Jan. 29, 2025 - We check in on the state's effort to craft a master plan on aging with Adam Herbst, a former top health official in the Hochul administration and now a partner at the firm Sheppard Mullin.
Jan. 29, 2025 - New York State Office of Cannabis Management Director of Enforcement and Investigations Daniel Haughney provides an update on the state's effort to curb illicit marijuana sales, including changing regulations that expand enforcement efforts and the impact of ongoing legal challenges.
Jan. 28, 2025 - Assemblymember Alex Bores, a Manhattan Democrat, unpacks the governor's efforts to protect New Yorkers from the unintended consequences of artificial intelligence technology. Bores also discusses his legislation creating the New York Artificial Intelligence Consumer Protection Act.
Jan. 28, 2025 - State Senate Environmental Conservation Committee Chair Pete Harckham, a Westchester County Democrat, discusses the environmental portion of the governor's budget proposal (including what's missing) and provides an update on his effort to reduce single-use plastic packaging waste.
Jan. 28, 2025 - Sen. George Borrello, a Western New York Republican, shares some highlights of his conference's agenda for 2025, including making New York more affordable.
Jan. 27, 2025 - Dr. Ann Sullivan, commissioner for the New York State Office of Mental Health, talks about Gov. Kathy Hochul's budget proposal, including an effort to increase the involuntary commitment of New Yorkers and addressing parity with other forms of health care.
Jan. 27, 2025 - By April, the state is scheduled to transition the administration of a popular home care program utilized by more than a quarter of a million New Yorkers. We get an update on the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program changes from New York Association on Independent Living Executive Director Lindsay Miller and AIM Independent Living Center CEO René Snyder.
Jan. 27, 2025- New York State Thruway Authority Executive Director Frank Hoare discusses speed cameras in work zones, increased toll collection revenue in 2024, and the renovation of service plazas.
Jan 24, 2025 - New York State Budget Director Blake Washington discusses Gov. Kathy Hochul's budget proposal, including the subsidies for film productions, the pace of spending on Medicaid, and the evolving education aid philosophy.
Jan. 24, 2025 - We unpack consumer protection measures being advanced by Gov. Kathy Hochul, including overdraft fee regulations and subscription cancellation standards. Our guest is Chuck Bell, financial policy advocate for Consumer Reports.
Jan. 22, 2025 - Gov. Kathy Hochul has unveiled a $252 billion spending plan for the coming fiscal year, so we unpack the proposal with Patrick Orecki, director of state studies for the Citizens Budget Commission. We explore what is driving costs, consider the impact of changes in the federal government, and much more.
Jan. 21, 2025 - The Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission has a new home, new mandate and new leader. We explored all these moving parts with Zeryai Hagos, the group's recently tapped executive director, who explained regulations for transmission siting that came out in December.
Jan. 21, 2025 - The 2026 Winter Olympics are scheduled for Italy in about a year, but sliding events could end up being held at facilities in Lake Placid if the Italian organizers can't get their bobsled track ready. Ashley Walden, president and CEO of the state's Olympic Regional Development Authority, discusses upstate New York's potential role in next year's games and Lake Placid's potential as a proper host site.
Jan. 21, 2025 - State education officials want to increase educational opportunities for students around New York and promote operational efficiencies among school districts, so they're promoting deeper levels of regional partnerships among school districts. We discuss this effort and its rollout with Jeff Matteson, senior deputy commissioner for the State Education Department.
Jan. 21, 2025 - Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, a Queens Democrat, makes the case for the state to subsidize school meals in New York, including at the expense of more target anti-hunger initiatives.
Jan. 17, 2024 - State Sen. Zellnor Myrie, a Brooklyn Democrat and the chamber's new Codes Committee chair, discusses New York's discovery laws, including his proposal to overhaul how evidence is accessed by prosecutors and changes being pushed by Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Jan. 16, 2025 - In 2019, the state enacted a boating safety training requirement for operators of motorized watercraft, which took full effect this year. Lexi Howland, director of the marine services and recreational vehicles division for the State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, discusses the implementation of this law and boating safety more broadly.
Jan. 16, 2025 - Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins responds to the governor's State of the State address and considers what might happen as part of budget negotiations this year. Additionally, in light of the Westchester County Democrat becoming the longest serving Democratic majority leader in the chamber, we reflect on her legacy and future in the state Senate.
Jan. 15, 2025 - In more than three decades of conservation advocacy in the Adirondacks, Peter Bauer has seen the forest preserve grow, won battles at New York's top court, and shaped laws governing the Adirondack Park. In light of him stepping down as head of Protect the Adirondacks in 2024, he joined the show for an exit interview to reflect on his career, the challenges facing the Adirondacks, and the Hochul administration.
Jan. 15, 2024 - Assemblymember Robert Carroll, a Brooklyn Democrat, discusses the needs of kids with dyslexia and related disorders and how a new report addresses some of these challenges.
Jan, 14, 2024 - We get to know Bea Hanson, who took over as director of the state Office of Victim Services last spring, and discuss funding being made available to services for crime victims in New York.
Jan. 14, 2024 - Correctional Association of New York Executive Director Jennifer Scaife addresses prison administration changes proposed by Gov. Kathy Hochul and outlines reforms identified by her group.
Jan. 14, 2024 - We break down a report from the Daniel's Law Task Force with the help of Luke Sikinyi, director of public policy and public engagement at The Alliance for Rights and Recovery, and Harvey Rosenthal, the group's CEO. We talk about standardizing the emergency response to New Yorkers suffering from mental health crisis and consider the shortcomings in responses now.
Jan, 14, 2024 - Pete Nabozny, director of policy for The Children's Agenda and a member of the state's Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council, weighs in on Gov. Kathy Hochul's proposed expansion of the state's child tax credit and new funding for child care facility construction.
Jan. 13, 2025 - New York Civil Liberties Union Senior Staff Attorney Beth Haroules responds to proposals that might make it easier to involuntarily commit mentally ill New Yorkers.
Jan. 13, 2025 - New York Homes & Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas explains the governor's proposal to keep hedge funds from buying up homes and shares an update on the implementation of pro-growth policies.
Jan. 13, 2025 - New regulations took effect in New York, dramatically expanding the state's map of protected wetlands. We explore the ramifications of the updated rules with Jessica Ottney Mahar, policy and strategy director in New York for The Nature Conservancy, and Roger Downs, conservation director of the Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter.
Jan. 13, 2025 - The minimum wage in New York increased 50 cents an hour in January and is scheduled to increase 50 cents an hour in 2026, before being tied to inflation in the future. We discuss the significance of this landscape with Ian Greer, director of the Ithaca co-lab at Cornell's School of Industrial & Labor Relations.
Jan. 10, 2025 - Efforts to fight child poverty in New York are getting attention right now, so we're checking in with Office of Temporary & Disability Assistance Commissioner Barbara Guinn to discuss recommendations on lifting kids out of poverty and the governor's proposed child tax credit expansion.
Jan. 10, 2025 - Assemblymember Eddie Gibbs, a Harlem Democrat, makes the case for overhauling New York's prisons, including closing a central New York facility and reforming the oversight of strip searches.
