Early Wednesday morning, 60-year-old Manuela “Mannie” Morgado was found dead in her unit at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility in an apparent suicide, according to people incarcerated with her and local advocates.
nysfocus.com/2026/03/05/b...
NEW: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is pitching state lawmakers on a smaller corporate tax increase that his aides hope could stand a better chance in Albany, alongside new proposals to tax expensive homes and to shrink a tax credit for pass-through business owners.
Funding local news is more important than ever, and it will take a village to succeed. Join us in our work to rebuild local journalism as a pillar of democracy in New York.
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March 5, 2026 The Honorable Kathy Hochul Governor of New York State NY State Capitol Building Albany, NY 12224 Re: Upholding New York’s Leadership in the Fight Against Climate Change Dear Governor Hochul, At a time when the Trump Administration is doing everything possible to tear down decades of progress in the fight against climate change, it is incumbent on states like New York to reject this new wave of climate denial and put forward bold policies that will save New Yorkers money, reduce pollution, and protect a livable climate for our constituents and our children and grandchildren. That is why we, the undersigned senators, categorically oppose any effort to rollback New York’s nation-leading climate law, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, and urge you to stand strong in the face of misinformation that seeks to blame the CLCPA for the energy affordability crisis that fossil fuels have created. Climate change remains one of the greatest threats that our constituents - and societies across the globe - have ever faced. New Yorkers are already living through extreme weather events that run the gamut from searing heat waves to Arctic cold snaps, and they are already paying the price1, with their dollars, their homes, their health, and even their lives. The climate crisis is driving up the cost of home insurance, of health care, of groceries, and of countless other daily necessities2, and every delay in taking action will only drive those costs even higher. Confronting this crisis is a generational task and a legacy issue for every elected official, and it is inseparable from any credible effort to address the high cost of living. At the same time, there is no question that we must address energy affordability, capacity, and reliability. But while President Trump and the fossil fuel industry want New Yorkers to believe that we must choose between those needs and climate action, nothing could be further from the truth. The recent three-page memo from…
not include any price guardrails, with a completely unrealistic carbon price34. As such, the analysis simply cannot be treated as a serious contribution to the debate. In reality, rolling back the CLCPA will not save our constituents money because it is not the cause of increasing costs. It is the fossil fuel status quo56 that has created the affordability crisis New Yorkers are now suffering from, and it is bold action to deliver renewable energy and energy efficiency that will give them relief, saving money for individuals in the immediate-term and for all utility customers in the medium- and long-term7. When it comes to energy generation capacity, renewables can be deployed cheaply and quickly to meet our needs8. And over the last year, through heat waves and polar vortexes9, renewables have proven that they add much-needed reliability10 to the grid, reducing price spikes in the process, like those driven by wars in Europe and the Middle East. Between us we carry significant legislation on a broad number of policies large and small that will reduce New Yorkers’ costs and move us toward our science-based climate targets. We stand ready to work with you and your administration to implement comprehensive climate policies that truly meet the needs of this moment – but we cannot support abandoning our commitment to climate progress. Sincerely, Liz Krueger Pete Harckham Kevin S. Parker 28th Senate District 40th Senate District 21st Senate District Chair, Finance Chair, Environmental Conservation Chair, Energy & Telecoms Jamaal T. Bailey April N.M. Baskin Erik Bottcher 26th Senate District 63rd Senate District 47th Senate District
Jabari Brisport Samra Brouk Cordell Cleare 25th Senate District 55th Senate District 30th Senate District Leroy Comrie Nathalia Fernandez Kristen Gonzalez 14th Senate District 34th Senate District 59th Senate District Andrew Gounardes Michelle Hinchey Robert Jackson 26th Senate District 41st Senate District 31st Senate District Brian Kavanagh John Liu Rachel May 27th Senate District 16th Senate District 48th Senate District Shelley B. Mayer Zellnor Myrie Roxanne J. Persaud 37th Senate District 20th Senate District 19th Senate District Jessica Ramos Gustavo Rivera Julia Salazar 13th Senate District 33rd Senate District 18th Senate District James Sanders Luis Sepulveda José M. Serrano 10th Senate District 32nd Senate District 29th Senate District Toby Ann Stavisky Lea Webb 11th Senate District 52nd Senate District
👀 New letter from 29 NYS Senators (>2/3 of the Dem caucus) to Hochul this morning:
“We categorically oppose any effort to rollback New York’s nation-leading climate law… and urge you to stand strong in the face of misinformation that seeks to blame the CLCPA for the energy affordability crisis”
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Want to know how the state budget is made?
nysfocus.com/2025/03/12/h...
