Tag Archives: New York state

GOP Rep. Mike Lawler Floats Bid For NY Governor

Fox Business reports: Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said he will decide this June whether to run for governor of New York, potentially setting up a competitive Republican primary against his fellow New York Republican, Rep. Elise Stefanik. “I’ll make my decision by June,” Lawler said. “I’ll make my decision solely based on whether or not I believe there’s a pathway …

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McMahon Threatens New York Over School’s Mascot

Via press release from the White House: Today, the U.S. Department of Education launched an investigation into the New York Department of Education, Board of Regents for a reported violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will assess whether New York’s threat to withhold funding if the Massapequa School District does not …

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Elise Stefanik Considering Run For New York Governor

Politico reports: Rep. Elise Stefanik is considering a run for New York governor, according to two people familiar with her thinking and granted anonymity to discuss it. Since giving up her nomination to be U.N. ambassador, Stefanik has been getting encouragement to run from in-state Republican leadership and donors along with close allies of President Donald Trump, the people said. …

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New York AG: Trump Now Owes State Over $500M

CBS News reports: President Trump’s debt to New York from a civil fraud judgment passed $500 million on Tuesday, as interest continues to accrue while he appeals. The figure has been growing ever since a lengthy civil fraud trial ended with Mr. Trump, two of his sons and a former Trump Organization executive ordered to pay back $364 million in disgorgement …

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NY State Won’t Comply With Anti-DEI Education Edict

The Associated Press reports: New York state officials have told the Trump administration that they will not comply with its demands to end diversity, equity and inclusion practices in public schools, despite the administration’s threats to terminate federal education funding. Daniel Morton-Bentley, counsel and deputy commissioner of the state Department of Education, said in a letter dated Friday to the …

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NY Bill Would Yank Permits For Tesla In-Person Sales

Politico reports: State Sen. Pat Fahy, an Albany Democrat who’s championed electric vehicles, introduced a bill Wednesday that would yank permits for Tesla’s five in-person sales locations in New York. The company eschews the traditional dealership model of selling cars through third parties via franchise agreements. Instead, Tesla sells directly to consumers. In many states, auto franchise laws limit this …

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NYC Republicans Took Kickbacks For Poll Worker Jobs

The New York Times reports: When a Republican employee of the New York City Board of Elections told a woman that if she paid $150, she could have a job working at the polls during local elections, the woman hesitated but eventually agreed. Unable to afford the fee on her own, she said she went to her husband, who gave …

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New York Pastor Pleads Guilty To Child Porn Charges

The New York Post reports: A Long Island pastor is facing up to three decades in prison for possessing sexually explicit images and videos of young boys he chatted with online – a crime federal prosecutors condemned as “unspeakable.” Jose Saez, Jr., 29, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Central Islip Federal Court to sexual exploitation of a child for soliciting the …

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New York Amish Schools Lose Anti-Vaccine Case

Courthouse News reports: A New York State law requiring Amish students to receive vaccinations does not violate those students’ constitutional rights, a Second Circuit panel ruled Monday. The case, which the panel heard this past November, had been brought by three Amish community schools that were fined in 2019 for failing to comply with state-mandated school vaccinations. The schools and …

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Ex-NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo Faces Possible Disbarment

Gothamist reports: A state panel is exploring whether former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s law license should be in jeopardy for his alleged sexual harassment of women. The previously undisclosed probe by the Attorney Grievance Committee in New York’s Third Judicial Department is still in its early stages, but it could eventually result in the suspension or disbarment of Cuomo, a licensed …

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Five Charged With Torture Murder Of NY Trans Man

The Associated Press reports: New York State Police charged five people Friday in the murder of a missing man who authorities said died following repeated acts of violence and torture for more than a month by multiple individuals who later discarded his body in a field. The victim, Sam Nordquist, a 24-year-old transgender man originally from Minnesota, was reported missing …

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DOJ Sues New York Officials For “Protecting” Migrants

New York City’s ABC affiliate reports: The Justice Department is taking legal action against the state of New York and Gov. Kathy Hochul, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Wednesday, over its alleged resistance to supporting the Trump Administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration. The new attorney general delivered heated remarks announcing a new lawsuit against New York state and top officials, …

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New NY Law Shields Names Of Abortion Pill Providers

Gothamist reports: A bill Gov. Kathy Hochul signed Monday aims to make it harder for authorities in other states to prosecute New York doctors who prescribe abortion medication online. The new law allows doctors to keep their names off of prescription labels for mifepristone and misoprostol, drugs commonly used to terminate early pregnancies. Instead, they’ll be allowed to list their …

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Long Island DA: NY Trooper Staged His Own Shooting

Gothamist reports: A state trooper staged his own shooting on the Southern State Parkway in Nassau County in October — firing into his own leg, state police and local prosecutors said. When Trooper Thomas Mascia reported that he’d been shot, it set off a dayslong, multi-state manhunt for a vehicle and driver that authorities have since said he made up …

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AT&T Ends NY Home Service Over Low-Income Law

CNET reports: A new broadband law is going into effect this week in New York state requiring internet provider to offer low-income residents access to monthly broadband rates of $15 for 25Mbps or $20 for 200Mbps. As a response, AT&T has decided that it no longer plans to offer its 5G home internet in the Empire State and will begin …

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NY Unitarian Churches Hold “Big Gay Wedding Day”

Rochester, New York’s PBS affiliate reports: Love and resilience were on full display this past weekend at the inaugural Big Gay Wedding Day, held at Rochester’s First Universalist Church. Organized by local Unitarian Universalist congregations, including First Unitarian Church of Rochester, First Universalist Church of Rochester and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Canandaigua, the free event offered LGBTQ couples the …

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Suozzi Urges Fellow Dems To “Compromise” With Trump

Rep. Tom Suozzi writes for the New York Times: President-elect Donald Trump and the Republicans have managed to sell themselves as the party of change. It worked: They will soon control the presidency, Congress and, in essence, the Supreme Court. But to change and fix America requires both parties to work together. As a Democratic member of Congress, I know …

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NY Law Makes It Easier To Cancel Gym Memberships

Gothamist reports: The start of a new year often brings a surge of optimism — and gym memberships. But for many, the excitement fades as unused memberships become an expensive burden. Starting in 2025, a new state law will make canceling these contracts less of a headache. Under the new law, health clubs must process gym membership cancellations within 10 …

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Video Shows NY Prison Guards Fatally Beating Inmate

NBC News reports: The office of New York’s attorney general released body camera footage Friday showing the fatal beating of a state prisoner this month by correctional officers who punched and kicked him repeatedly while he was handcuffed on an infirmary bed. The incident, which has drawn outrage from political leaders and was condemned by the officers’ union as “incomprehensible,” …

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New York Gov Signs Landmark Climate Change Bill

The New York Times reports: Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York on Thursday signed a law that requires companies that are big fossil fuel polluters to help pay to repair damage caused by extreme weather, which is becoming more common because of greenhouse gas emissions. The legislation, called the Climate Change Superfund Act, mandates that the companies responsible for the …

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