State Senators Ask Gov. Hochul to Commute Sentence of Man Who Spent Over 800 Days in Rikers
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting

State Senators Ask Gov. Hochul to Commute Sentence of Man Who Spent Over 800 Days in Rikers

Reginald Randolph is currently serving a two to four year sentence in state prison for stealing cold medicine.

Westchester Hospital Network To Shift Thousands of Retirees to Private Health Insurance
Health, Labor, New York State, Reporting

Westchester Hospital Network To Shift Thousands of Retirees to Private Health Insurance

Three days before the deadline to opt out of a new health insurance plan, Westchester retirees still don’t know what’s in it....
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New York Utilities Polarize Over Push to Ban Natural Gas
Climate and Environment, New York City, Reporting

New York Utilities Polarize Over Push to Ban Natural Gas

A proposed gas ban has pitted ConEd against big oil, real estate lobbyists, and other investor-owned utilities....
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Foreclosure Looms for Homeowners Who Thought They’d Won, Thanks to Top New York Court Ruling
Housing, New York State, Reporting

Foreclosure Looms for Homeowners Who Thought They’d Won, Thanks to Top New York Court Ruling

The Court of Appeals found in favor of banks that complained cases were dropped on technicalities. Now homeowners across the state are bracing for new attempts to take away their homes....
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A Homeless Amazon Worker Tried to Organize a Union. Then Amazon Fired Him.
Labor, New York City, Reporting
A Homeless Amazon Worker Tried to Organize a Union. Then Amazon Fired Him.
Daequan Smith loved working at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island. After he started organizing with the Amazon Labor Union, he found himself out of a job....

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As Utility Shutoff Freeze Nears End, New Yorkers in Debt Fear Shutoffs
Budget, Housing, New York State, Reporting
As Utility Shutoff Freeze Nears End, New Yorkers in Debt Fear Shutoffs
Millions of New Yorkers are behind on their utility bills, and advocates say the state is doing a poor job distributing federal assistance....

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NYC Could Ban Gas in New Buildings This Year
Climate and Environment, Housing, New York City, Reporting
NYC Could Ban Gas in New Buildings This Year
The fight heated up at a hearing Wednesday, with debate centered on when, not if, a gas ban should go into effect....

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7,000 New Yorkers Need a Kidney. New Legislation Could Make it Easier to Donate.
Health, New York State, Reporting
7,000 New Yorkers Need a Kidney. New Legislation Could Make it Easier to Donate.
Two bills to incentivize kidney donations could save hundreds of lives a year – but supporters say it’s tough to get the legislature to prioritize the issue....

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State Senators, including Democratic #2, ask Hochul to Nominate Public Defender to New York’s Top Court
New York State, Reporting
State Senators, including Democratic #2, ask Hochul to Nominate Public Defender to New York’s Top Court
A 2021 retirement offers Hochul her first chance to shape New York’s Court of Appeals. Her pick will be an early indication of her ideological commitments, Senator Michael Gianaris said....

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Retired City Workers Voice Opposition to New City Health Plan in Chaotic Public Hearing
Budget, Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Retired City Workers Voice Opposition to New City Health Plan in Chaotic Public Hearing
More than 50 retirees said they opposed the plan. Zero said they supported it....

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“The Worst Prison in New York State”
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
“The Worst Prison in New York State”
The situation at Rikers is bad, but at Great Meadow Correctional Facility, a maximum security facility more than 200 miles north of New York City, it’s worse....

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Buffalo Nurses’ Successful Strike Highlights Union Divide and Doubts over New Staffing Law
Health, Labor, New York State, Reporting
Buffalo Nurses’ Successful Strike Highlights Union Divide and Doubts over New Staffing Law
The union’s focus on direct action reflects skepticism that an incoming staffing law will significantly increase staffing ratios....

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Rochester Looks to Renew 485-a Tax Break Before Critics Take Office
Electoral Politics, Housing, New York State, Reporting
Rochester Looks to Renew 485-a Tax Break Before Critics Take Office
Two progressive organizers opposed to the 485-a program just won City Council races but won't take their seats until next year. Mayor Lovely Warren has directed the Council to vote on the renewal this...

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A Year After Reforms were Promised, People Leaving New York Jails and Prisons Still Lack IDs
Criminal Justice, New York City, New York State, Reporting
A Year After Reforms were Promised, People Leaving New York Jails and Prisons Still Lack IDs
Reentering society without ID makes jobs and apartments almost impossible to get. Still, many people leaving prison lack the essential paperwork....

