So long, state lawmakers

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Jun 22, 2023 View in browser   By Bill Mahoney and Hajah Bah Presented by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, and Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-Scarsdale, head to a meeting to work on unfinished business in Albany on June 20. | AP Photo/Hans Pennink Albany’s annual legislative session wrapped up a little before 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, when the New York state Assembly concluded a two-day return to town. The Democratic-dominated Legislature passed plenty of significant bills in recent weeks. But outside of the “Clean Slate Act” to seal more criminal records, June didn’t feature any big-ticket progressive victories that lead to celebrations in Capitol hallways — celebrations that occurred sometimes on a daily basis after Democrats assumed the majority in the state Senate in 2019. Throughout much of 2023, it felt like more energy was spent debating fixes to laws previously passed by Democrats than on new proposals. The annual fights over changing the 2019 laws on bail now regularly receive more focus during budget season than the $229 billion budget itself. Lawmakers have also spent time this year debating proposals to weaken nation-leading climate change legislation from 2019, roll back a campaign finance system they approved in 2020 and attempt to save a marijuana industry that has been flailing since they legalized the drug in 2021. Most of the big swings at the end of the session fell short. A push for a plan to provide health insurance to undocumented immigrants went nowhere in the Assembly on the final day. After rejecting a housing plan from Gov. Kathy Hochul in the budget, legislators declined to war with the governor by forcing her to veto their own plan. Some of the lack of big action is due to members being burnt out. The pandemic and Hochul’s 2021 inauguration after Andrew Cuomo’s resignation means there hasn’t been much downtime in state politics in nearly four years. And as Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie noted in a recent public appearance, this year’s month-late budget “condensed our ability to talk” on other issues. But rapid-fire action on big issues has also slowed because of the simple fact that Democrats already passed most of their long-simmering priorities in recent years. Most of what's left is more complicated. And with Republicans proving a bigger threat last November than progressive primary challengers were, some moderates are less willing to take risks on these proposals. “They’ve gotten really gun-shy on a lot of stuff, including criminal justice matters, but certainly I am just disgusted at both of the leaders for throwing in the towel on housing,” tenant advocate Mike McKee said shortly after housing talks fell apart. It’s unlikely that gun shyness will disappear when lawmakers come back to Albany in an election year next January. And with a potentially massive budget deficit on the horizon — which might force Democrats to bicker over spending cuts for the first time since they took the majority — the odds of a 2024 session where seismic progressive accomplishments return to being a weekly feature in Albany might not be terribly great. IT’S THURSDAY. WHERE’S KATHY? No public events scheduled. WHERE’S ERIC? Holding a public hearing for a bill to establish an office of healthcare accountability, hosting a Haitian clergy roundtable, delivering remarks at flag-raising ceremony for Juneteenth and hosting a LGBTQ+ Pride reception. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Unfortunately, and this is a reality, I get most of my information from Room 9 these days, and that shouldn’t be the way that we govern.” NYC Council Member Diana Ayala on the lack of communication between the mayor and the city council. A message from Uber: Uber riders have already paid $629 Million in Congestion Pricing fees while personal cars and Amazon trucks haven’t paid a cent. Even all electric Uber Green cars are charged for Congestion Pricing while gas trucks pay nothing. 14,500 Uber riders have opposed increasing fees on Ubers. Learn More.   ABOVE THE FOLD Corazon Pineda-Isaac is running in a June 27 Democratic primary against Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, who is seeking a fourth term. | Provided by the Corazon Pineda-Isaac campaign Afro-Latina council member looks to upend Yonkers mayor’s bid for fourth term, by POLITICO’s Julia Marsh: The boss-driven political machine maintains a stranglehold on local politics even though Yonkers is part of progressive firebrand Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s district and neighbors that of fellow Squad member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. But there are signs of fissures in the system this year with a deluge of bad news for Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano about his 14 relatives on the city payroll and his attempt at a so-called “double Bloomberg” in seeking a fourth term.   