Hochul Spent $2 Million on Outside Ghostwriters for State of the State Addresses: Report
NY Post | 4/15/2023 | Rich Calder

Gov. Kathy Hochul reportedly authorized payment of nearly $2 million in taxpayer money for outside ghostwriters to help draft her State of the State speeches.

Most of the money was paid to Deloitte Consulting and the Boston Consulting Group to help the state’s first female governor shape her vision, according to the New York Times.

Hochul’s office shelled out $871,000 on three outside firms to help prepare this year’s speech – with Boston Consulting Group racking up the largest amount of $838,000 for what it listed in records as “SOS support.”

Representatives for three of Hochul’s predecessors — fellow Democrats Andrew Cuomo and David Paterson and Republican George Pataki — told the outlet they never paid for outside help to prepare for the annual address typically made each January.