Governor Kathy Hochul’s $233 billion spending plan would increase school aid overall by roughly $825 million, but it would end a longtime tradition in the way it calculates and allocates that aid called “hold harmless,” meaning schools are not guaranteed to receive at least the same amount of money as they did last year.
The Democrat argued in her budget address that schools were infused with aid over the past couple years, and that many districts, especially in suburban areas, are sitting on healthy reserves.
Assemblyman Chris Burdick, a Democrat from the 93rd District in Mount Kisco, refutes that. He worries the cuts will impact schools in his district that largely serve marginalized communities.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate," says Burdick. "I think, for example, the Bedford Central School District...they would suffer over a 10 percent decrease.”
State Senator Pete Harckham, a Democrat from the 40th District in Peekskill, particularly decried the loss of funding for Bedford schools in a statement. State Senator Rob Rolison, a Republican from the 39th District in Poughkeepsie, estimates the Poughkeepsie City School District could lose around $1.4 million in state aid, with losses also predicted in the Beacon, Garrison, and Wallkill school districts.
Democratic State Senator Michelle Hinchey called the removal of hold harmless “untenable” in a statement, adding in part: “It is imperative that we not only continue to hold our schools harmless but also address the longstanding neglect of our rural schools, which have consistently received insufficient Foundation Aid.”
Meantime, Burdick and Rolison both say they are happier with Hochul’s housing proposal this time around. Rather than mandating growth in municipalities across the state, as the governor tried to do last year before the plan fell apart, Hochul's new proposal would incentivize communities to pledge to build more housing in order to be eligible for grants out of roughly $650 million in discretionary funding.
Burdick has opposed any housing mandates that would override local communities’ control over their zoning codes, so he’s pleased with the change.
“That fact that she’s followed through with that, and the fact that she is clearly trying to have a collaborative approach with the legislature, generally, is quite encouraging," says Burdick.
Rolison says Hochul needs to be taking a tougher stance on crime and public safety. While Hochul has proposed $40.2 million to combat retail theft, including funds that would create a task force within the New York State Police, Rolison, a former Poughkeepsie mayor, is not confident it will get results.
“What is a task force going to do if the laws on the books are not situated and interpreted in a way that you can hold people and, essentially, take them off the street?" he asks. "I’m not saying you’re gonna lock people up and throw away the key, but it’s like they know there’s no consequence, and they’re going to continue to do it.”
The state’s bail reform laws have drawn repeated scrutiny and multiple amendments since passing in 2019. Last year, Hochul signed a bill in the budget granting judges more discretion to hold individuals charged in certain crimes.
Rolison, who served as a member of the town of Poughkeepsie Police Department for more than 20 years, says he is also concerned about the state’s opioid epidemic and the rise of fentanyl — and while he is pleased by efforts to increase resources for issues like mental health, he says he doesn’t see anything in Hochul’s budget that will address that.
Hochul’s budget also dips into reserves to increase funding put toward the state’s migrant crisis. The governor wants to spend $2.4 billion to provide services for thousands of asylum seekers who continue to be bused into New York City, including for emergency shelters in areas like Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn.
“The federal government is essentially doing nothing, right? I saw something the other day, I thought it was interesting that the state of New York is essentially leasing Floyd Bennett Field, that is a federal installation," adds Rolison. "At the very least, [the federal government] should be saying, ‘No, listen, you can use it.’ Why do we have to pay them? I don’t get that. It makes no sense to me.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams finalized a one-year lease agreement with the federal government to use Floyd Bennett Field in the fall, with Governor Hochul agreeing to reimburse the city. Hochul has said she will continue pushing President Joe Biden for federal aid and immigration reform.
Overall, Rolison says he’s ready to push back in the legislature's upcoming budget hearings, and Burdick says there’s a number of things he’s personally eager to work on. He says it’s too soon to tell how things will turn out, but he’s optimistic.
“We’re gonna want to see some increases, we’re gonna want to see some restorations, but that’s normal for this process. And that’s as it should be," he says.
Lawmakers have until April 1 to finalize the spending plan.
