Friday Morning Brief May 26, 2023

May 25

Hochul and Adams Urge Biden to Approve Work Authorization for Asylum Seekers

With the state taking in over 80,000 asylum seekers and NYC taking about 5,800 just last week, Governor Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams urged President Biden to give work authorization for asylum seekers on Monday. Hochul and Adams were joined by congressional Representatives Dan Goldman and Jerry Nadler and various labor and business leaders.

Monday’s press conference was the first time a handful of the state’s leaders banded together to urge for asylum seekers’ work authorization and on immigration, which is becoming a national and local issue in the upcoming 2024 elections. On Wednesday, in a separate show of support, thirty lawmakers signed on to Assemblymember Fahy’s letter to the President to speed up work authorization for asylum seekers. The call to give asylum seekers work authorization comes as the state and NYC seek better federal funding to provide basic necessities and housing for incoming asylum seekers, with NYC reaching capacity to house them.

Earlier this week, Adams attempted to weaken the city’s shelter requirements for the second time by asking the courts to suspend the requirements. “It is in the best interest of everyone…NYC cannot single-handily single-handedly provide care to everyone crossing our border,” said Adams in a statement on Tuesday. If the courts agree, the city can deny shelter when it lacks the necessary resources and capacity for a shelter.

On Monday, to alleviate the pressure from NYC and counties across the state, Hochul announced that she had identified three SUNY campuses to possibly house the incoming asylum seekers. SUNY Albany, SUNY Buffalo, and Stony Brook University will provide up to 1,500 beds. Although GOP lawmakers have criticized the move, Hochul assured that housing asylum seekers in SUNY campuses are temporary until August for the incoming students. On Wednesday, Hochul said she would officially announce where to house the incoming asylum seekers “very soon.”

EXECUTIVE UPDATES

In support of the state’s $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, Hochul announced ten in-person and virtual listening sessions to educate the public and attain public feedback. The Bond Act prioritizes investments in environmental justice, climate change mitigation, shoreline restoration, flood resilience, water quality, open space conservation, recreational resources, and green jobs. Five sessions have been announced, with the first to take place in Buffalo on May 30th, with additional details being finalized for two NYC locations and two virtual meetings.

Central New York: June 8, from 1 to 3 p.m., State University of New York Cortland, Corey Union Function Room
North Country: July 14, 1 to 3 p.m., North Country Community College, Sparks Athletic Complex Alumni Gymnasium
Capital Region: July 20, 1 to 3 p.m., University at Albany, Campus Center Auditorium
Lower Hudson: August 15, 1 to 3 p.m., Westchester County Center, Little Theater
Long Island: August 24, 1 to 3 p.m., Suffolk County Community College, Suffolk Credit Union Arena

Hochul publically announced the $452 million investment by Cummins Inc. on a fuel-agnostic engine platform in the state on Monday. The investment will go towards X15N, the 998,000-square-foot engine plant in Jamestown, producing engines that utilize lower carbon fuel for the state’s heavy-duty transportation sector. The new fuel-agonistic fuel engine platform will align with Cummins Inc.’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas and help reduce the state’s carbon footprint. “Cummins’ Jamestown Engine Plant is…a powerhouse investing in the forefront of technologies to help New York and the nation move forward to a more sustainable future,” explained Hochul.

Hochul joined Tuesday's Emergency Medical Services Providers Memorial Ceremony, honoring fallen EMS providers. In addition, Hochul issued two proclamations recognizing May 21st to May 27th as Emergency Medical Services Week and May 24th as Emergency Medical Services for Children Day.

Hochul joined the MTA Board Meeting on Wednesday to highlight the importance of the MTA to the state and the 2024 Budget investment in the MTA. “I want to send a clear message here: the success of the MTA is not negotiable. It has to happen. You must be successful. . .So, my commitment to the MTA is a commitment to the future of New York. It’s that simple,” explained Hochul. To watch and listen to Hochul’s remarks on the MTA, please click here.

On Wednesday, Hochul announced a $10 million initiative to advance innovative clean hydrogen research, development, and demonstration projects to help the state replace fossil-fuel usage in electrify sectors. The initiative would fund projects by state-based entities actively applying for federal clean hydrogen funding opportunities, emphasizing RD&D efforts that are most relevant and critical to advance a clean hydrogen economy in the state. This effort is in support of the state’s Climate Act goals. Applicants under the following four technical challenge areas can attain the funding:

Hydrogen applications to decarbonize industrial process heat;
Clean hydrogen production and integration with renewable energy such as solar and offshore wind;
Mitigation of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in hydrogen combustion; and
Hydrogen storage technologies, including bulk storage and storage in limited footprint areas.

Applications are available until 3:00 PM on June 28, 2023.

LEGISLATIVE/BUDGET UPDATES

2 more session weeks before the legislature adjourns until Jan.
Next week, the Legislature is scheduled to be in session Tuesday to Thursday

Universal Mail-In Voting Introduced in the Senate

Early this week, a voting rights bill was introduced into the Senate to make universal mail-in voting permanent. Universal mail-in voting was enabled during the Covid-19 pandemic but expired at the end of last year, reinstating the state’s constitutional limit on the eligibility of mail-in voters, which only allows mail-in voting for those with an illness, disability, or if traveling outside of their county of residence. “The easier we make it for people to vote, the more people will vote,” said Senator Gianaris, the bill’s sponsor.

