ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The governor just finished her budget presentation and she’ll be prioritizing public safety, mental health, and economic growth in the year ahead. She says, she’ll fund them all without raising income taxes. 

The $233 billion budget this year includes $2 billion to help New York city handle the migrant crisis, that’s on top of the $2 billion the state has already committed, $500 million of which will come from the state’s reserve fund. 

School aid will increase across the board by $825 million, bringing total education funding to about $35 billion.

That increase though, is less than it has been in recent years.

Governor Kathy Hochul said, “The truth is, we can’t spend like there’s no tomorrow, because tomorrow always comes and some will say by increasing our budget by an extraordinary $4.5 billion is not enough and somehow this increase is actually a cut. Let me tell you, it’s not.”

The governor’s budget announcement is the start of a legislative process that takes lawmakers right up to the April 1 budget deadline, and sometimes, like last year, weeks longer.

Sen. Rob Ortt, the Senate Republican leader, issued a statement decrying the budget for what he calls “misguided spending priorities.”

His statement reads in part: “… More potential prison closures, changes in school funding, and a lack of significant investment in upstate roads and bridges is alarming. … The Governor’s proposal includes a staggering $2.4 billion in taxpayer money to address the migrant crisis that far-left politicians welcomed to our state. This state shouldn’t spend a single dollar on this issue until we put an end to the sanctuary city policies that created this crisis in New York.”