| | | | | |  | | By Erin Durkin and Anna Gronewold with Jonathan Custodio | Presented by Uber Driver Stories | 200 +. That's how many tips investigators have received through a hotline set up as part of the Assembly Judiciary Committee's impeachment investigation into the Cuomo administration. Of course, there's lots of ground to cover: the handling of sexual harassment allegations, Covid-19 deaths in nursing homes, safety standards on a new bridge, and murky ethics in publishing Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Covid-19 leadership book. That number is pretty much all committee Chair Charles Lavine would publicly relay during the first meeting focused on impeachment in nearly a month. Members retreated to executive session for a private discussion after about eight minutes, our Bill Mahoney reports. As Lavine announced in March, the inquiry will likely take months rather than weeks. A parallel investigation continues through Attorney General Tish James' office. But Cuomo is continuing to shut down questions about the probes. He was asked at a vaccine site event in Yonkers Wednesday whether he would resign if James' report turns out to be particularly damning. No dice. The reporter — New York Law Journal's Ryan Tarinelli — was muted when he tried to press Cuomo on whether a definitive finding of sexual harassment would be enough for him to step down. "I will have a comment about the review and about the facts, and about the truth," Cuomo said. "And I'm looking forward to that. But now is not the time." Also, for those trying to read tea leaves: Another notable twist to that event was the live and congenial appearance of Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, one of the first top Democrats to call for Cuomo's resignation last month. Covid and Cuomo scandals aside, it's rare for Cuomo, Stewart-Cousins or Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie to make appearances together unless they are announcing big legislative triumphs or the state budget agreement. They didn't even do the latter this year. The site is just blocks from her home and district office, Stewart-Cousins said, and she wants her community to take advantage of expanding state vaccination resources. Still, her presence signaled that legislative leaders are agreeing with Cuomo's efforts to compartmentalize their messaging. The business of the state can be accomplished even while its leader is facing multiple investigations. "We're here because of what the governor has said: at the center of all of us is making sure we have our health," Stewart-Cousins said. "Because without health, everything else, frankly, is secondary." IT'S THURSDAY. Drink extra water today. It's never a bad idea. Got tips, suggestions or thoughts? Let us know ... By email: EDurkin@politico.com and agronewold@politico.com, or on Twitter: @erinmdurkin and @annagronewold WHERE'S ANDREW? No public schedule yet. WHERE'S BILL? Holding a media availability. | | A message from Uber Driver Stories: Meet Fallon. Delivering with Uber Eats helps her pay for college while allowing her the flexibility to fit her schedule around studies. Fallon chooses Uber because, unlike most other gigs, she can control her hours and spend more time focusing on her future. Watch her story in her own words below. | | |
|  | WHAT CITY HALL'S READING | | COUNCIL MEMBER Brad Lander will launch a website Thursday that hits his chief rival in the city comptroller's race, Speaker Corey Johnson, for sitting on more than a dozen Council bills and policy proposals — calling on them to be voted on and passed. The website escalates a battle between the two candidates that has been brewing over the last two weeks: Lander excoriated Johnson for "stalling" and "playing politics" on a bill to expand paid sick leave to gig workers, saying it had overwhelming support. With the website, titled "What's the Story, Corey?" — Lander adds another 18 pieces of legislation to the list. Team Lander argues that under the speaker's leadership, the Council "has passed very little meaningful legislation during this pandemic year to improve the lives of New Yorkers, confront the current crises, or address longstanding inequities." But the gambit, which drew rebukes from Johnson's office, has also miffed Lander's colleagues on the Council — some of whom endorsed his bid before Johnson got in the race in March and have now withdrawn their support. POLITICO's Jonathan Custodio — The city's largest health care workers union 1199SEIU is endorsing Corey Johnson for comptroller. AFTER 11 people were fatally shot inside a Pittsburgh synagogue three years ago, a politician nearly 400 miles away demanded an immediate shift in protocol. "From now on, I will bring my handgun every time I enter a church or synagogue," Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, a retired police captain who was then mulling his current run for New York City mayor, said the following day. The responses were swift: Emails poured into his office from New Yorkers horrified by the suggestion. They invoked red-state Republicans and the National Rifle Association, and one person expressed gratitude to live on the other side of the East River. The anger was offset by a few people who agreed with the proposition — including one who requested a reference letter to obtain his own permit to carry a concealed weapon, according to previously unreported emails POLITICO obtained through a freedom of information request. Now Adams is among the top-tier Democratic candidates to be the next mayor, ranking second in most public polls and sitting on a $7.8 million war chest. As he competes in an eight-person field, he is carving a path formed by his biography: A Black man who openly discusses being a teenager assaulted by police officers, only to become one himself at a time when the city was mired in crime. POLITICO's Sally Goldenberg — More than 400 Asian New Yorkers signed a letter opposing Andrew Yang's candidacy for mayor saying his stances don't align with progressive priorities. NYPD BRASS rebuked comments by top transit leaders that crime is a