ALBANY, N.Y. - Lawmakers in New York's capital have reached a deal on a new state budget days after missing their April 1 deadline.
The State Senate began debate on the $152 billion spending plan late Tuesday night.
A final vote in the chamber is set for Wednesday and will then go to the Assembly.
The budget keeps taxes flat, raises college tuition assistance and puts $2.5 billion toward the state's water infrastructure.
It would also allow Uber and Lyft to expand into upstate cities like Albany and Buffalo.
An agreement also appears to have been reached on one major sticking point - raising the age of criminal liability in the state to 18.
New York is currently one of only two states to try 16 and 17-year-olds as adults.
Lawmakers are optimistic that the deal will be approved Wednesday.
"I’ve talked about that fact that I think this has been extremely dysfunctional. It’s gone on and on and on so I think the people of New York are expecting us to get a budget, to do our jobs, and I’m hoping we will be able to that.”
On Monday, lawmakers passed an "extender" for the previous budget, which kept the state government running through May.