The State Capitol, Albany NY.
ALBANY – For the first time since Andrew Cuomo became governor, New York lawmakers have been unable to deliver an on-time state budget.
Faced with a recalcitrant Legislature and a failed negotiating strategy, Gov. Cuomo said late Sunday that he would introduce emergency legislation Monday to keep the state government in operation after efforts to pass a state budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year faltered during weekend-long talks.
“Given the inability of both houses to reach an agreement, I am sending up an extender of the current budget to keep the government fully functioning until May 31,” Cuomo said in a statement released Sunday. “I have spoken to both leaders who have agreed to pass the extender bill… which is the necessary deadline to keep government fully functioning.”
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo
The fiscal year began at the stroke of midnight on Friday with no deal in place, though the governor requested that lawmakers stay in Albany over the weekend, extending the workweek in the hope that the extra time would result in a flurry of deals. But By Sunday evening that hope had not blossomed into a budget.
And with lawmakers seeming to be at odds over a rotating roster of issues, it’s not yet known when exactly an agreement could be reached. Albany insiders say the late budget is the byproduct of a strategy of incorporating major policy debates inside the state budget – a longstanding tactic that Cuomo has used in the past. In this case, it is the question of raising the age of criminal responsibility that has consistently been mentioned as the stumbling block to a deal.
“Now is the time to protect individual rights and ensure justice for all,” the governor said. “Criminal justice reforms have long languished and must be enacted. New York is one of only two states in the nation to treat 16- and 17-year-olds as adults for purposes of criminal responsibility. Draconian punishments for youthful mistakes have ruined the lives of countless young New Yorkers. We must pass ‘Raise the Age’ once and for all.”
Members of the both the GOP-controlled Senate and Democratic-controlled Assembly worked late into the day Sunday on negotiations, and are expected to resume Monday, following action on extender bills.
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