Part of the massive investment includes the authorization of the governor’s $3-billion Restore Mother Nature Bond Act to go before the voters in November 2022.

The state spending plan was aided in large part by the $12.6 billion in COVID aid it will be receiving from the federal government to help offset devastating revenue losses caused entirely by the pandemic. With this federal funding and additional revenues, including $3.5 billion in new tax revenue that rises to $4.3 billion in FY 2023, the Enacted Budget closed the state deficit that threatened to result in significant program spending cuts and reductions in funding to municipal governments.

“New York was ambushed early and hit hardest by COVID, devastating our economy and requiring urgent and unprecedented emergency spending to manage the pandemic,” Gov. Cuomo said. “Thanks to the state’s strong fiscal management and relentless pursuit to secure the federal support that the pandemic demanded, we not only balanced our budget, we are also making historic investments to reimagine, rebuild and renew New York in the aftermath of the worst health and economic crisis in a century. This budget continues funding for the largest-in-the-nation $311-billion infrastructure plan, establishes a groundbreaking program to provide affordable Internet for low-income families and enhances public safety through police reforms, all while continuing to provide relief to New Yorkers and small businesses as we recover from the pandemic.”

Construction industry leaders praised the agreement as a means to improve the state’s infrastructure that will also create thousands of jobs for its struggling economy battered by the coronavirus.

John Cooney, Jr., executive director of the Construction Industry Council of Westchester & Hudson Valley, said, “This budget addresses the infrastructure’s massive needs and is  consistent with the promise to advance bold transportation and development projects that Gov. Cuomo has annunciated earlier this year. Economic recovery, growth and prosperity are not easily won back, so we are encouraged by what the governor and the Legislature have done. This is a positive first step in our journey, and it demonstrates the resiliency and moxie that New Yorkers are known for across the globe.”

“We know that the only path to recovery is to build our way out of this crisis, and the budget enacted by our state leaders ensures we do just that,” said Carlo A. Scissura, president and CEO of the New York Building Congress. He later added, “This bold spending plan not only paves the way for new roads and bridges, green energy projects, clean water infrastructure and affordable housing, but it creates a reimagined Penn Station complex with better MTA and Amtrak service and progresses the Restore Mother Nature Bond Act, which would result in nation-leading investments to benefit the environment. The New York Building Congress applauds our state leadership for this necessary, transformative budget and we look forward to continuing to work with them to build a better New York for all.”

Some of the overall highlights of the budget include: a record $29.5 billion in school aid; $29 billion in public and private green economy investments; $2.4 billion for rent and homeowner relief; $2.4 billion for child care; $2.1 billion for excluded workers; $1 billion for small business recovery; a first-in-the-nation plan to make broadband Internet affordable and legalizing mobile sports betting and recreational marijuana. The budget did not include moving the timeline up for downstate casinos, however.

In terms of transportation and infrastructure spending, the budget includes the following:

The FY 2022 Enacted Budget provides $6.2 billion for the second year of a record $12.3-billion, two-year DOT Capital Plan that will facilitate the improvement of highways, bridges, rail, aviation infrastructure, non-MTA transit and DOT facilities. Compared to the final two years of the last DOT Capital Plan, this is an increase of $3.4 billion, or 38%, state officials noted.

The budget also features a total of $1 billion for strengthening local highways and bridges: Funding for the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) and the Marchiselli program increases by $100 million to $577.8 million and funding for Extreme Winter Recovery is set at $100 million. The Enacted Budget also provides $100 million of new funding to localities responsible for State Touring Routes, increases highway aid through the PAVE NY program by $50 million to $150 million, and maintains funding of local bridge projects through the BRIDGE NY program at $100 million. This represents an overall year-to-year increase of $285 million.

The FY 2022 Enacted Budget also allocates $110 million in New York Works capital funding for the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historical Preservation. This funding will aid the ongoing transformation of the state’s flagship parks, and support critical infrastructure projects. The budget also includes $75 million for the Department of Environmental Conservation to address a variety of capital needs to improve access to state lands and rehabilitate campgrounds.

In terms of clean water infrastructure, the FY 2022 Enacted Budget adds a $500-million appropriation to support clean water, raising the state’s total investment to $4 billion and continuing to fulfill the governor’s $5-billion clean water commitment.

The budget also renews record funding—$300 million—for the Environmental Protection Fund; the highest level of funding in the program’s history. Appropriations include $40 million for solid waste programs, $90 million for parks and recreation, $151 million for open space programs and $19 million for the climate change mitigation and adaptation program. This investment will provide funding for critical environmental programs such as land acquisition, farmland protection, invasive species prevention and eradication, enhanced recreational access, water quality improvement and an aggressive environmental justice agenda, state officials said.