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 CITY HALL IS READING Swanky Brooklyn hotel averted potential crisis after hiring, lobbying top advisers to NYC Mayor Adams, by Daily News’ Chris Sommerfeldt How E-Bike Battery Fires Became a Deadly Crisis in New York City, by The New York Times’ Winnie Hu: “E-bikes and e-scooters have flooded New York City’s streets in recent years, embraced by delivery workers and commuters alike as an economical and efficient new way to get around. But even as the devices have grown in popularity to become nearly ubiquitous, the batteries inside them have made New York City an epicenter for a new kind of ferocious and fast-moving fire.” Some NYC facilities housing migrants lack something basic: showers, by Gothamist’s Arun Venugopal: “It is not clear how many of the facilities lack showers, and part of the standoff between the councilmembers and the Adams administration involves the growing number of city agencies that oversee facilities, making it harder for the council to exercise its oversight authority and to gauge at any one time the number of unsheltered people there are in the city.”   A message from Uber:   WHAT ALBANY'S READING Gun seizures soar as law enforcement collaboration deepens, by Times Union’s Brendan J. Lyons: “Hochul addressed members of the task force at Tuesday's news conference armed with data that she said show a 53 percent increase in seizures of illegal guns when comparing 2018 to last year. She also said there have been steep declines in gun violence in many New York communities and that the number of guns seized by State Police have increased more than 150 percent over the past year.” NY bill shields doctors who provide abortion pills via telehealth. Who can access them?, by Democrat & Chronicle’s David Robinson Assembly declines to vote on health coverage for 245,000 undocumented immigrants, by Buffalo News’ Chris Bragg ANOTHER EXIT: Jordan Beberman is the latest departure from the Hochul administration after spending nearly five years in the executive chamber, most recently as director of New York City intergovernmental affairs. Beberman will join one of the state’s top lobbying firms, Bolton St. Johns, as a vice president focusing on its federal practice and special projects.   SUBSCRIBE TO POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY.     The Campaign Trail DeSantis is coming to NY this month to fundraise. How will New Yorkers welcome him?, by LoHud’s Chris McKenna: “The event also will draw protestors with equally strong feelings about DeSantis. A coalition of LGBTQ advocacy and Democratic groups plans to stage a rally with speakers outside the Crowne Plaza to denounce the governor for his policies in Florida, particularly those seen as hostile to the LGBTQ community.” AROUND NEW YORK — New York Republican John Lemondes rants on the Assembly floor about coyotes. (New York Post) —  Luna Park celebrates its 120th birthday with new rides and entertainment. (PIX11) — The MTA is drowning in debt: A whopping $48 billion. (Gothamist) A message from Uber: If you own a townhouse on the Upper West Side, you don’t pay any Congestion Pricing. If you’re a renter in the Bronx you already pay $2.75 in Congestion Pricing on every Uber trip into Manhattan’s congestion zone. Over 165,000 Uber trips start in outer borough low income neighborhoods and end in Manhattan. 14,500 Uber riders have opposed increasing fees on Ubers. Learn More.   SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN HAPPY BIRTHDAY: AP’s Jill Colvin … Apple News’ Michael Falcone … Brit Hume … (was Wednesday): Charles Glazer ... Marjorie Margolies  ENGAGED — Adam Pearson, a senior associate at a private credit fund, on Friday night proposed to Christina Thompson, a correspondent for Newsmax. The couple met in freshman year at Wake Forest after they were placed on the same intramural flag football team, but didn’t start dating until senior year. He proposed on the beach in the Turks and Caicos after he “crashed” a trip she was taking with college friends. Instapics FOR YOUR RADAR — Simon & Schuster Draws Bid From Investor Backed by Abu Dhabi-Based Sovereign Fund, by WSJ’s Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg and Jessica Toonkel Real Estate NYC board votes to increase rents on 1 million rent-stabilized units by 3%, by Gothamist David Brand & Neil Mehta: “The panel of nine mayoral appointees approved increases of up to 3% on one-year leases and a more complex increase for two-year agreements, with the first year of a lease increasing by 2.75% and the second year’s rent rising by 3.2% of the previous year’s rent.”   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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