Plugged In @ Hinman Straub

October 18, 2021

What’s Inside

  • Governor Issues First Vetoes
  • Governor Announces Settlement of NYSER v. NYS Foundation Aid Case
  • Judge Issues Injunction Against New York’s Vaccine Mandate
  • Marist Poll Gives Hochul High Marks
  • President of New York Power Authority Resigns
  • Political Updates
  • Coming Up

Governor Issues First Vetoes

Governor Hochul issued her first vetoes since taking office. All of the nine vetoed bills are local bills that would have provided funding to school districts despite them having missed deadlines or having committed clerical errors. This type of bill was historically vetoed by Governor Cuomo, often arguing that such needed to be discussed as part of the state budget. In Governor Hochul Veto Memos, she makes the same argument.

The vetoed bills include:

A.4877 Palmesano/S.6677 O’Mara – Relates to legalizing, validating, ratifying and confirming certain transportation contracts of the Corning city school district.

A.6289 Gunther/S.5627 Martucci – Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms the actions of the Monticello central school district regardless of the failure of such district to timely file final building cost reports.

A.6356-B Griffin/S.5563-B Kaminsky – Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms transportation contracts for the Baldwin Union Free school district.

A.6360-B Griffin/S.5562-B Kaminsky – Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms transportation contracts for the West Hempstead Union Free school district.

S.396-A Oberacker/A.7618-A Salka – Relates to legalizing, validating, ratifying and confirming a transportation contract of the Oneonta city school district.

S.1798 Borrello/A.6972 Goodell – Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms the actions of the Panama central school district regardless of the failure of such district to timely file final building cost reports.

S.1867 Ritchie/A.6885 Barclay – Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms a transportation contract of the Fulton city school district.

S.4963-A Reichlin-Melnick/A.7164-A Lawler – Relates to validating certain acts by the Pearl River union free school district in connection with final building cost reports required to be filed with the state education department.

S.6188-A Boyle/A.7025-A Durso – Relates to legalizing, validating, ratifying and confirming a certain contract of the West Islip union free school district.

Governor Hochul, in her Veto Memo, said:

These nine bills would forgive certain violations of state law that resulted in the repayment or withholding of expense-based building aid and transportation aid that would have otherwise been owed to these school districts. Payment of expense-based aids to school districts is calculated as part of the state’s annual budget process. Because these bills would alter the aids agreed to in the Enacted State Budget for the current year, I am constrained to veto these bills.

Governor Announces Settlement of NYSER v. NYS Foundation Aid Case

The Governor announced that New York State has reached an agreement to settle and discontinue the New Yorkers for Students’ Educational Rights v. New York State case. The terms of the settlement will be to fully fund the current Foundation Aid formula to New York’s school districts over three years and will end the State’s prior opposition to providing this funding. The State legislature memorialized a substantively similar commitment as a part of the FY 2022 budget agreement. The settlement sets out the funding schedule over the three years, as follows:

  • FY 2022: $19.8 billion, covering 30% of the existing shortfall
  • FY 2023: Approximately $21.3 billion, covering 50% of the anticipated shortfall
  • FY 2024: Approximately $23.2 billion, eliminating the anticipated shortfall, and funding the full amount of Foundation Aid for all school districts

Governor Hochul said:

Every single New Yorker deserves a quality education to succeed in our state, and public schools are a vital component of that opportunity for our children’s upward mobility. This settlement closes a long chapter of inequity, and demonstrates my administration’s commitment to wiping the slate clean and fully funding public education using a responsive model that takes districts’ unique needs into account. Actions are more important than words, and while the settlement is the first step, we’re following through with funding in the state’s budget. The future of our state depends on our ability to properly educate each child, and Foundation Aid will apply a critical lens to address inequities and ensure schools in need receive the funding they deserve.

Judge Issues Preliminary Injunction Against Health Care Worker Vaccine Mandate

U.S. District Judge David Hurd granted a preliminary injunction against the state’s health care worker vaccine mandate. At issue is the state’s denial of the ability for employees to seek a religious exemption to the mandate. The ruling will suspend the enforcement of any requirement that employers deny religious exemptions or that employer revoke any religious exemptions already granted. Further, the ruling will bar the state from interfering with employers granting religious exemptions going forward, until the case can be decided at trial.

In his decision, the Judge noted that the state offered no adequate explanation as to why a health care worker who qualified as medically exempt from vaccination could be afforded the ability to submit to daily testing, but that reasonable accommodation was not extended to a worker with a sincere religious objection. The Judge also noted that the plaintiffs have a good possibility of prevailing at trial on their argument that the state’s mandate does not meet the requirements for religious accommodations under the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964, and that it violates the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause.

Governor Hochul responded to the injunction by saying:

My responsibility as Governor is to protect the people of this state, and requiring health care workers to get vaccinated accomplishes that. I stand behind this mandate, and I will fight this decision in court to keep New Yorkers safe.