major issue in the city's subway system, accusing them of "fear mongering." "It's a disservice to New Yorkers to invent a narrative that crime is soaring in the subways when it's simply not the case," said NYPD Chief of Transit Kathleen O'Reilly at the MTA's Wednesday board meeting. Transit leaders have been sounding the alarm of subway crime for months, calling on the NYPD to add 1,500 cops to the system. Sarah Feinberg, interim president of New York City Transit, previously voiced concern over an "uptick generally in crime," adding the MTA is "very anxious to make sure that we turn back as quickly as we can, particularly, as we're trying to welcome more people back to the city and more people back to the system." The fight mirrors an ongoing rhetorical battle between Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who effectively controls the MTA and frequently criticizes the city's approach to crime. But O'Reilly pushed back on the narrative that crime is soaring in the system, stating that crime is actually down 53 percent year-to-date. POLITICO's Danielle Muoio — "The NYC subway system is arguably the most unnerving public place that Asian New Yorkers are forced to navigate during this period of rising bias attacks against Asians in the city...In recent months, Asian New Yorkers have been slashed and nearly pushed into oncoming trains." WNYC's Stephen Nessen "NEW YORK CITY will spend $30 million on a tourism campaign set to launch in June, aiming to revive a sector that has struggled throughout the pandemic, officials said. 'It's critical that we deliver the message that New York City is open and welcoming visitors once again,' said Fred Dixon, president and chief executive officer of NYC & Company, the city's official tourism organization. The campaign, which officials said is being funded with federal stimulus money the city is receiving, dwarfs any similar promotion in recent memory. In typical years, the tourism advertising budget is $3 million, Mr. Dixon said." Wall Street Journal's Charles Passey "THE MANHATTAN district attorney's office announced Wednesday that it would no longer prosecute prostitution and unlicensed massage , putting the weight of one of the most high-profile law enforcement offices in the United States behind the growing movement to change the criminal justice system's approach to sex work. The district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., revealed the new policy as he appeared virtually in court to ask a judge to dismiss 914 open cases involving prostitution and unlicensed massage, along with 5,080 cases in which the charge was loitering for the purposes of prostitution. The law that made the latter charge a crime, which had become known as the 'walking while trans' law, was repealed by New York State in February. Mr. Vance said that with the announcement, his office had fully shifted its approach to prostitution." The New York Times' Jonah E. Bromwich FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Manhattan district attorney candidate Eliza Orlins is releasing a plan to create a dedicated, independent unit to prosecute police misconduct if she is elected to the post. Orlins, a public defender, said the units will pursue cases of perjury at trials or hearings, excessive force, destruction and theft of property, false arrests, and sexual assault. She says she will refuse to prosecute cases that rely solely on testimony from police officers on a list of cops with known credibility problems or who have a record of serious misconduct allegations. Orlins also pledges to require that all police officer interrogations have video and audio recordings in order to use testimony in prosecution. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO "THE RECAST" TO JOIN AN IMPORTANT CONVERSATION : Power dynamics are changing in Washington and across the country. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that all politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. Our twice-weekly newsletter "The Recast" breaks down how race and identity shape politics and policy in America, and we are recasting how we report on it. Get fresh insights, scoops and dispatches on this crucial intersection from across the country and hear critical new voices that challenge business as usual. Don't miss out, SUBSCRIBE . Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | |
| | WHAT ALBANY'S READING | | "NEW YORK lawmakers have approved legislation extending full voting rights to people on parole . The Democratic-led Assembly voted on the measure Wednesday, following passage in the Senate earlier this year. Supporters say the measure builds upon a 2018 executive order that has led to voting pardons for more than 60,000 New Yorkers on parole. The measure goes further by fully restoring voting rights to all people released and under supervision and will have a major impact on minority communities, according to sponsor Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell (D-Manhattan). 'Parole disenfranchisement in New York was designed to prevent Black men from voting, and we see the legacy of these laws in the largely Black and Latinx parolee population today,' O'Donnell. 'With the passage of this bill, we are one step closer to dismantling the vestiges of segregation-era felony disenfranchisement in New York.'" Daily News' Denis Slattery "COVID-19 continues to spread in New York prisons, but the effort to vaccinate the 32,000 people incarcerated in state-run facilities is currently on hold, Gothamist/WNYC has learned. The stoppage comes mere weeks after a state judge ruled that withholding the coronavirus vaccines from inmates violated their Constitutional rights to equal protection under the law. The state Department of Correction and Community Supervision cited the federally-recommended pause on the Johnson and Johnson vaccine as the cause for the interruption. After an initial inquiry, Governor Andrew Cuomo's administration did not appear to have a comprehensive plan for restarting the vaccination effort, but DOCCS provided concrete details shortly after Gothamist/WNYC pressed