Liquor & Wine Reforms in the Legislature

Earlier this month, a panel to review the state’s Alcohol Beverage Control Law released a report outlining 28 proposals to reform the state’s liquor laws, reinstating a debate over lawmakers’ modernizing the state’s liquor laws. Recently a bill has been introduced in the Senate that accepts 18 recommendations from the panel. In addition, another bill has been introduced in both houses of the Legislature, allowing wines to be sold in supermarkets. Lawmakers have been debating over reforming liquor laws to further support liquor production in the state and to incentive local state’s liquor and wine industry.

Rail Safety Legislation Package Passes Senate

On Tuesday, the Senate passed a rail safety legislation package after a series of derailment incidents nationwide earlier this year. Tuesday’s rail safety bills build on the $800,000 investment for ten railroad inspectors from the 2024 Budget, totaling $1.75 million for investment in rail safety. “Railroads are a vital component of our infrastructure and play a crucial role in facilitating the transportation of essential goods for our economy,” Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins explained. Bills in the package include:

To learn more about the rail safety legislation package, please click here.

Assembly To Make Lunar New Year & Diwali Formal Holidays

In a statement on Wednesday, Speaker Carl Heastie announced that the Assembly seeks to pass a bill making Lunar New Year and Diwali formal holidays in the state before the end of this year’s session. The state’s recognition of these two holidays would allow students that celebrate the holidays not to be penalized for not attending classes during the holidays. As this move would affect the school year calendar, Heastie explained that inputs from education officials are necessary before the final passage from the Assembly. This comes after NYC lawmakers voted to make Lunar New Year a school holiday for next year and Diwali already a school holiday.

Bi-Partisan Push for Anti-Bullying Bill

In a bipartisan effort, lawmakers held a rally in support of the anti-bullying “Jacobe’s Law.” The bill would require schools to notify parents or guardians when a child their student is being bullied in school. Although the bill is not expected to pass in the last few weeks of this year’s session, lawmakers still hope to garner support. “‘They don’t want to go home and tell their parents when they’re bullied, and that can turn into a tragedy,” said Senator Tedisco, the bill’s sponsor. The main opposition against the bill revolves around concerns that it would inadvertently lead to poor outcomes for vulnerable students, especially LGBTQ+ students, who could be outed to their parents without their consent. The bill was named after a 13-year-old student, Jacobe Taras, who committed suicide after he was bullied in school.

2023 LCA Show

On Tuesday night, the state’s Legislative Correspondents Association held its annual LCA show where Albany’s reporters give a humorous take to the public on the state’s politics with local business leaders and state officials, similar to the annual White House Correspondent Dinner. This year’s LCA show is titled “Everything’s Coming Up Kathy” and featured Senator Griffo for the GOP Rebuttal. Hochul also joined this year’s LCA show for her rebuttal and humorous take on this year’s session. All the proceeds from the show were sent to local charities.

NYC 2024 Budget on Agencies Budget Cuts

With the NYC 2024 Budget deadline of July 1st approaching and after ten days of agency-specific hearings on the budget, NYC lawmakers held a hearing with the Office of Management. In the hearing, lawmakers questioned the city’s Budget Director, Jacques Jiha, on Mayor Adam’s proposed 4% budget cuts for almost all city agencies. Speaker Adrienne Adams and Finance Committee Chair Justin Brannan claimed that the 4% budget cuts hamper city agencies from providing services. Jiha iterated that the budget cuts are essential and came from reducing vacant positions and reestimating program costs due to underspending. If specific agencies require more funding or staff in the future, Jiha promises to work with them as the year progress.

NYC Legislative Staffers Rally for Higher Wages

On Wednesday, the Association of Legislative Employees, the union for NYC Council legislative staffers, held a rally outside City Hall to advocate for a contract with overtime pay, a $75,000 salary floor, and overtime pay. According to the union, 45% of the NYC Council legislative staffers earn less than $55,000. Advocates claim that higher wages would solve the high-turnover rate in the City Council. “We continue to negotiate in good faith with the Association of Legislative Employees,” said the spokesperson for the City Council. This comes after the state’s legislative workers seek to unionize in both houses in Albany earlier this year.

NYC Councilmembers in the Capitol on Wednesday

NYC Lawmakers Lobby for Federal Funding for Asylum-Seekers

A delegation of NYC Councilmembers arrived in Albany to support Hochul and Mayor Adams in their effort to attain more federal funding and support for housing and basic necessities for the incoming asylum-seekers. The city lawmakers also discussed with state lawmakers of potential additional solutions to the asylum seekers crisis. City lawmakers that came to Albany were:

Nantasha Williams
Althea Stevens
Kevin Riley
Shaun Abreu
Eric Dinowitz
Pierina Sanchez
Sandy Nurse
Erik Bottcher

DA Bragg's Trump Criminal Case Trial Date Set

On Tuesday, Judge Juan Mercha, the presiding judge over Trump’s criminal case, set the trial date for March 25th, 2024. Mercha also read Trump an order limiting his public comments on the case. The trial date of March 25th of next year is also amid the GOP presidential primary. “Just had New York County Supreme Court hearing where I believe my First Amendment Rights,’ Freedom of Speech,’ have been violated, and they forced upon us a trial date of March 25th, right in the middle of Primary season,” said Trump. Last month, Trump was indicted in Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s investigation of hush money payments made in his 2016 presidential campaign, with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the state.

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