The Empire Center for Public Policy offered the following reactions to Governor Hochul’s first State of the State address. Read More
Tag: Taxes and Spending
New York taxpayers have been hit with enormous increases in pension costs for state and local government employees over the past 20 years. From less than $1 billion in 2000, combined annual employer contributions to the Empire State’s public pension funds escalated to nearly $10 billion by 2010, peaking at nearly $17 billion in 2015. Contributions have leveled off at roughly $16 billion in recent years—but under lenient government accounting standards, even that figure conceals the full long-term cost of generous, locked-in pension benefits for generations of retired government employees. Read More
A new Empire Center report reveals that the New York Medicaid program now covers more individuals above the poverty line than below it. Read More
Local governments across every region of the state raked in robust sales tax collections during the three months that ended on June 30th Read More
A total of $87 million in new grants were steered to 174 local projects over the past ten months by Governor Cuomo’s State Dormitory Authority (DASNY) Read More
Remote work and a more mobile professional class will increase the speed and scope of New York's ongoing out migration. Read More
New York state today began its 2022 fiscal year without an adopted budget—which, in itself, is not a big deal. The state government can continue to pay bills and employee salaries next week if either final appropriat Read More
New York’s spending on education and Medicaid will leave a hole in the budget after federal COVID relief money runs out Read More