Politico

‘Draconian’: Arizona Dems rage after abortion ruling

lead image

With help from Shawn Ness

New from New York

Happening now:

• Gov. Kathy Hochul talks about the abortion pill.
• Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie gives a budget update.
• The effort is underway for a new anti-flavored vape bill.
• A small-scale solar industry is pushing for a new tax. 
• Democratic lawmakers want to raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy.

HOCHUL’S MIFEPRISTONE WARNING: The pending Supreme Court decision on the abortion pill mifepristone could have dire consequences for blue state voters, Gov. Kathy Hochul warned this morning on MSNBC.

Hochul’s “Morning Joe” hit represented a renewed dose of urgency Democrats are trying to impart to voters this election season as the party tries to harness concerns over abortion rights.

The governor and New York Democrats have long railed against red state measures meant to restrict access to abortion and other reproductive services. The criticism has always followed with a caveat that the state’s strong abortion laws provide a bulwark against whatever a socially conservative state might do.

After the 2021 Supreme Court decision striking down Roe v. Wade, abortion policy went back to statehouses across the country. New York and other Democratic-dominated states moved to bolster access to the procedure; officials in Republican-controlled states sought to restrict it.

But the case centering around mifepristone could be different, Hochul told the “Morning Joe” panel. The court today for 90 minutes heard arguments in a case stemming from an effort to bar access to the abortion pill; a decision is expected in June.

“If the Supreme Court doesn't overturn the decision of an unmedically trained judge in Texas, we need to understand that this is not just going to affect the red states,” Hochul said. “This is something that I will not be able to stop.”

Hochul touted the 150,000 doses of abortion medication that has been stockpiled in the state. She has also set aside $35 million to aid abortion services and people coming from outside of New York to have the procedure.

Democrats want to keep their base engaged on the abortion issue. In New York, voters this November will determine whether to add an amendment meant to enshrine a broad array of rights in the state constitution, including access to abortion.

The vote over the amendment could give Democrats a turnout boost and aid down-ballot candidates for the party along the way. The state is home to a half-dozen swing seats in the House.

“I'm going to tell you this — don't underestimate the rage of women in this country,” Hochul said in the interview.

Still, Republicans and people opposed to abortion have scoffed at the Democratic strategy to center the election around the issue. They argue it’s meant to distract voters from concerns surrounding crime, inflation and the migrant crisis in New York.

“Basically they’ve got to counter very legitimate arguments we have on public safety, let alone the quality of life concerns,” Conservative Party chairperson Gerard Kassar told Playbook.

Polls have shown voters in New York have persistent worries over crime, which Republican candidates have used effectively in elections over the last two years.

“It’s going to be incumbent on people who really understand what’s going on in New York to push back on this and she, in turn, has got to be hopeful that she can overcome what are, in my view, very serious current issues affecting people every day,” Kassar said. — Nick Reisman

HEASTIE ON THE BUDGET: Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie just gave an update on budget talks ahead of the Sunday deadline for an on-time deal.

“Sometimes in the budget, you might be in a different galaxy,” Heastie said. “I don’t know if we’re in the same country yet, but at least we’re on the same planet on most of the big issues.”

Here’s what he said on the big issues:

On housing, which is still being discussed “in the context of the budget: ” "Nothing’s settled. I think there’s a path, I think there’s an understanding. There’s a lot of pieces to the housing plan, but I’m cautiously optimistic…There is an understanding that tenant protections has to be part of anything."

On whether taxes might be raised on the rich despite Hochul’s opposition: "As I’ve always said, as long as we feel comfortable that everything that we feel is on the shopping list can be covered, I think we’ll be OK."

On social media regulation: "That’s on the table. The staff is talking about that."

On whether there will be an “examination” of school funding formulas: "I think yes, the formula hasn’t been updated in 17 years. So I do think, and particularly using census data from two censuses ago, so I think it’s only right… But we always want to make sure that the school districts have the resources they need."

