Historic federal pandemic relief funds, though being spent down, continued to boost New York’s balance of payments in Federal Fiscal Year 2022. For every dollar New York sent to the federal government in tax receipts, it received $1.06 back in federal spending, as compared to a national average of $1.28, ranking New York 39 out of 45 states with a positive balance of payments. This report is the eighth in a series by the Office of the State Comptroller that examines the flow of funds between the federal government and the states.

The majority of New York City’s capital projects are over their initial budgets and behind schedule, suggesting better monitoring and reporting could lead to adjustments to improve capital project delivery. Recent reforms to the City’s capital planning process have focused on improving the delivery of projects, but little detail is available in public documentation about what is fueling these cost and schedule overruns. With closer, more uniform monitoring of capital projects, the City can better identify where additional improvement is needed.

In the throes of the economic uncertainty and fiscal turbulence caused by the COVID crisis, legislation was enacted as part of the SFY 2021-22 budget authorizing the use of State-supported bonding with final maturities up to 50 years for capital purposes for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This legislation has been reauthorized and proposed again in the State Fiscal Year 2024-25 Executive Budget.

Between 2013 and 2022, there was a 23% increase in the number of individuals served by the State’s public mental health system. The rising need for mental health services coincided with a loss of 990 beds, a 10.5% drop in capacity, in inpatient psychiatric facilities statewide between April 2014 and December 2023. Ensuring the availability of inpatient mental health services is a critical component of the State’s effort to address the ongoing mental health challenges facing the State and improve the lives of vulnerable New Yorkers.

Better-than-projected revenues and planned cost savings benefited New York City’s budget outlook for Fiscal Year 2025, but outyear budget gaps remain large due to the end of federal pandemic aid and a lack of federal funding to support asylum seeker costs. Additional City funding for education and social services programs that support working-class families may be needed if those programs will be maintained at current levels in the future.  

After the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the State’s finances have stabilized, and the Division of the Budget is now forecasting reduced budget gaps. In addition, the Executive Budget includes a new proposal to severely restrict the State Comptroller’s terms and conditions approval of certain State bond issuances. This critical oversight and approval role protects taxpayers from short-sighted financing decisions that too often burden taxpayers with debt that is risky and costly.

In October 2023, the MTA issued its latest 20 Year Needs Assessment (TYNA), which provides an unrestrained view of the capital needs of the system. This report from the Comptroller’s office examines the TYNA, reviews the depth of work needed to upgrade New York’s regional transit and highlights the urgent need for the MTA to state its priorities and funding plans as early as it can.

This snapshot highlights the Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS) results for school districts that reported for school fiscal year (SY) 2022-23, which ended on June 30, 2023. Increases to federal pandemic relief aid and the State fully funding foundation aid kept many districts out of a stress designation. For SY 2022-23, sixteen school districts were designated as being in stress—the second-lowest number since the system was created. The report also includes a look at districts that have been chronically stressed over the eleven years since FSMS began.

New York State has the highest number of personal income tax checkoffs in the nation, but even as the number of checkoffs have grown over the last decade, only a fraction of the money has been actually spent on their target purposes each year. Agencies need to comply with reporting requirements to provide greater clarity on why spending from the funds is lagging.

Since early 2020, enrollees in New York Medicaid have not had to renew their coverage due to COVID-19 public health emergency. With federal legislation ending continuous Medicaid coverage in March 2023, New York State began the process of redetermining eligibility for every enrolled individual. Based on recent trends, this report estimates “unwinding” may not meet projections in the Division of the Budget’s Mid-Year Update to the Enacted Budget Financial Plan, adding costs to the State budget.