Reports

New York State is facing extraordinary challenges as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Its punishing impacts include shutting down much of the economy, throwing millions of Americans out of work, and devastating State finances.

The New York State Health Insurance Program (NYSHIP), administered by the State Department of Civil Service (Civil Service), is one of the nation's largest public sector health insurance programs. NYSHIP covers over 1.2 million active and retired State, local government, and school district employees, and their dependents. The Empire Plan is the primary health benefits plan for NYSHIP, covering 1.1 million of the NYSHIP members.

Inadequate capital funding and poor management practices have contributed to a marked deterioration in the mass transit system operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). In addition, the MTA’s operating budget faces significant challenges.

The average bonus paid to employees in New York City’s securities industry increased by 3 percent in 2019 to $164,100, but it is likely to fall sharply in 2020 as the coronavirus crisis strains industry profitability.

Local officials are statutorily required to file certain financial reports annually with the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC). While most local governments file within required timeframes, some do not. A relatively small number of local governments are severely delinquent—failing to file for three or more years—which calls into question the financial standing of the locality as well as the effectiveness of the management of the local government in general.

New York’s school districts are responsible for one of the most important functions of government – educating children from kindergarten through 12th grade. Each district must navigate a complex set of State rules and local needs and determine how to fund its programs using a mix of local property taxes and State and federal aid sources. This report provides regional analysis of certain financial and demographic data for New York’s school districts outside of New York City. It presents this information to identify the levels and recent trends in revenue, expenditures, district wealth, student characteristics and outcomes, and special education services that could impact district budgets.

School District Level Data [xlsx]

Every ten years, the U.S. Constitution requires the government to perform a count of the population, known as a census.

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Every year, certain issues emerge as particular challenges in the State Budget. Clearly, among the most difficult this year is the structural budgetary imbalance in the State’s Medicaid program.

New York City is benefiting from the longest and largest job expansion since the end of World War II.

On January 16, 2020, the City of New York released a four-year financial plan for fiscal years 2020 through 2024 (the “January Plan”). The January Plan reflects the strength in the local economy, which has helped fuel personal and business tax collections; new agency needs; and an expansion in the citywide savings program.

Local sales tax collections in New York State totaled $18.3 billion in 2019 for a year-over-year increase of 4.7 percent. While this was slower than the 5.3 percent annual growth for 2018, it exceeded growth in all other years since 2013. The economic climate in 2019 was generally positive for sales tax growth. The statewide labor market remained firm throughout the year, with continued employment and wage growth. Consumer spending also held up well throughout the year, despite slightly reduced consumer confidence over prior years.

This report summarizes results of school district scores for the 2018-19 fiscal school year (SY) and compares results to SYs 2016-17 and 2017-18. The report reflects the seventh annual release of FSMS scores. FSMS covers 674 school districts in 57 counties, but excludes the New York City School District.

New York’s Alexander Hamilton played a central role among our nation’s Founders, as the Broadway musical bearing his name reminds us. One of the questions Hamilton analyzed as he sought to build support for a stronger central government was the potential for “inequality among the States” in paying federal taxes. Well over two centuries later, that issue remains a national concern.

Data Visualization | Excel file with supporting data

On November 22, 2019, the City of New York released a revised four-year financial plan for fiscal years 2020 through 2023 (the “November Plan”). The November Plan reflects an upward revision in the City’s revenue forecast for FY 2020, increased agency spending and a citywide savings program to narrow the FY 2021 budget gap.

The national economy has now been growing for more than a decade – a lengthy expansion, by historical standards. While we have no way of knowing exactly when that will change, we can be sure that at some point a downturn will come. When that happens, the State must be prepared to safeguard essential services and avoid undesirable tax increases.

Local government debt is necessary for the funding of expensive and long-lived capital infrastructure. However, high debt can place pressure on a local government’s ability to pay debt service while still addressing other funding needs, and increasing reliance on short-term debt could be a sign of structural budget imbalance. Local debt outstanding appears to have stabilized since the last recession, after more than a decade of substantial increases. Some types of local government, especially counties and fire districts, have continued to increase their total levels of debt. In general, downstate has the highest debt per capita, although there are pockets of higher debt around the State.

This Report on Estimated Receipts and Disbursements for State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2019-20 through SFY 2021-22, issued pursuant to Section 23 of the State Finance Law, is intended to enhance analysis and discussion of the State’s economic condition and the State Budget.

Local sales tax collections in New York State totaled $4.8 billion in the third quarter of 2019, an increase of 6.3 percent over the third quarter of 2018. This growth was stronger than in either of the first two quarters of the year.

The Office of the State Comptroller collects property tax levy and assessed value data from local governments statewide and makes this information available online. These detailed tables show tax levies, property values and tax rates for each city, county, town, village and school district in the State. This report uses 2019 data to summarize property tax results and trends in the State. 

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, only 41 percent of working-age people with disabilities in New York City were in the labor force in 2017.