ALBANY – The Hochul administration is blaming President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” for financial issues shortly after New York State lawmakers OK’d a massive spending hike in their budget.
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s budget chief Blake Washington told reporters Thursday that his office’s initial estimates show the Empire State is expected to take a $750 million hit during the current fiscal year and a $3 billion hit next fiscal year, mostly due to the feds’ changes to Medicaid.
“There’s no way the state of New York can finance what has been foisted upon us, no way any state can do that, frankly,” Washington said.
Washington left it open-ended whether state lawmakers would return to Albany later this year to amend the state budget, which passed in May.
State spending has shot up nearly $45 billion, or 21%, over her predecessor Andrew Cuomo’s final budget, in 2021.
New spending in this year’s budget deal pushed projected deficits up from $27.3 billion to $34.3 billion for the combined 2027-29 fiscal years.
Dems also tapped into its budget reserves to pay off around $7 billion to pay off a long standing unemployment insurance debt to the feds.
New spending included widely-panned handouts such as $2 billion used to send out $150-$400 checks to New Yorkers making under $150,000 and families making under $300,000.
Hochul’s budget chief wouldn’t say if the checks were still a good idea at the same time the state government is now projecting a $3 billion hit.
“We’re trying to balance the needs of New Yorkers, wherever they may be and this is one policy prescription that we think provides modest relief for families throughout the state,” Washington said.
It’s “not credible” to claim the state can’t come up with $3 billion to fill the projected gap, said Bill Hammond, senior fellow for health policy at the think-tank the Empire Center for Public Policy.
“As a factual matter it’s definitely within the reach of the state of New York to come up with $3 billion just by finding efficiency savings within Medicaid itself.” Hammond told The Post.
New York spends more per capita – $4,724 – than any other state in the nation on Medicaid, 46% above the national average, according to the state’s most recent financial plan.
Republicans blasted Hochul for claiming the federal government is cutting Medicaid, with a spokesperson for potential GOP gubernatorial candidate and US Rep. Elise Stefanik saying the Trump bill “actually increases Medicaid by eliminating billions in waste, fraud and abuse.”
“Far Left NY Democrats like Kathy Hochul continue to fearmonger because they know that President Trump and Elise Stefanik are delivering results for the American people,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), another potential challenger to Hochul when she’s up for re-election next year said Hochul was “complaining that the federal government is finally imposing some accountability to protect taxpayers and ensure our most vulnerable have access to the health care they need.”
“It’s no surprise that she’s the most unpopular governor in America and New Yorkers want someone new running the state,” he said in a statement.
