📘 JSA2026 FY2026 Commonwealth Budget – Volume V: Legislative Framework & Implementation Tools

Prepared by the Office of Jason S. Arnold – 2026 Gubernatorial Candidate, State of New York
This final volume outlines the legislative, constitutional, and procedural mechanisms required to enforce the JSA2026 Commonwealth Budget in full. It details how reforms will be enacted, what legal structures will be amended, and how ongoing transparency and accountability will be maintained over time.

⚖️ Legislative Actions Required (First 100 Days)

• Pass the Commonwealth Fiscal Responsibility Act: Mandates 5% revenue reserve minimum, outlaws gimmick-based budgeting, and limits debt service to 5% of annual disbursements
• Enact the Agency Consolidation & Oversight Act: Grants the executive authority to merge, dissolve, or restructure redundant state agencies pending legislative review
• Adopt the SEZ/LEZ Local Empowerment Framework: Enables districts to opt into local control models with state funding protections and performance benchmarks
• Approve the Capital Transparency Act: Requires public-facing dashboards and quarterly reporting for all bonded and infrastructure projects
• Introduce the Medicaid Accountability & Fraud Reform Package: Codifies fraud unit modernization, provider benchmarking, and funding triggers for crisis care investment

📜 Constitutional & Structural Amendments (By Ballot or Bill)

• Amend Article VII (Budget Process): Require balanced budget to exclude projected rollovers and speculative one-time revenues
• Establish Constitutional Reserve Mandate: Create floor for general fund reserves equal to 5% of prior-year receipts
• Guarantee Budget Transparency Rights: Add provision ensuring public access to all agency-level financial data in real time
• Protect SEZ/LEZ Participation: Prohibit administrative rollback of local opt-in agreements without performance-based cause

🔧 Implementation Tools

• Commonwealth Budget Portal: Central online dashboard integrating Budget Risk Tracker, Agency Reports, Capital Maps, and SEZ/LEZ performance logs
• Fiscal Integrity Office (FIO): Independent budget auditing agency empowered to investigate, flag, and report misuse of state funds in real time
• Citizens’ Oversight Review Board: Public-facing commission with rotating community members, empowered to subpoena data and oversee agency budget hearings quarterly

📊 Timeline of Reform (Year 1 to Year 4)

1. Q1–Q2: Pass core legislation, activate SEZ/LEZ pilots, launch transparency portals
2. Q3–Q4: Begin agency mergers, debt buy-downs, Medicaid reinvestments
3. Year 2: Publish first Annual Accountability Report; present constitutional amendments for ballot vote
4. Year 3: Phase out PTET, complete Operation Efficiency agency reductions
5. Year 4: Deliver balanced budget without fiscal tricks, report net gain in capital reallocation impact

🔚 Final Word from Jason S. Arnold

Reform without enforcement is just noise. Volume V is the lockbox for every promise we’ve made in this budget series. We’re not just designing a better fiscal model — we’re embedding it into the structure of the state. That’s what makes this different. That’s what makes it BETTR.

Now it’s time to take this to the people and get it done.

🗽 Jason S. Arnold, Candidate for Governor
📍 https://jsa2026.com
☎️ (516) 586-0660
✉️ jaysarnold@icloud.com