On whether there will be an extender on Thursday: "I don’t think we need to deal with an extender on Thursday. We may have to deal with that on Tuesday. But if you start to say ‘extender,’ you’re admitting we can’t get it done … I don’t know if we’ll finish on Thursday, but this is the 10th budget I’m negotiating. I probably feel the most best, if that makes sense, this year than I have in any of the previous years." — Bill Mahoney

NO MORE FLAVORED VAPES: Two lawmakers want to close the loopholes that allow for retailers to sell flavored vapes four years after legislation was passed that banned the sale of flavored vapes.

“Big Tobacco owns most of the vaping companies that we've seen, and they've been trying to get kids and have been successful at getting kids hooked on vaping because of their fun flavors. They use cartoons, other advertising techniques to lure in young people,” Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal, a Manhattan Democrat, one of the bill’s sponsors said at the news conference.

Across the state, nearly 19 percent of high schoolers vaped during 2022, and 90 percent of vapers use flavored vapes.

“Every year, 46,000 people in New York state are diagnosed with tobacco-related cancers, and every year we lose another 19,000 New Yorkers to tobacco-related cancers. Despite this, the tobacco industry is seemingly still hell-bent on getting our children hooked onto their dangerous products,” state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, the Senate sponsor of the bill, said as he held up two popular vape products.

The sponsors said that when the 2020 ban was passed, they did not know how much of a challenge it would be to actually enforce it. They believe that this bill would “give teeth” to the enforcers once again.

The bill would prohibit the sale, inventory upkeep, packaging, processing and shipping of flavored vape products. — Shawn Ness

ADAMS DEFENDS AIDE: Tim Pearson, a top aide to Mayor Eric Adams, is still working after a city worker sued him for sexual harassment because he deserves due process, Adams said today.

“It’s due process. That’s the cornerstone of our country,” Adams said at a wide-ranging press conference, adding that Pearson was a first responder at the World Trade Center on 9/11, and so “is due due process.”

Other staffers haven’t gotten the same privilege as Pearson, who is a longtime personal friend of the mayor. Senior adviser Winnie Greco is being placed on unpaid leave after her homes were raided by the FBI in an apparent straw donor investigation. Greco has not been accused of any crime. Similarly, Rana Abbasova was put on leave from her International Affairs role after her home was raided, despite no charges being filed.

And this wasn’t Pearson’s first scandal — the Department of Investigation is reviewing his role in a scuffle at a migrant shelter, where eyewitnesses suggested he was the instigator.

Adams said he hasn’t spoken with Pearson since the suit was filed on Thursday.

The mayor will get no-cost representation by the city’s Law Department for the suit accusing him of sexual assault and retaliation in 1993. The city’s top lawyer, Corporation Counsel Sylvia Hinds-Radix, said her office was still determining whether Pearson and the other defendants, including NYPD Chief of Department Jeff Maddrey, will get the same.

Last month, Adams brushed off concerns about his idea to deport immigrants accused of serious crimes, saying, “They didn't give due process to the person that they shot or punched or killed.” He then backtracked and said he wasn’t trying to remove due process rights. — Jeff Coltin

SOLAR TAX BOOST PUSH: The state’s small-scale solar industry is pressing for a larger tax incentive that would also benefit people without tax liabilities.

Lawmakers, including Senate Environmental Conservation Committee Chair Pete Harckham and Assemblymember Latrice Walker, joined solar industry officials and environmental advocates pushing for inclusion of the proposal in the budget.

“There is an inequity here that folks with higher earnings can get incentives for solar,” Harckham said at a news conference.

The Senate included the measure — and several other incentives for renewable energy technologies — in its one-house budget. The bill would double the solar tax credit to $10,000 and make it refundable, as well as expand it to cover storage components. The Assembly included a proposal to exempt some storage projects from sales tax.

Walker said that the refund piece is key.

