The Tropical Deforestation-Free Procurement Act would be the first in the U.S. to regulate local companies’ supply chains and require they’re free of products sourced through deforestation. But Gov. Hochul, who has until the end of the year to sign it into law, is touting a revised version that supporters say would render it ineffective.
“A crucial part of solving the housing crisis is retaining the rent-stabilized housing stock that exists. By signing S2980, S2943, S1684 and S995, Gov. Hochul would keep more rent stabilized apartments available at honest rents by landlords known to their tenants, and enable more municipalities to decide whether they want the same.”
“For mixed-status households, where at least one member of the family is not a U.S. citizen or eligible immigrant, it can be difficult—if not impossible—to access sufficient housing support.”
“Without Hochul’s swift action, New York State honeybee colonies will continue to log record losses, and 40-60 percent of the state’s native bees and other pollinators will remain at risk of disappearing.”
Citing the impact of climate change, Harlem State Sen. Cordell Cleare is pursuing legislation would make more New Yorkers eligible for the state-run Cooling Assistance Benefit, eliminating a requirement that applicants prove they have a medical condition. “An air conditioner is not a luxury anymore,” she said.
Bills aimed at helping rent stabilized tenants dig deeper into their rent histories to challenge suspicious increases sailed through the State Assembly, capping off an anticlimactic year for housing policy in Albany. One bill also amends rent regulation rules, limiting how much landlords can charge when they combine, or “frankenstein” apartments.
La administración del alcalde Eric Adams se ha embarcado en una estrategia de descompresión para liberar espacio en los refugios locales de la ciudad enviando inmigrantes a otros condados y ciudades del estado de Nueva York. En Albany, donde más de 230 inmigrantes fueron reubicados en las últimas semanas, las organizaciones comunitarias dicen que ya están al límite.
The state legislature—which officially ended its session last week, though the Assembly is expected to return briefly before the end of the month—has so far failed to pass major legislation that advocates say would have a direct impact on the state’s growing immigrant communities.
“We’re at a point where the state needs to begin adopting policies at breakneck speed to meet our climate law mandates,” said Liz Moran, New York policy advocate for Earthjustice. “So far we are headed in the right direction, but there’s still much more to do and we’re looking forward to seeing some of that leadership from the governor.”
Mayor Eric Adams’ administration has embarked on a decompression strategy to free up space in the city’s local shelters by sending immigrants to other New York State localities. In Albany, where more than 230 migrants were relocated in recent weeks, community-based organizations say they are already stretched thin.
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