Audio & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Is a Guest on NewsChannel 9’s ‘Newsmakers’ With Andrew Donovan

On January 23, Governor Kathy Hochul was a guest on NewsChannel 9’s “Newsmakers” with Andrew Donovan.

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Andrew Donovan, WSYR:  Governor, thanks so much for fitting us into such a busy day. It's becoming a tradition for us in January.

Governor Hochul: Yes, it is.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: I appreciate that. What does this groundbreaking day for Micron mean to you?

Governor Hochul: It's emotional. We first pursued this when I was literally Governor of New York for just a couple of days. We heard about this opportunity and I had memories of the executive team from Micron meeting me in Albany — and I heard all about this, and I said, “We have to make this happen.”

And then during a snowstorm in January in 2022, I flew in a plane and they said, “You shouldn't be flying.”

I said, “But he's going to go back to Idaho. I've got to talk to the CEO now and convince him to stay in New York.”

So I was so committed to getting this done. And, so, those conversations led to us when Joe Biden and Chuck Schumer were able to pass the CHIPS and Science Act in that spring. Literally two days later, I said, “That doesn't help New York. That helps other states as well. It makes it kind of a level playing field. How do I give New York State an advantage?”

And we put in the extra money and allowed them to benefit from that. And that's — I literally just walked off my speech, and Sanjay, the CEO, said, “You know we wouldn't be here without you.”

And that, for me, that just meant everything as someone who went to school in Syracuse, lived during the decline of manufacturing and industry in Upstate New York — from Syracuse to Buffalo, where I come from. And for him to say that and have the largest private sector investment in American history.

And he said it wouldn't have happened without me. I tell you, this is what it's all about: Creating all those good paying jobs and creating opportunities for those especially young people growing up in the city of Syracuse. And I know one of the reasons they cherish coming here is because of the diverse workforce we could offer them; the diversity of backgrounds, and talent, and ethnicity and races.

People just wanted to be able to be part of something, and Micron’s culture is one to celebrate that. And, so, it's a very big day for us.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: You mentioned the snow when you were coming to meet with Sanjay for the first time. I can't help but think of the snow that everyone had to battle today to do shovels in the ground.

Governor Hochul: Nobody cared. Nobody cared. I was so happy. They're not in a place like Florida where you don't have to shovel. They're in New York. We can handle the snow. It's not a big deal for us.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: I did hear a couple of instances today where it sounds like things got political from some of the remarks, specifically the Commerce Secretary. And I'm just wondering, how did this become political and how do you feel about that?

Governor Hochul: I don't know. He just came out and declared this was Trump country. I don't think there was any applause, I'm not sure. But it just set a strange tone there because we're celebrating a company, right? I think he said a couple of other things like they moved it from being a $50 billion investment, the Trump administration, to $100 billion. It was always — when Joe Biden stood on that stage, announced it was $100 billion. So, I don't know what that was all about, but it doesn't matter.

Regardless of party, this is moving forward. And that was the most important thing to me.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: It was $100 billion. I was also in the room that day.

Governor Hochul: It was $100 billion.

[…]

Governor Hochul: I don't know why they said they increased it to $100 [billion] from $50 [billion]. So, I think the fact checkers will have a good time with that speech, I'm not going to worry about it.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Let's talk about how Micron perhaps got its way into your State of the State a little bit. You've expanded your nuclear power plans, majorly. You had planned for one gigawatt to go somewhere in Upstate New York. You're now increasing it to five.

Governor Hochul: Yes.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: How's Oswego doing in the running? Because people in Oswego already have this capability and want more.

Governor Hochul: I know they do. And we're very excited about the opportunities for a community in upstate, and we'll be letting those candidates know soon. But certainly, Oswego has the experience, the workforce, and we have four nuclear reactors, three sites, in that area.

And what people don't realize — this is the oldest nuclear reactor in the nation has been functioning without any problem. But the new reactors we're talking about, they're not your grandfather's nuclear energy. The facilities are so safe, so technologically advanced that we feel very comfortable about that.

So we talk about powering Micron, but also all the supply chain that wants to come around it. Because I don't want companies to come here and be a drain on our grid. I don't want New Yorkers to have to pay more. And that's why we talk about these data centers, which don't create jobs. That's a different dynamic than Micron.

They don't create jobs and they suck our energy and make costs higher for New Yorkers. And I said, “No. If you're going to come here — you want to come here — you're going to have to pay and, ultimately, bring your own energy source.”

So, that's why this works out. I'm going to continue expanding our capacity. And I announced that in my State of the State. But also I want to protect New Yorkers’ wallets by not having them pay extra costs to subsidize other companies like the data centers.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: You've been pretty consistent on not putting your thumb on the scale. Just to the people in Oswego, they just think they are the best candidate.

Governor Hochul: I don't, they are very good candidates.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Okay.

Governor Hochul: All I can say right now.

[…]

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: I know you were also watching the environmental review through the Micron process very closely, and it sounds like, perhaps, some of that had inspiration in your State of the State. You’re looking at the environmental review process, specifically as it pertains to housing.

