Governor Kathy Hochul delivered her 2024 State of the State address Tuesday and released her “Our New York, Our Future” agenda, which includes 204 new initiatives addressing crime, mental healthcare, housing and transit.
“The State of New York is stronger, healthier, safer and more affordable than it was two years ago when I became Governor, but there is more work to do,” Hochul said. “Every proposal announced today serves to improve our state and ensure our communities are not just surviving, but that they are thriving. Our New York is our future, and the future is brighter than ever.”
Highlights include fighting crime. She proposed a dedicated state police “smash and grab” unit and an inter-agency operation to focus on retail theft, as well as providing new funds for prosecutors to hold domestic abusers accountable. In addition, the governor said she is looking to allow prosecution on crimes such as graffiti and arson, hate crimes and introduce new legislation to crack down illicit cannabis storefronts.
In order to transform health care, Hochul wants to expand affordable health care options through the NY State of Health and provide better access to primary care. The governor also wants to combat the opioid crisis, support individuals struggling with addiction and improve access to mental health and addiction services by expanding out-of-network coverage.
To tackle mental illness that threatens public safety, she proposed opening 200 new psychiatric inpatient beds under a multi-year expansion plan.
Housing also remained a key issue. To increase supply, the governor included a four-part proposal that incentivizes construction of new housing (including affordable housing), a plan to encourage in-office conversion projects, allowing residential density increases on certain projects and legalizing basement and cellar apartments.
Governor Hochul said she aims to create a $500 million capital fund to support the development of up to 15,000 units of housing on state-owned land, as well as strengthen the pro-housing communities program by making the certification a requirement for accessing $650 million in state discretionary funding. In addition, the governor wants to combat housing discrimination against Section 8 voucher recipients and affordable housing providers.
With transit, Hochul said she wants the continued expansion of the Second Avenue subway line to Broadway, move forward to the engineering phase of the Interborough Express, combat fare evasion and provide the city with tools to keep driving speed limits low through “Sammy’s Law.”
Additional areas of improvement include supporting immigrant entrepreneurs to drive innovation and economic growth, helping students access a high-quality, affordable public school education and her "Back to Basics" reading plan.
