| | | | |  | | By Anna Gronewold, Sally Goldenberg and Eleonora Francica | Presented by Ørsted and Eversource | The 17-member board that governs every level of education across New York is concerned about what they don’t see in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s budget proposal. First, the likes: Members of the State Education Department’s Board of Regents were quite pleased during their meeting Monday that Hochul wants to fully fund the state’s Foundation Aid formula with a record increase in education money that also will end a yearslong legal dispute. The department’s overall budget request late last year was $3.4 billion — the largest ever — and Hochul's education budget came in at $3.1 billion. The dislikes: Hochul’s budget proposal fell millions of dollars short in certain other funding streams, and it dropped requests such as for a pre-kindergarten inclusivity grant. It left out more than $2 million to redesign the state’s pre-K programs and a request to study revamping the byzantine education funding mechanism, which is now outdated after more than 15 years. Hochul’s budget proposal would also cut aid to public libraries by $3.5 million and to public library construction by $20 million. Regents expressed angst about the lack of funding for smaller ticket items such as arts programing and translation services. At a time when the state is looking at a roughly $8.7 billion surplus, those smaller items — “which make such a difference” need to be included, said Regent Aramina Vega Ferrer. Unsurprisingly, they’re all concerned about what could be a sticking point during this year’s legislative budget battle — a proposal to eliminate a geographical cap on charter schools and revive "zombie” charters, schools that were previously approved but later shut down. Commissioner Betty Rosa, who has characterized most charter spending as pulling resources away from traditional schools, said Hochul’s proposal just doesn’t make sense amid dropping enrollments. The topic is concerning to Capitol denizens outside the education department’s hallowed hall, too. While education chairs in both Senate and Assembly have both said they are unlikely to approve Hochul’s entire charter school proposal, it’s ripe for horsetrading in the final days of March before a budget agreement is due. Could the typically anti-charter Assembly agree to a half-measure, such as the zombie charter idea, if they got something in return, like an agreement to leave the bail laws alone? How hard is Hochul willing to fight for non-traditional public education? Is the wrath of the teachers union ever worth it? — Katelyn Cordero and Anna IT’S TUESDAY. Got tips, suggestions or thoughts? Let us know ... By email: agronewold@politico.com and sgoldenberg@politico.com or on Twitter: @annagronewold and @sallygold WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany with no announced public schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? In Queens making a public safety announcement with NYPD Commissioner Sewell and Queens County DA Melinda Katz.
| | | | A message from Ørsted and Eversource: New Yorkers are building an equitable clean energy industry. Learn more. | | | |  | WHAT CITY HALL IS READING | | Adams quietly creates new offices, empowering low-profile deputy mayor, by POLITICO’s Sally Goldenberg: Mayor Eric Adams often talks about reining in the city’s vast bureaucracy. At the same time, he’s created at least three new offices to get a better handle on municipal agencies — including one with wide–ranging scope under the direction of his top public safety adviser. Without any public fanfare, Adams signed a yet-to-be-reported executive order last month to designate an Office of Risk Management and Compliance that reports to City Hall attorney Brendan McGuire, and an Office of Municipal Services Assessment under Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks. “Never-released internal NYPD report cites ‘shortcomings and missteps’ in response to 2020 George Floyd protests,” by Daily News’ Rocco Parascandola: “A never-released internal NYPD report paints a damning picture of the department’s handling of the George Floyd protests in 2020 that led to days of rioting and looting across the city — finding that no single police commander was calling the shots, officers lacked ‘timely intelligence’ in the first days of the unrest, and that there was a failure to utilize highly-touted resources to better control the situation.” “Coming soon to NYC jails: Electronic surveillance, fees to text loved ones,” by WNYC’s Matt Katz: “Under a new city contract that puts electronic tablets in the hands of Rikers detainees, correction officials can surveil correspondence using keyword searches and collect fees for some messaging services, according to documents obtained by Gothamist through a public records request.” “Queens Councilwoman Vickie Paladino says NYC bicyclists should be forced to get licensed and insurance,” by Daily News’ Chris Sommerfeldt: “‘If only cyclists were required to register, display plates, and carry liability insurance ... incidents like this — which happen frequently — would have accountability,’ Paladino tweeted of the Sunday bicycle accident. ‘As cycling becomes a bigger part of our transit mix, it is crucial that accountability follow along, for the sake of everyone who must share space with these riders. Cycling can no longer be a free for all in New York City.’”
