Overview
- State lawmakers passed a sixth budget extender and Gov. Kathy Hochul signed it to keep paychecks and core services funded through April 27.
- The budget was due April 1, and leaders have relied on rolling short-term measures instead of a full-year agreement.
- Talks remain hung up on auto insurance changes, a partial rollback of the 2019 climate law, higher taxes on top earners, school aid, Tier 6 pension rules, and a 25-foot protest buffer near houses of worship.
- Hochul revised her immigrant-protection plan to limit local cooperation with ICE, and progressives object to new exceptions tied to probable cause for certain crimes.
- The slow process delays local budget planning and school aid decisions, and lawmakers forgo pay until a final budget passes, raising the odds of yet another extender if talks miss the new cutoff.