Albany Update: Budget Status, Buffer Zones and Teachers' Pensions

Nick Reisman, POLITICO Albany bureau chief covering New York state government and politics and co-author of the New York Playbook, discusses the latest in state budget negotiations and the major sticking points, including early pension access for public school teachers and the buffer zones for protestors around religious institutions.

Photo: State Senators Liz Krueger, left, and Thomas O'Mara, right, debate a bill (S9631) that would extend various expiring laws that allow the Department of Motor vehicles to collect certain fees and pay operating costs on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in the Senate Chamber at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y. Tuesday was the last day of the state's fiscal budget year. (Will Waldron/Albany Times Union via Getty Images)