| | | | |  | | By Erin Durkin , Anna Gronewold and Julian Shen-Berro | Presented by Equinor | The influx of migrants still arriving in New York City may have slowed in recent days , but the thousands who are already here are straining the school system , our Madina Touré reports. The arrival of asylum seekers from South America has bolstered enrollment in a public school system that has been shrinking rather dramatically over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic: around 6,000 children of migrant families have signed up for classes. Schools are scrambling to educate them in part because of a shortage of bilingual teachers. While the number of new students is not huge in a school system of nearly 1 million, they are not evenly distributed across the system. Instead, elementary and middle school children are enrolled in the schools closest to the homeless shelters where many of them are staying. Since shelters are mostly clustered in lower-income neighborhoods, that also means that already economically disadvantaged schools are now tasked with teaching new students who have arrived after harrowing journeys and have varied educational backgrounds. This also plays into a budget fight between Mayor Eric Adams and local politicians, after the city slashed schools' budgets in response to declining enrollment. Schools that once saw their funding cut because they had lost students — drawing protests from pols and advocates — are now gaining students all over again. "Schools where enrollment exceeded DOE projections this fall are already operating at a deficit of staff, and now face even greater shortfalls as they take in new students who they were not budgeted to support," said city Comptroller Brad Lander, who is calling for the city to give schools an additional $49 million to educate the children of asylum seekers. The Department of Education said it has provided $25 million directly to schools in response to the surge of new students. But one key question is whether schools will continue to receive funding bumps after the traditional Oct. 31 deadline for enrollment numbers to be settled. "It's not like we wave a magic wand and we have all the answers," schools Chancellor David Banks said. "We're trying to figure it out." 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 KATHY? Visiting Chelsea Market and debating Lee Zeldin in New York City. WHERE'S ERIC? Attending the wake for Judge Sterling Johnson Jr., hosting a fireside chat with Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, speaking at a Kazakh flag raising ceremony, hosting a Diwali celebration, and hosting a community conversation on public safety.
| | | | A message from Equinor: Can a wind turbine generate more than electricity? Yes, it can. At Equinor, our work to power 2,000,000 New York homes with homegrown, renewable energy is only part of the story. The Empire Wind and Beacon Wind projects are also boosting the economy, generating jobs, and launching tomorrow's clean energy infrastructure today. Equinor is a broad energy company, committed to become net-zero by 2050. We're proud to be a leader in this growing industry. | | | |  | What City Hall's reading | | " MTA To Start Reopening Subway Bathrooms Early Next Year ," by Streetsblog's Kevin Duggan: "Relief is on the way. Subway station bathrooms will begin reopening early in 2023 as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority reverses its pandemic-era decision to shutter toilets for nearly three years, Streetsblog has learned. Beginning in January, the underground facilities will reopen at eight stations… The agency will phase in additional stations after that, thanks to the hiring of 800 cleaners over the past two months, according to New York City Transit President Richard Davey. 'The lack of public bathrooms generally in New York City has been a question that folks have asked about and we hope to do our part,' Davey told Streetsblog." " Watchdog Will Investigate Racial Profiling Complaints Against N.Y.P.D ," by The New York Times' Chelsia Rose Marcius: "The New York City oversight body that examines police misconduct will now have the authority to investigate claims of racial profiling, as well as officers' misuse of body cameras, and recommend disciplinary measures in those cases, officials said on Monday. The changes will strengthen the influence of the oversight body, known as the Civilian Complaint Review Board, which receives complaints from residents, determines whether there is evidence to substantiate those claims and then recommends disciplinary measures to the New York City Police Department. The Police Department previously investigated bias claims itself, but few cases were substantiated." " Hasidic School to Pay $8 Million After Admitting to Federal Fraud ," by The New York Times' Brian M. Rosenthal and Eliza Shapiro: "The largest private Hasidic Jewish school in New York State stole millions of dollars from a variety of government programs in a yearslong fraud, the school admitted in federal court documents filed on Monday. The operators of the school, the Central United Talmudical Academy, which serves more than 2,000 boys in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, acknowledged that they illegally diverted money from government programs for school lunches, technology and child care. They also admitted to setting up no-show jobs for some employees while paying others in cash and coupons so the employees could qualify for welfare, according