| | | | | |  | | By Erin Durkin, Anna Gronewold and Téa Kvetenadze | After quite a bit of blowback to its decision to drop the impeachment probe against Andrew Cuomo, the Assembly reversed course — sort of — and said it will issue a public report on its findings . So: there will not be a vote to impeach or remove Cuomo, which lawmakers believe they lack constitutional authority to do after the governor resigns, but the impeachment investigation has not been put to bed quite yet. "The Assembly Judiciary Committee will continue to review evidence and issue a final report on its investigation of Governor Cuomo," Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Judiciary Committee chair Charles Lavine said in a joint statement Monday. On Friday, the Assembly announced it was suspending its probe upon Cuomo's resignation, despite "credible evidence" of wrongdoing found so far in the inquiry. That was an unpopular call among progressive Democrats, Republicans, and sexual harassment advocates alike. Charlotte Bennett, one of multiple women who accused Cuomo of misconduct, charged that Heastie lacked the "courage" to do his job and "failed to lift a finger to make clear that New York rejects Cuomo's behavior." The Assembly's now-revived investigation encompasses the sexual harassment accusations that ultimately led to Cuomo's resignation, but also the alleged coverup of Covid-19 nursing home deaths, the potential improper use of state resources for Cuomo's $5 million book deal, and other matters. Information gathered so far shows violations of the public officers' law, the Judiciary Committee's top Republican Michael Montesano said on Spectrum News last night. By the way: We now know the exact date and hour when Cuomo is scheduled to leave office, though there is still no formal resignation letter as of yet, which has led to some eyebrow raising. Cuomo's resignation is effective at 11:59 p.m. next Monday, Aug. 23, and Kathy Hochul will become governor at midnight. IT'S TUESDAY. 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 and speaking at the homecoming concert on Staten Island. WHERE'S KATHY? In New York City meeting with Mayor Bill de Blasio and separately with Jumaane Williams. Also convening a roundtable with parents, teachers and education support staff to discuss back-to-school safety measures. QUOTE OF THE DAY — "Probably the best way to describe her, and it means something in today's climate: She's normal." — Former Rep. Pete King on Kathy Hochul | | | | INTRODUCING OTTAWA PLAYBOOK : Join the growing community of Politicos — from lawmakers and leaders to pollsters, staffers, strategists and lobbyists — working to shape Canada's future. Every day, our reporting team pulls back the curtain to shed light on what's really driving the agenda on Parliament Hill, the true players who are shaping politics and policy across Canada, and the impact it all has on the world. Don't miss out on your daily look inside Canadian politics and power. Subscribe to Ottawa Playbook today. | | | | | |  | WHAT CITY HALL'S READING | | Museums, cultural institutions added to NYC vaccine mandate, by POLITICO's Erin Durkin: New York City will require visitors to museums and cultural institutions to be vaccinated against Covid-19, according to new details of the city's sweeping vaccine mandate announced on Monday. Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order requiring vaccination for indoor dining, gyms and entertainment venues, which will take effect Tuesday for both customers and staff. The city for the first time released a full list of locations covered by the mandate, which will now include museums, aquariums and indoor areas at zoos. The city will launch a $10 million ad campaign to promote the requirement and send out 570 canvassers to visit businesses and notify them. Inspections and fines for violations are set to begin on Sept. 13. — "Vaccine Mandate Offers Shot at Boosting Protection, But Businesses Wary," by The City's Katie Honan: "At the Riverdale Diner in The Bronx, manager Joe Saka began asking for proof of vaccinations Monday morning, and wound up turning away a few customers by midday." — New Yorkers with certain health conditions that qualify them as moderately or severely immunocompromised are now eligible for a third Covid-19 booster shot. — "Surprise COVID Test Bills Prompt Complaint to NY Attorney General," by The City's Ibrahim Naber "As NYC Students Head Back to School, Immunocompromised Families Push for Remote Option," by City Limits' Mary Steffenhagen: "Approximately 500,000 of NYC's public school students are aged 11 and under, too young to be vaccinated yet. In late May, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that all public school students would be returning in-person this fall, citing the CDC's relaxed social distancing guidelines for schools (from six feet to three) and the efficacy of the vaccine. … But families with immunocompromised members, like Bryson's, say remote learning has become a matter of survival. 