Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul (photo: Don Pollard/Governor's Office)

New York State and City weathered the worst of the financial devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to billions in federal aid and a good bit of fortune in revenues from Wall Street and personal income taxes. But fiscal uncertainty looms on the horizon amid major stock market losses, warnings of a recession, ongoing pandemic workplace shifts, and federal relief funds running out, creating future budget gaps that will test the fiscal management of Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams’

A Make the Road rally (photo: Make the Road NY)

Make the Road New York, the state’s largest member organization of immigrant advocates, will release its 2023-24 state policy platform on Wednesday and kick off a series of town halls to push for legislation that includes expanded unemployment protections, greater health care access, instituting ‘good cause’ eviction, ending racially-biased school discipline, decriminalizing sex work, raising taxes on the wealthy, and more. 

With 25,000 members statewide, Make the Road New York (MRNY)

Gov. Hochul talks budget (photo: Darren McGee/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

The Federal Reserve Board’s aggressive interest rate increases have put the nation and New York on notice that an economic downturn is a serious possibility. The Board is determined to wring inflation out of the economy, and forecasts higher unemployment but no recession. Nonetheless, New York’s leaders need to brace for one.

The nation has suffered through two vastly different recessions in the past 14 years. The COVID-19 pandemic is fresh in our

There has been a strong return to in-person entertainment in NYC (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)

The New York City economy has rebounded significantly from the depths of the covid recession but volatile economic indicators have left the city in a precarious position.

As of June, New York City’s unemployment rate reached 6.2%, down from 10.5% in June 2021. The city gained 298,600 private sector jobs from June 2021 to June 2022, reaching 3,951,000 jobs, according to the New York State Department of Labor. Tourism to the

Gov. Hochul and Mayor Adams make an announcement (photo: Ed Reed/Mayor's Office)

According to state data, the number of people placed under court-ordered mental health treatment since April, when lawmakers expanded the court's power to make such determinations, has increased 60% from the same period a year before.

The data, provided by the state Office of Court Administration (OCA) to Gotham Gazette after an inquiry, shows that during the four-month period from April through July, 462 people in New York were ordered by a judge to

Comptroller Tom DiNapoli (photo: @NYSComptroller)

August 2, 2022 - Comptroller DiNapoli on State & MTA Finances, & More

New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli joined the show to discuss state and MTA finances, the New York economy, use of federal pandemic aid, the Penn Station area redevelopment plan, the New York City budget limbo over school funding cuts, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or download

CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodriguez (third from left) visits Guttman Community College (photo: CUNY)

The City University of New York (CUNY), the largest urban public university system in the country, is at something of a crossroads. Coming out of two especially challenging pandemic school years, the university just completed a mostly in-person year, with the usual sweep of celebratory in-person graduations, and graduates entering a strong economy.

On the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic is not gone, and neither are the

Gov. Hochul discusses the budget (photo: Mike Groll/Governor's Office)

California concluded its state budget with Governor Gavin Newsom’s signature on June 30, choosing a different path than New York to provide its residents a break from inflation.

California chose to provide modest relief to nearly all its residents through an income tax rebate this October. The Governor’s...

A housing rally (photo:John McCarten/City Council)

Two out of five people returning to New York City from prison last year were released to a shelter or another placement for homeless adults, according to the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). At roughly 2,050 people, it was enough to fill the largest hotel in midtown Manhattan. They often ended up sleeping on the streets.

Those inside the so-called prison-to-shelter pipeline say cycling through the criminal legal and shelter systems is destabilizing and dehumanizing as they attempt to reenter

Mayor Eric Adams (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

The Earned Income Tax Credit is a boon for low-income New Yorkers, putting hundreds, even thousands of dollars back in their pockets each year. Though it is a federal credit, it is matched by New York City and State, and Mayor Eric Adams made expansion a top priority for his administration as part of his agenda to lift up struggling New Yorkers. This year, at the new mayor’s urging, the state enhanced its EITC and the mayor increased the city’s investment in the credit. 

...

Gov. Hochul presents the budget (photo: Mike Groll/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

The State adopted its budget on April 9 with substantial investments across the board in helping New Yorkers, from big increases in school aid and child care to homeowner rebates, gas tax relief for motorists, more funding to avoid evictions, bonuses for health care workers, and relief for hospitals and the health care system. Governor Hochul and the Legislature based the revenue and spending assumptions on an update from the Governor in late February, modified by an early

Gov. Hochul at an announcement (photo: Office of Governor Hochul)

Governor Kathy Hochul announced the launch of a new state office Tuesday intended to spearhead regional workforce development initiatives across New York.

