New York closing in on $237B state budget with plans on housing, migrants, bootleg pot shops

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE
Associated Press

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state lawmakers are on the verge of passing a $237 billion budget that includes sweeping plans to build housing, shutter unlicensed cannabis storefronts and help manage the city’s migrant crisis. The raft of proposals was expected to pass through the Legislature late Friday and potentially into the weekend, almost three weeks after the budget was due. During closed-door budget negotiations, the governor and leaders of the state Senate and Assembly weighed countless political and business demands. They also contended with a cyberattack that shut down the statehouse’s bill drafting office just as legislation started to flow.