May 8, 2024 - Kelly Young, director of agricultural development for the state Department of Agriculture and Markets, explains why the state is promoting the development of urban and community gardens.Bởi WCNY

May 8, 2024 - New York State School Boards Association Director of Governmental Relations Brian Fessler responds to the adopted state budget, including funding for schools, a study on the distribution of foundation aid, and efforts to smooth the transition to zero-emission school buses.Bởi WCNY

May 8, 2024 - Iroquois Healthcare Association Executive Vice President Kevin Kerwin and President and CEO Gary J. Fitzgerald provide an upstate perspective on the state budget's impact on health care facilities, including the increased Medicaid rates.Bởi WCNY

May 8, 2024 - New York Immigration Coalition President & CEO Murad Awawdeh talks about the state's $2.4 billion commitment to asylum seekers and discusses other funding impacting immigrants that did (and didn't) make it into the state budget.Bởi WCNY

May 7, 2024 - Defense attorney Peter Pullano, a managing partner at Tully Rinckey's Rochester Office, explains why the state's top court struck down the 2020 rape conviction of Harvey Weinstein and how the ruling impacts a future retrial.Bởi WCNY

May 7, 2024 - New York Alliance for Inclusion and Innovation President & CEO Michael Seereiter discusses proposed changes to the administration of personalized care for New Yorkers with developmental disabilities.Bởi WCNY

May 7, 2024 - We break down the housing creation and tenant protections in the state budget with State Sen. Brian Kavanagh, a Manhattan Democrat, who chairs the chamber's housing committee.Bởi WCNY

May 6, 2024 - Adam Ruder, director of NYSERDA's clean transportation group, provides an update on New York's effort to promote zero-emission school buses.Bởi WCNY

May 6, 2024 - Reinvent Albany Senior Policy Advisory Rachael Fauss provides a government watchdog perspective on how the state budget came together and what's inside it.Bởi WCNY

May 6, 2024 - A state-commissioned report found that New York's film tax credit isn't worth its $700 million price tag, but communities that host productions love the subsidy. Albany County Film Commissioner Debby Goedeke discusses what the credit means for the Capital Region and why she wants it to continue.…

May 6, 2024 - Long Term Care Community Coalition Executive Director Richard Mollot talks about federal staffing regulations for nursing homes and responds to the adopted state budget.Bởi WCNY

May 3, 2024 - We highlight New York's ongoing failure to provide adequate access to early intervention services for toddlers with Brigit Hurley, chief program officer for The Children's Agenda.Bởi WCNY

May 3, 2024 - Politico New York education reporters Katelyn Cordero and Madina Touré discuss the continuation of mayoral control of New York City schools that was approved in the budget.Bởi WCNY

May 3, 2024 - Assembly Children & Families Committee Chair Andrew Hevesi, a Queens Democrat, discusses what did (and didn't) make it into the final budget that will impact families and explains why he's unhappy with Governor Kathy Hochul's child care rhetoric.Bởi WCNY

May 3, 2024 - We examine the state's latest attempt to make the electric grid greener with Jessica Waldorf, chief of staff for the New York State Department of Public Service.Bởi WCNY

May 2, 2024 - Senate Environmental Conservation Committee Chair Pete Harckham, a Westchester County Democrat, discusses the environmental proposals that did (and didn't) make it into the final budget and outlines some priorities for the remainder of the session.Bởi WCNY

May 2, 2024 - New York Office of Mental Health Commissioner Ann Sullivan talks about the mental health portion of the state budget, including what it means for the non-profit workforce and mental health needs of kids.Bởi WCNY

May 2, 2024 - New York State Budget Director Blake Washington discusses the recently adopted state budget, including the MCO tax, financial transparency, and education aid.Bởi WCNY

May 1, 2024 - State Senator John Liu, a Queens Democrat, talks about language in the state budget designed to protect property owners against so-called squatters.Bởi WCNY

May 1, 2024 - Assembly Aging Committee Chair Ron Kim, a Queens Democrat, discusses the funding for elder services, oversight of nursing homes, and other budget issues impacting seniors.Bởi WCNY

May 1, 2024 - Assembly Banks Committee Chair Pamela Hunter, a Syracuse Democrat, makes the case for regulating the evolving "buy now, pay later" industry and discusses financial legislative goals for 2024.Bởi WCNY

April 30, 2024 - The development of New York's offshore wind portfolio was dealt a setback in April, as three projects were scrapped as the result of supply chain issues. We break down these developments, including the state's solicitation of new offshore projects, with Fred Zalcman, director of the New York Offshore Wind Alliance.…

April 30, 2024 - We consider changes to New York's alcohol laws in the state budget and unfinished business with Scott Wexler, executive director of the Empire State Restaurant and Tavern Association.Bởi WCNY

April 29, 2024 - Community Service Society of New York Vice President of Health Initiatives Elisabeth Benjamin breaks down language in the state budget designed to curtail medical debt and expand access to financial assistance from hospitals.Bởi WCNY

April 29, 2024 - We highlight a rural community outside the Capital Region that is competing for funds to expand local internet access. Schoharie County Administrator Korsah Akumfi discusses the steps being taken to realize 100 percent connectivity.Bởi WCNY

