Source: Politics<\/p>\n
With help from Shawn Ness<\/p>\n
Happening now:<\/span><\/p>\n Gov. Kathy Hochul visited the Vatican as she tours parts of Europe on the climate. HOCHUL TALKS NY IN ROME: From the Vatican\u2019s climate summit, it was as if Gov. Kathy Hochul brought all of New York State with her.<\/p>\n She talked about the disappearing shorelines on Long Island, the flooded streams and rivers upstate and the terrifying medley of freak storms that took hold during her first years as governor \u2014 storms that drowned immigrants<\/a> in basements in Queens and left Buffalo residents stranded to die around high piles of snow.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m only on the job two years,\u201d Hochul said to a crowd of dignitaries and international leaders. \u201cThink about the scale of those cataclysmic events of what it has done to our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n The Irish Catholic governor is in the midst of a multi-leg journey that plays to the core of who she is. After her visit with Pope Francis, she\u2019s jetting off to the land of her grandparents, Ireland, for an economic summit.<\/p>\n The significance of her multi-country voyage was not lost on the governor. She got up close to Pope Francis, shaking hands with the Holy Father and looking directly into his eyes.<\/p>\n The holy handshake was just one piece of a conference marked by climate discussions and meetings with global leaders. She sat side-by-side with California and Massachusetts governors Gavin Newsom and Maura Healy.<\/p>\n She met one-on-one with London Mayor Sadiq Khan, and she spoke with Italian governors from different parts of Italy, where they talked about the common crisis of housing affordability.<\/p>\n \u201cConversations were serious, and primarily focused on climate action and clean energy \u2014 though multiple conference attendees went up to the governor to tell her their kids (or other loved ones) live in Brooklyn and love it,\u201d Hochul\u2019s press secretary, Avi Small, wrote in an email.<\/p>\n The governor and other leaders also heard the Pope give his thoughts on the warming planet: \u201cAre we working for a culture of life or a culture of death?\u201d his Holiness said.<\/p>\n Hochul\u2019s speech also included the announcement of an expected $300 million in available water and climate adaptation funding.<\/p>\n \u201cLook no further than the words of Pope Francis,\u201d Hochul said during her address. \u201cHe laid out \u2014 who we need to be looking for, what God expects us to do during our time on this planet, and [how] all of us, working together, will make a better place for our children and future generations to come.\u201d \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/p>\n REEFER REVIEW: Weed may soon be considered as an agricultural crop by the state.<\/p>\n The Legislature on Wednesday passed a bill that clarified that the plant is an agricultural crop. It now awaits Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s signature. The move means that farmers who grow cannabis would have access to different tax assessments and zoning regulations.<\/p>\n \u201cCannabis is a plant, grown like any other, and it always made sense to include it as an agricultural crop in New York State law with the protections on zoning and taxation that come with it,\u201d Mack Hueber, the president of the Empire Cannabis Manufacturing Alliance,said in a statement.<\/p>\n The legislation<\/a> is sponsored by state Sen. Michelle Hinchey and Assemblymember Donna Lupardo. It passed with bipartisan support, with only three lawmakers voting against it: Long Island Democrat Sen. Monica Martinez, and Long Island Republicans Sens. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick and Mario Mattera. \u2014 Shawn Ness<\/p>\n SOME RAISE THE AGE DOLLARS, PLEASE: Both chambers of the state Legislature wanted the budget to create a Youth Justice Innovation fund and allow more counties to access \u201cRaise the Age\u201d dollars. But that idea was ultimately scrapped in the state budget.<\/p>\n Now lawmakers are making a last-minute push to pass a standalone bill<\/a> to create the fund \u2014- which would pay for local youth diversion programs \u2014 and allow cities to implement policy intended to reduce the number of people under age 18 that can be tried as an adult.<\/p>\n \u201cWe see there are individuals in New York state who are attacking this law, and it’s not fair because the law has not fully been implemented,\u201d Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages, a Long Island Democrat, said. \u201cI really hope there’s a change of hearts and minds so that we can pass it and start getting money and resources out the doors to help families and these young people.