property-tax cap. Read More