Marist Poll Gives Hochul High Marks

A Marist Poll released this week shows Governor Hochul enjoying a high favorability rating. Of those individuals polled, 49% approve of the job the Governor is doing, while only 31% disapprove. The Governor still has some work to do reaching New Yorkers, as a full 20% are unsure whether they approve or disapprove. When measured against potential primary opponents, such as Jumaane Williams and Attorney General James, the Governor again does well with 44% saying they would support her if the primary was held today. Williams and James received 15% and 28% respectively. When including former governor Cuomo in the mix, Hochul’s support falls to 36%, with James receiving 24%, Cuomo receiving 19%, and Williams receiving 9%.

Interestingly, the poll finds that New Yorkers are largely negative on the direction the state is headed. 39% say the state is headed in the right direction, while 54% say the state is headed in the wrong direction. This, aside from Marist’s August 2021 poll which found only 35% thought the state was headed in the right direction, is the lowest right direction number recorded by Marist since October of 2010.

President of New York Power Authority Resigns

Gil Quiniones, President and CEO of the New York Power Authority, has announced his resignation. Quiniones departs NYPA to take the position of CEO at Commonwealth Edison, Illinois largest utility. Quiniones will take over for, and report to, Calvin Butler CEO of ComEd’s parent company Exelon Utilities who also served as interim CEO of ComEd.

Quiniones has served as president and CEO of NYPA, the nation’s largest state-owned public power organization, since 2011. Prior to this role, he served as COO and executive vice president, Energy Marketing and Corporate Affairs. Before joining NYPA in 2007, Quiniones spent four years at the New York City Economic Development Corporation, where he served as senior vice president and the principal energy adviser to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Prior to this, Quiniones worked for 13 years at the Consolidated Edison Company of New York.

Mr. Quiniones said:

It’s an honor to be named CEO of ComEd, and I look forward to working closely with Calvin and the entire utility management team to lead this nationally recognized energy company. I share ComEd’s vision for a clean and resilient energy future that benefits customers and communities across northern Illinois and commit to continuing ComEd’s legacy of local partnership with and investment in the communities it is privileged to serve.

Political Updates

City & State NY’s Weekly Winners and Losers here.

NY Assembly Judiciary Committee receives new text messages, records tied to Cuomo-accuser: report.

Times Union: Hochul scraps Cuomo’s ‘defense’ program critics say helped suppress negative information.

Cuomo lawyer’s letter reveals subpoenas, probes.

Leslie Danks Burke announces 2022 State Senate candidacy.

Suozzi, eyeing run for governor, has $3.1M in cash.

Democrat Kaminsky, Republican Donnelly locked in fierce battle in open Nassau County District Attorney race.

The City: Candidates for New York’s Next Governor: Who’s Running to Run This State?

Emily’s List endorses Hochul for Governor.

Stefanik raises over $1.5 million in Q3, bringing total to over $5 million cycle-to-date.

Nearly all GOP county chairs have endorsed Rep. Zeldin for governor.

The Nation: Why Won’t New York’s Top Democrats Back the Democratic Nominee for Mayor of Buffalo? here.

Buffalo’s unprecedented mayoral race tests New York Democrats.

Cuomo book approval faces new challenge.

Heating bills set to soar as inflation hits energy prices.

Coming Up

The Board of Regents will hold their next meeting on October 18 and 19.

JCOPE will hold its next meeting on October 19.

The Assembly will hold a public hearing on employment opportunities for people with disabilities on October 20.

The Assembly will hold a public hearing on non-MTA public transit systems and service on October 20.

The Senate Task Force on Opioids, Addiction and Overdose will hold a public meeting to discuss the impacts of COVID-19 on the overdose crisis on October 20.

The Assembly will hold a public hearing on restructuring the New York State Division of Veterans Services (NYSDVS) on October 21.

The Senate will hold a public hearing on maintaining quality, equity, and affordability in public higher education throughout the pandemic and beyond on October 25.

The Assembly will hold a public hearing on COVID’s impact on the open meetings law on October 25.

The Senate will hold a second public hearing on maintaining quality, equity, and affordability in public higher education throughout the pandemic and beyond on October 27.

The Assembly will hold a public hearing on oversight of the State Fiscal Year 2021-2022 Budget for New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal on October 27.

The Senate will hold a public hearing on campus sexual assault on November 9.

The Senate will hold a third public hearing on maintaining quality, equity, and affordability in public higher education throughout the pandemic and beyond on November 16.

The Senate Cities Committee will hold a public hearing on how to better address municipal needs on November 17.

The Public Service Commission will hold its next meeting on November 18.

The Senate will hold a fourth public hearing on maintaining quality, equity, and affordability in public higher education throughout the pandemic and beyond on November 22.

The Senate will hold a public hearing to discuss New York State’s system of ethics oversight and enforcement on December 9.