Prisons Are Illegally Throwing People With Disabilities Into Solitary Confinement
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting

Prisons Are Illegally Throwing People With Disabilities Into Solitary Confinement

Lawmakers banned solitary confinement for people with disabilities. But the state prison agency has crafted its own policies.

Tiffany Cabán Approves Major Astoria Housing Development, Bucking Trend Among Progressives
Housing, New York City, Reporting

Tiffany Cabán Approves Major Astoria Housing Development, Bucking Trend Among Progressives

The approval will create hundreds of units of both affordable and market rate housing and has sparked debate in progressive circles over how to approach private development.
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The Price of Private Equity’s New York Power Plant Grab
Climate and Environment, New York State, Reporting

The Price of Private Equity’s New York Power Plant Grab

After a private equity firm purchased an upstate power plant, thousands of gallons of oil spilled into Lake Ontario. It’s part of a troubling pattern.
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State Prisons Are Routinely Violating New York’s Landmark Solitary Confinement Law
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting

State Prisons Are Routinely Violating New York’s Landmark Solitary Confinement Law

Five months after a law to scale back solitary confinement went into effect, a majority of the New York prison system’s solitary population had been held there for longer than the law permits.
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Judge Frees Man From Rikers in Exceptional Decision Citing Bail and Jail Conditions
Criminal Justice, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Judge Frees Man From Rikers in Exceptional Decision Citing Bail and Jail Conditions
The ruling, which isn’t binding on other judges but will surely be noted by them, was based on the 2019 bail reform law’s requirement that judges consider defendants’ ability to afford bail.

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Adams and Unions Strike Deal on Shift to Cost-Cutting Medicare Plan
Health, Labor, New York City
Adams and Unions Strike Deal on Shift to Cost-Cutting Medicare Plan
The mayor and major city unions plan to press the City Council to clear a path for a privatized Medicare plan for retired city workers.

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Lawmakers, Judge Seek Evidence Behind Prison Package Ban
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Lawmakers, Judge Seek Evidence Behind Prison Package Ban
The prison agency has stonewalled lawmakers' requests for information justifying the policy.

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‘Heatflation’ Hits the Farmers Market
Climate and Environment, New York State, Reporting
‘Heatflation’ Hits the Farmers Market
This summer’s heat and drought have driven New York farmers’ input costs up and their yields down, straining their finances and further pushing up food prices.

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A Prison Used Solitary Confinement to Force a Trans Man to Undergo a Genital Exam, Lawsuit Alleges
Criminal Justice, Health, New York State, Reporting
A Prison Used Solitary Confinement to Force a Trans Man to Undergo a Genital Exam, Lawsuit Alleges
Prison officials had already seen his genitals three times. But the superintendent ordered a more invasive exam, the lawsuit alleges. (Note: detailed descriptions.)

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New York Lawmakers Look to Boost E-Bikes After Federal Snub
Climate and Environment, New York State, Reporting, Transit
New York Lawmakers Look to Boost E-Bikes After Federal Snub
The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act turbocharges the market for electric cars at the expense of other forms of transit. A New York bill aims to help e-bikes catch up.

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Did New York’s Chief Judge Break the Law to Pick Her Interim Successor?
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Did New York’s Chief Judge Break the Law to Pick Her Interim Successor?
Janet DiFiore may have gotten a say in picking her interim successor, boosting a judge who has never once voted against her.

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New York’s High Court Tried to Protect Parents’ Rights. Lower Courts are Ignoring It.
New York State, Reporting
New York’s High Court Tried to Protect Parents’ Rights. Lower Courts are Ignoring It.
Many judges have ignored a 2016 mandate from New York’s top court that parents must be allowed to present evidence in their defense before they lose custody of their kids.

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Distrust, Power Wrangling, and the Battle Over Rochester’s Next Public Defender
Criminal Justice, Electoral Politics, Reporting
Distrust, Power Wrangling, and the Battle Over Rochester’s Next Public Defender
The Monroe County legislature’s president, Sabrina LaMar, has denigrated public defenders and shut them out of the now-eight-month-long process to appoint the next head of their office.

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Judge Strikes Down New York Jail’s Prolonged COVID Visitation Ban
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Judge Strikes Down New York Jail’s Prolonged COVID Visitation Ban
The ban had helped the local sheriff rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars in profit from detainee video and phone call fees.

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Montefiore Health System Reshuffles Bronx Operations Ahead of Looming State Policies
Health, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Montefiore Health System Reshuffles Bronx Operations Ahead of Looming State Policies
A plan to move a family medicine clinic in a low-income Bronx neighborhood has sparked backlash from patients and staff.

