Gov. Hochul Is Ready to Sell Out New Yorkers to Her Billionaire Donors Yet Again. Legislative Leaders Can't Let Her.

In response to Gov. Hochul’s announcement Thursday of an “agreement” on the 2027 final budget, Invest in Our New York Campaign Manager Brahvan Ranga released the following statement:

“Today, Gov. Hochul signaled she is ready to sell out New Yorkers to her billionaire donors yet again. Her ‘agreement’ does nothing to fill the enormous federal cuts that will strip hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers of their healthcare and food assistance, fund truly universal childcare statewide with living wages for workers, address the soaring cost of living, or tackle our state’s affordable-housing crisis.

“Instead of making the ultra-rich pay a little more in taxes to fund public goods across the state, Gov. Hochul is gutting the strongest climate law in the nation, doing Uber’s bidding by making it harder for car-crash victims to recover financial compensation, and laughing at local lawmakers across the state urging her to tax the wealthy to help fund their communities and boost access to housing. Her inclusion of a pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes in New York City is a step in the right direction and reflects the immense pressure our movement has built, but it would not do nearly enough to close the city’s deficit or provide any revenue for the rest of the state.

“According to Gov. Hochul, the revenue discussion remains open. Now, we need our allies in the legislature to mount a final push for the inclusion of all progressive revenue contained in the one-house budgets, including a progressive income tax and higher corporate taxes. They must also fight to close the pass-through-entity tax (PTET) loophole exploited by private-equity firms and hedge funds, a measure recently backed by Mayor Mamdani and City Council Speaker Menin.

“Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins and Speaker Heastie: There is still time to do the right thing and bring this fight to Gov. Hochul. Taxing the ultra-rich is necessary, popular, common-sense policy supported by majorities of New Yorkers, labor unions, dozens of community organizations, and your colleagues in the legislature. And with the potential for another D.C. funding-cut and tax-break-filled reconciliation package in the works for this summer, New Yorkers are at even greater risk of becoming sicker, hungrier and less safe. Too many have already suffered as a result of our state’s wait-and-see approach. It’s time to stand up to Donald Trump and deliver what New Yorkers need: immediate action on the affordability crisis.” 

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