The $229 billion Enacted Budget for State Fiscal Year 2023-24 includes new recurring spending for schools, mental health services, and health care, as well as resources for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and for emergency rental assistance. While these and other measures will increase spending, revenues are projected to decrease for the second year in a row, as temporary federal aid is depleted and tax collections decline.
The $229 billion Enacted Budget for State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2023-24 includes new recurring spending for schools, mental health services, and health care, as well as resources for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and for emergency rental assistance. Preliminary estimates show All Funds spending will grow nearly 4% year-over-year amid a projected drop in revenues and as temporary federal aid is spent down, according to an analysis by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander today announced that they have called on Netflix shareholders to support their joint proposal urging the streaming service to uphold its employees’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining. Their shareholder proposal will be subject to a vote at the company’s annual meeting on June 1, 2023.
Overtime costs at State agencies rose 47.2% to more than $1.36 billion in 2022, setting a new record. Despite several efforts to bolster the workforce, including salary increases and bonuses for a range of positions including health care workers, attrition of the State workforce accelerated in 2021, and the number of State employees continued to drop in 2022. As the State workforce has been reduced, total overtime hours and earnings have increased.
Overtime costs at state agencies rose 47.2% to more than $1.36 billion in 2022, setting a new record, according to a report released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Overtime hours increased 11.1% to 22.2 million over the same period. Overtime earnings comprised 7.5% of total payroll spending in 2022, a significant increase from the 4.6% average from 2013-2021.
The New York State Common Retirement Fund (Fund) has reached agreements with four major U.S. companies to evaluate and set targets to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and regularly report on their progress toward meeting their goals, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, trustee of the Fund, announced today. In response to the agreements, the Fund withdrew its shareholder resolutions with the companies.
In March, the Office of the State Comptroller approved 2,618 contracts for state agencies and public authorities valued at $7.1 billion and approved nearly 4.2 million payments worth nearly $38.1 billion. The office rejected 159 contracts and related transactions valued at $272.6 million and nearly 9,200 payments valued at nearly $34.6 million, primarily for mistakes, insufficient support for charges, and improper payments. More information on these contracts and payments is available at Open Book New York.
"The state budget makes important investments in education and health care, including mental health care, and provides significant, recurring funding to the MTA that will help close budget gaps. The Governor has stated that reserves will equal 15% of State Operating Funds, consistent with recommendations I have long advocated. The budget also makes statutory changes that increase the allowable deposits and balances of the state's rainy day reserves. The state should put this authority to use by relying more on statutory, rather than informal, reserves.
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander called on Wells Fargo & Co.’s board of directors to publicly report on the company’s efforts to prevent harassment and discrimination in the workplace following a majority shareholder vote in favor of a proposal filed by the New York State Common Retirement Fund (Fund) and the New York City Pension Funds. DiNapoli serves as the trustee of the Fund and Lander serves as fiduciary to the city’s five public pension funds.
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.
