for immediate release: DSA Elected Officials Vote NO on Revenue Package in Final State Budget, Pledge to Keep Fighting to Tax the Rich
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Weds, May 27, 2026
Contact: Ella Mahony, ella@nycdsa.org, (929) 359-0917
DSA Elected Officials Vote NO on Revenue Package in Final State Budget, Pledge to Keep Fighting to Tax the Rich
NEW YORK, NY– Democratic socialist elected officials in the New York State Legislature are the clear and united voice of working peoples’ movements for economic and social justice in the New York State government. New York’s Socialists in Office united to vote “NO” on the revenue package in the final New York State budget today and pledged to continue the essential fight for higher taxes on the wealthiest individuals and corporations. NYC-DSA stands with them, and with the majority of New Yorkers who support taxes on the rich to fund the future we deserve: an affordable New York where the working class can thrive.
We are proud that together with NYC Mayor Mamdani, the pressure of our movement achieved a pied-à-terre tax for NYC, helped secure funding to close a historic budget gap left by the Adams administration, made sweeping progress towards delivering universal childcare, and proved we can tax the rich. But the budget excluded the comprehensive recurring taxes on millionaires, billionaires, and corporations–championed by NYC-DSA and our Socialists in Office–needed to address the full scale of New York’s affordability crisis. And it raises no additional revenue for the rest of the state, leaving struggling municipalities and working families facing hard choices.
This year, New York had a historic responsibility to stand up to Trump’s devastating cuts to essential services. The final revenue package failed to answer this call. It provided no solutions for the 470,000 New Yorkers who will lose Essential Plan healthcare on July 1 or the 300,000 who depend on food assistance through SNAP. We cannot condone a package that codifies Trump’s cuts into the state budget, particularly when there are easy and clear paths to make the state budget work for the people. The unified “no” vote on the inadequate and deadly revenue provisions sends a message that the Socialists in Office will continue to fight, alongside the movement, for what’s right.
DSA’s Socialists in Office did win key policies that deliver for working people this legislative session. These include measures to ban State and local government facilities from jailing people for ICE, rein in dangerous drivers, create protections for schools and students from ICE, deliver $100 million for building public renewables and $50 million to retrofit and modernize NYCHA infrastructure, establish the state’s first Social Housing Development Authority pilot in the Hudson Valley, fund childcare, and reform utility regulation. These victories show that democratic socialists, backed by grassroots organizing, can deliver tangible wins for our communities. But we cannot stop until we win a New York where everyone can live in safety and dignity. We are taking this fight to the ballot box to build the democratic socialist bloc in Albany to win taxes on the rich.
Below, find comments by NYC-DSA & Mid-Hudson Valley DSA Co-Chairs and Socialists in Office on the state budget.
“The final state budget is thousands of pages long but tells us one thing: We need to keep fighting to tax the rich. Working people did see key victories in this budget because grassroots movements and our Socialists in Office fought tooth and nail for them. But Governor Hochul blocked the transformative change we need to confront the affordability crisis and stand up to Trump. We’re going to come back for more because working people deserve it.” –Gustavo Gordillo, NYC-DSA Co-Chair
“Governor Hochul had a chance to stand up to Trump’s attacks on working people in this budget, and she failed. She took no action to protect the 470,000 who will lose their healthcare or the 300,000 who will go hungry from losing food assistance. But we have experience fighting uphill battles against undemocratic bullies like Hochul. We’re taking this to the ballot box to build the power we need to tax the rich. If you’re on the sidelines, get involved to grow the democratic socialist bloc in Albany and win what we deserve.” –Grace Mausser, NYC-DSA Co-Chair
“This year’s budget proved that when everyday people organize our communities and elect democratic socialists, we can push the boundaries of what our state government deems possible. But the affordability crisis demands far more than what Governor Hochul has offered, and working people in the Hudson Valley are ready to return to the fight. We must make millionaires and billionaires pay what they owe so we can fully fund the public services our communities need.” – Leanna Zilles, Mid-Hudson Valley DSA Co-Chair
“New Yorkers are sick of living in a state where the ultra-rich amass billions of dollars in wealth while our public infrastructure crumbles and our social safety net frays. Over the past year, thousands have come together to challenge the chokehold that millionaires and billionaires have on our government. If Governor Hochul and her billionaire funders think they have done enough to quell this brewing storm, they’re wrong; we’re just getting started,“ said State Senator Jabari Brisport.
Senator Kristen Gonzalez said, “For months my constituents have sent a clear message to Albany— it is time to tax the wealthiest New Yorkers and corporations. That is why I introduced the Corporate Fair Share Act, so that New York City could raise corporate taxes. I am voting no because this budget bill fails to meet the moment. We need to raise revenue to fund healthcare for the 450,000 New Yorkers who are losing their coverage, to fund universal childcare for working families, to build affordable housing, and to truly invest in our communities. I will keep fighting to tax the rich and deliver for my district.”
