N.Y. Plan to Beef Up Financial Regulator Abandoned in Budget

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s plan to beef up the state’s financial regulator has been sidetracked by the new coronavirus crisis.

The state Senate approved the budget for the Department of Financial services on Thursday that doesn’t include Cuomo’s Jan. 8 proposal to enhance the agency’s enforcement powers and allow it to license and directly supervise the debt collection industry. The state Assembly was expected to follow suit as early as Thursday night.

Cuomo (D) has been drawn into an aggressive effort to slow the spread of Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, and the state legislature has ...