\u201d<\/p>\n A key focus of the legislation is to remove existing language that excludes New York City from accessing Raise the Age funding. The legislation currently sits in the Senate\u2019s finance committee and is awaiting an Assembly bill number assignment.<\/p>\n Solages and state Sen. Cordell Cleare are the sponsors. \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/p>\n COLUMBIA FACULTY VS. PRESIDENT: Arts and Sciences faculty at Columbia University on Thursday passed a vote of no confidence<\/a> in the schools\u2019 president, Minouche Shafik.<\/p>\n Out of the 709 professors who voted for the resolution, 65 percent expressed no confidence in Shafik, 29 percent voted against it and 6 percent abstained, according to the results.<\/p>\n The Columbia chapter of the nonprofit American Association of University Professors introduced the resolution. Nearly 900 faculty out of Columbia\u2019s more than 4,600 full-time employees were eligible to vote.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Shafik\u2019s violation of the fundamental requirements of academic freedom and shared governance, and her unprecedented assault on students\u2019 rights, warrants unequivocal and emphatic condemnation,\u201d the resolution states<\/a>.<\/p>\n The resolution is symbolic. But with the resolution, faculty members are sending a message to the institution\u2019s board of trustees \u2014 which is still backing her<\/a> \u2014 that trust in the embattled leader is waning. \u2014 Madina Tour\u00e9<\/p>\n MASTRO MEETINGS: Speaker Adrienne Adams said \u201csure\u201d she would meet with Randy Mastro, the mayor\u2019s favored nominee for corporation counsel.<\/p>\n In fact, she\u2019s tentatively scheduled to sit down with him Friday, according to people familiar with the planning.<\/p>\n \u201cWe still have no nominee on paper to speak of,\u201d Adams noted at a wide-ranging press conference today. \u201cBut sure, I wouldn\u2019t mind meeting with Randy Mastro.\u201d<\/p>\n The mayor\u2019s team has been setting up individual meetings between the would-be nominee and members, Playbook reported this morning<\/a>, in an effort to win support for the famously aggressive litigator, who has faced widespread opposition in the council. \u2014 Jeff Coltin<\/p>\n WHERE CUOMO\u2019S ETHICS LAWSUIT STANDS: The Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government says it \u201chas taken steps\u201d to ensure it can continue to operate<\/a> as a lawsuit brought by ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo continues to work its way through the courts.<\/p>\n Cuomo won an appellate decision last week<\/a> that found the commission was unconstitutionally structured. That meant that, pending a potential stay from the Court of Appeals, COELIG is blocked from enforcing ethics law.<\/p>\n It also brought back into play a lower court decision that questioned whether it could continue to exist at all to deal with subjects such as lobbying disclosure.<\/p>\n The commission\u2019s directors are asking the lower court to issue a judgment on that unsettled question, which they say will clear the way for a quick appeal and stay.<\/p>\n So now, the ball is back in Albany County Judge Thomas Marcelle\u2019s court \u2014 he\u2019ll likely need to issue a broader decision on COELIG in the coming days, then the fight will head to the Court of Appeals from there. \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/p>\n CHILD POVERTY: New York\u2019s rates of child poverty are among the worst in the nation, according to a new report<\/a> from Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.<\/p>\n And some cities have it worse than others. Albany, Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo have rates double that of their cohort cities. Between 40 and 46 percent of children in those cities are living in poverty. They also rank in the top 10 among largest cities in the country with the highest rates of child poverty.<\/p>\n The study also reiterated a previous report from Robin Hood that found<\/a> pandemic-era policies and aid greatly reduced the rates of child poverty.<\/p>\n \u201cDespite unstable economic conditions during the pandemic, child poverty dropped by half because the government expanded programs to help families and children. When these measures expired, the problem got worse,\u201d DiNapoli said in a statement.<\/p>\n The study outlined some provisions in the state budget that could help alleviate the growing problem; like the $50 million earmarked for an anti-poverty pilot program.<\/p>\n But the state is still looking for more solutions. The state\u2019s Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council is considering recommendations to cut child poverty in half by 2031. \u2014 Shawn Ness<\/p>\n ELECTRICITY COSTS: Despite an estimated increase in electricity use for the summer, the state\u2019s Public Service Commission believes that the electric grid is prepared.