May 16, 2025

Posted On1:21 pm bypittabishop

In The News-New York State

14 Session Days Remain for 2025

With the scheduled close of New York’s 2025 legislative session four weeks away, legislators, lobbyists, and stakeholders are compiling their end-of-session “must” lists.

Bills that have worked their way through the legislative committee process, local initiatives scrambling for a home rule message, dicretionary funding for programs that did not make it into the enacted budget, proposals that are on the brink of consensus, and others that stakeholders hope stay “dead” will all be in play over the next 14 days.

During the budget negotiations, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie suggested that session should be extended 3 days because of the lateness of the spending plan. If his suggestion gets legs, those three days could either be a life-line or the longest 72 hours ever.

NY’s $25 Billion Housing Plan for 100,000 Affordable Homes Ahead of Schedule:
Over 60,000 Affordable Units Created or Preserved

Governor Kathy Hochul took to the road again this week, celebrating the success of the State’s $25 billion housing plan and unveiling a new Online Dashboard to track the plan’s progress.

Touring a new affordable housing unit in Brooklyn’s Gowanus neighborhood, where nearly 8,500 homes were “saved” by the 2024 housing deal in last year’s budget that included an extension of the 421-a completion deadline, Governor Hochul also announced that 350,000 housing units statewide have been built, preserved, or are under construction since she took office in 2021.

“Solving New York’s housing crisis comes down to one thing: putting every tool at our disposal to work building and preserving homes for New Yorkers,” she said. “That’s what my administration is committed to, and that’s why we are seeing real progress on initiatives that help people from New York City to Niagara Falls access the housing they need to thrive. The success of our Housing Plan, the enthusiasm for the Pro-Housing Communities Program, and the units we’re saving through the 421-a extension are just a few of the ways we are having a real impact on families and communities.”

In addition to the 421-a completion extension, the plan included the Pro-Housing Communities Program which allows cities, towns and villages to access up to $750 million in discretionary funding to help “unlock” more housing. To date, more than 300 municipalities across the State have become certified.

Governor Hochul indicated that the State is also creating a $100 million Pro-Housing Supply fund for certified Pro-Housing Communities to assist with infrastructure projects (such as sewer and water infrastructure upgrades) and providing $5.25 million in new grant funding to offer technical assistance to communities seeking to foster housing growth and associated municipal development.

The recently enacted FY2026 Budget includes $1.025 billion in State funding to support New York City with the State’s shared goal of adding new housing supply. Funding will support the City’s efforts to enable zoning changes and other permissive actions to further housing development through the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity program. The investments and reforms under this program are expected to create or preserve more than 80,000 new homes.

“It’s no secret that the spiraling cost of housing is crushing New Yorkers, and a key part of addressing this crisis is creating more affordable housing,” State Senator Andrew Gounardes said. “These initiatives are crucial to ensuring New York is a place where families can afford to put down roots and thrive, and though our work is far from finished, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made. We won’t stop until every New Yorker has a stable, affordable, safe place to live…”

In The News-New York City

Mayor Adams Creates New Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has established the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, a mayoral office dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all forms and keeping New Yorkers safe.

Moshe Davis was named the first Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism. Davis joined the Adams Administration in November 2022 as Jewish liaison in the Mayor’s Office of Community Affairs and manages the Administration’s Jewish Advisory Council.

According to Mayor Adams, last year, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) reported that 54 percent of all hate crimes in New York City were against Jewish New Yorkers; during the first quarter of 2025, that number rose to 62 percent, demonstrating the urgent need for this office.

This new mayoral office will immediately establish an inter-agency taskforce. The effort will include monitoring court cases and outcomes at all levels of the justice system, liaising with the New York City Law Department on appropriate cases to bring or join, advising on executive orders to issue and legislation to propose to address antisemitism.

As its first action, Executive Director Davis will form a commission of Jewish leaders from across New York City to oversee and advise on the office’s work.

Quality of Life Issues Top NYC311 Complaints

Non-emergency 311 calls have increased dramatically in New York City since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. Based on the 311 dataset, quality of life issues referred to NYPD (noise and improper use of vehicles), as well as the maintenance and condition of city public spaces (e.g., streets and sidewalks) and residences are, by far, the most frequently demanded non-emergency services.