“This right here is a bill that helps out low-income families,” Walker said. “New York’s key residential solar incentive has not been accessible for those families for far too long. Making the tax credit refundable will correct that error and expand access to the benefits of solar energy for those who need it most.”

She said the Assembly prefers not to include policy in the budget, although the proposal has clear fiscal implications. The solar industry estimates the revenue impact would be about $31 million annually.

While the solar industry recently celebrated hitting 5 gigawatts of distributed solar in New York, with 1 gigawatt installed last year, installers are facing higher costs and declining incentives from NYSERDA.

“Deployment is a lagging indicator, “ said Noah Ginsburg, executive director of the New York Solar Energy Industries Association. “This is not a subsidy for our industry, it’s an incentive for homeowners.” — Marie J. French

TAX THE ULTRA-RICH: A group of Democratic lawmakers want to raise the taxes on the ultra-wealthy, roughly .3 percent of the state’s population. They also want to raise taxes for the most profitable corporations, roughly .1 percent of the state’s businesses.

“We know for a stable working class that we have to be able to have a place to live we have to have affordable transportation. We have to have education to get those jobs. We have to support our small businesses,” Assemblymember Anna Kelles said.

They lawmakers and coalitions believe that the hike would address the affordability crisis by investing the money back into health and safety programs.

“As we start wrapping up budget negotiations, we must stand strong to make billionaires and wealthy corporations pay their fair share so we can invest in our schools, build affordable housing, fully fund our hospitals, protect our environment, and uplift New York families," state Sen. Gustavo Rivera said in a statement. — Shawn Ness

HELPING CUNY STUDENTS: A New York City-based nonpartisan policy think tank is urging city and state officials to scale up programs that make it easier for CUNY students to transfer from community to four-year colleges — and eventually receive their degrees.

In a report today, the Center for an Urban Future pressed officials to expand access to academic support programs like CUNY Accelerate, Complete, Engage (ACE), which helps students earn their bachelor’s degree on time by providing them with services like academic advising, tuition scholarships, textbooks and transportation assistance.

They also called on leaders to launch a new CUNY Flex program to provide wraparound supports like a free Metrocard and advising to nontraditional students, including transfer, part-time and older students.

CUNY can also take some steps of its own, the think tank argued: create Transfer Success teams at each college to collect more data on transfer students’ experience and a new Transfer Academy to help faculty and administrators better understand transfer policies.

Though eight of every nine new community college students plan to transfer and complete at least a bachelor’s degree, only one in nine does so within six years, according to the report.

“Policymakers and elected officials need to double down on the evidence-based programs that are working to help these students — many of whom come from low-income backgrounds — successfully navigate the challenging transfer experience,” Jonathan Bowles, the think tank’s executive director, said in a statement. — Madina Touré

— An NYPD officer was fatally shot in Queens after making a vehicle stop. (Newsday)

— Rep. Jamaal Bowman contradicted his previous remarks after calling reports of Oct. 7 sexual assaults in Israel "propaganda." (POLITICO)

— The eligibility requirements for veterans to enroll in healthcare services has been expanded to include 23 new respiratory illnesses. (State of Politics)

Al Gore eulogizes his former running mate Joe Lieberman

lead image

Chuck Todd bashes NBC on air for Ronna McDaniel hire

lead image

With help from Shawn Ness

Two lawsuits that could determine the future of ethics enforcement in New York have advanced in the courts in recent weeks.

Either has the potential to send lawmakers back to the drawing board on Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature good-government accomplishment — and one could determine whether ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo will take a $5 million hit to his bank account.

Both suits involve the unique structure of the Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government that was created in Hochul’s 2022 budget. Like the oft-maligned Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) that preceded it, most of the members are chosen by the elected officials whose behavior is policed by the commission.

But Hochul added an additional twist. There’s a panel run by law school deans that needs to sign off on the appointments.

Cuomo’s case, meanwhile, came after the new commission took steps to continue a JCOPE probe into whether he used state resources to author his memoir on the pandemic. JCOPE had attempted to force him to forfeit the $5.1 million he was paid for the book.

