Hochul’s Housing Fail + Chief Judge Confirmed
No. 319 | Monday, April 24, 2023
The NYC Thorn is a weekly roundup of local political news compiled by members of NYC-DSA.
Local News
Governor Hochul's proposed Housing Compact, which would have allowed the state to directly upzone suburban areas if they failed to meet housing goals, is reportedly dead in the latest round of budget negotiations, meaning there will likely be no major housing reforms in the budget. Some progressives in the legislature were hoping to pair the Compact with Good Cause Eviction and a rental voucher program, but Hochul was uninterested.
Governor Hochul and legislative leaders in Albany reached a tentative deal on further changes to New York's bail reforms, removing the "least restive means" standard for pretrial detention. Hochul's insistence on changing the laws had been holding up budget negotiations for weeks.
Gotham Gazette reviewed some still-unresolved questions around climate and energy policy in Gov. Hochul's late budget, including details around the Build Public Renewables Act.
Rowan Wilson and Caitlin Halligan were each confirmed as, respectively, Chief Judge and Associate to the New York Court of Appeals, inaugurating a potential new era on the court, which has been dominated by a conservative faction. Halligan, who has spent most of her career in private practice, including representing Chevron, will likely be the swing vote on the new court.
After an outrageous Rent Guidelines Board report floated 16% rent hikes, City Council progressives are urging a rent freeze for New York City residents.
An NYPD official has quietly dropped one of several accusations of misconduct against the officers who fatally shot Kawaski Trawick, a Bronx resident, during a mental health episode in 2019. Within two minutes of entering Trawick's residence, the officers opened fire and killed him.
A Bronx judge who had been targeted by the New York Post, as well as the NYPD and Bronx prosecutors, for being fair to defendants and critical of police officers, is being removed from criminal cases.
The Adams administration intends to spend $10 million to renovate 400 out of the nearly 40,000 currently vacant rent stabilized units in the city so that low-income tenants with housing vouchers can move in.
Hell Gate explored the environmental impact of oil-burning boilers and the urgency to transition to cleaner alternatives.
Workers at the Lower East Side Trader Joe’s lost their union election in a 76-76 tie. Trader Joe’s United vowed to continue the fight to unionize the NYC locations.
Godzilla, the Prospect Park alligator, is dead.
Elections
The New York State Redistricting Commission has submitted its proposed map for Assembly districts with only minor changes to the current lines. The proposal aims to reflect the state's shifting population and demographic changes while also adhering to redistricting guidelines.
The Federal Election Commission fined former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Presidential Campaign $53,100 for accepting improper contributions during his failed bid for the 2020 nomination.
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