to a deferred prosecution agreement filed in Federal District Court in Brooklyn." " NYC fights ruling forcing it to reinstate firefighter fired over vax mandate ," by New York Post's Priscilla DeGregory: "New York City is appealing a court ruling forcing it to reinstate a Staten Island firefighter who lost his job after he opposed the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for religious reasons. The FDNY filed a notice of appeal Monday, shortly after Timothy Rivicci – who won a suit to get his job back earlier this month – said the city should be held in contempt for failing to put him back to work at Engine 158." — In a separate case, a judge ruled an NYPD cop must be granted a religious exemption to the vaccine mandate. " The Sidewalks are Crowded — With Hazards on Wheels, Pedestrians Say ," by THE CITY's Jose Martinez, Tanaz Meghjani and Claudia Irizarry Aponte: "The citywide boom in the use of e-bikes and e-scooters has coincided — perhaps unsurprisingly — with a spike in reports about hazardous bicycles, scooters and other devices that aren't cars. An analysis by THE CITY of 311 data shows that complaints about cycling, scootering and even in-line skating occurring in unwanted locations have boomed from pre-pandemic levels — jumping from 484 in 2019 to 1,036 last year. In 2022, 1,082 complaints were made as of October 23, with about half coming from Manhattan."
| | | | NEW AND IMPROVED POLITICO APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. With a fresh look and improved features, the sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don't miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. Already a POLITICO app user? Upgrade today! DOWNLOAD FOR iOS – DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID . | | | | | | | WHAT ALBANY'S READING | | " Gov. Kathy Hochul: Red-flag gun laws get $4.6 funding boost ," by Newsday's Michael Gormley: "Hochul said she was expanding use of the red flag law by committing the new money to hire more lawyers in the regional offices of the state Attorney General's Office to defend 'extreme risk orders' sought by state and local police to seize firearms of suspects. Hochul said her announcement Monday wasn't a response to criticism of her crime policies by her Republican opponent, Rep. Lee Zeldin of Shirley. Zeldin has tried to make crime a top issue in the campaign, in part through use in television spots of stark images of violence taken from security cameras. Recent polls have shown Zeldin narrowing his deficit with Hochul, and have identified crime as a top priority of voters. 'I know it's the political season, but I assure you I have been doing this long before I was the nominee for governor,' Hochul told reporters Monday." "Hospitals in upstate NY ravaged by bed, staff shortages: 'It is not right for patients ,'" by USA Today Network's David Robinson: "A hospital capacity crisis is threatening parts of upstate New York as unseasonably early spikes in respiratory illnesses, staffing shortages and nursing home backlogs strain the region's health care system. Across the Finger Lakes, Central New York and Mohawk Valley, the percentage of hospital beds available last week hovered between 6% and 11% − well below the statewide average of 17% to 19%, state data show. As a result, growing numbers of patients are stuck being treated in hospital hallways while awaiting rooms to free up. And, in some cases, regional health leaders are forced to transfer patients to hospitals hundreds of miles away to get sufficient care, hospital officials said." " State Sen. Luis Sepúlveda is Dominican now. Other Dominican lawmakers don't like how he did it. ," by City & State's Jeff Coltin: "Dominican American lawmakers are fed up with state Sen. Luis Sepúlveda, saying that the Puerto Rican legislator has gone too far in adopting a Dominican identity for political gain – without allying with actual Dominicans. Tension boiled over in the Bronx after Sepúlveda announced on Oct. 14 that he had been granted Dominican citizenship in a ceremony at the presidential palace in Santo Domingo. Sepúlveda was born in Brooklyn to Puerto Rican parents and has never lived in the Dominican Republic. But he has been building political relationships in the country, and just this month introduced a bill that would make New York recognize Dominican driver's licenses. But fellow lawmakers said he hasn't been putting in the work with Dominicans in the Bronx." " Lesser Infractions Aren't Supposed to Land You in Solitary Confinement. They Do Anyway. " by New York Focus' Chris Gelardi: "A recently enacted reform law strictly limited the reasons for which prisons and jails may send incarcerated people to solitary confinement as punishment. But the New York state prison system has been using its own criteria, illegally sending hundreds of people to solitary for lesser infractions, New York Focus has found. A review of data published by the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), which runs the state prison system, shows that, at minimum, prisons sent people to solitary confinement almost 1,200 times between April and September — nearly one in five solitary confinement sentences — for infractions that aren't among the law's solitary-eligible offenses." — Zeldin decried the HALT law while receiving the endorsement of the Correction Officers Benevolent Association. #UpstateAmerica: The man who shot late President Ronald Reagan will be performing a concert in Albany next year.