The ex-governor argued that the commission’s structure runs afoul of separation of powers ideals — it can investigate the executive branch, but the governor has only a minority of commissioners and even those are officially appointed by the panel of deans. An Albany County judge sided with Cuomo in September and said the commission is unconstitutional.

A mid-level appellate court granted a stay that allowed the commission to continue to exist. It heard arguments in Cuomo’s case last month, and a decision could be handed down in the coming weeks.

The other lawsuit came about after the panel of deans blocked Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt’s selection of Gary Lavine on the grounds that his previous experience as a JCOPE commissioner “has negatively shaped his expectations regarding the new commission.”

Lavine argued in a suit that the state is “not allowed to delegate the confirmation power to any entity other than the Senate” based on his read of the state constitution, said Brian Ginsberg, a Harris Beach attorney representing Speaker Carl Heastie in the case.

But Ginsberg said that “hundreds of years of constitutional practice and precedence” have backed up the ability of the Legislature to hand power off to a screening commission like this one, and Lavine lost last year.

But that case is also moving forward. Final briefs were submitted to a Rochester-based appellate court last week, and oral arguments are scheduled April 8.

With the two cases on similar timetables, there’s a chance there will be conflicting appellate decisions on the commission’s constitutionality, guaranteeing that the Court of Appeals will weigh in on that subject in the near future.

And it’s a safe bet the losers will still ask the state’s top court to consider their cases even if the appellate courts come to similar conclusions. — Bill Mahoney

BLAZING A TRAIL: Hochul announced today a new online timeline in celebration of New York State Parks’ Centennial.

The timeline will be arranged by eight chronological eras, and, as of right now, the first two eras are up and running. The first two eras are “Laying the Foundation: 1850-1924,” and “Adopting The Park Plan: 1924-1929.” The rest of the installments will be added throughout the year.

“The New York State Parks Centennial is the perfect opportunity to explore the rich history of our parks and historic sites,” Hochul said in a statement. “Local leaders, philanthropists, businesses and people from across this state worked together to create a nation-leading parks system that has become one of New York’s most cherished recreational and cultural treasures.”

The program will utilize photos, illustrations, paintings, documents, archived footage and maps to tell the story of New York’s parks.

The timeline is one of five initiatives launched to celebrate the centennial of the nation’s oldest parks system. The others consist of an exhibit in the Capitol tunnel; the “Share Your Story Project;” the Centennial Challenge and the release of a merchandise collection.

“When people experience ‘Blazing A Trail,’ they will gain an understanding of the forces that shaped the park system we know and love today and a greater appreciation of this public treasure,” Randy Simons, the commissioner pro tempore of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, said in a statement. — Shawn Ness

SUBWAY SHOOTING: While ostensibly hitting the airwaves this morning to highlight a new agreement between the administration and an influential construction union, Mayor Eric Adams ended up talking a lot about a shooting on the subway yesterday afternoon, when a scuffle on a Brooklyn A train ended with one person shot in the head and in critical condition.

As subway safety has become a political hot potato as of late, Adams talked up his administration’s recent efforts to bolster NYPD ranks underground. He also called on state lawmakers to strengthen Kendra’s Law, the statute that allows officials to involuntarily commit someone deemed to be having a mental health crisis.

“At the heart of this, if you do an analysis … we are dealing with far too many people in our system that are dealing with severe mental health illnesses,” Adams told PIX 11. “And that is why our pursuit to do involuntary removal in Albany and strengthening the Kendra's law is so important right now.”

While Adams did not mention Kendra’s Law during his annual trip to Capitol earlier this year to outline the administration’s state legislative priorities, his office said he has sought for years to clarify several portions of the law that would make it easier for his administration to intervene when officials deem someone cannot care for themselves.

Meanwhile, the man who shot another man on the subway appears to have acted in self defense, prosecutors said. — Joe Anuta

TENANT PROTECTION: The Adams administration launched a multi-agency initiative today aimed at protecting New York City tenants.

