Assembly Lawmakers Weigh in on Compromise Buffer Zone Passage

The state legislature finally passed a state budget for the fiscal year 2026-2027, totaling a whopping $268.5 billion – $8.5 billion more than Governor Kathy Hochul proposed in January. The budget was constitutionally due on April 1, but received final passage on May 27. Almost two months late, the delay forced lawmakers to forgo their paychecks and required several budget extenders to authorize the state comptroller to pay necessary bills, including those for state workers.

The holdup on the 10-bill package was mainly due to a leadership battle over whether policy issues with no fiscal impact should be part of a budget document. One of those policy issues was the buffer zone bill, which Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law at the Israel Day Parade in May.

“This was one policy that we’re all very happy to be able to have achieved,” Assemblywoman Amy Paulin (D - Scarsdale) told The Jewish Press, noting that policy issues, while always part of the budget, “did slow us down this year to a large degree.”

She added, “Minimizing it is really where we need to go so that we get a budget on time with the dollars on time to the places that need to have them. When we look at all of the things that we were able to achieve, especially this one, you need to look back and say, ‘You did something great.’”

An Assembly colleague also took issue with the placement of the buffer zone bill. “It’s in a budget bill that has a lot of junk in it… The buffer zone law has nothing to do with a budget,” Assemblyman Kalman Yeger (D - East Midwood, Brooklyn) said.

The drumbeat for separating policy from spending plans continued among other lawmakers.

“I generally believe that policy should be dealt with outside of the budget process. The widespread use of the budget process for unrelated policy initiatives is misplaced,” Assemblyman Steve Stern (D - Dix Hills, Suffolk County) told The Jewish Press.

Stern also urged that more needs to be done to protect Jewish New Yorkers. “Unfortunately, we are too unaware of the challenges that we face as a Jewish people... By no means can this legislative initiative on its own stem the hate that someone feels in his or her heart. It’s part of a larger picture,” he said. “While we think this is an important part of that and an important message to send, there’s still so many things that can and must be done going forward.”

It was widely expressed by state lawmakers that the buffer zone is just a first step. “A buffer zone wasn’t just necessary but imperative. We were pleased that we were able to increase the distance that was originally 25 feet to 50 feet,” said Stern. “There are many of us that argued for even a greater distance than that, but this is where the compromise came. It’s an important message that we send throughout the state of New York, not just in the Jewish community.”

Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz (R - Oyster Bay) expressed frustration that the safety of the Jewish community had to be used as a “bargaining chip” in the budget process.

The bill’s placement was notable: It appeared not in the public protection portion of the budget, but in a bill covering transportation, economic development, and environmental conservation.

“We argued successfully to include yeshivas and other educational facilities... We argued that community centers were also another place where Jews gathered for religion,” Paulin said. “The definition was the most important aspect of the bill, in my opinion... because it allowed now for the current law... to include community centers and education facilities.”

Paulin worked alongside Assemblymen Micah Lasher (D- Upper West Side) and Simcha Eichenstein (D - Borough Park) to finalize the bill. Many lawmakers, like Eichenstein, struggled with the omnibus format but supported the measure due to its necessity.

“Jewish New Yorkers are being targeted, harassed, threatened, and intimidated simply because they are entering a house of worship,” Eichenstein said during the floor debate. “Our seniors, especially our cherished Holocaust survivors, should not feel anxious about participating in programming at community centers. This state intervention is only necessary because it has become critically urgent... following the New York City mayor’s veto of the City Council school safety perimeter transparency and reporting bill.”

Assemblyman Yeger also criticized the lack of safety initiatives in the city. “New Yorkers have the right to go about their day without being terrorized, and if we have a mayor who doesn’t think that’s important, that’s where we step in,” Yeger said, describing “mobs of masked thugs running up and down residential streets, screaming the vilest things at and about Jews, terrorizing Jews.”

Assemblyman Aron Wieder (D - Monsey) offered a different view on including policy in the budget.

“Budgets are about values, and this Assembly... is making clear that protecting communities from intimidation and hate is one of our values,” Wieder said. “This action sends a powerful message that New York would not stand by silently in the face of harassment and fear.”

Meanwhile, Assemblywoman Emily Gallagher (D- Greenpoint), a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, spoke against the bill. “I’m deeply concerned about the criminalization of free speech and protest in this budget,” Gallagher said. “In a moment when fascist violence is on the rise, the fact that our state government would move to further restrict New Yorkers’ ability to nonviolently protest is also deeply concerning.”

But Assemblyman David Weprin (D - Hollis), a co-sponsor, noted the practical need for the bill, citing a recent protest at his own synagogue. “It’s very intimidating. Antisemitism is rising everywhere... and this legislation will go a long way,” Weprin told The Jewish Press. He added that Speaker Carl Heastie took a personal role in the measure, meeting with Jewish members to reach the 50-foot compromise.

Assemblyman Erik Dilan (D - Cypress Hills) noted that the bill protects all faiths, mentioning incidents where Muslim constituents had eggs thrown at them while entering a mosque. Assemblyman Dan Norber (R - Great Neck), a veteran of the IDF, also supported the bill, stating, “We have to choose our battles. For me, the first battle is to always choose what’s going to be protecting our communities.”

While some, like Assemblyman Chris Eachus (D - New Windsor), saw the bill as a “small step” that may require future amendments, others, like Assemblyman Lester Chang (R - Sunset Park), wished local law enforcement had more discretion over safe distances.

Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright (D - Yorkville) highlighted the bill's importance for her constituents at Park East Synagogue, noting that the budget seeks to protect worshipers of all faiths. Seawright’s own district office was targeted in an antisemitic attack in 2020.

Assemblywoman Dr. Anna Kelles (D - Ithaca) thanked leadership for language that protects both the Jewish community and the rights of union members to picket.

Finally, Assemblyman Ari Brown (R - Cedarhurst), the only yarmulke-wearing Republican, voted against the omnibus bill, calling the 50-foot buffer a “pittance and an insult.” In a statement to The Jewish Press, he argued, “We are being asked to applaud symbolic gestures while the larger problem continues to grow.”

In the state Senate, the bill passed with the support of all five Jewish senators, though its main proponent, Senator Sam Sutton (D - Midwood), declined to comment further on the legislation.