| | | | A message from Equinor: The energy transition is the defining challenge opportunity of our time. Our world needs energy to keep moving forward — but it must be affordable, reliable, and accessible. We all have a role to play. At Equinor, we're doing our part by helping accelerate the energy transition. We're growing our renewable energy portfolio and lowering emissions from production. We're already on the way to powering about 2,000,000 New York homes with energy from the Empire Wind and Beacon Wind offshore wind projects. We're creating jobs, building tomorrow's infrastructure, and sparking new economic activity. But for us, that's only the beginning. By the time the global population reaches 9 billion in 2050, our goal is to have net-zero emissions. Discover more about Equinor at www.equinor.com/USA. | | | | | FROM THE DELEGATION | | House Dem campaign arm jumps in with $600k buy to help save its own chief , by POLITICO's Sarah Ferris and Ally Mutnick: House Democrats' campaign arm is spending big to defend its chief, New York Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, from mounting GOP threats. The Maloney-run Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee will spend just over $600,000 on air cover for him starting Tuesday as he battles challenger Michael Lawler in a more-competitive-than-expected race. That money is on top of $110,000 in support on TV from another outside group, Our Hudson, which formed earlier this year to aid Maloney in his August primary and jumped back in amid escalating Republican attacks. The New York Democrat has said he would remove himself from any DCCC decisions regarding his race in a newly redrawn Hudson Valley seat.
| | TRUMP'S NEW YORK | | " Trump Organization tax fraud trial begins in NYC ," by New York Daily News' Molly Crane-Newman: "The Trump Organization trial kicked off Monday in Manhattan, where prosecutors and lawyers for the former president's family real estate business began a weeks-long process surveying New Yorkers on their political biases. Judge Juan Merchan estimated it would take a minimum of two weeks to find 12 unbiased New Yorkers to serve on the Trump Org jury. He expects the trial to last for five or six weeks. The Trump Organization and Trump Payroll Corporation have pleaded not guilty to a host of criminal tax fraud and conspiracy charges. Prosecutors say the company ran a 15-year 'off-the-books' tax evasion scheme, disguising millions in taxable income from authorities." — " Dismissed juror at Trump Org trial always thought the Weisselberg family's wealth was 'weird ,'" by New York Daily News' Molly Crane-Newman: "An Upper West Side mom called for jury duty at the Trump Organization trial — whose kids went to prep school with Allen Weisselberg's grandchildren — always wondered how the family afforded their life of luxury. The 54-year-old lawyer, who declined to provide her name, was among the first New Yorkers dismissed from jury duty at the high-profile trial that kicked off Monday at Manhattan Supreme Court." " Counseling Trump Was a Professional 'Death March,' Ex-Adviser Testifies ," by The New York Times' Rebecca Davis O'Brien: "In 2015, the financier Thomas J. Barrack Jr. agreed to support his old friend Donald J. Trump's long-shot presidential campaign because he sensed an opportunity in his career's twilight to 'weave a web of tolerance' in the Middle East. The result was 'disastrous,' Mr. Barrack told a jury Monday in Brooklyn's federal court, where he took the witness stand in his own defense on charges that he acted as an undisclosed agent for the United Arab Emirates. Mr. Trump's ban on Muslim immigrants and support for a blockade of Qatar alienated Mr. Barrack's longtime friends and business partners in Middle East, said Mr. Barrack, who is of Lebanese descent."
