February 7, 2023
Statement from NYCOM Executive Director Peter Baynes on Governor Hochul’s 2023-24 Executive Budget Proposal
“It is difficult to fathom that an Executive Budget with a $7 billion increase in spending, proposed by a Governor with an oft-stated strong belief in local governments, fails to invest one additional dime in our cities, villages, counties and towns. Abandoning local governments, as this budget largely does, will only make New York a less attractive place to live and work. To make matters even worse, the Governor also mistakenly lays New York’s housing shortage problem at the feet of local officials and proposes to allow the State to override local zoning and land use decisions. Holding municipalities solely responsible for housing growth ignores the fact that not every community has the developable land or buildings, necessary infrastructure, sufficient demand or builder appetite to meet an arbitrary housing growth threshold set by a state government that cannot possibly know the needs and conditions of individual communities.”
Hornell Mayor John Buckley agreed and said, “The Governor’s Executive Budget is an bloated slap in the face to taxpayers. The Governor plans to increase spending by 7 billion dollars and once again, for the 15th consecutive year, not increase AIM funding to cities and villages despite a record increase for school districts. With runaway inflation negatively impacting costs in every area, the needs of local governments are again tossed aside and ignored.”
Mayor Buckley continued, “However, the most egregious insult to taxpayers is the inexcusable 1 BILLION dollars in the Executive Budget for health care, shelter, and other services for illegal immigrants.”