A new state budget was approved this March 31, sliding through with a 5.3% increase in school aid, $1.5 billion in property-tax relief, and the first permanent tax cut in the last nine years. It’s an election year for both the legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo, and they are hoping to pacify voters and temper down reports that New York is the most-taxed state.

Business groups were content with the budget, though local government and businesses alike express doubt that Cuomo’s two-year tax freeze wouldn’t place a strain on municipalities and schools.

Manufacturers will now receive a 20% tax credit, and the tax rate on income for manufacturers dropped from 5.9% to zero. Property owners will also receive rebate checks worth about $650, so long as their school district remains under the budget cap.

Local groups have not been happy with the chosen tax cuts, claiming that they benefit corporations and wealthy individuals to the detriment of everyone else. “Our leaders in Albany chose inequality over progress. No public financing of elections. No Dream Act. Yes to tax cuts for Wall Street banks and corporations,” said the Working Families Party in an email to supporters. The Dream Act, which helps provide residency for undocumented immigrants who are brought into the country as children and graduate from U.S. schools, has been heavily promoted by Democrats as a necessary step forward, yet failed to make an appearance in the budget.

New York has often struggled to bridge the gap between the haves and the have-nots. Rochester seeks to unite more potential employees with careers with a new local proposal to ban job applications from asking applicants about their criminal history.

City councilman Adam McFadden explains that he would like to see a system where applicants with criminal backgrounds can get a second chance, and a fair shake, considering that many of them have specific skill sets under-utilized in the job market. Applicants will, instead, not have to divulge this information until the interview stage. Research indicates that, if such individuals are hired to sales positions, they can be successfully trained to follow leads using one-on-one sales coaching.