'You're just basically telling us we have to sit up here and we have to pray every day to make sure that our kids don't come down with the virus,' Bryson said." "Shelters Were Supposed to Get Better Air Circulation This Year. They Didn't," by Curbed's Kevin T. Dugan: "New York City is in the midst of moving about 8,000 homeless residents from hotels, where they were temporarily housed to slow the spread of the virus, back to the group shelter system. While the move has been slowed by the courts, interviews with residents, lawyers, health specialists, and activists — as well as video and photos that I saw — show that the facilities the city judged so inadequate during the early days of the pandemic have seen few, if any, upgrades since." — " How Will NY's Next Governor Kathy Hochul Address Housing and Homelessness?" by City Limits' David Brand "He Stayed Afloat Selling $3 Tacos. Now He Faces $2,000 in Fines.," by The New York Times' Annie Correal: "Like thousands of New Yorkers, Lucio González lost his job in the pandemic. As an undocumented immigrant, he did not qualify for unemployment benefits or stimulus checks, so he began selling beef barbacoa tacos on Fordham Road in the Bronx. His work was unsanctioned: The city places strict limits on street vending. But the authorities had eased up on enforcement while the city was shut down, and Mr. González, 54, has eked out a living, one $3 taco at a time... The hustle has been a lifeline for thousands, many of them immigrants, but it has also drawn complaints. In recent weeks, as New York tries to embark on its recovery, city inspectors have been out in force, accompanied by police officers, handing out hefty fines and telling people to pack up their wares." "Rise In Traffic Fatalities Underscores Need For Speed Camera Expansion, Officials Say," by Gothamist's Jake Offenhartz: "Local officials are intensifying their calls to expand the city's speed camera program, amid a spike in reckless driving and traffic deaths across the five boroughs. The automated enforcement program, which issues $50 fines to motorists traveling at least 10 miles over the speed limit, has been shown to significantly reduce reckless driving around New York City's school zones. But under current state law, the roughly 2,000 cameras can only operate on weekdays between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. As a result, the cameras are failing to deter late-night reckless drivers, a group that is fueling the recent uptick in road fatalities on city streets, according to transportation experts. At least 164 people have died in traffic crashes this year — the highest total since Mayor Bill de Blasio's launched Vision Zero, his signature street safety initiative, in 2014." | | WHAT ALBANY'S READING | | "Cuomo: New York to require COVID vaccine for all healthcare workers," by Daily News' Denis Slattery: "Gov. Cuomo is mandating all healthcare workers across the state get vaccinated against COVID. All employees at public and privately-run hospitals, nursing homes and long-term care facilities in New York must get at least their first shot by Sept. 27 as hospitalizations rise and the highly contagious delta variant continues to spread, the outgoing governor announced Monday. 'Our healthcare heroes led the battle against the virus, and now we need them to lead the battle between the variant and the vaccine,' Cuomo said in a statement. The state is also giving the green light to booster shots for New Yorkers with compromised immune systems." "Ex-Cuomo aides who helped smear accuser leave jobs at top PR firm," by New York Post's Theo Wayt: "Two former staffers of Gov. Andrew Cuomo who helped their ex-boss smear sexual harassment accuser Lindsey Boylan have left their jobs at a politically connected public relations firm with millions of dollars in state contracts, The Post has learned. Josh Vlasto and Richard Bamberger — both former top Cuomo staffers who were named throughout the attorney general's report into the governor's 'inner circle' — confirmed Monday they had left their jobs as managing directors at PR firm Kivvit. 'We agreed to amicably part ways,' Vlasto and Bamberger said in a joint statement to The Post. Kivvit — which has counted Google, Tesla, Citigroup, Lyft, Princeton University and the US Olympic Committee among its clients — had already scrubbed the pair from its website by Monday morning." — "Was disgraced Gov. Cuomo cut from Spike Lee's new 9/11 documentary?" The New York Post asks. "Buffalo Diocese hit with 900 abuse claims in bankruptcy court, more than any diocese," by Buffalo News' Jay Tokasz: "More than 900 child sex abuse claims were filed against the Buffalo Diocese in federal bankruptcy court by Saturday, the deadline for abuse victims to come forward if they want part of a potential settlement that could cost the diocese tens of millions of dollars. The number of claims was double the largest number ever filed in the more than 20 prior diocese bankruptcies in the U.S. since 2004. 'The total count right now is 924,' said Ilan D. Scharf, attorney for the committee of unsecured creditors in the diocese bankruptcy case. 'There are sometimes duplicate claims or amended claims and we're still working through that, but 924 were filed.' 'Unfortunately, and sadly, they are consistent and describe just some horrific abuse that occurred here,' he added … The claims will be analyzed and assessed, along with the diocese's insurance, to determine which insurance policies cover which claims, said Scharf." — In the final days of the Child Victims Act lookback window, a new lawsuit accused Bob Dylan of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in 1965. "NY Senate minority leader calls on state, federal government to help Afghan allies," by Spectrum's Nick Reisman: "The top Republican in the New York state Senate on Monday called on the state and federal governments to provide rapidly approved visas for Afghan allies as the country's government falls to Taliban insurgents. Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt called the issue a deeply personal one for him. He served as a combat mentor and advisor to the Afghan National Police in Kandahar City in 2008. 'When Taliban forces took the city just a few days ago, my first thought was of the men and women I served with and those Afghans we so proudly worked with to help protect and build a safer, more stable, and more peaceful Afghanistan,' Ortt said." #UpstateAmerica: Daryl Hall of Hall and Oates fame offered a scathing review of the Albany Hilton during his concert at SPAC over the weekend, calling it "the worst review of a hotel ever." "I had to vent on this. It was bad news," he told the crowd. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO "THE RECAST" TODAY: Power is shifting in Washington and in communities across the country. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. The Recast is a twice-weekly newsletter that explores the changing power dynamics in Washington and breaks down how race and identity are recasting politics and policy in America. 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. | | | | | | | FROM THE DELEGATION | | "Former Rep. Max Rose: 'The end of this movie was inevitable,'" by City & State's Jeff Coltin: "Nearly two decades after the U.S. military launched a war in Afghanistan responding to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Taliban has retaken the country. The offensive by the Islamist military organization comes amid a planned withdrawal of U.S. combat troops. Former Rep. Max Rose was once one of those troops, serving as an infantry platoon leader in the U.S. Army in Kandahar Province for 10 months, from 2012 to 2013." | | AROUND NEW YORK | | — Jay-Z is applying to run an online sports gambling operation in New York. — NYPD precincts are accepting donations for victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Here are a number of other ways New Yorkers can help Haiti. — Mayoral candidates India Walton and Byron Brown are going at it about how to reduce Buffalo's gun violence. — A man is alleged to have set 14 fires across Manhattan over the course of several hours. — The Museum of Broadway now has a rough timeframe for its debut after being delayed by the pandemic. — Hundreds of city jail guards protested bad conditions at Rikers Island. — An anti-vaxxer "festival" will be held on a farm in upstate Columbia County. | | SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Dave McCormick of Bridgewater Associates (h/t wife Dina Powell McCormick) … HuffPost's Elise Foley … Fox News' Will Ricciardella … CNN's Augusta Anthony … Glen Caplin … Reuters' Yousef Saba … David Fishman of Global Gateway Advisors … Leah Nelson of Sunshine Sachs … Mike Buczkiewicz of "Morning Joe" … Nina Bianco … Matt Mittenthal of BuzzFeed comms … Yahoo's Brittany Shepherd … Jordan Levy … Deborah Peskin ... Hadassa Waxman … Breeana Mulligan, communications director to the Queens Borough President … Darren Rigger of Dynamic SRG MEDIAWATCH — Chris Cuomo addressed the controversy over his role in advising his brother, saying he urged his brother to "own" what he did. | | REAL ESTATE | | "Will eviction moratorium ruling lead to legislative return to Albany?" by Spectrum's Nick Reisman: "A group of six lawmakers from the New York state Senate and Assembly on Monday called for a special session of the Legislature to strengthen the state's ban on evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic following a Supreme Court ruling that blocked part of the measure. The lawmakers, — Sens. Julia Salazar and Jabari Brisport and Assembly members Phara Souffrant Forrest, Marcela Mitaynes, Zohran Mamdani, and Emily Gallagher — in a joint statement called for the Legislature to take emergency action to address evictions, the moratorium that's due to expire at the end of the month and push billions of dollars in federal and state aid to tenants and landlords." "Report finds only a fraction of rental assistance has been distributed in New York," by Spectrum's Nick Reisman: "New York so far has only disbursed a fraction of the billions of dollars in federal and state aid meant to aid renters and landlords who have struggled financially during the COVID-19 pandemic, a report released on Monday by Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office found. The report found only $108.8 million out of more than $2 billion has been disbursed under the Emergency Rental Assistance Fund out of the billions of dollars New York has for the program as of Aug 12. 'There are billions in federal aid to help renters who fell behind on payments in the pandemic, but this money isn't getting to them,' DiNapoli said." "State Street, Firm Behind Wall Street's 'Fearless Girl' Statue, Is Vacating New York City Offices," by Wall Street Journal's Dawn Lim: "Financial giant State Street Corp. is vacating its two New York City office locations. Executives at the Boston firm told New York staffers they won't be returning to its Midtown Manhattan offices, according to people familiar with the matter. It expects to sublease the two offices near Rockefeller Center to other companies. Many of State Street's New York employees have worked remotely since the pandemic's early days. The financial firm, like others, sent staffers to work from home when infections started surging across the country. Later, U.S. employees who needed an office could go into work if they followed safety protocols. The firm's New York offices remained sparsely occupied."
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