The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated pre-existing staffing pressures, particularly a shortage of staff nurses, in NYC Health + Hospitals (H+H) facilities, leading to an increased reliance on temporary nurses and higher staffing costs. This report includes a trend analysis of nurses in New York City and the rest of the State, challenges to hire more staff nurses nationwide and the experience of H+H nurse staffing during this time.

Local government sales tax collections in New York State totaled $5.5 billion in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 7.1%, or nearly $369 million, compared to the same three-month period last year.

Regional Table [.xlsx]

New York’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) provides paid time off for eligible employees for bonding with a newborn, or newly adopted or foster child or to care for a family member with a serious health condition. Payments under PFL rose steadily between 2018 and 2021 as the amount of allowable time off and weekly cash benefits increased. Almost eight million workers were covered under PFL, with $872 million paid on approximately 156,000 claims in 2021.

As New York City’s overall taxable sales begin to normalize from their pandemic-fueled levels, various economic sectors, most notably leisure and hospitality, continue to recover their pandemic declines. As national retail sales growth slows from its double-digit pace of 2021, City retail sales and associated revenues could see a return to historical growth rates following the next two fiscal years.

The surge in federal spending in response to the COVID-19 pandemic significantly improved New York’s per capita ranking in the federal balance of payments from 49th in 2019 to 30th in Federal Fiscal Year 2021. For every dollar New York sent to the federal government in tax receipts, it received $1.51 back in federal spending, as compared to a national average of $1.70. This report is the seventh in a series by the Office of the State Comptroller that examines the flow of funds between the federal government and the states.

As New York State grapples with cost-effective solutions for its estimated $250 billion in infrastructure needs over the next 20 years, this report examines both the opportunities that public-private partnerships offer as well as the underlying financial risks associated with forming those partnerships.

The Office of the State Comptroller recommends that, before State agencies are authorized to use P3 financing, policy makers should first develop a better  understanding of the potential costs and benefits of this approach. This report identifies a number of the risks  associated with privately financed infrastructure agreements and suggests ways to reduce such risks.