Reports

As of March 31, 2018, the State’s General Fund cash balance was $9.4 billion, the highest in recent history. But this cushion is expected to shrink: the State’s Financial Plan anticipates that more than $3.9 billion, or 42 percent of this figure, will be used in the 2018-19 fiscal year.

New York State has a proud history of working to make health insurance coverage as widely available as possible, to promote public health and improve New Yorkers’ quality of life.

The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the State of New York for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018.

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 2017 was more than $761 million, covering roughly 17.5 million overtime hours worked.

New York City’s economy is strong and continues to set new records. It added 715,000 jobs between 2009 and 2017, the largest and longest job expansion in the post–World War II period. After growing by 81,000 jobs in 2017, employment reached 4.4 million, a new record and 615,000 higher than the prerecession peak. Although job growth has since slowed, the City is on pace to add more than 72,000 jobs in 2018.

A number of laws govern the procurement of goods and services. Seeking competition guards against favoritism, extravagance, fraud and corruption. However, there is a well-established exception to these competitive bidding requirements for professional services, such as those rendered by attorneys, engineers or accountants, where cost is only one element that a responsible local official would want to consider. This report discusses some categories of professional services, the costs associated with these services and recent audit findings by OSC about local procurement policies and their implementation. The report also highlights best practices that local governments and school districts can follow that may reduce costs. 

In governmental budgeting, there can sometimes be a tendency to focus on the short term. At any level of government, taxpayers and those who depend on public services can suffer if officials don’t ensure a strong financial foundation for the long term as well.

New York State has over 5,000 functioning dams, 861 of which are owned or co-owned by local governments. Local officials need to manage this infrastructure effectively, not only to preserve important capital assets, but also because it is a necessary investment in public safety. This report focuses on those dams that would pose the greatest risks in case of failure and therefore warrant the most careful monitoring and management. The report also discusses steps local officials and residents can take to manage those risks.

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On April 26, 2018, the City of New York released a modification to its financial plan for FY 2018 and a new four-year financial plan (“the April Plan”) covering fiscal years 2019 through 2022. The April Plan projects a surplus of nearly $3.7 billion for FY 2018 and a balanced budget for FY 2019.

In 2016, the State’s 109 active Industrial Development Agencies reported projects valued at $95.6 billion, with nearly $715 million in net annual tax exemptions and $10.0 billion in total debt outstanding, including conduit and other debt. They supported 4,451 projects that had created 208,707 jobs from their inception through 2016.

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The State Budget determines how much can be spent in various program areas and how the necessary revenue will be raised. In recent years, annual budgets have increasingly become broader policy-making documents.

Each year, thousands of New Yorkers take the opportunity, while paying their State taxes, to support a variety of charitable purposes through the State’s personal income tax check-off programs.

New York City’s economy is strong and continues to post solid job gains. It added 715,000 jobs between 2009 and 2017, making this the largest and longest job expansion in the post–World War II period. After adding 81,000 jobs in 2017, employment reached 4.4 million, 615,000 more than the prerecession peak. More jobs were added in the boroughs outside of Manhattan than in any other expansion.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the legislation that created New York State’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) – a development well worth noting. The Fund is one of the State’s most important vehicles for making capital investments to preserve open space, protect water quality, and improve parks and waterfronts all across New York.

The federal government has long been a key partner in New York State’s efforts to deliver essential public services.

Property tax exemptions can be a valuable tool to improve the affordability of housing for certain populations, fuel economic growth or encourage the adoption of energy-smart technologies. This report examines the amount and variety of property tax exemptions in New York State outside of New York City. It also looks at the specific points in the process where local governments can exercise some discretion, including the types of exemptions offered, how to ensure that exemptions are properly awarded and the use of alternative methods for raising revenue.

The Office of the New York State Comptroller’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS) measures fiscal stress in school districts each year. This report summarizes results of school district scores for the 2016-17 school fiscal year, the fifth annual release of FSMS scores.

On November 21, 2017, the City of New York released a modification to its four-year financial plan covering fiscal years 2018 through 2021 (“the November Plan”). The November Plan includes modest changes to the City’s revenue and expenditure forecasts for FY 2018 based on trends during the first four months of the fiscal year, a citywide savings program, and savings from better-than-expected pension fund investment earnings in FY 2017.

Across New York State, we hear calls for investment in essential public infrastructure.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is the largest mass transit agency in the nation, providing services to nearly one-third of the nation’s mass transit commuters.