Governor of New York

The Governor of NY, who heads the Executive Branch and serves a term of four years, serves as the State’s chief executive. The Governor is not term-limited. As chief executive, the Governor:

• Submits a yearly state budget to the Legislature
• Will make recommendations for legislation;
• Proposes funding appropriations for state departments and programs;
• Holds the power to veto legislative bills out of the NY State Legislature;
• Enforces state laws;
• Convenes the State Legislature for special sessions in extraordinary circumstances;
• Appoints and removes non-elected state officers; 
• Can grant pardons, commutations and reprieves to criminal offenders not guilty of treason or impeachment; 
• Responsible for appointing the heads of all State departments and agencies of the Executive branch, which includes: Agriculture and Markets, Audit and Control, Civil Service, Correctional Services, Economic Development, Education, Environmental Conservation, Executive, Family Assistance, Financial Services, Health, Labor, Law, Mental Hygiene, Motor Vehicles, Public Service, State, Taxation and Finance, and Transportation; 
• Responsible for the State’s Liquor Authority;
• Holds Emergency Powers not enlisted by the State’s Constitution; 

Elected to a four-year term during the same term as the Governor and is the second highest-ranking official in state government. Lt. Governor will serve as acting Governor in the absence of the Governor from the state, during disability of the Governor or in the event of impeachment, death or resignation. Primary functions are to:

• serve as President of the State Senate and;
• are only permitted to cast a vote to break a tie among the Senate;
• serve on the New York Court for the Trial of Impeachments, State Defense Council and board of trustees for the State University of NY College of Environmental Science and Forestry;
• Often chairs regional councils, task forces, and boards on behalf of Executive branch
• Can be assigned other responsibilities and duties as the Governor assigns.

NY State Assembly

The New York State Assembly is the lower chamber of the New York State Legislature. Alongside the New York State Senate, it forms the legislative branch of the New York state government and works alongside the governor of New York to create laws and establish a state budget. There are 150 seats in the Assembly (65 that represent NYC) and Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. Legislative authority and responsibilities of the New York State Assembly include passing bills on public policy matters, setting levels for state spending, raising and lowering taxes, and voting to uphold or override gubernatorial vetoes. The powers that the NY State Constitution reserves for the Legislature permits the Senate and Assembly to propose laws, within the limits of the Federal Constitution and certain Federal statutes and treaties. These laws first take the form of bills, which may be introduced in either house. A bill passed by one house must be passed in the same form by the other before it can be sent to the Governor for his signature or veto.

The Lawmaking Powers of the Legislature include:

• the appropriation of funds for the operation of state government and its agencies and for aid to local governments;
• the definition of acts or omissions that constitute crimes and the setting of penalties;
• the promotion of the public welfare, including that of the State's indigent, mentally ill and unemployed; and the correction, clarification, amendment or repeal of laws that are outdated or confusing;
• can approve a law despite a veto by the Governor with the support of two-thirds of the membership in each house.

Speaker of the Assembly

The Speaker of the Assembly is the presiding officer of the body. Duties of the Speaker include negotiating with the Governor and Senate Majority Leader on the annual budget, preserving order and decorum, deciding all questions of order, controlling the flow of legislation, appointing all committee and subcommittee members.

A District Leader is an unpaid volunteer elected official. All formal parties in New York State are required to have at least one District Leader (DL) per Assembly District (AD) and typically have one male and one female District Leader. This means there are roughly 2,400 District Leaders, with 1,040 of those residing in the 65 districts that comprise New York City. These positions are subject to primary elections every two years. This guarantees that any party with formal status in New York State (e.g. a permanent ballot line) is democratically governed by its members. In essence, the District Leader is the representative of the party members in their district to that political party’s apparatus.

