ALBANY — What Gov. Kathy Hochul is calling a handshake deal on a $229 billion state budget faced a torrent of criticism Friday from progressive groups upset by a rollback in bail reform
The tentative agreement — it has yet to be voted on by legislators — is expected to widen the amount of discretion judges have to jail defendants while they are awaiting trial. Upstate Republican officials have been arguing that crime has surged because judges face obstacles in the existing law to detain individuals based on the potential danger they pose to communities.
Democratic legislative leaders have voiced concerns that restoring judicial discretion will result in an increase in the number of Black and Latino defendants who are locked up when they are still presumed innocent under the law.
The New York Civil Liberties Union ripped the plan to fortify judges with greater discretion.
“With the bail reform rollbacks reportedly included in this year’s budget, the Governor has prioritized fear over facts,” said Jared Trujillo, policy counsel for the New York Civil Liberties Union. “If true, this is another backslide on justice that will cause even more New Yorkers to languish in jail while they await their day in court.”
Hochul, though, defended the expected changes in the bail statute as “improvements.”
“The agreement removes what is known as the ‘least restrictive means standard,’ which many judges have said tied their hands,” the governor said. “It gives judges discretion. They need to hold violent criminals accountable while still upholding our commitment to a justice system that is fair and accessible to all, and also ensuring that poverty is never treated as a crime.”
The tentative fiscal blueprint would also increase the upstate minimum wage to $17 an hour in 2027 from the current rate of $14.20, with future increases linked to the cost of living index.
But Sen. Jessica Ramos, D-Queens, chair of the Senate Labor Committee, voiced disappointment, noting she favors a more robust series of increases in the state’s wage floor.
“This agreement has effectively codified a wage that keeps working families poor,” Ramos said.
By statute, the state is supposed to have its annual budget in place by April 1.
Assemblyman Chris Tague, R-Schoharie, said he believes Hochul signaled late Thursday she has achieved the framework of a budget deal to “calm the crowd,” But he stressed it remains to be seen whether the agreement will be embraced by a majority of the lawmakers in both chambers.
Lawmakers have been passing weekly extender legislation over the past month to keep paychecks flowing to state workers.
“This entire process is dysfunctional, delayed, done in the shadows and it just shows the pure incompetence of one-party rule of this government,” Tague said.
The tentative deal would also provide $134 million for schoolhouse meals for children in high-needs school districts. Some advocates had been calling for free breakfasts and lunches for children in all schools, and lawmakers had initially proposed spending $280 million to support the program.
Advocates contend all children should be made eligible for free meals, regardless of their family income, to avoid stigmatizing those who do accept free breakfasts and lunches.
Lobbying on legislation remains fierce as advocates on both sides of issues try to advance their agenda or stifle bills they oppose.
A coalition of groups representing the North Country Chamber, the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and other business groups called on lawmakers to support a housing access voucher program and a statewide right to counsel, contending they would bring relief to renters
“Eighty percent of eviction filings in New York are the result of non-payment of rent,” said Leanne Politi, spokeswoman for the coalition calling itself Homeowners for an Affordable New York.
Politi said lawmakers should also “continue to reject socialist ideas like Good Cause Eviction legislation, which does nothing to address non-payment of rent and would devastate New York’s future housing supply, leading to an increase in homelessness.”
While lawmakers rejected Hochul’s proposal to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes, they backed her push for a $1 increase in the state tax on a pack of cigarettes.
The budget deal also sets the stage for the state to increase the pay of lawyers assigned to represent indigent defendants. It would also provide additional funding to county prosecutors and public defenders.