The new “Tenant Protection Cabinet” will facilitate coordination across about two dozen agencies and offices to help ensure renters are connected to resources they need, boost underutilized tenant services and develop policies to make it easier for tenants to access support.

The cabinet will be co-chaired by Maria Torres-Springer, the deputy mayor for housing and Leila Bozorg, the executive director for housing

“Homes are more than brick and mortar — they are places where New Yorkers who rent can build their American Dreams. Together, this cabinet will work to deliver relief for tenants and working-class New Yorkers,” Adams said in a statement. — Janaki Chadha

LEAVE IT BLANK: Two former candidates for office in New York City and other organizers this week launched the Leave it Blank NY campaign to encourage voters to cast blank ballots in New York’s primary election in protest of President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

“Tell Biden ‘Count me out for genocide,’ submit a blank ballot on April 2nd,” the website said.

New York does not have the option of write-ins on its ballot, so the workaround is to cast blank ones.

The campaign is paid for by Hesham El-Meligy, a Democrat who ran for New York City comptroller in 2013, and Brittany Ramos DeBarros, a House candidate in Staten Island under the Working Families Party in 2022.

“As Democrats, we know how much is at stake in the upcoming general election, and are deeply concerned by the thousands and thousands of voters who we know are very upset about the fact that Biden has continued to block international efforts for a cease-fire,” DeBarros told Playbook.

DeBarros, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, warned that Biden’s position on the war in Gaza could cost Democrats in November.

“It was devastating to be on the ground in war and to watch families and people flee me and people with me out of absolute terror because of what had been a decade of war,” she said. “And when I look at the videos or the photos that I've seen in Gaza, I remember those looks that people had when fleeing or getting gunned down as they are just trying to get flour to survive or humanitarian aid.”

DeBarros hopes that in the next two weeks or so they will have an operational phone bank. She said she has talked to organizers in Minnesota who ran successful phone banks for similar campaigns and spent around $15,000, which is what she is aiming for with Leave it Blank NY.

The campaign has been modeled after ones for voters to cast their votes as “uncommitted” in places like Michigan, Minnesota, Washington and Hawaii. — Shawn Ness

MEDICAID CONCERNS: Nearly 100 patient groups and community health advocates sent a letter to Hochul demanding she address what they deem as a Medicaid funding crisis.

They are calling for her to raise the reimbursement rate for hospitals and nursing homes.

Nearly 4.2 million New Yorkers are on Medicaid. According to the NY State Alliance for Healthcare Justice, the state is paying hospitals 30 percent less than the actual cost of care and 24 percent less for nursing homes.

The push comes as lawmakers and Hochul are at odds over Medicaid funding ahead of the April 1 start of the fiscal year. Medicaid is the largest piece of the state budget when federal funding is included.

“For decades, Medicaid underpayments have created unacceptable health disparities among the vulnerable people we serve, especially in the Latino community, where we face worse health outcomes, shorter life expectancies, and higher rates of infant mortality,” Roxanne Marin, the regional director of Centro Civico in Albany, said in a statement.

The groups said Medicaid’s underfunding negatively impacts those of Black and Latino communities, in particular. — Shawn Ness

MIN WAGE LAMENT: Advocates who are pushing for a change in the state’s minimum wage law were disappointed the Democratic-led Legislature did not include a raise for tipped workers in their budget resolutions this week.

The lack of support for the provision from the state Senate and Assembly likely puts a damper on the measure being included in a final budget agreement by the end of month. But supporters are still holding out hope.

“We urge Governor Hochul to support the inclusion of the bill in the final budget,” Saru Jayaraman, the president of the One Fair Wage coalition, said in a statement. “New Yorkers deserve predictable and stable wages for their hard work.”

