The 2019-20 fiscal year brought the convergence of two dramatically different periods to New York State. The nation’s longest recorded economic expansion continued to generate overall job growth through most of the fiscal year before finally ending in February, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced severe limits on business activity and significantly impacted the State’s economy.
The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the State of New York for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020.
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.
In March and April 2020, Congress passed four stimulus bills to address the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the public health system and the economy. As Congress debates additional relief measures, it is worth reviewing the targeting of the initial funding in order to inform new policy to counter the virus and its economic effects.
The COVID-19 pandemic has created a fiscal emergency for the City of New York, creating significant revenue shortfalls and increased costs associated with managing the public health crisis.
This report on the use of overtime by New York State agencies examines patterns over the past ten calendar years. The total cost of overtime in calendar year 2019 was over $806 million, covering roughly 18.4 million overtime hours worked.
Many New Yorkers enjoy buying Lottery tickets and taking a chance on a big prize. Some play the slot machines and other games in the State’s eight Video Lottery Terminal (VLT) facilities, four commercial casinos and seven Native American casinos. Sports wagering and interactive fantasy sports are now part of the gambling picture, and traditional betting on horses continues at racetracks and off-track betting locations.
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 State has experienced difficult budgets many times over its history. Seldom if ever, however, has the State faced the level of economic and revenue challenges identified in this year’s Enacted Budget Financial Plan as a consequence of the COVID19 pandemic.
The Office of the State Comptroller estimates that the State’s tax revenues will decline by 5.6 percent or $4.7 billion in SFY 2020-21 compared to the previous year. Such revenues are projected to grow by 1.6 percent in SFY 2021-22, and to increase by 4.3 percent in SFY 2022- 23