| | AROUND NEW YORK | | — A promise to build a new LIRR station in Sunnyside as part of the East Side Access project was abandoned . — The recently launched curbside composting program in Queens has already outpaced a previous program, but is only collecting about 3 percent of organic waste in the borough. — The city will expand the hours of open streets and create additional car-free streets for Halloween. — Subway service on Monday saw a morning rush hour meltdown with extensive delays on 11 lines. — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she would stand up for LGBT rights in response to a group of anti-gay hecklers who crashed her event in Queens. — The Legal Aid Society is calling on the city to help save a historic secret society's Bed-Stuy headquarters. — Rep. Elise Stefanik defended Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin , who faces felony charges in the alleged misuse of campaign funds. — The interim vice chairman of New York's new "independent" ethics panel recently attended a campaign fundraiser for an influential member of the Assembly. — A subway rider was killed after getting stuck in closing train doors. — Protesters called on the Manhattan DA to drop charges against a domestic violence survivor who allegedly killed her husband.
| | | | JOIN WOMEN RULE THURSDAY FOR A TALK WITH DEPARTING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS: A historic wave of retirements is hitting Congress, including several prominent Democratic women such as Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos, House Democrats' former campaign chief. What is driving their departures? Join POLITICO on Oct. 27 for "The Exit Interview," a virtual event that will feature a conversation with departing members where they'll explain why they decided to leave office and what challenges face their parties ahead. REGISTER HERE . | | | | | | | SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY: CBS' Jan Crawford … Brigid Ueland of the American Financial Services Association … Activision's Joe Christinat … Louis Burgdorf … Gary Regenstreif MAKING MOVES — Jonathan Martin will join POLITICO as politics bureau chief and a senior political columnist Nov. 1, returning home after spending nearly a decade at the NYT and co-writing the bestseller "This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America's Future" with fellow POLITICO returnee Alex Burns. ... Tony Fratto is joining Goldman Sachs as a partner and global head of corporate communications. He most recently was a partner at Penta Group. … Michelle Schein has been promoted to be senior foreign policy adviser for Rep. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.). She most recently was foreign affairs and defense legislative assistant for Meng. WEEKEND WEDDING — Cat Crandall, account director on the politics and issue advocacy team at Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis and a BerlinRosen and Eurasia Group alum, recently married Jared Friedberg, general counsel at RockFence Capital. The couple, who met as students at Hamilton College, wed in the Hudson Valley. Pic ... Another pic
| | Real Estate | | " Plywood Gourmet: How thousands of restaurants speedily, messily, and probably permanently took over the street ," by New York Magazine's Simon van Zuylen-Wood: "Long after the shutdown of indoor dining and the advent of socially distanced picnicking; after takeout cocktails and 'Cuomo sandwiches'; after to-go-box trash ziggurats and $69 delivery-app veal parms from Carbone; after Jersey-barriered roadway cafés and tabletop hand sanitizer and QR-code menus and a wave of shuttered restaurants; … after the return of full-capacity indoor dining; after Delta and Omicron, after boosters and the bivalent jab; after mask edicts ended and return-to-office drives began — after New York's pandemic era faded out — one key vestige of COVID-19 remained right there on the street: the outdoor-dining shed." " 10 years after Sandy, Hudson River tunnel just as vulnerable to flooding — and a fix isn't coming until 2038 ," by WNYC's Stephen Nessen: "Since Hurricane Sandy, New York and New Jersey officials have feared a nightmare scenario where the only train tunnel used by Amtrak and NJ Transit beneath the Hudson River suddenly becomes unusable. The tunnel is so important that Amtrak warns the entire U.S. economy could be harmed if it were to unexpectedly go offline. Sandy drastically shortened the life span of what was already a nearly century-old tunnel, not designed to handle 450 trains a day. The saltwater residue left when Sandy's storm surge receded is an ongoing worry 10 years later. But a decade after the storm, the North River Tunnel remains just as vulnerable to flooding." " N.Y. politicians demand fixes at NYCHA complex in Brooklyn where more than 100 units have water damage, mold ," by New York Daily News' Tim Balk: "A six-decade-old public housing development in Williamsburg has decayed into a house of horrors marred by moldy dwellings, widespread water damage and vexing vermin, seven New York politicians charged Monday in a letter demanding accelerated repairs. A doorknock sweep of two of the nine buildings at Bushwick/Hylan Houses found more than 100 units with water damage and mold, according to the letter to the New York City Housing Authority, which runs the development." | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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