Budget & Taxes (Income Tax)

S 9043 adjusts New York State income tax brackets annually to account for inflation through a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). This ensures that taxpayers' income tax rates and bracket thresholds automatically rise with inflation, preventing "bracket creep" where inflation alone pushes earners into higher tax brackets. The bill specifically modifies tax law sections to require these COLA-based adjustments for all income tax brackets across multiple filing statuses (single, head of household, married filing jointly) for tax years beginning after 2026. It directly affects all New York State income taxpayers by maintaining the real value of tax brackets over time, reducing the risk of unintended tax increases due to rising prices.

Provides that certain deductions allowable under the internal revenue code related to certain types of property and domestic research or experimental expenditures shall be added to federal adjusted gross income.

This bill raises the income threshold for a temporary exemption from counting earned income when public assistance recipients start a new job. Specifically, it increases the maximum income limit from 200% to 400% of the federal poverty level for the one-time disregard. The provision allows recipients to have all their new job earnings disregarded for up to six months after starting work, provided their total income stays below this new 400% threshold. It directly affects low-income individuals transitioning to employment who rely on public assistance programs.

Enacts into law major components of legislation necessary to implement the state public protection and general government budget for the 2025-2026 state fiscal year; extends provisions of law relating to criminal justice including the psychological testing of candidates, expanding the geographic area of employment of certain police officers, prisoner furloughs in certain cases and the crime of absconding therefrom, correctional facilities, incarcerated individual work release, furlough and leave, certain provisions which impact upon expenditure of certain appropriations made by chapter 50 of the laws of 1994 enacting the state operations budget, taxes, surcharges, fees and funding, prison and jail housing and alternatives to detention and incarceration programs, taxes, expiration of the mandatory surcharge and victim assistance fee, the ignition interlock device program, the merit provisions, prisoner litigation reform and the incarcerated individual filing fee provisions of the civil practice law and rules and general filing fee provision and incarcerated individual property claims exhaustion requirement of the court of claims act of such chapter, the family protection and domestic violence intervention act of 1994, certain provisions requiring the arrest of certain persons engaged in family violence, the use of closed-circuit television and other protective measures for certain child witnesses, the counties, the interstate compact for adult offender supervision, limiting the closing of certain correctional facilities, the custody by the department of correctional services of incarcerated individual serving definite sentences, custody of federal prisoners, the closing of certain correctional facilities, military funds of the organized militia, providing for community treatment facilities and establishing the crime of absconding from the community treatment facility; relates to the pre-criminal proceeding settlements in the city of New York (Part A); expands eligibility for who may hold correction and police officer positions (Part C); expands support services for victims of financial abuse and homicide (Part G); expands protections and services to survivors of sexual assault for itemized charges related to exams for such survivors (Part H); improves access to public assistance for survivors of gender-based violence; repeals provisions relating thereto (Part I); requires certain employers to implement a model gender-based violence and the workplace policy (Part J); prohibits artificial intelligence-generated child sexual abuse material (Part L); extends provisions of law relating to liquidator's permits and temporary retail permits (Part Q); increases the bond limit for the New York city transitional finance authority (Part R); modifies the industrial and commercial abatement program (Part S); extends the civil service examination fee waiver for certain persons (Part V); provides for an optional payment election for certain employees (Part W); authorizes construction manager as constructor contracts as an alternative delivery method for authorized projects; defines construction manager as constructor contracts (Part Y); allows certain residents or fellows to render medical care in cases of workers' compensation injuries (Part AA); provides for temporary payment of compensation for medical treatment and care, including prescription drugs (Part CC); establishes a body-worn cameras program within the department of corrections and community supervision to increase accountability (Part GG); relates to the functions, powers and duties of the state commission on correction (Part HH); extends the time the New York State community commission on reparations remedies has to submit a written report of its findings and recommendations to the legislature and the governor (Part JJ); establishes the "Oak Orchard wastewater project design-build act" for the wastewater treatment plant in the town of Clay, county of Onondaga (Part KK); increases the amount of allowance that trial and grand jurors are entitled to in each court of the unified court system (Part LL); establishes the New York state office of gun violence prevention (Part MM); provides for ten additional judges for the New York city civil court and five additional judges for the court of claims (Part NN); relates to public campaign financing; changes certain thresholds and procedures; repeals certain provisions of chapter 58 of 2020 relating to severability (Part OO); delays implementing certain restrictions on outside earned income by members of the legislature until January 1, 2027 (Part PP); requires that candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor are designated jointly; provides that ballots shall reflect that that offices of governor and lieutenant governor are voted for jointly (Part QQ); relates to civil enforcement actions initiated by the attorney-general (Part RR); restores 20 year service retirement for New York city police officers (Part SS); establishes a twenty-five year retirement plan for firefighters employed by the division of military and naval affairs (Part TT); removes eligibility or receipt of primary social security disability benefits as a condition for ordinary disability retirement for New York city enhanced plan members in active service who are not eligible for a normal retirement benefit and have completed five years or more of service (Part UU); extends the retiree earnings limitation waiver for school employees until June 30, 2027 (Part VV); authorizes courts to dispense with the personal appearance of a party or the defendant and conduct such appearance electronically; repeals provisions relating to appearances in court; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof (Part WW); relates to promotions of police detectives, sergeants, and lieutenants for retirement purposes (Part XX); establishes alternative twenty and twenty-five year plans for certain law enforcement members or officers; provides for accidental disability retirement allowance for certain members (Part YY); lowers the minimum hiring age for correction officers to eighteen (Part ZZ); extends provisions related to the operation and administration of the legislature (Part AAA); relates to authorizing the department of corrections and community supervision to close up to three correctional facilities in the 2025--2026 state fiscal year; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof (Part BBB).

Adjusts the taxable income of individuals who were forced to withdraw funds from certain retirement accounts due to damage of primary residences following Superstorm Sandy to ensure such individuals were not penalized for withdrawing such funds.

S 861 establishes a New York state program allowing residents to pay off college debt for family members tax-free. It creates tax-deferred accounts where contributions grow without state or federal income tax, and withdrawals for qualified education expenses (like tuition, books, or 2009-2010 computer purchases) are also tax-free. The program requires cash contributions, separate accounting per beneficiary, and limits investment changes to twice yearly. It directly affects New York residents who want to help family members (spouses, children, or cousins) with higher education costs through this state-run debt repayment mechanism.

Excludes from federal adjusted gross income the amount of any service award paid to a volunteer firefighter or volunteer ambulance worker, thereby exempting such payments from state income tax in like manner as a pension.

Establishes the child psychiatry access project; provides that the office of mental hygiene shall establish regional child psychiatry access projects across the state to provide primary care providers with timely access to child psychiatry consultations in order to assist such primary care providers in meeting the mental health needs of the children and adolescents and their families; establishes a gift for the child psychiatry access project on state personal income tax forms, the proceeds from which shall be deposited into a child psychiatry access fund for the funding of such projects.

Provides for advance payment of the earned income credit by employers, the commissioner of the department of taxation and finance and the commissioner of New York City's department of finance.

Provides for advance payment of the earned income credit by employers, the commissioner of the department of taxation and finance and the commissioner of New York City's department of finance.