Capitol Watch: Albany enters last month of budget talks

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Lawmakers and the governor are entering their last month of negotiations over the proposed $178 billion state budget as they face calls to address the fate of pot sales, rising Medicaid costs and a new law ending cash bail in many cases.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this week that it's politically easier to pass deals on complex policy issues from marijuana legalization to criminal justice reform in the budget due April 1. Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes said she hopes Cuomo's plan to soon visit other states that have legalized recreational marijuana will leave him more open to Democratic proposals to specifically direct pot revenue to help communities hit hard by the war on drugs.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are gearing up for fights over potential reforms to several new laws passed by Democrats last year and a push by liberal groups to raise taxes on the wealthy to boost health care and education funding.

REVENUE FORECAST

It’s possible that New York will have more money to spend over the upcoming year if the state and national economies keep expanding.

Legislative leaders and the Cuomo administration are facing a Sunday deadline to come to a consensus about how much additional money is available. At a revenue hearing Thursday, some economic observers said it's unclear whether the new virus outbreak will affect state finances, and there are concerns a recession might be looming.

Cuomo’s budget office estimates that tax collections will increase $5.5 billion, or 6.7%, in the upcoming fiscal year ending April 2021.

The issue before lawmakers and the governor is whether that number could actually be higher, and if so, how the state should use any extra funds.

The Democratic-led Legislature and the Democratic governor failed to come to a consensus last year, leaving the job to state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. DiNapoli, a Democrat, has called for New York to boost its rainy day fund.

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BAIL REFORM

Cuomo is now pushing for for New York to change the bail law through the budget, and Democratic legislative leaders haven't ruled out that plan.

Supporters, including criminal justice reform groups, say the new law is ending a system that arbitrarily allows the wealthy to avoid jail while awaiting trial, while the poor remain behind bars. Detractors, including some law enforcement officials, say the law will put dangerous people on the street.

Democratic Senate Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins this week also backed possibly reforming the bail law in the budget.

Cuomo and some Senate Democrats have proposed ending cash bail in all cases but restoring judges' discretion to detain individuals. But they have received pushback from more liberal lawmakers and advocacy groups who favor the current law.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, also a Democrat, said critics are overly focusing on a handful of people who have been released and face new criminal charges and said he wants to see data. People-Stokes said her caucus hasn't made a decision on whether the Assembly's own upcoming budget proposal would change the bail law.

Cuomo's also said he wants to base any tweaks on “facts and data.”

The governor said Friday he'll bring in law enforcement and criminal justice reform representatives for a discussion of the law.

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MEDICAID

Cuomo is still facing resistance from advocacy groups representing 3 million low-income New Yorkers enrolled in Medicaid over his plans to address rapidly rising costs.

Cuomo’s administration has formed a team of health care executives tasked with proposing reforms by mid-March. The new Medicaid Redesign Team is set to hold its fourth public forum on Monday in New York City.

Groups including Medicaid Matters NY are worried about the governor’s push to trim $2.5 billion from Medicaid to balance the state budget by April 1. Critics say he’s rushing too quickly to reform a complex system.

The governor has dismissed calls for tax hikes to cover health care costs and has instead pushed ahead with a 1% across-the-board Medicaid cut this year. Cuomo’s proposed budget would direct $202 million less in state funding on Medicaid in the fiscal year ending in 2021 compared to this year.

The Cuomo administration has hinted the team could consider possible solutions such as raising taxes on health insurance or changing the state’s cap on Medicaid spending. He’s already proposed penalizing certain local governments that exceed that cap, prompting some pushback from New York City and county leaders.