New York this fall has the best chance in years to adopt a strong system of public financing. Done right, this new policy could increase competition and amplify the voices of small donors in elections. That is, if career politicians don’t kill it first.

Candidates who choose to participate in public financing programs receive a match in taxpayer dollars for donations they raise privately. New York City’s public financing system, in place since 1988, has helped make elections far more competitive, by helping newcomers with fresh ideas run for office.

In Albany, securing a public financing system for state elections has been harder, and proposals have languished. Advocates for public financing were hopeful when Democrats took control of the State Senate this year. But lawmakers demurred, largely over opposition in the Assembly . The state budget called for the establishment of a public financing system, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Legislature left its details and fulfillment up to a nine-member commission.

On Tuesday at 4 p.m., that commission is scheduled to hold the first of four public hearings at the Borough of Manhattan Community College in Lower Manhattan. Its final plan is due Dec. 1, and that plan will automatically become law unless the Legislature moves to block it within 20 days.