<\/p>\n The utility cost is also expected to be 3 percent lower compared to this time last year.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of New York is expected to experience lower energy prices this year than last year, and that is good news for residential and business customers,\u201d Commission Chair Rory Christian said in a statement. \u201cWe will continue making investments in energy efficiency and the clean-energy grid that will help us all combat climate change and further stabilize energy prices long term.\u201d<\/p>\n And to assist during a summer that is poised to be one of, if not the hottest on record, the commission announced that the state\u2019s major utility companies will not shut off users\u2019 electricity if they don\u2019t pay their utility bills. \u2014 Shawn Ness<\/p>\n HOCHUL\u2019S TURN ON TREES: The state Senate passed a bill today that would require businesses selling goods to the Empire State to prove that they don\u2019t illegally contribute to tropical deforestation, teeing the legislation up for a possible second veto from Hochul.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Hochul, who vetoed similar legislation last year<\/a>, didn\u2019t immediately respond to a request for comment. The governor vetoed last year\u2019s version of the bill over concerns it would be too burdensome on small businesses. She also expressed reservations over removing exemptions tied to the procurement of certain tropical hardwoods.<\/p>\n State Sen. Liz Krueger, the bill\u2019s sponsor, and others reintroduced the legislation this year with several changes<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have addressed the governor’s concerns as they were expressed to us,\u201d Krueger, a Democrat representing parts of New York City, said in a statement, calling Hochul\u2019s prior veto \u201ca step in the wrong direction.\u201d<\/p>\n She added: \u201cI hope that the governor \u2014 who this very day is speaking at the Vatican on the issue of climate leadership \u2014 will see this bill for what it is: an achievable, affordable, and necessary piece of critical climate legislation.”<\/p>\n This year\u2019s bill included several revisions.<\/p>\n State agencies are now allowed to be exempt from complying if they make a solicitation for covered products and don\u2019t get any offers. The bill also now exempts the MTA and Staten Island Ferry from complying with the tropical hardwood ban for five years and allows that exemption to be extended. \u2014 Allison Prang<\/p>\n TURN DOWN THE HEAT: The New York State United Teachers union brought in saunas to the state Capitol today to show lawmakers what it feels like for a student sitting in a hot classroom trying to learn. The demonstration is part of their push to pass legislation that would cap classroom temperatures<\/a> at 88 degrees.<\/p>\n The bill sponsored by state Sen. James Skoufis and Assemblymember Chris Eackus would require schools to create a plan to lower the heat in classrooms that reach 82 degrees and evacuate the space if it exceeds 88 degrees.<\/p>\n Skoufis said the demonstration today was helpful to get constituents to understand the need for a cap on temperature, and several signed on to co-sponsor the legislation.<\/p>\n Skoufis said some pushback is due to the added costs that cooling buildings could incur, but he said districts should be able to foot the bill with the large foundation aid increases in recent years.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not a nicety, this is not something where, \u2018If we find the money, it would be great if we can do this\u2019,\u201d Skoufis told Playbook. \u201cThis is something they should have had all along; this is a safety issue, and this is certainly an education issue.\u201d<\/p>\n Skoufis and Eackus are both prioritizing the legislation and speaking with leadership to find a way to pass it before session ends June 6. Skoufis noted that leadership in the Senate has been receptive to his calls to streamline the process and move the bill to the floor. \u2014 Katelyn Cordero<\/p>\n \u2014 The state\u2019s offices of Temporary and Disability Assistance and Children and Families Services have new commissioners. (State of Politics<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 Long Island communities are taking unique approaches to prepare for rising sea levels. (Newsday<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 Environmental advocates are pushing for restrictions of \u201cforever chemicals\u201d as the Legislative session comes to a close in June. (Times Union<\/a>)<\/p>\n
\n Marijuana may soon be considered a crop, officially, in New York.
\n There was a vote of no confidence against the president of Columbia University.
\n The latest on former Gov. Andrew Cuomo\u2019s fights against the state\u2019s ethics board. <\/p>\n