2023 New York State Legislative Session and 118th Congress Preview

The 2023 State Legislative Session marks the beginning of Governor Kathy Hochul’s first full—and first elected—term in office. The 2022 Session was something of a honeymoon in Executive/Legislative relations, especially following a decade of Andrew Cuomo’s strong hand.  What will 2023 bring?

Hochul’s win was historic—the first woman elected and the first Upstater in a century—but it was not convincing.  Challenger Lee Zeldin did better than any Republican since George Pataki won the Executive Mansion and the themes of Zeldin’s campaign, especially public safety and cost of living, resonated with voters.

The closeness of the race—and there are any number of reasons for that, including those historic firsts as well as national headwinds, wariness of One-Party rule, and so on—means that any group (and really every group) can and will plausibly take credit for Governor Hochul’s victory: Progressives, women, hospitals, Upstate, moderates, Unions, Long Island, health care workers, major donors, Hudson Valley, local electeds, state electeds, business groups, and on and on.  How the Governor deals with her friends as well as how these groups try to leverage their influence will be important to watch as we head into the new session.

The same question applies to the Legislature.  How will the Legislature seek to exert their independence?  Will it be by driving issues important to their constituents?  Standing up to or challenging Hochul?  Pushing increased spending in the budget?  Will they continue to work cooperatively with the Governor?  Privately, several legislators have been unhappy to have bills vetoed without much warning especially after campaigning hard for the Hochul/Delgado ticket.

Let’s take a look at what might be on the horizon for 2023, including insight into Federal legislative actions under a divided Congress.

Read the full report below.

Topics covered include:

  • Labor
  • Housing
  • Healthcare
  • Education and Higher Education
  • Crime/Public Safety
  • Climate Change and the Environment
  • Technology
  • Budget
  • Energy
  • Data Privacy
  • Federal Judges
  • Infrastructure
  • Other Key Issues