On January 19th, Governor Andrew Cuomo and Budget Director Robert Mujica delivered presentations on the proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 New York State Executive budget. The text of proposed budget bills and associated Article VII legislation was posted later that evening. SPG’s summary of major health-related provisions is available here.
Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the State is facing significant fiscal challenges: the Division of the Budget (DOB) has projected a combined $15 billion budget shortfall for FY 2021 and FY 2022. Although the Governor has called for the federal government to provide $15 billion in federal aid to close the two-year deficit, the Executive Budget Financial Plan is based off a “worst-case” scenario under which the federal government provides only $6 billion, which DOB has identified as a reasonable lower bound on potential federal funding.
By August 31st, if the federal government provides less than $3 billion in unrestricted aid for FY 2022, the Director of the Budget would have “superpowers” to conduct further cuts, across-the-board if practical. Conversely, if the federal government provides the Governor’s request of $15 billion or more by the same date, these proposals could be reversed or modified. As a reminder, all proposals are subject to change during the 30-day amendment period (ending February 18th) and later negotiations with the Legislature.