The budget also authorizes the governor’s $3-billion Restore Mother Nature Bond Act. If approved by voters in the November 2022 general election, this initiative will make significant investments across the state to combat climate change, reduce flood risk, invest in resilient infrastructure and revitalize critical fish and wildlife habitats. It will do this by connecting streams and waterways, right-sizing culverts and dams, restoring freshwater and tidal wetlands, reclaiming natural floodplains, restocking shellfish populations and upgrading fish hatcheries, preserving open space, conserving more forest areas, replanting more trees, reducing contamination from agricultural and storm water runoff and expanding renewable energy.

As part of the governor’s $29-billion green economy program that involves both public and private investment, the state will contract with Equinor Wind US LLC for the development of two new offshore wind farms more than 20 miles off the shore of Long Island, in what is the largest procurement of renewable energy by a state in U.S. history. Upon completion, the two offshore wind farms will yield a combined 2,490 megawatts of carbon-free energy, spurring another $8.9 billion in investment. 

New York has secured commitments from companies to manufacture wind turbine components within the state and build the nation’s largest offshore wind program. Plans to make New York State a global wind energy manufacturing powerhouse include upgrades to create five dedicated port facilities. These projects include: the nation’s first offshore wind tower-manufacturing facility to be built in the Port of Albany; facilities at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal; greater activity at Port Jefferson and Port of Montauk Harbor in Long Island. Together, the projects will leverage almost $3 of private funding for every $1 of public funding, for a combined $644 million investment in these port facilities. 

New York State will construct a new green energy superhighway of 250 miles. The $2-billion project will create opportunities to maximize the use of renewable energy for the parts of the state that still rely on polluting fossil-fuel plants. Construction has already started on the New York Power Authority’s 86-mile Smart Path project from Massena to Croghan and key projects in Western New York, Mid-Hudson and the Capital Region. 

New York will contract for another 24 large-scale renewable energy generation projects in 2021, to bring the state’s total clean energy build-out to nearly 100 projects. The 23 solar farms and one hydroelectric facility will be the most cost-efficient clean energy construction to date in New York, producing more than 2,200 megawatts of clean power, generating more than $2.9-billion of investment and creating 3,400 jobs in 16 counties upstate.

The FY 2022 Enacted Budget provides non-MTA transit systems with another $20 million of capital aid, for the second installment of a $100-million five-year program to support transit agencies’ transition to electric buses. Under this program, five of the largest upstate and suburban transit authorities will electrify 25% of their fleets by 2025 and 100% by 2035.

The budget also provides funding for several mega-projects in Manhattan. As part of the Transformational Midtown West Development and with the completion of the Moynihan Train Hall, the state will launch a comprehensive $16-billion project to expand and reconstruct the existing Penn Station. The fully renovated Penn Station, including the iconic new Long Island Rail Road entrance on 7th Avenue that opened on Dec. 31, 2020, will comprise a widened and completely reconstructed 33rd Street LIRR concourse and an expanded and completely transformed station.

Additionally, at least eight new tracks will be constructed south of the existing Penn Station to add capacity, cut down on delays, and improve operations. This will be a signature transportation project creating nearly 60,000 direct jobs, and involving the federal government, Empire State Development, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New Jersey Transit and Amtrak.

As part of the transformational Midtown West Development, the FY 2022 Enacted Budget includes funding to support the governor’s proposal to extend the High Line in Manhattan to give pedestrians seamless access to the elevated pathway from the recently opened Moynihan Train Hall. As part of a public-private partnership, Brookfield Property Group will partner with Empire State Development, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and Friends of the High Line to build an L-shaped connection from the 10^th Avenue terminus of the High Line to Brookfield’s Manhattan West public space.

The budget, which includes significant funding for affordable housing and school construction, also includes a provision that New York uses “Buy American” principles in manufacturing of renewable components and requires prevailing wage for construction labor peace agreements for operations and manufacturing.

While the budget includes aid to renters, landlords and middle-class tax cuts, it also comes with revenue raisers targeted to the wealthy.

The Enacted Budget implements a surcharge on high earners through Tax Year 2027 that sets a top rate of 10.9% for all filers earning more than $25 million. The surcharge raises $2.8 billion in FY 2022, rising to $3.3 billion in FY 2023.

It also implements a surcharge on corporate tax rate that increases the business income tax rate from 6.5% to 7.25% for three years through tax year 2023 for taxpayers with business income greater than $5 million. It also increases the capital base method of liability estimation to 0.1875% from the 0.025% rate in effect last year. These changes raise $750 million in FY 2022 and $1 billion in FY 2023.