Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled her proposed $216.3 billion budget for New York State Tuesday, aiming to direct billions in public money toward rebuilding infrastructure, education, and healthcare.
The governor presented her executive budget for the 2023 state fiscal year in a roughly 17-minute virtual address and pitched her spending plan as a chance for the state to reemerge from the COVID-19 pandemic as infection rates have started to slow following the winter surge driven by the Omicron variant.
“We need to embrace this moment of possibility and use it to redefine New York’s destiny,” Hochul said during her speech on Jan. 18. “We hope to close the books on this winter surge soon so we can turn the page and open the book on our 2023 budget outlook and focus on the post-pandemic future.”