April 25, 2024 - As part of an effort to address chronic conditions with healthy foods, Democratic lawmakers are pushing for Medicaid coverage of medically tailored meals. We explore the merits of this idea with Karen Pearl, chair of the Food is Medicine Coalition and special advisor to God's Love We Deliver.…

April 25, 2024 - Is New York going to be the next leader in artificial intelligence research? State policymakers hope so. Bloomberg Government Albany reporter Zach Williams explains the state's expensive bet on "Empire AI."Bởi WCNY

April 25, 2024 - NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas discusses the state budget, including language designed to promote new home construction and increase tenant protections.Bởi WCNY

April 24, 2024 - The state's Public Service Commission has a very important role, but do New Yorker understand what's going on? We explore how to make the work of the state regulator more accessible and comprehensible with Laurie Wheelock, executive director of the Public Utility Law Project of New York.…

April 24, 2024 - As the general counsel for the Berger Commission, Mark Ustin, a healthcare regulatory lawyer and lobbyist with Farrell Fritz, has firsthand knowledge about efforts to close and merge hospitals in New York, so we have him weigh in on efforts by Democratic state lawmakers to make it more difficult to shutter facilities.…

April 24, 2024 - New York State Association of Cemeteries Legislative Director David Fleming talks about the challenge of maintaining the state's non-profit cemeteries and highlights a statewide cleanup effort.Bởi WCNY

April 24, 2024 - Assembly Higher Education Committee Chair Patricia Fahy, an Albany-area Democrat, discusses the recently adopted state budget, including tuition assistance for students and aid for public colleges and universities.Bởi WCNY

April 23, 2024 - With the Biden administration adopting new drinking water regulations for PFAS, Kate Donovan, northeast director of environmental health for the Natural Resources Defense Council, wants state policymakers to do more to limit PFAS in everyday products.Bởi WCNY

April 23, 2024 - Fiscal Policy Institute Executive Director Nathan Gusdorf weighs in on the topline spending figures in the new state budget and argues that New York could have spent more given inflation.Bởi WCNY

April 23, 2024 - Siena College Research Institute pollster Steve Greenberg talks about a new survey of New York voters, which examined the asylum seeker crisis, illegal marijuana sales, and congestion pricing.Bởi WCNY

April 23, 2024 - Albany Law professor and New York Court Watcher blog author Vin Bonventre discusses how New York Chief Judge Rowan Wilson has steered the state's top court.Bởi WCNY

April 22, 2024 - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation interim Commissioner Sean Mahar talks about his new leadership role and the short-term challenges he faces.Bởi WCNY

April 22, 2024 - We discuss parking in the Adirondack Park, as the state plans another year of reservation parking for the Adirondack Mountain Reserve. We speak with DEC Deputy Commissioner of Natural Resources Katie Petronis and interim Commissioner Sean Mahar.Bởi WCNY

April 19, 2024 - New York's pay frequency law requires manual workers get paid weekly, but the implementation of this requirement is the subject of various legal challenges, according to Jared Cook, a senior counsel for Tully Rinckey's Rochester office.Bởi WCNY

April 18, 2024 - We consider legislation requiring informed consent to screen pregnant and postpartum mothers for drugs and alcohol with the help of Jenna Lauter, policy council for the New York Civil Liberties Union, and Desseray Wright, a family defense practice policy advocate with The Bronx Defenders.…

April 18, 2024 - Assembly Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Committee Chair Phil Steck, a Capital Region Democrat, discusses his legislation to expand the types of opioid reversal agents that are widely deployed in New York.Bởi WCNY

April 18, 2024 - We talk about the importance of preserving New York's native plants with Ed Toth, director of the Mid-Atlantic Seed Bank, and Janice Wiles, co-founder of a native seeds and plant nursery in the Finger Lakes.Bởi WCNY

April 18, 2024 - Assemblymember Harry Bronson, a Rochester-area Democrat, and Maya Benattar, a licensed creative arts therapist, make the case for legislation expanding access to creative arts therapyBởi WCNY

April 17, 2024 - New York Council of School Superintendents Deputy Director Bob Lowry weighs in on the preliminary details that are emerging about state education in the budget.Bởi WCNY

April 17, 2024 - Senate Racing, Gaming & Wagering Committee Chair Joe Addabbo, a Queens Democrat, talks about the gambling landscape in New York, including the effort to issue new casino licenses, expanding sports gambling options and authorizing online casino games.Bởi WCNY

April 17, 2024 - Rewiring America New York Policy Director Michael Hernandez explains the lack of regulatory action to implement New York's transition to all-electric buildings.Bởi WCNY

April 16, 2024 - We get an update on the legal maneuvering in the corruption case against former Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin from Jon Campbell, the reporter at the Capitol for Gothamist & WNYC.Bởi WCNY

April 16, 2024 - New York marijuana farmers are operating at a loss and the industry is at risk of collapsing if the state doesn't offer financial relief, according to Joseph Calderone, co-founder and president of the Cannabis Farmers Alliance.Bởi WCNY

April 15, 2024 - Assembly Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Lavine, a Long Island Democrat, discusses the illegality of adultery in New York and why he's trying to repeal this section of the state's penal code.Bởi WCNY

April 15, 2024 - Attorney Fatima Afia, of the Rudick Law Group, talks about legislation addressing illegal marijuana retailers and explains multiple legal challenges to New York's retail marijuana regulations.Bởi WCNY