• a position within a political party; not all parties have them;
• votes on chair of the county party;
• appoints election workers;
• helps to select judicial nominees

The New York State Senate is the upper chamber of the New York State Legislature. Alongside the New York State Assembly, it forms the legislative branch of the New York state government and works alongside the Governor of New York to create laws and establish a state budget. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. As of 2014, there are 63 seats in the Senate (25 that represent NYC). Legislative authority and responsibilities of the New York State Senate include passing bills on public policy matters, setting levels for state spending, raising and lowering taxes, and voting to uphold or override gubernatorial vetoes. The lawmaking powers of the Legislature include:

• the appropriation of funds for the operation of state government and its agencies and for aid to local governments;
• the definition of acts or omissions that constitute crimes and the setting of penalties;
• the promotion of the public welfare, including that of the State’s indigent, mentally ill and unemployed; and the correction, clarification, amendment or repeal of laws that are outdated or confusing;
• can approve a law despite a veto by the Governor with the support of two-thirds of the membership in each house.
• The State Senate has the power to confirm the Governor’s appointment on non-elected state officials and court judges.

After each election, the Senate elects from among its members a Temporary President who serves a two-year term. Traditionally, the Temporary President is the ranking Senator of the majority political party — the Majority Leader. It is the duty of the Temporary President to negotiate with the Governor and Speaker of the Assembly on the annual budget, direct and guide the business of the Senate, appoint Senate committees, name Senate employees and perform or delegate to another Senator the duties of the President during the Lieutenant Governor’s absence from the Senate Chamber.

SUPERMAJORITY

NY State currently holds a supermajority. A state government trifecta or a supermajority occurs when one political party holds the Governor’s office, a majority in the State Senate, and a majority in the State Assembly.

The Attorney General’s Office is charged with the statutory and common law powers to protect consumers and investors, charitable donors, the public health and environment, civil rights, and the rights of wage-earners and businesses across the State. While the Attorney General acts independently of the Governor, the Governor or a state agency may request the Attorney General to undertake specific criminal investigations and prosecutions. The AG of NY:

• Serves as the State’s chief legal officer;
• Established as the “Lawyer for the State”
• Serves as the head of the Department of Law;
• Required to represent the state in legal disputes;
• is responsible for the prosecution of all actions for or against the State;
• has control of the legal affairs of state officers and departments
• authority also includes the activities and investigations of the State Organized Crime Task Force and Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

The New York State Comptroller is the State’s chief fiscal officer who ensures that State and local governments use taxpayer money effectively and efficiently to promote the common good. The Comptroller’s responsibilities include:

• Serving as sole trustee of the $194.3 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund (value as of March 31, 2020), one of the largest institutional investors in the world.
• Administering the New York State and Local Retirement System for public employees, with more than one million members, retirees and beneficiaries and more than 3,000 employers.
• Maintaining the State’s accounting system and administering the State’s approximately $16.7 billion payroll.
• Reporting on State finances.
• Managing and issuing State debt.
• Reviewing State contracts and auditing payments.
• Conducting audits of State agencies and public benefit corporations.
• Overseeing the fiscal affairs of local governments, including New York City.
• Overseeing the Justice Court Fund and the Oil Spill Fund.
• Serving as custodian of more than $16.5 billion in unclaimed funds, restoring lost accounts to their rightful owners.
• Conducting training and providing technical assistance to improve government operations at all levels.

The Mayor of NY is elected citywide to a term of four years with a limit of two consecutive terms. The Mayor primarily serves as chief executive officer of the city and has primary functions are as follows:

• can sign or veto laws passed by the City Council, including land-use changes via the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) process;
• proposes the city’s annual budget, which includes an annual expense and capital budget that are submitted to the City Council for review and adoption
• appoints all agency heads, for example the Police Commissioner and Schools Chancellor, and can reorganize departments and their duties;
• appoints NYC Criminal Court Judges, Family Court Judges, and Interim Civil Court Judges;
• makes appointments to boards like the Civilian Complaint Review Board and Panel for Education Policy;
• appoints or nominates people to sit on the boards of non-city entities, like the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board;
• issues a number of reports each year mandated by the City Charter, including the Mayor’s Management Report.

