Shortly after taking office, Gov. Kathy Hochul vowed to purge her administration of any holdovers from Andrew Cuomo’s cabinet who may have been involved in unethical conduct.

That 45-grace period she granted herself ended Thursday, and while there was no big announcement, Hochul says departures have been happening since she took the reins in August. 

What You Need To Know

  • Gov. Hochul gave herself 45 days to determine which Cuomo holdovers can remain in her administration and which ones will have to leave

  • That grace period ended Thursday

  • While there was no big announcement, significant changes have been made since Hochul took over in August
  • In a surprise move, Hochul opted to keep Rick Cotton as executive director of the Port Authority, who is a Cuomo loyalist and a big supporter of the controversial AirTrain to LaGuardia

“We made changes from day one, I didn’t say they were all going to happen on day 45. I held that out as a timeline,” Hochul said. “You’ve already seen major changes in second floor. It is unrecognizable to people who are used to seeing the individuals who were there in the past. That’s what I promised, the second floor, my executive team would change.”

One of the biggest players from the Cuomo era to step away is Health Commissioner Howard Zucker, who was implicated in a scandal involving nursing home deaths from COVID-19.

But State Budget Director Rob Mujica, who was very powerful within Cuomo’s inner circle, will be staying on, at least for now. 

Larry Schwartz, a Cuomo loyalist who served as secretary to the former governor, still sits on the MTA Board. But Hochul announced Thursday that Schwartz will be departing as soon as the State Senate can convene to confirm a replacement, likely in January. 

“He offered to resign. He offered from the very beginning if I wanted to bring in a new team, and I’ve been focused on cabinet positions and other positions,” Hochul said. “I’m shifting now to board positions now. So, I thanked him for his service.” 

In another surprise move, Hochul has agreed to retain Rick Cotton as the executive director of the Port Authority. Cotton was a big booster of the $2 billion AirTrain project to LaGuardia championed by Cuomo. But Hochul now says Cotton has agreed to drop his support of the plan if Hochul wants to go in a different direction. 

“When I asked Rick to stay on because I want his vast experience and knowledge of major projects, many of which I will continue to support. But he also said he will defer to my wishes in terms of any area where I want to take a second look into evaluate. So that’s the point we are, we are working closely together,” Hochul said.

Others who will be leaving the Hochul Administration include Dr. Theodore Kastner, who is the commissioner for the Office of People with Developmental Disabilities, as well as RoAnn Destito, who is the head of Office of General Services, lesser known names, but both had close ties to the former governor.