"The second budget of this governor’s tenure is over a month late – a disregard for deadline that is disconnected from the needs of New Yorkers – like much of the budget it produced.
"It took a month to roll back bail reform yet again, ultimately imprisoning more Black and Brown New Yorkers pre-trial rather than doing the hard work to actually produce lasting public safety.
"It took a month to remove all housing support from the budget – whether the production of deeply affordable housing in collaboration with communities, or the essential counterpart of tenant protections to keep New Yorkers in those homes, even as extreme rent hikes are still being considered.
"It took a month to convince the governor not to lift the cap on charter schools, which would pull vital funds from the traditional public school system, and even a month later, the governor insisted on reviving zombie charters.
"There are some positives in this budget, including climate and transportation investments. I’m grateful to the advocates and legislators who fought this past month and throughout the past year to try and not only protect the state’s progress but move forward.
"At the same time, I fear that until our executives govern not simply by headline, as the governor admitted, or by donors, but by the need to invest in what working families truly need, we will remain stuck in a status quo that has never worked for most New Yorkers."
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