When the governor doesn’t commute sentences, and the legislature won’t act, the carrot-and-stick system of rehabilitation disintegrates.
nysfocus.com/2026/03/03/n...
An overdue update to New York’s benefit cards that could prevent food stamp theft could launch as early as next February.
nysfocus.com/2026/02/27/s...
A bill introduced by Assemblymember Anna Kelles aims to harness home batteries, electric vehicles, and other clean tech to meet reliability needs.
nysfocus.com/2026/03/04/n...
NEW: A New York state lawmaker wants to accelerate the state’s transition to a more flexible electric grid.
nysfocus.com/2026/03/04/n...
Over his more than two decades as a clean energy entrepreneur and commentator, Jigar Shah has established himself as one of the most prominent voices calling for a more decentralized, flexible grid.
He sat down with New York Focus for a Q&A:
nysfocus.com/2026/02/28/v...
Get the best of New York Focus in your inbox. Sign up for our daily newsletter and weekly roundup to receive reporting updates, behind-the-scenes peeks into our newsroom, communications about live events, and more.
nysfocus.com/newsletter
Funding local news is more important than ever, and it will take a village to succeed. Join us in our work to rebuild local journalism as a pillar of democracy in New York.
nysfocus.com/donate
Get the best of New York Focus in your inbox. Sign up for our daily newsletter and weekly roundup to receive reporting updates, behind-the-scenes peeks into our newsroom, communications about live events, and more.
nysfocus.com/newsletter
An overdue update to New York’s benefit cards that could prevent food stamp theft could launch as early as next February.
nysfocus.com/2026/02/27/s...
Over his more than two decades as a clean energy entrepreneur and commentator, Jigar Shah has established himself as one of the most prominent voices calling for a more decentralized, flexible grid.
He sat down with New York Focus for a Q&A:
nysfocus.com/2026/02/28/v...
“The opposite of hope is desperation, and it’s dangerous for this population to feel desperate.”
John J. Lennon writes from Sing Sing about how New York could ease the chaos in the prison system.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a bold pledge last month: Within weeks, he would send state lawmakers a plan to fix the city’s broken property tax system.
A failed attempt by his predecessor, Eric Adams, shows why that won’t be easy.
nysfocus.com/2026/03/02/m...
NEW: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani will appoint Kenny Minaya, a lawyer and longtime city official, as commissioner of the Department of Small Business Services on Monday, New York Focus has learned.
NEW: Over his more than two decades as a clean energy entrepreneur and commentator, Jigar Shah has established himself as one of the most prominent voices calling for a more decentralized, flexible grid.
He sat down with New York Focus for a Q&A:
nysfocus.com/2026/02/28/v...
NEW: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a bold pledge last month: Within weeks, he would send state lawmakers a plan to fix the city’s broken property tax system.
A failed attempt by his predecessor, Eric Adams, shows why that won’t be easy.
NEW: An overdue update to New York’s benefit cards that could prevent food stamp theft could launch as early as next February.
It’s almost impossible to win an asylum case without an attorney — but finding one is a tall order.
Immigrants recount dodging scams, scraping together funds, and relying on strangers and TikTok for their legal needs.
NEW: It’s almost impossible to win an asylum case without an attorney. Finding one is a tall order.
nysfocus.com/2026/02/26/i...
“It’s like I’m in a giant, open prison,” he said. “I can walk around, but I’m not really part of the people here. I’m not among them.” @liv-veazey.bsky.social on the Kafkaesque maze faced by those seeking asylum in New York @nysfocus.bsky.social
NEW: It’s almost impossible to win an asylum case without an attorney — but finding one is a tall order.
Immigrants recount dodging scams, scraping together funds, and relying on strangers and TikTok for their legal needs.
An anti-development New York City Councilmember approved a project in her district rather than risk being overruled by a new appeals board — the first sign of a potential sea change in the city’s housing landscape caused by the ballot questions that voters approved in November.
From November: New York environmental regulators approved a major Trump-backed underwater gas pipeline in a U-turn for state energy policy.
nysfocus.com/2025/11/07/n...
If President Donald Trump makes good on his threats, Zohran Mamdani may become the first New York City mayor forced to navigate an uninvited federal deployment of the National Guard.
What can he do as mayor?
nysfocus.com/2025/11/05/d...
