New York Governor Kathy Hochul delivered her State of the State address earlier today. The Governor spoke from the Assembly Chamber in the State Capitol in Albany, the traditional venue for this address historically. The speech is the Governor’s second such address since becoming Governor in August 2021, and the first since her election to a full term as Governor last November.

The New York State Constitution requires the Governor to deliver an annual message to the Legislature regarding the “state of the state.” The proposals outlined in the State of the State are the first step in defining the Governor’s agenda for the coming year. Her policy and funding proposals will be forthcoming in the Executive Budget, due February 1.

The Governor’s speech highlights her administration’s priorities of the past year, and celebrates the success of several economic development projects, tax cuts and property tax rebates, gun safety laws and measures to ensure access to reproductive health care. For 2023, the Governor calls upon the Legislature to collaborate on reducing crime and violence, and to address the causes of out-migration from certain areas of the state. She also warns of a downturn in the state’s revenues, as many economists predict a recession in coming months.

The Governor’s State of the State Book can be found here.

Key proposals of the State of the State address include the following:

Agriculture

The State of the State includes proposals to double the “FreshConnect” program for veterans to purchase from farmers’ markets, direct state agencies and state funded programs to buy food grown in New York and increase spending limits for purchases of New York-produced food by municipal governments and school districts.

Child Care

Governor Hochul announced new initiatives to expand access to affordable child care, by streamlining applications for child care assistance, raising eligibility to the maximum allowed under federal law, and expediting enrollment for families receiving other benefits.

Climate

Pursuant to legislation enacted in 2019, New York has begun an ambitious effort to reduce emissions from every sector of the economy and shift to renewable energy resources. The Governor announced plans for a “cap-and-invest” program, to cut greenhouse gas emissions and incentivize the transition to lower carbon technologies such as electric vehicles and electric heating systems.

Disability Services

The Governor calls for a relaunch of the “Interagency Coordinating Council for Services to Persons who are Deaf, Deafblind or Hard of Hearing,” new initiatives to connect people with disabilities to internships, and to make the State a “model employer” for people with disabilities.

Economic Development

The Governor announced plans to invest in workforce development to upskill 3,000 workers per year to fill existing job vacancies. The Governor also announced the creation of a Technology Innovation Matching Program which will provide matching grants for New York companies applying for the federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. The Governor will continue to focus on the life sciences by investing in two cell and gene therapy hubs and will establish the Office of Semiconductor Expansion, Management and Integration.

Education

Governor Hochul will propose the final phase in of Foundation Aid to school districts, new funding to support partnerships with local industry and community colleges, and for new pre-kindergarten programs.

Electric Vehicle Infrastructure

The Governor announced she will direct the Department of Public Service (DPS) to launch a proceeding that will identify and remove the barriers to the efficient and timely deployment of the charging infrastructure needed to electrify New York’s medium and heavy-duty vehicles. The Governor also committed to continue to work with agencies and stakeholders regarding investments from the $175 million federal NEVI program that will build fast charging stations on high traveled corridors throughout the state.

Energy

The Governor announced her intention to provide $200 million in relief for New Yorkers experiencing high electric bills to provide a monthly discount to the more than 800,000 electric utility customers who are making under $75,000 a year and have not been eligible for the State’s current utility discount programs and established a goal to ensure utility costs do not exceed 6% of income. The Governor also called for passage of a version of the “All Electric Buildings Act”, to mandate no on-site fossil fuel combustion by 2025 for smaller new buildings and for larger new buildings by 2028, and to prohibit the sale of any new fossil fuel heating equipment by 2030 for smaller existing buildings, and 2035 for larger existing buildings.

Health

The Governor will propose initiatives to support the state’s strained health care system, citing impacts of the pandemic that exacerbate disparities in healthcare delivery. She will call for changes in how health care is paid for, and for a public health disease response and surveillance system. She will also establish a commission to provide guidance on access to quality of care, rooting out waste and creating long term stability for struggling hospitals.

Higher Education

The State of the State outlines proposals for direct admission of high school graduates to local community colleges, and automatic admission to State University of New York campuses for students who are not accepted at their initial college of choice. The Governor’s plan includes measures to ensure access to abortion at public college campuses, and to ease work requirements for students receiving public assistance.

Housing

Governor Hochul announced a major initiative to increase access to housing, reduce homelessness and address a crisis in housing affordability. She will propose a plan to build 800,000 new homes over the next 10 years.

Mental Health

The Governor will advance a package of proposals to confront what she describes as a crisis in mental health care. She will propose a plan to expand insurance coverage for mental health services, mental health services for school-age children, increase inpatient psychiatric treatment by 1000 beds, and expand outpatient services.

Minimum Wage

Governor Hochul calls for automatically increasing the minimum wage by indexing to the rate of inflation each year.

Safety

In her speech Tuesday, the Governor unveiled plans to increase alternatives to incarceration, new investments in reentry programs for people leaving prison and initiatives to reduce gun violence and violent crime. She also calls for changes to bail laws particularly regarding repeat offenders and gun crimes.

Transportation

The State of the State includes initiatives to stabilize the finances of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, make a MTA low-cost flat fare available 24/7, expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure, authorize the City of New York to lower its speed limit, encourage non-MTA transit systems to develop alternative transit solutions, and to permanently remove licenses from reckless drivers.

State Government

Governor Hochul announced plans to improve the “customer experience” of citizens’ interactions with government agencies, including reductions in call wait times and expanding digital access to various permits and applications. Her budget will also include measures to encourage applications to civil service jobs.