VOTE411 Voter Guide

The Office of the State Comptroller has many responsibilities: it is the sole trustee of the $300 billion state pension fund, the state’s chief auditor, and the administrator of crucial programs like the Office of Unclaimed Funds and the 529 College Savings Program.

As State Comptroller, I grew the state pension fund to over $300 billion and into one of the best-funded in the nation, protecting the retirement security of more than 1.2 million public workers, retirees and their beneficiaries. My team’s hundreds of audits and reports have identified billions of dollars in savings and driven real improvements in how government delivers critical services from school mental health and special education to supportive housing and assistance programs for our most vulnerable. The Office of Unclaimed Funds returns over $2 million a day to their rightful owners while the 529 College Savings Program helps thousands of families save for college.

Today’s uncertainty in the global economy poses a threat to the pension fund. Rising fuel prices and interest rates are making life harder for everyday Americans, which may negatively affect many of the pension fund’s assets.

Despite the challenges posed by the current economic climate, I am confident that the retirement security of the 1.2 million New Yorkers who rely on the fund is secure. Our fund’s investment managers take efforts to diversify the pension fund across various sectors and asset classes. Additionally, the fund assumes a conservative 5.9% annual rate of return, a strategy which reduces reliance on higher risk investments. These strategies are meant to insulate the fund from the volatility of the stock market, and the results have validated my management of the pension fund: despite tariffs and trade disruptions, the fund is fully-funded and hit a record high value of $309.7 billion.

New York state pension fund payments are a source of economic stability to many rural and upstate communities. A strong pension fund is not only necessary for its members, but highly beneficial to the communities that these members live in.

My office invests in New York State based businesses through our In-State Private Equity Investment Program and our New York Credit Small Business Investment Company Fund makes $200 million in credit financing available to small businesses across the state. Pursuit (formerly New York Business Development Corporation) provides loans to small businesses with state pension fund backing. Since the program began, the pension fund has committed $500 million and all 62 counties have businesses with loans.

We have extensively studied the state's economic recovery post COVID through audits and reports, highlighting the regions of the state trailing and focused on critical quality of life issues like access to healthcare and jobs.

The State Comptroller is an independently-elected position. It answers to the voters, not to the Governor or the state legislature. As Comptroller, my office conducts hundreds of audits and reports of state and local governments. The purpose of these audits and reports are to hold government accountable to its mission and provide recommendations on how it can improve. When my office audits a state agency, the goal is always to provide independent analysis to identify areas for improvement and efficient use of taxpayer dollars.

We look for risk adjusted returns to meet our long term investment goals, consistent with our asset allocation criteria.

My top priority is to secure retirement benefits for the fund’s nearly 1.2 million members, retirees and beneficiaries. I accomplish this by diversifying the fund across sectors and asset classes. New York is regarded as one of the best funded and best managed public pension funds in the country.

We have one of the most conservative long-term rates of return at 5.9%, which means that we can pursue investment strategies that are prudent and can handle market volatility while stabilizing rates for employers.

The Comptroller is New York’s chief fiscal officer, responsible for safeguarding taxpayer dollars, auditing state and local government, reviewing contracts and payments, and managing the state pension fund. I would use those powers to aggressively root out waste, fraud, and abuse, strengthen oversight before taxpayer money goes out the door, protect retirees by focusing pension investments on strong risk-adjusted returns, and bring greater transparency and accountability to how Albany spends New Yorkers’ money.

The biggest challenges are protecting the fund from market volatility, controlling costly investment fees, and keeping political considerations out of investment decisions. As Comptroller, I would maintain a diversified, professionally managed portfolio, aggressively review outside managers and fees, strengthen in-house investment capabilities, and require every investment to meet one standard: delivering strong risk-adjusted returns while protecting the retirement security of New York’s public employees.

I would use the Comptroller’s auditing, oversight, and investment authority to make sure every region of New York gets greater accountability and opportunity. I would scrutinize state economic-development spending to ensure taxpayer dollars are actually producing results, while using the pension fund’s existing ability to invest in New York businesses where investments meet strict fiduciary standards. Through my proposed Empire Opportunity Fund, I would seek opportunities in industries like advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, AI, semiconductors, energy, and aerospace that can generate competitive returns while helping attract private investment and good-paying jobs to communities across the state.

I would apply the same standards to every administration and every agency, regardless of party. The Comptroller must be an independent watchdog, not an extension of the Governor or Legislature. I would base audits, contract reviews, and pension decisions on facts, financial analysis, and fiduciary duty, and I would publicly challenge any administration when spending, borrowing, contracting, or investment decisions fail to protect taxpayers and retirees.

Investment decisions should be guided first and foremost by fiduciary duty, expected risk-adjusted return, diversification, liquidity, long-term performance, and cost. Political or ideological considerations should never override the financial interests of retirees. Every investment and outside manager should be evaluated on whether they strengthen the portfolio and deliver competitive returns net of fees.