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | WHAT ALBANY'S READING | | “Can Anyone Make New York Prisons Follow Solitary Confinement Law?” by New York Focus’ Chris Gelardi: “The hearing was an urgent matter for those in prison isolation units. A smattering of agencies and organizations are tasked with keeping tabs on HALT’s implementation, but they’ve so far done little to confront the prison system over its obstinance. And Governor Kathy Hochul has been silent on the issue. For five months, her office has neglected to respond to New York Focus’s repeated inquiries. Democratic lawmakers won’t have another opportunity to publicly grill prison officials for months, as New York’s annual budget legislation dominates the legislative schedule.” “Is a state judge willing to intervene on Hector LaSalle’s nomination?” by City & State’s Rebecca C. Lewis: “In the end, Gov. Kathy Hochul did not bring a lawsuit. Instead, a lone state senator did. And while Palumbo may have standing as an individual member of the Senate deprived of his constitutional right to vote on a judicial nominee as part of the full chamber, at least one constitutional law expert said that it may make the lawsuit easier to dismiss.” — “Hochul says GOP lawsuit over chief judge nominee was 'unexpected', by NY1’s Zack Fink: “Hochul says she did not coordinate with Republicans, even though she agrees with them about a full floor vote. ‘It was unexpected to see them file a lawsuit,’ Hochul told reporters in Rochester Monday. ‘But I have said all along, I remain strongly behind the premise that the constitution of the State of New York requires the Senate consider a nomination from the Governor.’” “The rise of New York's Black political wave,” by Crain’s New York’s Ross Barkan: “The great rise of Black elected officials in New York comes with a bittersweet dimension: The actual Black population in the city is diminishing as many working- and middle-class families leave their old neighborhoods, which have long been gentrifying.” #UpstateAmerica: Good news for fishing season: DEC is boosting the Chinook salmon supply in Lake Ontario by 10 percent in 2023 to nearly 1 million.
| | | | A message from Ørsted and Eversource:   | | | | | FROM THE DELEGATION | | “NYC vetting firm eyes silver lining to George Santos lying scandal,” by New York Post’s Carl Campanile: “A vetting firm is banking on the scandal over serial-lying Rep. George Santos to drum up business, warning potential clients they don’t want to get ‘Santos’d.’ SRA Screening — a Manhattan-based background-check firm that performs criminal, court, motor vehicles and credit investigations, mostly for private firms — is launching a new social-media ad campaign saying, ‘Don’t Get SANTOS’D. Call SRA Screening Before You Hire.’ ‘Santos is the gift that keeps on giving,’ said John Sherman of SRA. ‘It’s been a remarkable story.’” | | AROUND NEW YORK | | — A coalition of clergy members is opposing Hochul’s proposed ban on menthol cigarettes. — Hochul’s proposed Medicaid spending puts her on track to increase it more than twice as fast as was typical during the Cuomo administration. — The head of the committee overseeing Staten Island’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade again denied a request from LGBTQ groups to be a part of it. — The former president of New York City Transit said the MTA can learn a lot from London’s Underground. — Wegmans Food Market is hiring more than 300 part-time positions for its new Astor Place store in lower Manhattan.
| | | | DOWNLOAD THE POLITICO MOBILE APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. The sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don’t miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. DOWNLOAD FOR iOS– DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID. | | | | | | | SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Mike Bloomberg … Carl Bernstein … Martha Raddatz … Stephen A. Schwarzman … Jeremy Robbins … Sir Martin Sorrell … University of Chicago’s Karen Anderson … Dominik Goj … Bobby Honold … Rebecca Rosen MAKING MOVES — NYC think tank 5BORO Institute opened its first office at New York Law School and has hired former City Hall staffer Tasfia Nayem as chief of staff. MEDIAWATCH — CNN’s PR team is adding Shani George as VP of comms and Molly Gannon as senior director of comms. Both were previously at WaPo.
| | | | A message from Ørsted and Eversource: What does it take to build an equitable clean energy industry?
It takes partnership.
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And partnership with the unions, schools, and community groups that are essential to delivering one of the state’s biggest infrastructure projects. | | | | | Real Estate | | “At the Domino Sugar Refinery, a Glass Egg in a Brick Shell,” by The New York Times’ Debra Kamin: “In the early 1900s, about 60 percent of the sugar consumed in America passed through the same spot — the Domino Sugar Refinery, a brick monolith squatting on the edge of the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. More than 100 years later, a sweeping redevelopment of the factory and its surrounding waterfront land is writing a second act for the space. The process hasn’t been entirely sweet.”
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