One month away from the scheduled end of the legislative session on June 6, some members of the Democratic-controlled state legislature say they should analyze the responses to pro-Palestinian protests across New York college campuses.

They were trying to close a multi-billion dollar state budget deal when the first of the demonstrations erupted on Columbia University’s campus on April 17.

“I would certainly support the legislature holding oversight hearings and investigating what, the decisions, the Columbia administration had made, I think they made a lot of poor decisions over the last month,” Sen. Julia Salazar, a Brooklyn Democrat, said.

“There should be investigations as to the fact that our mayor sent the police into Columbia’s campus – a decision which led to the discharging of a weapon, which could have killed a student,” Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a Queens Democrat, told NY1.

State Senate Republicans formally asked their Democratic counterparts to greenlight a legislative hearing in a May 1 letter.

Lawmakers also said they would like the opportunity to question not just Columbia University’s embattled president Minouche Shafik, but also officials from the state and city-run university system.

They argue it’s the legislature’s responsibility to question institutions that receive taxpayer dollars.

“You don’t just get the good part of that: asking for money. And we all want to support higher education, but there’s no consequence or accountability for how that money, where it’s going, how they’re teaching kids,” Sen. Minority Leader Robert Ortt, a Lockport Republican, said.

Representatives for both the state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told NY1 in the past, the legislature does not get involved in international issues.

Although a spokesperson for Stewart-Cousins did not respond to not respond to a request for comment, the Investigations and Government Operations Chairman James Skoufis, a Cornwall Democrat, told NY1 on Monday that he formally asked her office if his committee can host the hearing.

“The situation at Columbia University — and many other campuses — has been deplorably handled by college leadership,” Skoufis said in a statement. “There ought to be accountability and a resolution that both protects First Amendment rights while restoring order to campuses.”

But Assembly Higher Education Committee chair Pat Fahy, an Albany Democrat, isn’t convinced a hearing is appropriate.

“I don’t think anybody wants to see this be so politicized,” Fahy said. “When we do hearings, it’s usually to move legislation or to hear about what funding needs are. There’s no legislation tied to this, so for as far as a hearing, that is not something where we see that it would be productive.”

But Queens Democrat Assemblywoman Nily Rozic argues that reports of hate on college campuses are not new in New York.

Former Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman is also leading a panel tasked with investigating discrimination and antisemitism policies on City University of New York campuses.

“I think people have a right to peaceful protest. What we’ve seen on college campuses many times has crossed the line of a peaceful protest,” said Rozic. “What we need to do is ask other hard questions about where the funding is coming from and how we as a state are supporting the students and supporting the right organizations.”

A Heastie spokesman said no hearing is scheduled at this time.

Others argue, failure to address the issue could hurt Democrats in the upcoming elections.

“Democratic voters have been very, very clear over the past many months that they are seriously supportive of a permanent and immediate ceasefire. We can see that play out in poll after poll after poll. But there is a massive divide between Democratic voters and Democratic politicians,” Mamdani said.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said she supports the Biden administration’s response to the Middle East conflict and backed the NYPD’s clearing of campus encampments last week.

Speaking at the annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California on Monday, Hochul said she was surprised to witness the divide between students.

“I never saw the level of hatred in some cases, from one student to the other because of which side of the issue with Israel and Gaza they’re on, these are people who should be developing collaborative skills now so they can go into a workplace and understand, that’s how we innovate new ideas,” she said.