Business organizations have pushed back on efforts to hike the minimum wage this year, including for counties north of Westchester. The tipped wage in New York ranges from $10 cash wage plus a $5 credit for food service workers upstate to $10.65 cash wage and a $5.35 credit in the New York City area. — Nick Reisman

— Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens ranked in the top six nationally for losing the most residents to other states in 2023. (POLITICO PRO)

— Sen. Tim Kennedy got an endorsement from Attorney General Tish James for his congressional bid. (Buffalo News)

— The New York Thruway is preparing for the eclipse. (Democrat and Chronicle)

With help from Shawn Ness

Daytime TV, meet Gov. Kathy Hochul.

The governor made her first appearance on “The View” this morning, a brief respite from the ongoing scut work of the state budget negotiations in Albany.

It was a chance for her to demonstrate on the midday political gabfest her personal side to a national audience as she is also becoming an increasingly relied-upon surrogate for President Joe Biden’s reelection.

Hochul spoke about being thrust into the governor’s office following the resignation of Andrew Cuomo in 2021 and the pressure she has felt being the first woman to serve in the role.

“I knew I had to get it right. People are going to have me under a microscope,” she told the panel. “I had to be perfect in every sense of the word. I’m human, and I make mistakes.”

She revealed that she speaks with her granddaughter on FaceTime each morning while putting on makeup.

“She thinks her grandmother is a makeup artist,” Hochul joked.

But the appearance on “The View” coincides with the broader duties the governor is taking on over the last several months.

Hochul has sought to claim a bigger role in the nation’s political story: helping Biden on national TV talk shows and working to build up the infrastructure of the Democratic Party in New York in order to aid down-ballot House candidates running in key swing seats this year.

But it doesn’t mean “The View” panelists skip over the metro section.

Hochul was pressed (as much as one can be pressed in the show’s largely friendly confines) about the migrant crisis and the escalating costs for the state and city. She once again blamed House Republicans for rejecting a Senate border security plan.

“We’re doing the best we can to manage the influx, get people housing,” she said. “It’s very expensive.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, who briefly spoke with Hochul when she attended State of the Union last week, challenged Hochul to support his immigration legislation.

“She refused to support my bill, which would actually secure the border,” he told Playbook.

And questions over the state’s bail laws have remained stubbornly persistent no matter how many times Hochul points to measures in which she has expanded circumstances that cash bail is required in criminal cases. "The View" was no different, and the governor said she won changes by holding up the budget last year.

“I held the budget up one-month late,” she said. “Last year, I held up the budget; I got the changes I needed. Judges have discretion.”

And the governor defended her decision to deploy National Guard and State Police personnel to New York City subway stations as necessary psychological reinforcement to get people back on mass transit.

“My job is to keep people safe,” she said. “People are saying thank you for taking such strong actions.”

But panelist Whoopi Goldberg, who had stayed largely silent during the two blocks Hochul was on the show, ended the conversation by railing against the coming congestion pricing tolls for Manhattan.

“You can’t get to Broadway unless you leave the day before,” Goldberg said. “This is a huge deal. I can afford it. But a lot of my friends who left because they can’t afford to live here, can’t.”

The show ended before Hochul could respond, but she told Goldberg she’s willing to talk more with her about it. — Nick Reisman

INSULIN COPAYS: After the Senate and Assembly released their one-house budgets, some lawmakers are celebrating the inclusion of the elimination of insulin copays. They are urging that the measure makes it into the final budget deal.

“If we have money to pay for a new Buffalo Bills stadium and an expansion of Madison Square Garden, we have the money for this,” Assemblymember Marcela Mitaynes, a Brooklyn Democrat, said.

Insulin can cost on average $1,000 a month for those living with diabetes who do not have insurance. For those with insurance, it can cost anywhere between $20 and $50 a month.

An estimated 1.5 million New Yorkers live with diabetes and 34 million nationally. Twenty-five states and D.C. have put a cap on insulin copays.