• elected citywide to a term of four years with a limit of two consecutive terms.
• is the city’s chief fiscal (financial) officer and maintains the city’s financial records;
• advises the Mayor and Council on the financial condition of the city;
• audits city agencies;
• verifies invoices before the city pays them;
• registers all city contracts;
• settles financial claims for or against the city;
• creates and maintains the city’s accounting procedures;
• oversees the NYC Employees' Retirement System (NYCERS), the city’s pension funds - $224.8 billion as of October 2020;
• determines credit needs, terms and conditions and issues and sells City obligations. The employees of the Office include accountants and attorneys;
• manages NYC sinking funds, containing money set aside to pay off debts and bonds, and all other City-held trust funds;
• makes appointments to some city boards including the Board of Trustees for NYCERS, the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of NY, NYC Police and Fire Pension Funds.
• Serves as the administrative Head of the Department of Audit and Control
• becomes interim Mayor in the event the offices of Mayor and Public Advocate are vacated.

• in each of the five boroughs, is elected boroughwide for a term of four years with a limit of two consecutive terms;
• submits recommendations to the Mayor for the city’s annual expense and capital budgets;
• renders advisory opinions on Land-Use issues;
• can propose legislation in the City Council;
• can recommend capital projects performed in the borough and monitors capital work;
• monitors city contracts performed in the borough;
• appoints members of community boards, with half the members of each board nominated by the local City Councilmember(s);
• can hold public hearings on matters of public interest;
• convenes task forces to address issues in the borough, such as the closure of Rikers Island;
• operates a Borough Board that oversees service delivery in each borough;
• makes appointments to boards that are limited to the NYC Planning Commission, the NYC Panel for Education policy and borough Community Boards;
• prepares an annual strategic policy statement for the borough;

The NYC Council resides in each of NYC’s 51 Council Districts and is normally elected to a four-year term, but in every 20-year cycle there are two, two-year terms to allow for redistricting following a Census. The next two-year terms will be after the 2021 and 2023 election. Members are restricted to two consecutive full four-year terms; two, two-year terms count as one four-year term, and partial terms—such as when a person is elected to the Council by special election—do not count as a full term. The primary functions of a NYC Council Member are as follows:

• approves the city budget proposed by the Mayor;
• makes laws and can override Mayoral vetoes;
• approves land-use changes like re-zonings and can override Mayoral vetoes of those;
• can oversee and investigate city agencies and programs, and has subpoena power;
• has the power of advice and consent over Mayoral appointments to some city boards and commissions including the: NYC Board of Standards and Appeals, NYC Conflicts of Interest Board, NYC Board of Health, Environmental Control Board, NYC Planning commission, Civil Service Commission, Landmarks Preservation Commission, Art Commission, Tax Commission, Taxi and Limousine Commission
• Has some powers of appointment - for instance, Councilmembers nominate half the members of each community board and the Speaker appoints members of certain city boards;
• NYC Council members belong to both borough delegations and caucuses within the Council that include: Black, Latino and Asian Caucus; Irish Caucus; Jewish Caucus; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Caucus; Progressive Caucus; Women’s Caucus

The head of the City Council is called the Speaker and is elected by City Council members. The Speaker sets the agenda and presides at meetings of the city council. Proposed legislation is submitted through the Speaker’s Office who decides which bills are brought to the floor to be voted on.

The District Attorneys (DA) are elected from each borough for a term of four years and are not restricted by term-limits. Brooklyn and Manhattan District Attorneys are elected in the same year as municipal offices like Mayor. The DAs for the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island are on a different cycle. The District Attorney’s Office of each borough represents the People of the State of New York in court against suspects of crimes committed. The DA is responsible for:

• protecting the public by investigating and prosecuting criminal conduct;
• working with the New York Police Department (NYPD) to determine whether to bring criminal charges and prosecute criminal cases in court;
• handling criminal appeals at all levels of state and federal courts;
• prosecuting forfeiture proceedings;
• extradites criminals from outside the state;
• working with victims of crime.
• Holds power to form and create task forces such as the Protecting Immigrant New Yorkers Task Force (PINY), Construction Fraud Task Force and others;

The NYC Public Advocate is elected citywide to a term of four years with a limit of two consecutive terms; The Public Advocate primary functions are as follows:

