Negotiations continue in Albany as the state budget is now two weeks past the April 1 deadline. Four policy issues are on the table as lawmakers and the governor’s office try to reach common ground.
Syracuse-area Assemblymember Pam Hunter (D-Syracuse) admits the late budget can be frustrating. Not just for the state, but for organizations that rely on state funding.
"Municipalities, school districts, not for profits. Everyone's trying to work on their budgets and trying to figure out what exactly their next year is going to look like,” said Hunter. “And I think it's ever more important, especially with some of the cuts that are coming from the federal government, the stability and funding from the state is ever more kind of in the forefront, than maybe it had been in prior years."
Hunter said legislative leaders and the governor’s office are being “contemplative” and “very thoughtful” about the issues holding things up. She believes a cell phone ban in schools has been agreed upon, but other sticking points still include changes to the state’s discovery laws, a ban on face masks in certain instances, and changes to make it easier to force mentally ill people into psychiatric care.
When the budget is late like this, it’s generally due to policy issues that have nothing to do with the spending plan’s bottom line.
“Many of these bills are standalone bills that can be taken up separately,” she said. “But there is no guarantee that they'll be taken up separately, and there's no guarantee that they would pass both houses with the exact same bill to get to the governor's desk. And I think this provides some sort of assurance, you know, that these big issues will get passed."
Hunter is hopeful the two sides can come to terms on the issues soon. She expects two more budget extenders will be passed to keep state government running in the meantime.
“We probably pass one on Tuesday and another one on Thursday, before Good Friday and the Easter weekend,” she said. “And so that doesn't give a lot of time. Hopefully that these next five days before we get back, a lot of movement will happen between those parties so they can bring it back to the conference so we can get this going."
