Sen. O'Mara on the late state budget: 'Spending in this state is out of control'

Albany, N.Y., May 12--The State Senate and Assembly, with a message of necessity from Governor Kathy Hochul, today approved an eleventh "budget extender" measure to keep state government running while negotiations over a final 2026-2027 budget remain deadlocked at the Capitol.

With the final budget now six weeks late, budget extenders have authorized more than $23 billion in state spending, an amount that State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C-Big Flats) noted “is in excess of the entire budgets of 22 states in this country, just to show you how out of whack our spending is in this state.”

Last week at the Capitol, Hochul announced a “general agreement” on a new state budget that she said would wind up totaling $268 billion, which O’Mara, Ranking Member on the Senate Finance Committee, has noted marks a massive $15-billion increase over the current state budget.

Shortly following the governor’s announcement, however, leaders in both houses of the Legislature rejected the governor’s announcement of an agreement.

In debate on the Senate floor on Monday, O’Mara, Ranking Member on the Senate Finance Committee said, “We’re no further along today than we were last Thursday when the governor announced that there was a deal on this budget. We’re still in limbo on all the major policy issues. We have no information from the majority where these stand…on the major policy issues that New Yorkers deserve to know where the majorities of this Legislature and the governor are going to take the state of New York.”

O’Mara charged that the Senate Democratic majority offered no further details on any final agreements. As he has been over the past several weeks, O’Mara continued to be highly critical of the budget adoption process and, especially, the lack of information being provided to the public, including school districts just over a week away from having to bring their budgets before voters.

“We are now six weeks late on this budget. We are now eight days away from every school district in this state voting on its budget not knowing what amount of money is going to be designated (for school aid) in this budget. Those budgets are already in print. They’ve already been decided based on a number that they’ve guessed at,” O’Mara said, adding that it’s a guessing game that could have serious consequences for local districts and local property taxpayers.

O’Mara also raised questions over one policy proposal that’s been reported to be part of ongoing budget negotiations to provide $1 billion in “energy rebates” to state ratepayers facing skyrocketing energy costs. O’Mara currently sponsors legislation (S8461) that would allow unspent funds, currently being held by the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) and utility companies to fund future green energy projects, to be returned directly to ratepayers. The funds are collected through monthly state surcharges on utility bills.

At a time when New Yorkers are having trouble paying skyrocketing utility costs, O’Mara said there is nearly $3 billion worth of these unspent funds that could be returned to ratepayers as a credit on their utility bills. He asked why Governor Hochul and legislative Democrats are only considering returning $1 billion of the unspent funds to ratepayers?

“I’d like some explanation to the ratepayers of this state of why it’s only one billion dollars being discussed (in current budget negotiations). Why isn’t the full three billion dollars that NYSERDA and the utility companies of this state are holding” under consideration, O’Mara asked, noting that his legislation has been repeatedly rejected by Senate Democrats. “Only a third of what’s being held is being considered to be returned to ratepayers.”

Overall, O’Mara said that the final budget being negotiated by Democrats will fail to address New York State’s ongoing and long-standing affordability crisis.

“We hear day in and day out about the affordability struggles in this state, yet the state budget continues to rise…As I’ve said many times, we know that the spending in this state is out of control. It’s unsustainable and it’s only exacerbating the affordability issues that we have in this state. It’s only going to further exacerbate those issues as we continue to have policies in this state that drive businesses out and that drive people out…We’re making the wrong policy decisions to move this state forward so that we can have some semblance of affordability so that New Yorkers can afford to stay here and raise their families, so that businesses will want to stay here and invest and provide the jobs that New Yorkers need,” O’Mara said. “Our spending per capita in these state budgets is out of control and there’s nothing to be shown that’s being done or considered by the governor or the majorities of the Legislature in going after these uncontrolled budgets and the impact they’re having on businesses and households in this state with no relief in sight.”

WATCH Senator O'Mara's comments on the Senate floor yesterday here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhQq5h_SZGU&t=4s