New York State lawmakers passed another weeklong extension for the budget Monday to ensure state operations run undisrupted and workers get paid as budget negotiations continue. As of Monday, the state budget was 10 days late.

The extension allows some 57,000 state workers to continue to collect paychecks during the budget stalemate. That includes corrections officers and employees of some state Department of Health and state Education Department facilities. (Some State University and City University of New York employees are not affected, as their fiscal year runs through the end of June).

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli made it clear recently that his office is required to withhold payments to state lawmakers after March 31 if a budget is not in place. They will not be paid until a final budget is in place. Their next payroll was scheduled for April 12.

That should provide some incentive to resolve a process that has often extended late into spring and even early summer. The budget was eight days late last year - Gov. Kathy Hochul’s first year in office.

During the Mario M. Cuomo years, late budgets were commonplace, stretching into August in 1997 and again two years later. The latest state budget in that period came in 2004, when it was 133 days late. Things improved during the early years of Andrew Cuomo until 2017, when the final budget was delayed until April 9.

We’ve learned through the years that hard compromise is made during every budget process. This year’s process is marked with disagreements over bail reform and the Governor’s affordable housing mandate. We understand that every legislator comes to Albany with a wish list from constituents and that someone will be disappointed every year.

We also realize that people who have worked hard to get elected must put that energy to work now and retain our trust. That should be incentive enough to work through this process.