Gov. Kathy Hochul addresses funding for asylum seekers, MTA's fiscal problems in state budget
NEW YORK -- Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday unveiled a new budget that deals with two of the most pressing problems facing New York City: the constant flow of asylum seekers and the massive fiscal problems threatening the MTA.
MTA head Janno Lieber told CBS2 political reporter Marcia Kramer he was "walking on air" after listening to the governor detail her plans for a massive bailout of the financially strapped agency. It's enough to prevent service cuts and finance a whole lot of system upgrades, but the state and city will pay more, along with businesses and commuters.
"So we're talking about a 5% hike," Kramer said.
"Yeah, I think that's what's in the governor's plan, is a roughly 5% fare hike, but one of the interesting things is we're going to make sure that however we structure it, that we prioritize people who are using the subway the most. That's our middle class and working class New Yorkers," Lieber said. "We want to do more and more discounting for regular users."
Lieber was in the audience when Hochul unveiled her $227 billion budget, which includes a detailed plan for bailing out the transit agency, a plan that asks everyone to do their part.
The MTA has to find $400 million in efficiencies, the city has to ante up $500 million for paratransit and student MetroCards, businesses will pay $800 million through increases in the payroll mobility tax, the state will chip in $300 million and the MTA will get a portion of the revenue from licensing three new downstate casinos.
"For many, many New Yorkers, the MTA is the life blood," Hochul said. "And if we don't invest in it, then we will not be looked upon favorably by future generations."
"We don't have to layoffs and more important, we don't have to do service cuts. We can maintain this high level of service," Lieber said.
There's also $150 million for increased security, funds to make 70 more stations accessible and a plan to extend the Second Avenue subway to 125th Street by adding three more stops.
Meanwhile, with the influx of more than 43,000 asylum seekers, the governor earmarked $1 billion, including $767 million for shelter and $137 million for health care.
The governor said the cost of the asylum seekers should be divided evenly by the state, the city and the federal government, though federal aid has been in short supply.
"We were with the president yesterday, and he did say there would be money coming from the federal government to help the city. He did not give a number, but we believe that they should be picking up a significant share ... We're going to keep asking the federal government for their assistance," Hochul said.
Mayor Eric Adams released the following statement in response to the budget:
"While we are reviewing the details of the Governor Hochul's budget proposal, it is clear that there are many victories worth celebrating, particularly in the areas of serious mental illnesses, addressing our housing crisis, and strengthening the entire ecosystem of public safety. There are also areas of uncertainty that will require deeper review.
"First, the governor has proposed putting substantial resources behind efforts to ensure that those in need get the mental health care they deserve, which will do a great deal to advance the plan I laid out towards the end of last year. This budget also advances key components of our shared housing agenda, helping New York City build more new homes and convert existing offices and basements for residential use, while providing much-needed tax incentives to increase our supply of affordable housing.
"The governor also laid out a robust public safety agenda that would protect New Yorkers by investing in upstream solutions, helping to address the problem of recidivism, and making commendable investments to hire more lawyers to reduce case backlogs, and the city is committed to fighting for additional resources to ensure we can address the ongoing bottlenecks in our criminal justice system.
"At the same time, our city continues to face significant fiscal and economic challenges that will require additional support from the state. I commend Governor Hochul for recognizing the need to provide state resources to assist with the ongoing asylum seeker crisis, and we look forward to reviewing her proposal in greater detail to ensure New York City gets its fair share of resources. As I've said previously, a national crisis requires a national response. We will continue to need our federal and state partners to do their part, and we look forward to working in partnership with them.
"The governor has also proposed having the city increase its contribution to the MTA by at least $500 million annually. The city annually contributes approximately $2 billion to the MTA in direct and in-kind contributions and, while we recognize the significant fiscal challenges the MTA faces, we are concerned that this increased commitment could further strain our already-limited resources.
"Finally, there are a whole host of important policy improvements in this budget, including community hiring provisions and proven alternative project delivery methods, which will allow us to build large projects faster and smarter.
"Governor Hochul has been, and continues to be, a strong partner for the city, and we look forward to working with her and the Legislature in the months ahead to ensure New York City has the resources it deserves."
The Transport Workers Union praised the MTA bailout as "a good first step" but worried about whether the MTA's efficiencies would cost workers jobs.
Hochul's budget plans also include:
- Building 800,000 units of affordable housing over the next decade,
- Tying the minimum wage to inflation,
- Creating 3,500 units of housing and 1,000 new in-patient psych beds for people with mental illness,
- Increasing the cigarette tax by $1 and banning the sale of all flavored tobacco products to reduce the number of young New Yorkers who become adult smokers,
- And allowing New York City to stop speeding drivers by reducing the speed limit to 20 mph in some areas and to 10 mph in school zones.
The governor implored lawmakers, who just refused to accept her pick to head the state Court of Appeals, to put aside hard feelings and work with her to make the New York dream a reality.
"In my heart, I believe that by working together in the partnership that people expect, the partnership we've already established, we can and we will," Hochul said.
But there are several areas where Hochul may find it tough sledding.
Bail reform is going to be a big hot potato. She's proposing to change the language in the bail reform bill to eliminate the phrase "least restrictive." This would give judges discretion, the big word that everybody tried to avoid.
The governor also wants to let New York City open more charter schools, which the teachers' union is opposed to.
Hochul also promised not to raise income taxes, but people in the Legislature are hungering to raise taxes on the rich.