“In New York, we're at a crossroads in healthcare. Amidst our skyscrapers and million dollar homes, there are individuals, neighbors, friends, coworkers, people who are forced to make unthinkable choices between life-sustaining medication and financial stability,” Assemblymember Phara Souffrant Forrest, a Brooklyn Democrat and nurse, said at a news conference today.

“Nowhere is this more visible than in the ongoing crisis surrounding the cost of insulin.” — Shawn Ness

SPEAKER SPEAKS ON THE BUDGET: Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said today that “hope springs eternal” for the possibility of getting a budget passed by the March 31 deadline. This year’s timing is complicated by the fact that Easter falls on the due date, meaning members are aiming to wrap everything up by Thursday, March 28.

“We have 15 days,” Heastie said. “You can look at it both ways: As Yogi Berra used to say, ‘It’s getting late early.’ Or you could say, ‘15 days in Albany time is a lifetime.’”

The Assembly and Senate released their one-house budget plans this week, jumpstarting final negotiations. Heastie reminded reporters at the Capitol today that his house’s long-standing policy is to “shy away from things that are more policy-related in the budget.”

But he’s hopeful the budget can include a deal to improve the state’s housing laws.

“REBNY and the unions have to come to a wage deal,” Heastie said. “If they can come to a wage deal, then I think the other elements can be discussed.”

He’s not concerned that the Assembly’s plan to raise taxes on high earners might drive people out of New York.

“Since we’re so worried about people living in New Jersey and working in New York … let’s hurry up and get to a deal on housing affordability,” the speaker said. — Bill Mahoney

MIGRANT PLANNING: Council Speaker Adrienne Adams announced this afternoon that the city’s legislative body would pitch into the massive effort to support migrants by helping with coordination.

The so-called New Arrivals Strategy Team will be spearheaded by government and nonprofit leaders and “recommend policies to stabilize new arrivals and identify lasting structural solutions that facilitate their path to self-sufficiency,” Adams said as part of her State of the City speech, delivered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

“This new migration can benefit our city, but more intentional planning is needed,” Adams said.

Other council members, including Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala, have criticized Mayor Eric Adams’ administration for continuing to manage the migrant crisis in a sort of “emergency mode,” even nearly two years after the first buses from the southern border began arriving.

Tonight, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso will make a separate migrant-related announcement in his State of the Borough address, launching a work authorization application help center in conjunction with the mayor’s office, Playbook reported. — Emily Ngo

EARLY CHILDHOOD PUSH: Speaker Adams also signaled her plans to make 3K and early childhood education programs a priority in budget negotiations amid the mayor’s proposed cuts.

Citing a lack of affordable child care options and a “weakened 3K system,” she lamented the growing number of working and middle-class families who feel they can no longer afford the Big Apple. She called on the city and state to increase investments in programs financed by sunsetting Covid-19 federal stimulus funding.

“Now is the time to renew our promise to New Yorkers and deepen our commitment to the city’s 3K and early childhood education programs,” Adams said during her State of the City address. “Our children need us.”

Adams is also partnering with District Council 37, the city’s largest municipal union, to announce an initiative that will create pathways to careers and jobs in city government.

Other education proposals from the council speaker: 

• Examine sexual health education and whether recommendations from a 2018 task force have been implemented. 
• Consider legislation requiring the city conduct an education and outreach campaign in collaboration with young people.
• Introduce new laws obliging the city to offer peer-to-peer mental health training for students. — Madina Touré

TENANT PROTECTIONS: Senate and Assembly Democrats are advocating for right to counsel legislation to provide tenants facing eviction with an attorney to fight for them.

The Right to Council coalition members are asking for $260 million to fund the program and expand it to include tenants who are above the income threshold for qualification.

“If they've got an attorney, they're far more likely to win and to be able to stay in their homes. We also know if they have access to an attorney, they're more likely to challenge an eviction rather than just self evict,” Syracuse Sen. Rachel May, the bill’s sponsor, said at a news conference this afternoon.

“And for all of these reasons, we've got to get this done this year in the budget and get the money to make sure that we can have the attorneys and the support that tenants need to stay in their homes.”