the governor about the topic during a press conference Wednesday afternoon." Gothamist's Caroline Lewis and Gwynne Hogan THREE downstate New York power providers are challenging a plan to pay for costly upgrades to the transmission grid to accommodate thousands of megawatts of offshore wind expected to hook up to Long Island's grid. The Long Island Power Authority and Con Edison and Orange & Rockland filed petitions for a rehearing this week challenging the cost allocation method for a transmission project identified as a policy-driven need by the Public Service Commission last month. The petitions highlight a controversial challenge ahead for New York's policymakers: who pays for grid upgrades to prepare the system to accommodate thousands of new wind turbines, solar panels, batteries and more. Utilities are pushing to allocate costs evenly across the state, because projects that support the state's 2040 emissions-free electric system theoretically have statewide benefits. POLITICO's Marie J. French RECOVERY LAB — 'PARENTS ARE POWERLESS': Most American schoolkids have struggled with remote learning, and in some states they might be forced to repeat a grade. This morning, POLITICO's Recovery Lab looks at the growing controversy around laws that require third graders to repeat a year of school if they don't do well enough on standardized tests. In 18 states, "mandatory retention" laws could force thousands if not millions of kids who fell behind during Covid to repeat a year… and the fallout could last for years. #UpstateAmerica: Firefighters successfully retrieved a kid from a vending machine at Syracuse's Destiny USA. "A Syracuse Fire Department spokesperson was not immediately available to comment on the child's identity or how the child got into the machine." | | | |   | | |
| | AROUND NEW YORK | | — New documents are raising questions about the environmental review of Cuomo's proposed LaGuardia AirTrain. — De Blasio is trying to avoid testifying in a judicial inquiry into the death of Eric Garner. — Parking restrictions have been added on traffic-clogged parts of the Adirondacks High Peaks road — Route 73 — that have grown increasingly popular with hikers in recent years. — The first Chick-fil-A restaurant planned for Buffalo faced heavy pushback. — Damage to an overpass across the Northway caused by 'an illegally sized commercial vehicle' has required that a section of the bridge be taken down. — A paratrooper from upstate New York was killed during a training jump at Fort Bragg. — A Sunset Park open street is struggling to raise enough money to relaunch. — Jury duty has returned with Covid-19 protections. | | | | Did you know that POLITICO Pro has coverage and tools at the state level? All the state legislative and regulatory tracking, budget documents, state agency contact information, and everything else you need to stay ahead of state policy movement integrate into our smart and customizable platform. Learn more and become a Pro today. | | | | |
| | SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Eugene Scott … WSJ's Shayndi Raice … NYT's Helene Cooper and Elisabeth Goodridge … CNN's Arlette Saenz … Stars and Stripes' Bob Reid … Glenn Simpson (h/t Tim Burger) … McKinsey's Elizabeth Anderson Ledet and Allie Medack … Don Graham … The New Yorker's Erica Hinsley … Anastasia Dellaccio ... SKDKnickerbocker's Josh Dorner … Patrick Rucker … Aryeh Neier … Benyamin Cohen ... Zachary Krooks ... Shmuel Rosner ... Jerold C. Feuerstein (h/ts Jewish Insider) SPOTTED: Former DHS secretary Jeh Johnson having dinner with friends at Blue Duck Tavern. MEDIAWATCH — Per Talking Biz News: "Reuters announced Wednesday that Gina Chua has been appointed executive editor … The New York Post has hired Institutional Investor reporter Will Feuer as a general assignment business reporter." MAKING MOVES — Luke Hornblower is now associate attorney at Veterinary Business Advisors, Inc. He most recently was corporate counsel at ICE Data Services. ENGAGED — Dylan Enright, VP of growth at The Org, chair of Income Movement and a Yang 2020 campaign alum, on Saturday proposed to Newsha Ghaeli, president and co-founder at wastewater epidemiology pioneer Biobot Analytics. The couple met in San Francisco in 2018. He proposed on a pier at Rockefeller Park in Manhattan, right around the corner from where he grew up. Pic | | A message from Uber Driver Stories: As a woman of color, Fallon's number one priority is to better herself through her education. And that means finishing her bachelor's degree in business.
At first, Fallon tried to go down the traditional route of working part-time. But she says it didn't offer the flexible schedule that she needed.
"I like the flexibility of driving with Uber," she says. "I can drive when I want to."
With Uber, Fallon can choose when, where, and how long she wants to drive. If she has an exam that needs her attention, she doesn't have to worry about asking her boss or requesting time off—she can take the time she needs on her terms.
To see more stories like Fallon's, click here.
*Driver earnings may vary depending on location, demand, hours, drivers, and other variables. | | |
| | REAL ESTATE | | "WITHIN THE NEXT eight months, the de Blasio administration hopes to rezone two neighborhoods and upend hotel construction citywide. At the same time, more than four dozen private rezoning applications aim to win City Council support — or risk restarting negotiations with a new regime . Any election year would add urgency to the approval process for zoning changes, special permits and other types of applications, but this year the pressure is even greater because the city suspended its Uniform Land Use Review Procedure for six months during the pandemic, causing applications to back up. Since it resumed Sept. 14, some 51 proposals have entered the seven-month public process, according to the Department of City Planning, which calculated the volume through the end of March. That's nearly twice as many as during the same period a year ago." The Real Deal's Kathryn Brenzel
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