It took a few minutes Monday for Gov. Kathy Hochul to list just some of the serious problems facing New York State, not the least of which remains a pandemic still claiming lives on a daily basis.
But during her first meeting with the Editorial Board of The Buffalo News since becoming governor in August, she nevertheless seemed to exude a sense of optimism.
On Wednesday, in her first State of the State speech, Gov. Kathy Hochul labeled her program a "New Era."
Yes, she said, Covid-19 continues to dominate her immediate agenda and her 2022-23 budget as she proposes new aid for hospitals and nursing homes "just crushed by this pandemic."
As she sells her new $216 billion budget to the Legislature, she noted that the state can handle ambitious projects such as reconnecting an East Side neighborhood by covering the Kensington Expressway because of the influx of federal dollars and healthy tax returns.
"Resources are always limited, but not this year. This is extraordinary," she said. "This is why I talk about a once in a generational opportunity to right the wrongs of the past.
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The governor proposed a total spending plan of $216.3 billion, up from the $208.9 billion budget enacted last April, and it includes enormous increases in education and health care.
"We have the resources now, and so I want to make sure we make these investments now that we might not have in five more years."
The governor said the money on hand – described by experts as the most in many years – provides the opportunity to provide not only for infrastructure projects around the state, but strengthening "rainy day" reserves for the day when an emergency again drains the state's resources.
This week, in unveiling her first state budget plan, the Democratic governor put taxpayer dollars behind the partnership rhetoric, proposing to spend huge new amounts of money on all levels of local governments, from schools to counties, cities, towns and villages.
"So we've got money right now in these projects, and everything I've put in the budget is covered, expense wise," she said. "It's all spoken for, as well as having this opportunity to build up our reserves. That's what so smart about it."
But the governor directed most of her observations to the continuing challenge of battling the pandemic. She pointed to the shortage of workers caused by the virus that has forced her seek help from the National Guard, and her desire to transfer more authority to local health departments.
She acknowledged the controversy surrounding the masking mandates imposed by the state, which was struck down by a judge just hours later. But so far, the state Education Department has ordered that it still be enforced in schools.
Keeping schools open for in-person learning has been one of the governor's top priorities after seeing the problems brought on by schools going virtual.
"This experiment was not successful, despite the hard efforts of parents and teachers who did their very best," she said, adding the mask requirement remains the reason why the virus has not spread even more.
Governors of New York traditionally use the period immediately after their budget presentation to visit cities across the state to promote their proposals. Hochul is limited by Covid-19 restrictions this year, but used her 45-minute conversation to highlight ideas ranging from enhancing the University at Buffalo's School of Engineering to speeding up a middle-class tax cut originally slated for 2025.
Hochul continues to methodically build momentum following relentless fundraising efforts and potential rivals opt out of challenging her for the party nod.
She pointed to efforts for new transparency in Albany with proposals for a new ethics panel, liberalized Freedom of Information Law procedures and ending the sexual harassment culture that last year helped bring down her predecessor – Andrew M. Cuomo.
"I wanted my budget to be framed in a way that spoke to people first," she said, adding she hoped it would address peoples' "deepest needs, fears; their anxieties."
During Monday's conversation, the governor often returned to her Western New York roots as the impetus for some of her proposals. The idea for a new $3 billion environmental bond issue, she said, stemmed in part from growing up near Lackawanna and the "orange skies" stemming from the days of steelmaking. Putting money away for a "rainy day" in case of a new pandemic or major economic upheaval, she explained, results from budgeting experience on the Hamburg Town Board.
Hochul said she has resisted and will continue to avoid any move to close businesses or restaurants, despite the Covid-19 surges caused by new variants, because of the harm posed to the economy, children and school and their families.
"We all feel right now the public is very anxious," she said. "Right now, I feel that there's a lot of pain around the state. Some of it comes from the thought that our wages and salaries are going up a little bit, but it's being sucked away by inflation, or how long is this pandemic going to last?" she said. "Yes, there is talk of masks coming off," she added, "but that's a daily reminder that to everybody that things are just not normal."