Syracuse has the second highest child poverty rates in the country, and it is harder to find an apartment in Syracuse than it is in New York City, she said.

The coalition estimated it would provide legal representation to 46,000 families across the state facing eviction, decrease eviction filings by 19 percent, and default evictions to decrease by 32 percent.

“When we talk about housing, it's not just about shelter, it's about stability. It's about dignity. It's about having the essence of a home. It's about making sure that individuals and families facing eviction and other housing related legal issues have a path to address it,” Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, a Long Island Democrat, said. — Shawn Ness

GAS BATTLE REDO: The need to reduce emissions from the state’s natural gas system — which heats 60 percent of homes — is set to divide Senate and Assembly Democrats once again.

Last year, lawmakers and Hochul ultimately cut a deal to enact nation-leading limits on fossil fuel combustion in new buildings that begin to take effect in 2026. This year, Senate Democrats and Hochul want to take another sweeping step to enable the state’s utility regulator to limit expansions of the gas system further and even, in future years, begin dismantling sections of it.

While a majority of Assembly Democrats support the legislative measure dubbed “NY HEAT,” those more expansive provisions were excluded from the one-house budget proposal.

But Assembly Democratic leadership did officially signal openness to a smaller step: ending subsidies for new gas hookups.

The conference is “exploring” that idea, a summary of the Assembly’s budget position posted before sunrise states. “Any resulting proposal would include strong labor standards and protections and workforce development programs to train, retrain, and transition the fossil-fuel workforce.”

The Assembly also proposed $200 million aimed at keeping utility bills below 6 percent of income for low-income ratepayers. “We want to deal with the heating costs, the cost is an issue for low wage earners,” he said.

Heastie said the other components of the NY HEAT Act weren’t included because they’re considered policy.

That’s not enough to satisfy environmental advocates, who see a need to end the “obligation to serve” new gas customers and more flexibility for the Public Service Commission to regulate gas utility expansion and mandate additional steps as essential. The state’s climate plan also backs such changes.

“The real driver of the gas rates is the maintenance and replacement of old gas mains,” said Jessica Azulay, executive director Alliance for a Green Energy Economy. Addressing the obligation to serve is “also the key to allowing gas utilities to plan their system.”

The broader proposal to potentially enable the PSC to downsize the gas system and block existing buildings using propane or other fuels from hooking up faces opposition from some gas utilities, labor unions and business groups.

Sen. Liz Krueger, who sponsors the measure, after a rally at which advocates chanted “HEAT Act now, Heastie,” said she’d like to get the whole measure in the budget, but that passing it afterward was also an option given growing support in the Assembly. — Marie J. French

SENATE AIMS TO BLOCK LEGAL REIMBURSEMENTS: The Senate included a proposal in its one-house budget to block the state from reimbursing campaign committees for some legal defense fees.

Current law says taxpayers will reimburse office holders for their legal defenses after an acquittal on criminal charges — even if that defense was paid for with a campaign account. That law gained prominence when former Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno was reimbursed $2.4 million following a 2014 not guilty verdict. More recently, ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s campaign account received $565,000 after prosecutors dropped a forcible touching charge against him.

Cuomo’s account is expected to receive several million more from the state.

Senate Deputy Leader Mike Gianaris, who has sponsored legislation to ban this sort of reimbursement since the Bruno case, said that it might not impact the ex-governor if the language stays in the budget.

“It takes effect immediately,” he said. But “it would apply when the claim was made, so any claims that have already been made would not be subject at all.” — Bill Mahoney

— The Assembly passed a ban on CO2 fracking. They have instead recommended a new practice. (State of Politics)

— GOP Rep. Marc Molinaro is the first Republican to support Democrats' bill to create federal protections for in vitro fertilization services. (Axios)

— Adams defended the NYPD officers who beat up and tasered a migrant man holding his infant son at a migrant shelter in Queens. (Daily News)