General State Charges

Mission

The General State Charges budget funds State employee and retiree fringe benefits such as pensions, health benefits, employer social security contributions, and workers’ compensation, and pays the State’s fixed costs, including litigation expenses, taxes on State owned lands, and payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs).

Budget Highlights

The Executive Budget recommends appropriations totaling $3.6 billion (All Funds) for General State Charges (GSC). General Fund appropriations total 3,298 million and Fiduciary Funds appropriations total $300.5 million.

The year-to-year decrease in appropriations is primarily attributable to the right-sizing of reserve funds in the Rate Fluctuations Account.

Finally, the Budget transfers ‘direct-pay’ fringe benefit appropriations, including the State’s contribution to TIAA-CREF, associated with State University of New York employees to the GSC Schedule.

Major budget actions include:

• NYSHIP Dependent Eligibility Audit. The Department of Civil Service will oversee an external audit of dependent eligibility in the employee and retiree health plan (NYSHIP). The removal of ineligible dependents (e.g., ex-spouses) from NYSHIP could save the State $13 million annually or more if savings from public authorities and local governments are included. Amnesty is a key component of this initiative. The Executive Budget provides legislation for a special amnesty period which would protect employees who voluntarily identify ineligible dependents during the amnesty period.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – State Workforce (PDF)

Note: Most recent estimates as of 01/21/2015

Click for additional detailed appropriation tables