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Homeless Man Spent Over 800 Days in Rikers After Stealing Cold Medicine from Duane Reade
Criminal Justice, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Homeless Man Spent Over 800 Days in Rikers After Stealing Cold Medicine from Duane Reade
Blind in one eye and at risk of losing vision in the other, 58-year-old Reginald Randolph has spent much of the past three years in jail. Now he's on the verge of being sent to state prison for four m...

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Charges Filed Against Andrew Cuomo for Forcible Touching
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Charges Filed Against Andrew Cuomo for Forcible Touching
The Albany Criminal Court issued a criminal summons charging Cuomo with a Class A misdemeanor....

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Nine Years after Sandy, Cuomo’s Flagship Community-Led Climate Adaptation Program has Disappeared into a ‘Black Hole’
Climate and Environment, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Nine Years after Sandy, Cuomo’s Flagship Community-Led Climate Adaptation Program has Disappeared into a ‘Black Hole’
With $750 million from the federal government, Albany asked New Yorkers in 2013 to decide how to protect their communities from future storms. Planning participants say their projects have stalled....

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As Water Shutoff Moratorium Nears Expiration, Hochul Administration Isn’t Enforcing It — or Distributing Federal Water Aid
Climate and Environment, Housing, New York State, Reporting
As Water Shutoff Moratorium Nears Expiration, Hochul Administration Isn’t Enforcing It — or Distributing Federal Water Aid
The moratorium expires in December. But New York hasn’t distributed a single dollar of the $70 million of federal water assistance....

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Disabled and Abandoned in New York’s Prisons
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Disabled and Abandoned in New York’s Prisons
Incarcerated people with disabilities detail a labyrinth of humiliations in prison....

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Court Blocks Controversial Medicare Switch for Retired NYC Workers
Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Court Blocks Controversial Medicare Switch for Retired NYC Workers
A judge’s decision delays the Oct. 31 deadline for former city employees to decide whether they want to move to private Medicare Advantage or pay for alternatives....

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Illegal Evictions Are Rising Across The State, But Landlords Rarely Face Consequences
Criminal Justice, Housing, New York State, Reporting
Illegal Evictions Are Rising Across The State, But Landlords Rarely Face Consequences
There’s a growing trend of landlords changing locks and shutting off utilities to get tenants out without going to court, tenant organizers say....

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Retirees Flee City Medicare Program as Deadline Looms for Move to Private Health Plan
Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Retirees Flee City Medicare Program as Deadline Looms for Move to Private Health Plan
Uncertainty about coverage and costs under Medicare Advantage has a quarter million former city workers on edge. Two lawsuits seeking to block the move are slated to be heard in court Wednesday....

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Tenants Suffer As City Sells Landlords’ Tax Debt to Speculators
Housing, New York City, Reporting
Tenants Suffer As City Sells Landlords’ Tax Debt to Speculators
Critics of New York City’s tax lien sales system say it encourages landlords to evict tenants and ignore building violations....

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Legislators Push to Make Phone Calls in New York’s Jails and Prisons Free
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Legislators Push to Make Phone Calls in New York’s Jails and Prisons Free
Incarcerated New Yorkers pay some of the steepest rates for phone calls in the country, as high as $9.95 for a single 15-minute call....

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Prison Agency Resisting Oversight, Say Lawmakers and Watchdogs
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
Prison Agency Resisting Oversight, Say Lawmakers and Watchdogs
A dispute between the prison agency and the independent prison monitoring organization has left lawyers and advocates wondering whether Gov. Hochul’s commitment to transparency will extend to state ...

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Meet The New York City Taxi Drivers Protesting Outside City Hall
New York City, Perspectives, Transit
Meet The New York City Taxi Drivers Protesting Outside City Hall
Many drivers will face financial ruin if the city cannot help them refinance their debts. Below are eleven of their stories....

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New York’s Excluded Workers Fund is Running Out of Cash
Budget, Labor, New York State, Reporting
New York’s Excluded Workers Fund is Running Out of Cash
Tens of thousands of undocumented workers could be left out. Advocates are pushing to add more funds....

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Hundreds of Thousands of Co-op Residents Shut Out of State’s Rent Relief Program
Housing, New York City, New York State, Reporting
Hundreds of Thousands of Co-op Residents Shut Out of State’s Rent Relief Program
"Staff at OTDA seem to be ignoring the plain meaning of the law," said Senate Housing Committee Chair Brian Kavanagh....

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Death at Rikers: How NYC Judges Fueled the Swelling Jail Population
Criminal Justice, New York City, Reporting
Death at Rikers: How NYC Judges Fueled the Swelling Jail Population
An analysis by New York Focus and Gothamist/WNYC reveals the judges who set bail most frequently, driving up the jail population as it entered crisis....