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Medicare Standoff Threatens Cuts to Current City Workers’ Benefits
Budget, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Medicare Standoff Threatens Cuts to Current City Workers’ Benefits
The cancellation of a proposed cost-saving health plan after retired city workers sued could drain a special fund City Hall and unions use to pay employee benefits.

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Amazon Likely To Win Nine-Figure Tax Break To Build Western New York Warehouse
Budget, Labor, New York State, Reporting
Amazon Likely To Win Nine-Figure Tax Break To Build Western New York Warehouse
The deal has been two years in the making, but it’s been a secret for most of that time.

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Real Estate Is Funding Eric Adams’s Fifth Homeless ‘Outreach’ Initiative. What’s the End Game?
Housing, New York City, Reporting
Real Estate Is Funding Eric Adams’s Fifth Homeless ‘Outreach’ Initiative. What’s the End Game?
The partnership split homeless advocates: Some welcomed the additional dollars, arguing “more is better,” while others predicted they would function mainly to keep people off corporate property.

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Is Eric Adams About to Gut the Nation’s Most Important Local Climate Law?
Climate and Environment, Housing, Labor, New York City
Is Eric Adams About to Gut the Nation’s Most Important Local Climate Law?
Enormous pollution cuts and tens of thousands of jobs depend on how Adams implements New York City’s landmark climate law in the coming months.

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Weeks Before Heat Wave, New York’s Program to Help Poor People Stay Cool Ran Out of Money
Climate and Environment, Health, Housing, New York State, Reporting
Weeks Before Heat Wave, New York’s Program to Help Poor People Stay Cool Ran Out of Money
Heat kills hundreds of New Yorkers every summer - but health experts say a "cold weather bias" keeps policymakers from prioritizing the issue.

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Health Insurers Just Killed The Medicare Plan City Retirees Railed Against
Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Health Insurers Just Killed The Medicare Plan City Retirees Railed Against
With the plan tied up in court, insurers Elevance Health and Empire BlueCross BlueShield pulled out of a controversial deal to switch retired city workers to privately run health insurance.

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New York Judges Are Watering Down Protections Against Evictions
Housing, New York State, Reporting
New York Judges Are Watering Down Protections Against Evictions
For housing advocates, getting the legislature to expand the right to a court hearing before evictions was one thing. Getting judges to implement it is another.

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An Opening for Defendants’ Rights on New York’s Highest Court
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
An Opening for Defendants’ Rights on New York’s Highest Court
The court’s last term included a slew of cases rolling back defendants’ rights. Progressives hope to reset that trajectory.

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With Chief Judge Out, Will Conservatives Lose Control Of Top New York Court?
New York State, Reporting
With Chief Judge Out, Will Conservatives Lose Control Of Top New York Court?
Governor Hochul’s pick to replace the resigning Court of Appeals Chief Judge could break up the conservative bloc that controls the court—or entrench it.

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Eric Adams Wants to ‘Drill Into’ Complaints Against NYPD Gun Unit Trainees. So We Did.
Criminal Justice, New York City, Reporting
Eric Adams Wants to ‘Drill Into’ Complaints Against NYPD Gun Unit Trainees. So We Did.
Officers trained for the NYPD’s new Neighborhood Safety Teams average nearly double the number of substantiated civilian complaints than the NYPD as a whole.

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A New Conservative Majority on New York’s Top Court is Upending State Law
Criminal Justice, Labor, New York State, Reporting
A New Conservative Majority on New York’s Top Court is Upending State Law
A new four-judge bloc has consistently voted together in its most recent term, impacting criminal defendants, workers and people suing police.

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The Fossil Fuel Investments Driving Up ConEd Energy Bills
Climate and Environment, New York City, New York State, Reporting
The Fossil Fuel Investments Driving Up ConEd Energy Bills
ConEd wants to jack up electric bills by 10 percent, and gas by 15 percent. Here’s what that would pay for.

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We’re About to Know a Lot More About NYPD Misconduct
Criminal Justice, New York City, Reporting
We’re About to Know a Lot More About NYPD Misconduct
Two years after the repeal of a state law that kept police performance records secret, documents narrating alleged NYPD abuse are starting to become public. But it could still be years until they’re

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Forged Signatures Found on Petitions for Candidates Backed by Queens Machine
Electoral Politics, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Forged Signatures Found on Petitions for Candidates Backed by Queens Machine
New York Focus reached four voters listed as signatories who said they never signed. A review of other signatures suggests they might not be the only ones.

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Will Eric Adams Let Landlords Buy Their Way Out Of Energy Upgrades?
Climate and Environment, Housing, New York City, Reporting
Will Eric Adams Let Landlords Buy Their Way Out Of Energy Upgrades?
Recent transmission projects could enable building owners to get out of upgrading their buildings for a decade, if Adams doesn’t intervene.

