As crucial House elections near, New York governor outlines agenda

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul outlined her agenda for 2024 in a State of the State address on Tuesday, with the Democrat focusing on housing, crime and education policies ahead of a pivotal election season in a state whose races could determine control of Congress.

Hochul has spent the past week debuting pillars of her agenda, calling for an overhaul of literacy education and paid medical leave during pregnancy, among other things. In her speech at the state Capitol in Albany, she previewed additional action to increase the housing supply and make the state more affordable, and an initiative to combat retail theft.

The address came as both Republicans and Democrats have placed increased attention on New York as a potential battleground state for the U.S. House in November, adding a level of national importance to the governor’s agenda this year. For Hochul, the looming political dynamics could prove challenging as she moves to compromise with progressive statehouse Democrats while not exposing her party’s congressional candidates to attacks from conservatives.

A major priority for Hochul this year is to reach a deal with progressives to create more housing in the state, a politically vexing problem that has previously proven elusive but remains a tenant of her affordability plans.

The governor last year pushed hard on a housing plan that eventually failed after it was panned in the city’s suburbs for provisions that would have set growth targets and sometimes let the state override local zoning decisions. This year, with the suburbs emerging as must-win areas for congressional Democrats, Hochul is taking a different tack.

She is proposing a $500 million fund to support the construction of housing on state-owned land and wants to reestablish a program that previously gave developers tax breaks if they agreed to create so-called affordable housing in…