“The pied-à-terre tax for New York City is an important step toward equitably taxing the rich. It’s a tax I’ve been fighting for since 2019, and I am thrilled to see it pass. However, it is simply not enough.” said State Senator Julia Salazar. “This year’s Revenue package does not protect the 450,000 New Yorkers who are about to lose their healthcare. It does not protect the 300,000 New Yorkers who are about to lose their SNAP benefits. While hardworking families are living in the midst of an affordability crisis, the ultra-wealthy just got a $12 billion tax cut. I will continue the fight to tax the wealthy and corporations their fair share, so that we can finally fund our healthcare and social programs, and ensure our communities have what they deserve.”
Assemblymember Emily Gallagher said, “This year’s budget reflected a clear and unique moment: NY’s millionaires and billionaires received $12 billion in tax cuts, while half a million New Yorkers are about to lose their healthcare as a result of these cuts. If there ever was a clear opportunity to stand with New Yorkers over the oligarchs, this was it. But our budget fails to raise significant taxes on the wealthiest individuals and corporations or provide healthcare for the New Yorkers who need it. For that reason, I must vote no on the revenue portion of this budget. I will keep fighting for taxes on the wealthiest, so we can fund the services and safety nets that ensure all New Yorkers can live with dignity.”
“New Yorkers are facing an affordability crisis while the ultra-wealthy and major corporations continue to receive enormous tax breaks,” said Assemblymember Marcela Mitaynes. “While the pied-à-terre tax is an important first step, this budget failed to meet the urgency of the moment. At a time when 450,000 New Yorkers are set to lose healthcare coverage and hundreds of thousands more face cuts to food assistance, Albany should have acted boldly to make millionaires, billionaires, and corporations pay their share. Instead, Governor Hochul chose to protect wealth and corporate interests over working-class New Yorkers. I voted no on the revenue package because our communities deserve real investments in healthcare, housing, childcare, climate justice, and essential services.”
Assemblymember Diana Moreno said: “By including a pied-à-terre tax for New York City, our state budget takes an initial and important step towards taxing the ultra wealthy, but we have failed to protect New Yorkers from Trump’s egregious budget cuts. 450,000 New Yorkers are about to lose their health insurance and 300,000 will see cuts to SNAP food assistance. New York State had a chance to reverse these devastating federal cuts by having the wealthiest corporations and individuals pay their fair share, and while the legislature was ready to take action this session, Governor Hochul refused. This was not a negotiation, but a complete capitulation to billionaires and corporations by Governor Hochul at a time they’re already getting tax breaks from the Trump administration. I will continue fighting to raise the essential revenue we will need to protect vulnerable communities and deliver an affordable future for New Yorkers.”
“As the number of millionaires in the state continues to grow, corporate profits continue to skyrocket, and households making under $75,000 leave the state in droves, the New York State budget had one function to fulfill this year: to address the affordability crisis and serve as a counterweight to the Trump administration’s handouts to the wealthy and cuts on healthcare and food stamps,” said Assemblymember Sarahana Shrestha, ”Instead of prioritizing this core function, what we saw is an abused and broken budget process where the legislature was forced to spend over a month negotiating ill-conceived non-fiscal policies, and the Governor refused to meaningfully claim the billions of dollars the richest hoard, money that rightfully belongs to the working people who created this wealth. I vote no on the revenue budget bill because this is exactly the kind of scarcity politics that has fueled the right-wing swing of this country and elected a fascist federal administration.”
Assemblymember Phara Souffrant Forrest said: “This budget falls far short of what New Yorkers were promised and what we deserve. It fails to raise the revenue our communities fought for to make everyday life easier for working people, because Governor Hochul insisted on protecting the wealth of millionaires, billionaires, and their corporations. Not only did we fail to raise income taxes on the wealthy, we failed to address in any way the looming federal cuts to the Essential Plan, meaning that half a million New Yorkers will lose their health insurance next month. It is my duty as a legislator to keep fighting until Albany is able to deliver a vision of true progressive change.”
Assemblymember Claire Valdez said, “New York’s pied-a-terre tax is good news, but unfortunately it does not begin to address the fallout from Trump’s disastrous policies. Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are on the verge of losing their healthcare and seeing cuts to their SNAP benefits. Millions more are being crushed by an escalating affordability crisis. Meanwhile, billionaires have never had it better, growing richer on Trump’s tax cuts and the stolen wages of working people. The failure of this budget to deliver for working-class New Yorkers rests squarely on Gov. Hochul’s shoulders. Right now, New York should be investing boldly in the housing, childcare, and renewable energy we need. Instead, state leadership decided to sign off on Trump’s devastating attack on working families. That’s why I voted no, and why I will continue to fight for a New York that puts people over billionaire profits.”