April 12, 2023
From Assemblyman Joe Giglio: “After years of advocating for the removal of policy items from the budget, and at the risk of repeating myself, we are once again faced with the same problems as previous years. The 2023-24 budget is well past the April 1 deadline because of controversy surrounding two policy items: bail reform and housing. Policy should not be addressed as part of the budget, but instead by individual bills introduced on the floor.
“Addressing policy items through the legislative process makes every legislator accountable for his or her vote on issues since individual votes on bills are recorded on the floor. Legislators wouldn’t be given the opportunity to hide behind policy issues buried in the budget bills, and the citizens of New York would have a much more transparent government.
“It’s time for the budget to return to a purely fiscal document and for policy to be determined through legislation.”