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Corporate PACs Fail to Disclose Cash Behind Attacks in Primary Races
Electoral Politics, New York State, Reporting
Corporate PACs Fail to Disclose Cash Behind Attacks in Primary Races
With less than a week left before the primary, two groups boosting moderate Democratic candidates for the state legislature have not submitted disclosures required by campaign finance law.

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Robert De Niro’s Astoria Film Studio Backs Out of Promise to Hire Union Construction Workers
Labor, New York City, Reporting
Robert De Niro’s Astoria Film Studio Backs Out of Promise to Hire Union Construction Workers
“We're basically being blocked out in the process of even trying to bid on the work,” said one union leader.

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The Failure to Ban Gas in New Construction is a Bad Sign for New York’s Climate Law
Climate and Environment, Housing, New York State, Perspectives
The Failure to Ban Gas in New Construction is a Bad Sign for New York’s Climate Law
The state’s own expert council, tasked with planning the law's implementation, told the legislature to pass a gas ban this year. They were ignored.

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How Lobbyists Killed a Bill to Protect New York Elections, With An Assist from the NAACP
Electoral Politics, New York State, Reporting
How Lobbyists Killed a Bill to Protect New York Elections, With An Assist from the NAACP
New York elections could soon be more vulnerable to hacks, after lobbyists, the NAACP, and the Assembly elections committee chair teamed up to kill an election security bill.

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City Employee Health Plan Could Switch to Lower-Cost Company Under New Proposal
Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
City Employee Health Plan Could Switch to Lower-Cost Company Under New Proposal
Hundreds of thousands of city workers and their dependents could have their healthcare shifted to a cheaper plan by 2024, documents show.

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Our Group of Freelancers Took on Albany’s Byzantine Legislative Process. Here’s How We Won.
Labor, New York State, Perspectives
Our Group of Freelancers Took on Albany’s Byzantine Legislative Process. Here’s How We Won.
An organizer for the Freelance Solidarity Project describes how getting a bill passed through Albany takes “running into a brick wall repeatedly, waiting for a tiny crack to show.”

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NYPD “Business Improvement” Officers Dismantled a Homeless Encampment During a Memorial for a Dead Resident
Criminal Justice, Housing, New York City, Reporting
NYPD “Business Improvement” Officers Dismantled a Homeless Encampment During a Memorial for a Dead Resident
As part of an initiative by Mayor Eric Adams, the city has swept the encampment where Jose Hernandez would often sleep nearly 10 times this year.

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Jail Visitation Ban Drives Big Profits for Sheriff on Phone Calls
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Jail Visitation Ban Drives Big Profits for Sheriff on Phone Calls
More than two years into the pandemic, the Broome County Sheriff’s Office is still prohibiting all jail visits. That helped rake in more than half a million dollars last year.

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Electrical Workers Union Fights to Expand Fossil Fuel-Powered Crypto Mining in New York
Climate and Environment, Labor, New York State, Reporting
Electrical Workers Union Fights to Expand Fossil Fuel-Powered Crypto Mining in New York
The IBEW opposes a bill awaiting signature by Gov. Kathy Hochul that would put a moratorium on new fossil fuel power plants for the crypto industry.

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The State Police Sent You a Friend Request
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
The State Police Sent You a Friend Request
Twice this year, Kathy Hochul has ordered a State Police-run fusion center to beef up its social media monitoring. Documents show that analysts create fake accounts to do that work.

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Nursing Home Industry Cozies Up to Hochul, Disclosures Reveal
Electoral Politics, New York State, Reporting
Nursing Home Industry Cozies Up to Hochul, Disclosures Reveal
After New York Focus revealed that Hochul had failed to disclose the individuals behind corporate donations to her campaign, she provided that information for recent donors — revealing major support

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This Is Not The First Time Maloney Has Snubbed His Party, Local Democrats Recall
Electoral Politics, Reporting
This Is Not The First Time Maloney Has Snubbed His Party, Local Democrats Recall
Maloney’s announcement that he will exit his old district for a slightly safer seat alarmed Democrats—and rang a familiar bell back home.

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Hochul Stores Billions in Slush Funds, Continuing Cuomo-Era Budgeting Practices
Budget, New York State, Reporting
Hochul Stores Billions in Slush Funds, Continuing Cuomo-Era Budgeting Practices
The comptroller sounded the alarm that the budget includes $18 billion in “unnecessarily opaque” spending, most of it under Hochul’s control.

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New York Labor Bills Are Stuck in Limbo
Labor, Reporting
New York Labor Bills Are Stuck in Limbo
The Assembly Labor Committee has emerged as a bottleneck for unions’ top legislative priorities.

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