Gov. Kathy Hochul made improving public safety part of her 2024 State of the State agenda, with a focus on preventing retail theft.

Days later, questions continued to swirl about to what degree Democrats and activists on the left will support the proposals, and what appetite Republicans will have for compromising on an issue they see as caused by Democratic policies.

The governor addressed the questions directly Thursday.

“These bodegas, these shops, these stores are in their districts,” she said of lawmakers. “They are hearing about it as much as I am, if not more. So I’m hoping they will come to the table and work with us.”

Hochul unveiled proposals Tuesday to expand what offenses can be prosecuted as hate crimes, take on domestic violence and, notably, establish a task force to fight retail crime.

When asked about the proposals, state Senator Zellnor Myrie, who is on the Crime, Crime Victims and Corrections Committee, said he supports the goal of improved public safety, but he and the governor may have some differences when it comes to how the issues are handled. He stressed that he favors a strong balance between enforcement and prevention through community investment, rather than leaning heavily on prosecutorial strategies.

“With public safety, it’s not one thing that’s going to deliver us,” he said. “The communities that have the most resources are the safest, so let's focus on putting in the resources as much as we are on law enforcement, and I think we’re going to end up in a good place.”

Katie Schaffer, director of advocacy and organizing at the Center for Community Alternatives, said the governor’s proposals rely too heavily on those prosecutorial methods. She cited recent studies that call into question the actual prevalence of retail theft, and expressed concerns that increasing prosecutorial power over hate crimes could result in disproportionate punishments for juveniles committing offenses like graffiti.

“The budget is an opportunity to make these community-based investments, rather than to perpetuate the false narrative that we can incarcerate our way out of social ills,” she said.

She indicated she was optimistic the governor did include some of these programs, like initiatives to expand college programing in state prisons and improving transitional housing.

Republicans said they would like to see a compromise between the conferences where possible, and while they largely support locally based community resources intended to address poverty and mental health, enforcing consequences when a crime is committed must be a priority.

“In addition to these task forces and additional laws, we have to hold people accountable,” state Senator Rob Rolison, who is also on the Senate committee, said. “Laws on books are great, but you have to hold people accountable.”

Assembly Member Joe Giglio, ranking member on the Assembly Committee on Corrections, said that while he feels the governor is trying to solve problems that Democratic policies created, his conference is open to finding common ground and fixing problems where possible.

“We will look upon the governor’s efforts and try to be a good partner. I think part of the problem is that the majority will not be the same good partner we would be,”  he said. “We need the majority to understand that there are career criminals in this world, people that break the law because they want to and we need to have consequences for their actions.”

Senator Patrick Gallivan, ranking member of the Crime, Crime Victims and Corrections Committee, echoed the concerns.

“I am encouraged by her commitment to combat domestic violence, retail theft and hate crimes. I am disappointed that she did not mention the dangerous changes made to our criminal justice system over the past several years,” he said in a statement.

Spectrum News 1 tried to get an idea of where other Democrats stand.

Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal responded with a statement, praising the initiatives and emphasizing that some of the proposals the governor included originated with him.

“I was pleased to see that the Governor included multiple proposals of mine in her plan for the new year, including the inclusion of serious offenses like gang assault and first degree murder currently missing from the hate crimes statute,” he said. “The governor and I agree that hate has no place in New York State. The bill that I carry along with Assembly Member Lee will ensure that the legal definition of a hate crime more closely aligns with the common-sense understanding of that term and help law enforcement and policy makers better assess and combat the prevalence of hate in our state."

He went on to also show support when it comes to the governor’s efforts to combat retail theft.

“I was also encouraged to see that Governor Hochul’s State of the State plan will put forth a serious effort to stop retail theft, which all New Yorkers agree has gotten out of control,” he said. "I look forward to working alongside my colleague Assembly Member Rosenthal to pass our bill (S.1644) making it illegal to facilitate the sale of stolen goods online, which the governor included in her plan. The platforms making millions from the sale of stolen goods on their websites, including major corporations like Amazon, need to be held accountable.”