• presides over general City Council meetings;
• is technically a limited member of the City Council and of each of its committees;
• can introduce and co-sponsor legislation and participate in Council discussions but is unable to vote;
• monitors city agencies’ systems for informing the public and for receiving and addressing citizen complaints, and make recommendations for improving them;
• investigates citizen complaints and city programs;
• has the right under the charter to “timely access to those records and documents of city agencies” she needs to complete her investigations;
• is responsible for reporting the failure of any City agency or official to comply with the New York City Charter;
• serves as the chair of the Commission of Public Information and Communication;
• serves on the committee which selects the director of the NYC Independent Budget Office;
• makes appointments to certain city boards and commissions including the NYC Planning Commission, the Civilian Complaint Review Board, Citywide Council on Special Education, and the NYC Transit Authority Advisory Council.
• becomes interim Mayor if the Mayor vacates office;
• sits on the NYCERS Board of Trustees;

• The President of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The President directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. The power includes the execution and enforcement of federal law and the responsibility to appoint federal executive, diplomatic, regulatory, and judicial officers.
• Based on constitutional provisions empowering the President to appoint and receive ambassadors and conclude treaties with foreign powers, and on subsequent laws enacted by Congress, the modern presidency has primary responsibility for conducting U.S. foreign policy. The role includes responsibility for directing the world’s most expensive military, which has the second largest nuclear arsenal.
• The President also plays a leading role in federal legislation and domestic policymaking. As part of the system of checks and balances, Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution gives the President the power to sign or veto federal legislation.
• The President is elected indirectly through the Electoral College to a four-year term, along with the Vice President.

• The Vice President of the United States is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the President of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession; the Vice President is included as a member in the president's cabinet. The Vice President is also an officer in the legislative branch, as President of the Senate. In this capacity, the Vice President is empowered to preside over Senate deliberations, but may not vote except to cast a tie-breaking vote. The Vice President is indirectly elected together with the President to a four-year term of office by the people of the United States through the Electoral College.
• The modern Vice Presidency is a position of significant power and is widely seen as an integral part of a President’s administration. While the exact nature of the role varies in each administration, most modern Vice Presidents serve as a key presidential advisor, governing partner, and representative of the president. The Vice President is also a statutory member of the National Security Council and thus plays a significant role in national security matters. As the Vice President’s role within the executive branch has expanded, the legislative branch role has contracted; for example, Vice Presidents now preside over the Senate only infrequently.

• The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, 2 for each state. Senators are elected to six-year terms by the people of each state. Senator’s terms are staggered so that about one-third of the Senate is up for reelection every two years. Senators must be 30 years of age, U.S. citizens for at least nine years, and residents of the state they represent. The Senate has the sole power to confirm those of the President’s appointments, and to ratify treaties. There are, however, two exceptions to this rule: the House must also approve appointments to the Vice Presidency and any treaty that involves foreign trade.
• The Senate also tries impeachment cases for federal officials referred to it by the House. In order to pass legislation and send it to the President for his signature, both the House and the Senate must pass the same bill by majority vote (51 votes), or in the event of a filibuster, requires 67 votes to pass the Senate. If the President vetoes a bill, they may override his veto by passing the bill again in each chamber with at least two-thirds of each body voting in favor.

The Senate Majority Leader serves as the chief Senate spokesperson for their respective political party, who holds the majority in the U.S. Senate (51 seats). They manage and schedule the legislative and executive business of the Senate, holding the responsibility of what legislation is brought to the floor with a vote.

• The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. The presiding officer of the chamber is the Speaker of the House, elected by the Representatives. He or she is third in the line of succession to the Presidency. Members of the House are elected every two years and must be 25 years of age, a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state (but not necessarily the district) they represent.
• The House has several powers assigned exclusively to it, including the power to introduce and vote on legislation on the federal level, initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an electoral college tie. For example, the House can earmark funds for government programs like Affordable Housing and the Paycheck Protection Program through legislation.
• 218 members are required in order to capture the Majority in the House. The Majority is crucial given that the majority party is awarded the Speaker of the House, who controls what pieces of legislation are brought to the floor with a vote. It also represents what bills are capable of being passed along party lines by simple majority.

The Speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House of Representatives, and is simultaneously the House’s presiding officer, de facto leader of the body’s majority party, and the institution’s administrative head. Speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions. The speaker is second in the United States presidential line of succession, after the Vice President and ahead of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.