Hochul Nominates Conservative for Chief Judge + NYSNA Nurses Prepare to Strike
No. 302 | Monday, December 26, 2022
The NYC Thorn is a weekly roundup of local political news compiled by members of NYC-DSA.
Local News
Governor Hochul nominated Hector LaSalle to be the next Chief Judge of the State's highest court. LaSalle was widely considered to be one of the most conservative candidates for the role. Within days of his nomination, a broad front of progressive and labor groups mobilized to oppose his confirmation, with ten Democratic senators already announcing their intent to vote "no."
The Independent Budget Office released a report that the City is on track to have a $2 billion budget surplus at the end of this fiscal year, contradicting Mayor Adams and Comptroller Lander's projections of a budget deficit and calling into question Adams's intent to cut government services.
Nurses at 12 private hospitals in the city are preparing to strike if they cannot reach an agreement on a contract.
Mayor Adams recently hired Jesse Hamilton and Diane Savino for roles in his administration, amidst Adams’s move to cut thousands of the City’s vacant municipal positions. The two are former members of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), the breakaway group of State Senate Democrats who caucused with Republicans until election losses in 2018.
Over 100,000 rent-stabilized apartments in the city have been missing from the rent stabilization system since 2019, when a law intended to close destabilization loopholes was passed. This number is separate from the tens of thousands of rent-stabilized units that are reportedly vacant, as reported by The City earlier this year.
New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) residents have not received any assistance from the State's COVID rental aid program, and half of all NYCHA tenants are behind on rent payments.
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