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As Rikers Crisis Persists, Prosecutors Continue to Request High Bail
Criminal Justice, New York City, Reporting
As Rikers Crisis Persists, Prosecutors Continue to Request High Bail
"We only ask, and the court sets the bail," the president of the state prosecutors' association said....

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He Says He Was Wrongfully Convicted. His Trial Prosecutor Led The Unit That Rejected His Petition.
Criminal Justice, New York City, Reporting
He Says He Was Wrongfully Convicted. His Trial Prosecutor Led The Unit That Rejected His Petition.
Anthony Sims’ case shows the conflict of interest inherent in Conviction Review Units led by former prosecutors, critics say....

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Cab Drivers Are Drowning in Debt. The City’s Plan Won’t Help.
Labor, New York City, Perspectives, Transit
Cab Drivers Are Drowning in Debt. The City’s Plan Won’t Help.
The city's taxi agency has ignored drivers' demands and proposed a plan that the comptroller warns 'would spend more money to forgive less debt.'...

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Will ‘Blue Collar Mayor’ Adams Give City Unions What They Want?
Budget, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Will ‘Blue Collar Mayor’ Adams Give City Unions What They Want?
With deep ties to both organized labor and the city’s business elite, Mayor Eric Adams will face tough tradeoffs on union contracts....

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Senate #2 Joins Mounting Opposition to Hochul’s Pick for Top Financial Regulator
New York State, Reporting
Senate #2 Joins Mounting Opposition to Hochul’s Pick for Top Financial Regulator
Adrienne Harris has worked for over a dozen financial technology firms that Hochul would put her in charge of regulating....

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Inside New York’s Messy Push to Clean Up Concrete
Climate and Environment, New York State, Reporting
Inside New York’s Messy Push to Clean Up Concrete
If concrete production were a country, it would be the world’s third largest carbon emitter. New York legislators want to clean it up....

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Governor Hochul Promised a “New Era of Transparency.” So Far, Details are Scarce.
New York State, Reporting
Governor Hochul Promised a “New Era of Transparency.” So Far, Details are Scarce.
New York’s new leader has pledged to improve access to public records – but hasn’t yet committed to the policy reforms transparency experts say are needed....

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Why Isn’t New York Offering Paper Applications for COVID Rent Relief?
Budget, Housing, New York State, Reporting
Why Isn’t New York Offering Paper Applications for COVID Rent Relief?
The $115 million state contract for administering the program required a paper application. Without it, tenants who can’t access technology may be getting left behind....

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How New York Lets Prosecutors Off The Hook for Misconduct
Criminal Justice, New York State, Reporting
How New York Lets Prosecutors Off The Hook for Misconduct
Not a single prosecutor appeared to have been disciplined for on-the-job misconduct in 2019. Even the state prosecutors association supports reforms....

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Lessons to be learned from New York’s climate policy laboratory
Climate and Environment, New York State, Reporting
Lessons to be learned from New York’s climate policy laboratory
New York is seen as a model - but it also shows the challenges of green public-private partnerships ...

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Nobody knows it, but Bill de Blasio is America’s best climate mayor
Climate and Environment, New York City, Perspectives
Nobody knows it, but Bill de Blasio is America’s best climate mayor
And that’s still vastly short of what’s needed....

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Rikers Staffing Crisis Limits Access to Medical Care
Criminal Justice, Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Rikers Staffing Crisis Limits Access to Medical Care
With thousands of officers not coming into work, incarcerated people aren’t getting escorted to their medical appointments, a New York Focus investigation finds....

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Retired City Workers Brace for Shift to Privatized Health Care
Health, Labor, New York City, Reporting
Retired City Workers Brace for Shift to Privatized Health Care
City leaders have awarded a contract to provide city retirees private Medicare-like insurance to a corporate coalition termed “The Alliance.” Former public workers worry their coverage may change....

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Renters Powered India Walton’s Upset Win
Electoral Politics, Housing, New York State, Perspectives
Renters Powered India Walton’s Upset Win
Renters broke decisively for India Walton in Buffalo's June Democratic primary, favoring an affordable housing advocate with a tenant-centered housing platform over a developer-friendly incumbent....

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Cuomo Leaves, But a Corrupt Political Culture Remains in New York
Electoral Politics, New York State, Reporting
Cuomo Leaves, But a Corrupt Political Culture Remains in New York
The structure of state government, with its centralized power and few ethical checks, invites scandal after scandal....

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