Governor Hochul: Right. That's really important. In Clay and this whole region, we have the opportunity to really grow the population to get it back to what it used to be in the 70s and 60s when this area was more prosperous.

But you have to put in more housing, all kinds — mixed-use, market rate. I even liked the modular homes that I visited here in Syracuse, which you can't tell the difference, and they can be put up in six months and they're so much cheaper than a house that's made the traditional way.

But part of it is whenever there's an important project, like many homes in a subdivision, there's always community opposition by at least a couple of people. And they stand on using these environmental laws as a barrier to progress. And that has happened all over our state. Even — I'm talking about when a community wants it to happen.

The neglected officials on their Town Board, for example, want it to happen, but you can lose two or three years and a developer's going to say, “It’s just not worth it.”

I can't have that be the answer anymore. I'm going to supercharge our efforts to build more housing because I have to figure out how to house 50,000 more people that are either coming here or people that are earning more money can get a bigger house perhaps.

I want to stimulate the economy for those who've always been residents of Central New York as well.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Is that growth for Micron happening quickly enough there?

Governor Hochul: Yes. Yes. They're already training people. And we've done everything. We've invested $500 million in workforce training for these industries at the state level as well.

So I'm finding — I promised I'd find the talent. He said, “I'll need 9,000 engineers.” But not just engineers — 60 percent of the workers that Micron needs don't even need a four year degree. So we're aggressively going after the local individuals in schools and in the community and saying, “Your future can change by getting the training you need to step into the jobs at Micron,” and the other supply chain companies and customers that I think will find their way here as well.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Shifting topics within your State of the State. The State of the State version that I was able to read seemed to omit any type of mention of prison reform. I think a lot of people are hoping you don't omit that from your plans.

The HALT Committee has submitted its recommendations about the HALT Act. Where does that stand as this legislative session begins?

Governor Hochul: Okay, this is not the only vehicle for prison reform, as you know after the horrible murder of Robert Brooks. And I just met his son and his father just a few days ago in my office.

And so right — immediately I insisted that there be cameras everywhere. That we worked to change the culture; that the people were involved in this be prosecuted for their crimes and remove them immediately. So I took steps instantaneously after that horrible tragedy.

Then I just signed, in December, a very major package of reforms that the Legislature had passed, that we worked on — so those will make a difference. And so there's not just one place to make changes. We have the whole session, we have the Budget.

And, so, our State of the State is confined to really just top issues that we can address there. But there's a whole book of reforms plus the legislative session. So we're always looking to make it a better experience for, not just the incarcerated community, but the people who go to work every day.

And it's hard, hard work, those correction officers do. And I'm trying to recruit more to take some of the burden off of them so they don't have to put in the overtime. I need to build up that workforce, and I think once we can do that, that'd be a major reform right there.

The stress would drop dramatically when people can just work a normal shift and not be exhausted after working multiple shifts as well. That was part of the problem we had last year.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Have you reviewed any of the HALT Committee's suggestions and are you committed to some adjustments to the HALT Act?

Governor Hochul: We're looking at everything, and those recommendations were important to me and I'm looking forward to talking to the Legislative leaders about that.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: The governor's race — how are you feeling about reelection?

Governor Hochul: Really good. Really good.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Yeah.

Governor Hochul: We're working hard. We have an incredible record focusing on public safety and affordability, and even initiatives like taking cell phones out of classrooms. Something like that could have happened for years and no one had the courage to stand up and take on the special interest that didn't want us to, and we did it.

Now we're going after other drivers of costs for people. Why are car insurance rates the highest in the nation here in New York? We're coming after that and it's taken on some powerful interests as well.

But New Yorkers deserve a fighter. I've got the record of accomplishment, but I've got the fight in me to go the distance. And there's a lot of things coming out of Washington as well. I have to stand up and fight the Trump administration, literally daily, to restore money for child care — $3.8 billion they took out of our child care funding and family support systems.

And I can't tell you the number of times we're having to go to court to say, “That money was allocated by Congress. It's supposed to come here.”

So, I'm up for the fight. I'm a scrappy street fighter from Buffalo, and I say bring it on. It's like getting ready for my Super Bowl. I always get up for the big game.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Speaking of Super Bowl.

Governor Hochul: Yes.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Pizza. You were just able to visit a former employee of yours, the Varsity, for a special recognition. What was that visit like?

Governor Hochul: 100th anniversary of the Varsity Pizzeria in the college campus. I worked there as a student and I know how to make pizzas, but it was fun to be there.

And they also, we worked together to make something really special, which was a pizza that says “Go Bills” spelled out by the pepperoni. So very creative people here in Syracuse, but it was a great homecoming.

Anytime I'm back in Syracuse, I feel a great connection to my past. But after today's groundbreaking, I also feel a great connection to an incredible future that's awaiting this area.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: A great point to end on. Governor, thanks for the time today.

Governor Hochul: All right, thank you. Take care.

Andrew Donovan, WSYR: Appreciate it.