Calls to 311 climbed to over 3.4 million in 2024, up 7% from 2023, with certain types of complaints driving the increase. Comptroller DiNapoli’s report found that just 10 of the 186 unique complaint types reviewed accounted for more than half of the total complaint volume each year from 2019 through 2024.

Specifically, Comptroller DiNapoli found:

Illegal parking complaints topped over half a million in 2024, a 155% increase since 2019. Neighborhoods like Downtown Brooklyn and Long Island City are seeing triple-digit complaint growth as residents report vehicles being double-parked or blocking fire hydrants, crosswalks, bike lanes, sidewalks, bus stops or parking for people with disabilities.

Noise complaints reached over 610,000 in 2024, a 19% increase from 2023, disproportionately affecting certain communities. The Bronx saw the highest rate per capita of noise complaints, with the Wakefield and Fordham sections most impacted.

Heat and hot water complaints rose over 246,700 in 2024, up more than 14% from 2019. The Bronx had more than 192 complaints per 1,000 residents in the Fordham, Bedford Park and Norwood sections.

To increase transparency and help the city respond to growing quality of life complaints, the Comptroller has launched the NYC311 Monitoring Tool, an interactive dashboard that will let people see service requests in their neighborhood and help identify where resources may be needed.

“New Yorkers are increasingly contacting 311 to report lack of heat and hot water, excessive street noise and illegally parked cars,” Comptroller DiNapoli said. “Our new NYC311 Monitoring Tool maps complaints and breaks down the information by neighborhood. Being able to see where complaints are heaviest by type and location should make it easier for advocates, agency officials and policymakers to identify neighborhoods that need help or where resources should be focused.”

Briefs

NYPD Begins Issuing Criminal Summonses for E-Bike Violations

The NYPD has begun issuing criminal summonses to e-bike riders who violate the City’s speeding and traffic laws, according to Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.

“We are cracking down and doing enforcement on the basic rules of the road — going too fast, running lights, going the wrong way,” Commissioner Jessica Tisch said during an interview on Fox 5’s “Good Day NY”.

“Bikes are an important transportation method, but it doesn’t work without meaningful enforcement, so they follow the basic safety rules,” she said.

Commissioner Tisch indicated that the NYPD switched to criminal court summonses because traffic tickets do not deter e-bike riders.

“They were nonsense and meaningless to e-bike riders, so we are now giving them criminal summonses for the reckless driving of e-bikes,” she said, according to published reports.

Since April 28th, police have issued 916 criminal court summonses.

SUNY Campuses Set to Launch Free Community College Program in Fall 2025

State University of New York Chancellor John King Jr. announced that SUNY campuses are prepared to implement Governor Kathy Hochul’s free community college initiative, set to begin in Fall 2025.

The program, approved in the FY25-26 budget, is designed to provide free tuition, fees, books, and supplies for adults aged 25 to 55 who do not have a college degree and wish to pursue an associate degree in high-demand fields.

SUNY Reconnect, will cover educational costs after other tuition assistance programs, such as the New York State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), have been applied. To qualify, participants must be New York State residents, aged 25 to 55 at the time of enrollment, without a college degree, and planning to study either full-time or part-time in a degree program. In order to be eligible for the program, students will enroll in high-demand fields including: Advanced manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Engineering, Technology, Nursing and allied health fields, Green and renewable energy, and Pathways to Teaching in shortage areas.

“A skilled and knowledgeable workforce is essential to New York State’s economic future,” New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said. Offering free community college to adult learners will provide a gateway to new career opportunities in high-demand fields, and feed critical workforce pipelines. I applaud the Governor for making historic investments into higher education to support these programs, and the New Yorkers who take advantage of this unprecedented opportunity.”

NYS Private Sector Employment Increases by 14,400 Jobs in April 2025

According to preliminary seasonally adjusted figures released this week by the New York State

Department of Labor, the number of private sector jobs in New York State increased over the month by 14,400, or 0.2%, to 8,471,700 in April 2025. The number of private sector jobs in the United States increased by 0.1% in April 2025.

New York State’s private sector jobs (not seasonally adjusted) increased by 85,000, or 1.0%,

over the year in April 2025, lower than the 1.2% increase in the number of private sector jobs in the United States.

