New York State Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt is accusing Governor Kathy Hochul of “blatant hypocrisy” after her recent plea for wealthy New Yorkers to return from Florida, contrasting it with past remarks in which she told conservatives to leave the state altogether.
At a 2022 event, Hochul said Republicans unhappy with New York’s direction should “just jump on a bus and head down to Florida where you belong… get out of town… because you don’t represent our values.”
Now, facing a shrinking tax base, Hochul has struck a markedly different tone. Speaking at a March 2026 policy forum, she said, “I need people who are high net worth to support the generous social programs that we want to have in our state… cut me the checks,” adding that supporters should “go down to Palm Beach and see who you can bring back home.”
Ortt seized on the contrast. “You can’t tell people to leave and then turn around and beg them to come back,” he said, arguing the governor’s rhetoric and policies are driving residents away while simultaneously depending on them to fund state spending.
The criticism comes amid a sustained outmigration from New York. IRS and Census-based analyses show tens of thousands of households moving south each year, including more than 51,000 households relocating from New York to Florida in a single tax year, with a net gain of over 33,000 households for Florida. More broadly, over 125,000 New Yorkers moved to Florida between 2018 and 2022, taking billions in income with them.
Tax policy remains a central issue in the debate. Florida levies no state income tax, while New York’s top rate reaches about 10.9% for high earners.
Ortt and other Republicans argue that disparity, combined with cost-of-living pressures, explains why states like Florida attract residents without “begging.” Hochul, meanwhile, has acknowledged New York is “in competition with other states” for taxpayers, even as she seeks to rebuild its eroding tax base.