Marking four years in office, Governor Kathy Hochul touts a blitz of pocketbook relief and big builds: middle-class tax cuts at 70-year lows, a higher minimum wage indexed to inflation, a tripled Child Tax Credit, banned insulin copays, and a $25B plan to create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes. Team Hochul says shootings are down 53% since the pandemic peak, 10,000+ illegal guns seized, bail and discovery laws tightened, transit crime below pre-COVID levels, and $1B pumped into mental health. Schools see record aid, distraction-free learning rules, a reading reboot, universal free meals (saving families ~$1,600 per child), and free community college paths for adults. On jobs, New York claims 812,000 private-sector gains, Micron’s $100B chip megaproject, Empire AI, and a $1B Chobani expansion. Rights front: reproductive protections, shield laws, and the Equal Rights Amendment. Infrastructure gets Grand Central Madison, progress on the Interborough Express and Second Avenue Subway, and the nation’s first congestion pricing. Energy wins include hitting 6 GW solar early, the first utility-scale wind farm, a planned advanced nuclear plant, and $1.4B in consumer savings.
Memo: Four Years of Governor Hochul,
Four Years of Delivering for New Yorkers
Putting Money Back in Families Pockets by Cutting Middle Class Taxes, Tripling Child Tax Credit and Increasing Minimum Wage. Keeping New Yorkers Safe Through Landmark Legislation and Investments in Law Enforcement and Public Safety. Fighting for New York’s Families With Record Investments in Education, Universal Free School Meals and Distraction-Free Learning. Generating New Economic Opportunities for New Yorkers With More Than 812,000 Jobs Created Since August 2021. Protecting New Yorkers’ Fundamental Rights Through Nation-Leading Legislation. Transforming the State’s Infrastructure To Modernize Transportation Landscapes, Limit Congestion and Make Public Transit More Accessible. Securing New York’s Energy Future by Making the State a National Leader in Solar Power; Advancing Nuclear Power Plant To Power One Million Homes and Businesses.
On August 24, 2021, Governor Kathy Hochul took her oath of office as the 57th Governor of New York. In Governor Hochul’s inaugural address, she laid out a clear vision: make New York more affordable, safer, and fairer for every family. The Governor pledged to take on the State’s toughest challenges head-on and invest in what makes New York, New York.
Four years later, Governor Hochul has delivered on that promise, putting money back in New Yorkers’ pockets, keeping communities safe, defending fundamental rights from Washington’s attacks, and fighting for hardworking families. And she’s just getting started.
Making New York More Affordable
- Cut middle class tax rates to their lowest level in 70 years
- Increased New York’s minimum wage and tied it to inflation
- Tripled the size of New York’s Child Tax Credit, part of a historic $7 billion investment in child care over four years
- Banned insulin copays — the first state in the nation to do so
- Implemented a historic $25 billion, five-year housing plan to create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes statewide, with more than half created in just two years
- Providing Inflation rebate checks to over 8 million New York households
- Raised the maximum weekly unemployment benefit by $300 a week
- Established nation’s first-ever prenatal leave policy
- Banned hospitals and health care providers from reporting medical debt
Keeping New Yorkers Safe
- Invested $2.6 billion in law enforcement and public safety since becoming governor
- Enacted landmark gun safety legislation, strengthening New York’s Red Flag law and bolstering restrictions on concealed carry weapons
- Oversaw a 53% decline in shootings across New York since its pandemic-era peak
- Removed more than 10,000 illegal guns off the street
- Historic subway safety investments that have driven down transit crime to below pre-pandemic levels with July being the safest July in 30 years
- Amended New York’s bail law to keep dangerous criminals off our streets and strengthened discovery laws to better protect victims
- Cracked down on retail theft with new worker protections and security funding for businesses
- Responded to the rise in hate crimes by expanding hate crime–eligible offenses and securing funding to protect at-risk sites
- Strengthened treatment to individuals experiencing mental health emergencies by expanding involuntary commitment and Kendra’s Law
- Made a historic $1 billion investment in mental health care
Fighting for New York’s Families
- Record $8 billion increases in school aid as governor
- Became the first governor to fully fund Foundation Aid
- Nation-leading statewide distraction-free learning policy
- Cracked down on addictive algorithms targeting kids
- Launched Back to Basics reading initiative to improve literacy statewide
- Universal free school meals, saving families $1,600 per child each year
- Free community college program for adult learners, opening pathways for 4 million New Yorkers without a degree or credential
Creating New Economic Opportunities
- Secured Micron’s $100 billion investment in Central New York — the largest private investment in New York’s history, creating 50,000 jobs
- Launched Empire AI, a first-of-its-kind partnership with New York’s top universities coming together to establish a world-class AI computing center
- Landed a $1 billion investment from Chobani, the largest food manufacturing investment in the nation
- More than 812,000 private sector jobs since August 2021
Protecting New Yorkers’ Fundamental Rights
- Protected reproductive freedom in New York amidst the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson
- Expanded New York’s shield laws to protect health care professionals unjustly persecuted by other states
- Enshrined the Equal Rights Amendment in the New York State Constitution
- Signed legislation to fight maternal mortality and expand Medicaid coverage for pregnancy-related appointments
- Ensured New York Providers can deliver reproductive health care to patients in states where abortion services are outlawed or restricted
Transforming New York’s Infrastructure
- Advanced transformational transit projects like the Interborough Express and the Second Avenue Subway, moving them from talk to reality after decades of inaction
- Opened Grand Central Madison, providing a one-seat ride from Long Island to Manhattan’s east side
- Implemented the nation’s first congestion pricing program, reducing traffic and raising revenue for critical investments in the transit system
- Pushed forward the I-81 viaduct project in Syracuse, reshaping the region’s transportation network
- Fully funded the MTA’s historic 2025-2029 Capital Plan, securing the future of mass transit for millions of riders
Securing New York’s Energy Future
- Directed the New York Power Authority to build an advanced nuclear plant to power 1 million homes and businesses
- Opened the first utility-scale wind farm
- Made New York a national leader in solar energy, hitting 2025 target of 6 GW ahead of schedule
- Delivered $1.4 billion in energy savings through Solar For All and REACH
- Invested $300 million in power-ready sites to attract advanced manufacturing and tech companies
- Enacted nation-leading cyber protections to keep the grid secure and reliable
- Secured a historic $1 billion for a cleaner, more sustainable New York
August 25, 2025
Albany, NY
Sources: Governor.ny.gov , Big New York news BigNY.com