The State’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held constant at 4.2% in April 2025. At the same time, New York State’s labor force (seasonally adjusted) increased by 14,600. The statewide labor force participation rate increased from 60.9% in March to 61.0% in April 2025.

Inflation Refund Checks Up to $400 Coming This Fall to 8.2 Million Households Across New York State

Governor Kathy Hochul this week announced that inflation refund checks up to $400 will be sent this Fall to 8.2 million households across New York State. Checks will be mailed directly to eligible New Yorkers starting in October and will continue through November.

According to the Governor, there is no need to apply, sign up, or do anything to receive a check.

Under the program, an individual is eligible for an inflation refund check if, for tax year 2023, the individual:

Filed Form IT-201, New York State Resident Income Tax Return;
Were not claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer’s return; and
Reported income within the qualifying thresholds below.

Joint tax filers with income up to $150,000: $400.
Joint tax filers with income over $150,000, less than $300,000: $300.
Single tax filers with income up to $75,000: $200.
Single tax filers with incomes over $75,000, less than $150,000: $150.

HHS Sec. Kennedy says cuts at 9/11 health program were a ‘mistake’

Coming Up

New York State

Monday, May 19th

Senate Housing, Construction and Community Development Meeting, 511 Legislative Office Building,

11 a.m.

Senate Consumer Protection Committee Meeting, 804 Legislative Office Building, 11:30 a.m.

Senate Energy and Telecommunication Committee Meeting, 124 Capitol, 1 p.m.

New York State Senate Session, Senate Chamber, Albany, 3 p.m.

New York State Assembly Session, Assembly Chamber, Albany, 2 p.m.

Tuesday, May 20th

Senate Local Government Committee Meeting, 904 Legislative Office Building, 10 a.m.

Senate Social Services Committee Meeting, 410 Legislative Office Building, 10 a.m.

Senate Education Committee Meeting, 510 Legislative Office Building, 10 a.m.

Senate Corporations, Authorities, and Commissions Committee Meeting, 912 Legislative Office Building, 10:30 a.m.

Senate Higher Education Committee Meeting, 124 Capitol, 10:30 a.m.

Senate Banks Committee Meeting, 710 Legislative Office Building, 10:30 a.m.

Senate Disabilities Committee Meeting, 124 Capitol, 11 a.m.

Senate Finance Committee Meeting, 124 Capitol, 11 a.m.

Senate Labor Committee Meeting, 308 Legislative Office Building, 11:30 a.m.

Senate Health Committee Meeting, 124 Capitol, 12 p.m.

Senate Judiciary Committee Meeting, 123 Capitol, 12 p.m.

Senate Cities 1 Committee Meeting, 411 Legislative Office Building, 12 p.m.

Senate Transportation Committee Meeting, 801 Legislative Office Building, 12:30 p.m.

Senate Civil Service and Pensions Meeting, 123 Capitol, 12:30 p.m.

Senate Codes Committee Meeting, 807 Legislative Office Building, 12:30 p.m.

Senate Cultural Affairs, Tourism, Parks and Recreation Committee Meeting, 123 Capitol, 12:30 p.m.

Cannabis Control Board Meeting, Community Outreach & Engagement Center, Buffalo, 1 p.m.

New York State Senate Session, Senate Chamber, Albany, 3 p.m.

New York State Assembly Session, Assembly Chamber, Albany, tbd.

Senate Women’s Issues Committee Meeting, 801 Legislative Office Building, 6:45 p.m.

Wednesday, May 21st

To evaluate the efficacy of the state’s monitoring and management of harmful algal blooms (HABs) and examine potential legislative solutions, Van Buren Hearing Room A, Legislative Office Building, 10 a.m.

Senate Mental Health Committee Meeting, 813 Legislative Office Building, 10 a.m.

Senate Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business Committee Meeting, 945 Legislative Office Building, 10:30 a.m.

New York State Senate Session, Senate Chamber, Albany, 3 p.m.

New York State Assembly Session, Assembly Chamber, Albany, tbd.

Thursday, May 15th

Senate Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Disorders Committee Meeting, 813 Legislative Office Building, 9:30 a.m.

New York State Senate Session, Senate Chamber, Albany, 11 a.m.

New York State Assembly Session, Assembly Chamber, Albany, tbd.

New York City

Monday, May 19th

Committee on Children and Youth, Council Chambers – City Hall, 10 a.m.