Dan Clark

It’s a last-minute proposal, with just three scheduled days of this year’s legislative session left, but Hochul said she was confident the legislature would be willing to work with her on the change.

The first debate will be held on June 7 and broadcast on CBS New York and WCBS Newsradio880. The second debate will be held on June 16 and broadcast on NBC New York and Telemundo 47.

Speaking to reporters in Albany, Gov. Kathy Hochul said she has started conversations with leaders from the state Legislature on moving that process forward.

“Yes, we’ll have policy in the budget,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said, “and I believe that it makes sense — especially when we have a shortened time frame. The Legislature plans on leaving in early June, and we want to get it all done.”

The funding would be directed toward providers that receive funding from the state through several agencies dealing with mental health, developmental disabilities, addiction services, children and families and more.

That might not sound like news, but it’s a signal that Gov. Kathy Hochul doesn’t plan to return Albany to the days of blowing past the budget deadline, sometime for months, before reaching a deal.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in his first public remarks since leaving office, railed on the concept of “cancel culture,” which he blamed for the cascade of calls for his resignation last year after he was accused of sexual misconduct by several women. At the same time, Cuomo appeared to tease a return to public life during the speech, which he delivered in person at a church in Brooklyn on Sunday.

Republicans consider this year’s election cycle to be the closest shot they’ve had to winning statewide office in two decades, when former Gov. George Pataki won his final term. Democrats have landed every statewide office since.

Rep. Lee Zeldin, the Republican party’s presumptive nominee for governor, has picked Alison Esposito from the New York City Police Department as his preferred choice for lieutenant governor, he said Wednesday.

When Harry Wilson last ran for public office in 2010, he lost his challenge to State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli by about 200,000 votes — a narrow defeat in statewide politics.