In New York, Hochul says the state of the state is concerning, but can be resolved

Governor Kathy Hochul presented a grim and somewhat gloomy picture of New York on Tuesday, highlighting crime, failing mental health infrastructure and affordability concerns as vexing problems her administration was prepared to tackle.

In her annual State of the State address, Ms. Hochul, a Democrat from Buffalo, deviated from the typical good-news message from a sitting governor, according to a copy of the remarks provided to the news media in advance. Even as she praised her administration’s achievements and promised that a “new day” was dawning in New York, her speech seemed tailor-made to answer the concerns of a state still struggling to find a balance between criminal justice and public safety.

She highlighted reforms such as the recently passed Clean Slate initiative, which she said would help incarcerated people reintegrate into their communities, reducing recidivism.

But she said in the prepared text that she understood why some New Yorkers remained afraid of being targeted “at the grocery store, at the synagogue or on the subway,” even as shootings and killings dropped last year. And pointing out the gap between the state’s mental health system and the criminal justice system, she said there is still work to be done.

“Troubled individuals commit violent acts, and all too often we learn that they have fallen through the cracks after being discharged from a hospital,” Ms Hochul said.

To address this, she called for a “significant expansion” of psychiatric services, including 200 new hospital beds, new mental health courts, increased supervision of people on parole and specialist housing for people with a history of arrests and serious mental health problems . She is also proposing a new joint task force to target organized shoplifting networks.

But perhaps most striking was what wasn’t mentioned as one of the state’s top concerns: addressing the migrant crisis, which has driven tens of thousands of immigrants from around the world to travel to New York City to seek shelter, which is impacting social services of the city and costs billions. of dollars.

The word “migrant” does not appear once in Ms. Hochul’s 180-page State of the State briefing book, although the book does refer to her immigrant grandparents and to a proposal aimed at supporting immigrant entrepreneurs.

Addressing the state’s dire lack of affordable housing, the governor proposed reviving a tax credit intended to encourage affordable housing development and incentives for commercial-to-residential conversions. But she has not laid out a comprehensive plan to address the housing crisis, which she and legislative leaders have previously identified as one of the most serious problems facing the state.

Last year, Ms. Hochul put housing at the top of her agenda and pledged to build 800,000 units, in part by requiring municipalities to meet certain construction targets. That proposal met with significant opposition that ultimately doomed the project.

The speech, which quotes two Roosevelts and Taylor Swift, is the second State of the State address Ms. Hochul has given since she was elected to her first full term in 2022. Her narrow victory over her Republican opponent, Lee Zeldin, The crime-focused election has fueled fears that Democrats’ iron grip on New York politics is disappearing.

She called for additional funding to prevent domestic violence and prosecute abusers, and to expand the list of crimes eligible for hate crime charges in the wake of a spike in anti-Semitic attacks.

Although Ms. Hochul herself will not be on the ballot in November, her fellow Democrats hope to reverse Republicans’ statewide gains in the 2022 midterm elections. The most consequential of these are the five seats in the House of Representatives that the Democrats lost to the Republicans that year.

These suburban districts, which stretch from Long Island to Syracuse, tend to be politically moderate places where quality-of-life issues from crime to the economy resonate.

“New Yorkers have heard promises before, and it’s easy to become cynical or feel overwhelmed,” she said.

“In those moments, I understand why some people feel like the sun is setting on the Empire State,” she added. “But I don’t despair. I see light on the horizon.”

Ms. Hochul has prioritized rebuilding New York’s economy since taking office amid pandemic-era shutdowns. She has made significant investments in an effort to attract businesses to the state, including a $5.5 billion stimulus package that would see a new Micron plant open in central New York.

Earlier this week, the governor announced a $275 million artificial intelligence consortium that will be the first in the nation to contribute public and private resources and research, putting New York at the forefront of the new AI economy.

But unlike in recent years, when better-than-expected tax revenues and cash injections from the federal government during the pandemic bolstered New York’s finances, the state is projecting a $4.3 billion hole this year.

With the governor unlikely to raise taxes, especially in an election year for state lawmakers, Ms. Hochul and legislative leaders will have to be creative to protect existing programs while proposing new initiatives.

This past week, the governor unveiled a series of proposals that address some of the most intractable problems facing New Yorkers.

She wants to spend $10 million on a statewide overhaul of literacy education — a proposal that many advocates say is long overdue. Less than half of third-graders were proficient on state reading tests last year.

She also proposes a significant expansion of disability leave, which has been capped at $170 per week since 1989. Under Ms. Hochul’s plan, that cap would be tied to the average weekly wage statewide, which would bring payments to about $1,250 per week.

The governor also called on the state to adopt a 40-hour paid prenatal leave so pregnant women can attend doctor’s appointments without sacrificing income or employment. The proposal is one of six the governor has made to address New York’s troubling maternal mortality rate, especially among Black women.

Ms. Hochul acknowledged the challenges New York has faced and will continue to face as a result of climate change. While calling for more help from the federal government, she pledged to create programs that would protect housing and infrastructure from flooding and other climate-related damage, allow homeowners to voluntarily move out of high-risk areas and strengthen state disaster response systems strengthen. .

Despite – or perhaps in recognition of – the headwinds the state faces, Ms Hochul underlined the state’s resilience and reputation as a place where transformations are commonplace.

“As Taylor Swift reminds us, everyone here ‘used to be someone else,’” she said.

Reporting was contributed by Jay Root, Claire Fahy, Erin Nolan, Luis Ferré-Sadurní And Mihir Zaveri.