Overview
- At a press conference in Puerto Rico on Saturday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said she cannot set forth a plan now that would remove bus and subway fare revenue, though she is open to targeted affordability measures.
- Hochul said expanding universal childcare statewide carries an estimated $15 billion price tag and indicated she favors phasing it in rather than an immediate expansion.
- Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has proposed funding affordability initiatives by raising the corporate tax rate to 11.5% and levying a 2% surtax on incomes over $1 million, which would require state legislative approval.
- State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie signaled openness to consider parts of Mamdani’s program in upcoming budget talks, saying Democrats want the mayor-elect to be successful.
- Mamdani’s victory is reshaping politics, with the ADL launching a “Mamdani Monitor” to track his appointments, ongoing debate in Jewish Democratic circles, and national Democrats emulating his online style as groups report a surge of millennial and Gen Z candidates interested in running.