The Governor and legislative leaders have conceded that the budget will not be finished before the midnight deadline. At issue are some of the higher profile provisions including bail reform that the Governor wants to work through before turning to the rest of the items outlined in the Executive Budget. According to reports, the Assembly has offered compromise language with regard to bail reform which has led to some rank-and-file members publicly denouncing any changes. According to the Speaker, once bail reform and other large issues like housing can be agreed upon, they are likely to be able to move quickly through the remaining items.

According to the Comptroller, the budget needs to be passed by end of business on Monday, April 3 for the April 6 Institutional Payroll to be processed without delay. there are approximately 57,000 employees on the institutional payroll. If a final agreement is not reached, lawmakers can pass a budget extender, which is a temporary solution to ensure that state workers on the Institutional Payroll get paid on April 6.

State law also requires the Comptroller to withhold salary payments to legislators after March 31 if a budget is not in place. Lawmakers will not get paid until a final budget is in place. Their next payroll is April 12.

If a budget is not in place by April 10, then the next payroll period that could be impacted is the administrative payroll that covers approximately 83,000 employees at state agencies. Either a final budget or an extender would need to occur on Monday, April 10 by the end of business to avoid any delays with this payroll.

Governor Sends Program Bill on Judicial Nominations to Legislature

The Governor sent a Program Bill to the legislature, which has already passed both houses, allowing the Governor to select two judges from the same vacancy list. The bill provides that where a vacancy for Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals is created by the nomination of an Associate Judge to the position of Chief Judge, the Governor may make an appointment for the vacancy from among the Commission on Judicial Nomination’s recommendations for the preceding Chief Judge vacancy.

Good-government groups, including Citizens Union, the League of Women Voters of New York State, and the Committee for Modern Courts oppose the changes in the bill. Republicans in the legislature contend that it violates the plain language of the constitution and have not ruled out filing a lawsuit.

In a joint statement from Citizens Union, the League of Women Voters, and the Committee for Modern Courts said:

Governor Announces Preclinical Drug Discovery Lab

The Governor announced the establishment of a $50 million pilot lab in Midtown Manhattan that will rely on automation, artificial intelligence, and machine learning for preclinical drug discovery. The laboratory will be developed by Deerfield Discovery and Development. The project is supported by a $25 million Empire State Development grant. The pilot lab will occupy approximately 6,000 square feet of Deerfield’s Cure innovation campus in New York City. A critical component of the lab is the accumulation, synthesis and analysis of scientific research data that will expand the artificial intelligence database needed to facilitate the drug discovery process. Governor Hochul said

Court Lifts Injunction on Cannabis Licenses