The Office of Strategic Workforce Development will be housed under Empire State Development (ESD), the state entity responsible for most major economic development projects. The arrangement is intended to coordinate workforce training programs with employers' needs, especially in growing sectors, as New York continues its economic recovery from the devastation of the

The State Senate (photo: NY Senate Media Services)

The details of the new $220 billion New York state budget, which included many funding and policy decisions, are still being deciphered and debated. The package, negotiated by the Democrats who hold the governor’s office, Gov. Kathy Hochul, and have super-majorities in the two houses of the Legislature, includes massive education aid to localities, significant increases in funding for child care and public universities, changes to criminal justice laws, a large subsidy for the Buffalo Bills to build a new stadium, and much more.

State

State Senator Liz Krueger (photo: NY Senate Media Services)

What's The [Data] Point? Episode 117 -- $220 Billion, with State Senate Finance Chair Liz Krueger [You can find What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

$220 billion is the reported size of the New York State fiscal year 2023 budget that the Governor and Legislature adopted on April 10. The budget includes a property tax rebate and a tax holiday, and increases State spending about $14 billion, with more money for education aid, day care, rent relief, health care, and a new

Legislative leaders Stewart-Cousins and Heastie (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor)

With a whopping $220 billion state budget approved, Governor Kathy Hochul and the State Legislature now move on to the post-budget legislative session with a long list of issues to address. The governor and two legislative majorities, all Democrats, have their own priorities, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams also has unfinished state business that he is hoping to accomplish before the session is over.

But the clock is ticking, with the legislative session scheduled to end June 2, just

Gov. Hochul signs orders (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor)

Good government groups and reform-minded officials have for years called for New York State’s Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) to be scrapped and replaced with more independence from the elected officials it is meant to regulate. But since the details of a deal to replace the troubled commission began to emerge last month, reformers have raised alarms that the new body would hardly be better than the old.

A new state ethics commission is one of several measures related to government ethics and

Gov. Hochul presents funding for Chinatown (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor)

I immigrated from Taiwan to the U.S. at age 27, with just two pieces of luggage, because of my belief in the American Dream. 

Like most Asian-American immigrants, I understand the struggle of acclimating to a new country and a new city. You must navigate new systems and overcome language barriers. And now, as Asian hate crimes continue to soar, many in the Asian-American Pacific-Islander (AAPI) community find ourselves fearful

Mayor Adams in Albany (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

Governor Kathy Hochul and the state Legislature delivered a $220 billion state budget over the weekend, nine days late and packed with last-minute additions that proved controversial, including changes to state bail laws and a massive state subsidy for a new Buffalo Bills stadium upstate. For Mayor Eric Adams, it contained funding and policy decisions to meet some of the new mayor’s major priorities, while not fulfilling other aspects of his state agenda. 

State Budget Includes Big Boost for CUNY

State Senators Julia Salazar, left, & Jabari Brisport

April 13, 2022 - Max Politics Podcast: Senators Julia Salazar & Jabari Brisport on the New State Budget

State Senators Julia Salazar and Jabari Brisport, both Brooklyn Democrats and members of the Democratic Socialists of America, joined the show to discuss major recent events -- the Brooklyn subway shooting and resignation of Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin -- as well as the recently-passed state budget and upcoming legislative session.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter ...

Gov. Hochul speaks to health care providers (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

Embedded in the $220 billion state budget lawmakers adopted this past weekend is a controversial expansion of Kendra's Law, which allows judges to mandate mental health treatment, including inpatient commitment, to people with mental illness deemed a danger to themselves or others.

The change to the state's mental hygiene law, one of a handful of contentious final proposals pushed by Governor Kathy Hochul,

Senator John Liu (photo: NY Senate)

April 6, 2022 - Max Politics Podcast: Senator John Liu on State Budget Negotiations

State Senator John Liu, a Queens Democrat, joined the show to discuss final state budget negotiations, hitting on a wide range of key topics being decided among the State Senate, Assembly, and Governor.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or download the episode wherever you get

Gov. Hochul at a Bills game (photo: @GovKathyHochul)

Last week Governor Kathy Hochul announced a deal to build a new stadium for the Buffalo Bills with hundreds of millions of dollars in state subsidies, and that she was planning to push it through the state budget with little time for scrutiny by the Legislature or public. It was the exact type of Albany politics many feared of the secretive negotiations with Hochul’s hometown team – and the type she promised to leave behind when she took office last year.

The new stadium deal is also the first major test of a non-binding ...

Gov. Hochul at a rally (photo: Don Pollard/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

Over the past two years, Asian Americans have learned to look over our shoulders on the subway platform and keep one earbud out as we walk down the street. An onslaught of anti-Asian hate incidents has instilled fear in our community, from our children to our elders, influencing how we go about our daily lives.

Seniors

What to Watch For as a New York State Budget Deal is Reached