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NY lawmakers pass hundreds of bills, but housing deal appears dead
By
Jon Campbell
Published Jun 8, 2023
Modified Jun 8, 2023
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Photo courtesy of Gov. Kathy Hochul's office
By
Jon Campbell
Published Jun 8, 2023
Modified Jun 8, 2023
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A wide-ranging plan to add eviction protections for tenants while extending a tax break for housing developers appears to be dead in Albany, with legislative leaders and Gov. Kathy Hochul pointing fingers at each other for its demise.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) issued a joint statement Thursday afternoon, confirming they had been negotiating an omnibus bill – first reported by Gothamist – that would have included a number of measures designed to increase housing production and spur a state law more favorable to renters.
But the legislative leaders said those talks hit a dead end, laying the blame on Hochul, a fellow Democrat whom Heastie and Stewart-Cousins claim wasn't on board. It wasn't clear Thursday morning whether the Legislature's Democratic majorities had shepherded enough support for the emerging plan to bring it to a vote.
"Unfortunately, it was clear that we could not come to an agreement with the governor on this plan," Stewart-Cousins and Heastie said in their joint statement.
A spokesperson for Hochul, however, pointed right back at the Legislature, questioning whether lawmakers were truly close on a housing agreement.
"To be clear: Unlike the more than 500 bills the Legislature has passed since January, no housing package was ever even introduced, let alone passed, for the governor's review," said Julie Wood, the spokesperson. "Absolutely nothing stood in the Legislature's way."
Housing issues dominated much of the Legislature's annual session at the Capitol, which had been set to wrap up Thursday but will be extended into Friday and perhaps Saturday. But ultimately, no major housing policies are expected to pass.
Lawmakers were cold to the central tenet of Hochul's housing plan, which would have allowed the state to step in to approve housing projects if a local government didn't hit annual housing-growth targets. And Hochul failed to back a measure that would have restricted a landlord's ability to evict a rental tenant without good cause and limited annual rent increases, which some legislative Democrats had identified as their priority.
Already, the Senate passed 430 bills between Monday and Wednesday alone, while the Assembly approved 196. Some of the biggest votes, however, are yet to come.
The Clean Slate Act is expected to be put to a vote on Friday, lawmakers said. The latest version of the bill would seal misdemeanor convictions three years after a person completes their prison or parole sentence, or eight years for most felony convictions. The record sealing would not apply to sex crimes or Class A felonies, like murder.
The legislation has support from the Senate and Assembly’s Democratic majorities as well as a wide swath of business and labor organizations, which say it will improve the labor pool by making it easier for people to find work once they’ve paid their debt to society. Hochul says she supports the concept, though she has not yet publicly backed the current version of the bill, which lawmakers introduced on Tuesday.
“We're still looking at the draft that was released [on Tuesday], so it is still in a conceptual form, but we're making good progress,” Hochul said on Wednesday.
Republicans, meanwhile, are staunchly opposed. The Assembly GOP held a news conference on Thursday morning with representatives from law enforcement and the state's District Attorneys Association, arguing that the state’s current records-sealing process — which requires approval from a judge — is sufficient.
Tony Jordan, president of the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York, faulted the bill for treating crimes like manslaughter or vehicular homicide the same way it would treat someone who stole a credit card in their youth.
“We support the notion of Clean Slate, but don't leave the victims behind,” said Jordan, the Washington County district attorney. “Don't leave the general public behind. And that's what we are most concerned that this does.”
I’m packed through Sunday.
Assemblymember Amy Paulin on the waning legislative session
Another bill that could come to a vote Friday is a measure to make Asian Lunar New Year a school holiday statewide, while a separate bill would make Diwali — the festival of lights for many South Asian cultures — a school holiday in New York City.
Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris (D-Queens) pledged his support for the Lunar New Year bill on Wednesday, improving its chances of getting a vote. But it remained unclear Thursday morning whether the measure would get over the finish line.
“I am eager to make Lunar New Year part of the school calendar so even more families can have their important holidays recognized,” Gianaris said.
Neither bill would have any effect on Brooklyn-Queens Day, the longstanding day off for some New York City school students.
Originally, Mayor Eric Adams had been looking to swap Brooklyn-Queens Day for Diwali on the school holiday calendar in order to ensure the city school system could still get to 180 annual days of instruction, as required by state law. But some Brooklyn and Queens-based lawmakers raised concerns, and language eliminating Brooklyn-Queens Day fell out of the final bill this week.
Amaris Cockfield, an Adams spokesperson, said City Hall still supports the measure making Diwali a holiday.
"This administration is committed to representing and respecting New Yorkers of all faiths, and we fully support making Diwali a state and school holiday,” Cockfield said. “We look forward to discussing strategies to ensure this happens, while continuing to meet the 180 days of school mark as required by state law."
Lawmakers heard from some school organizations with concerns about meeting the 180-day requirement, however. Adding additional holidays without removing existing ones makes it more difficult to fit those days in on a September-to-June calendar, particularly if there are any snow days.
"We're working with stakeholders to find a solution that works for everyone," said Anna Gronewold, a spokesperson for the New York State United Teachers union.
As of Thursday morning, it remained unclear when the Senate and Assembly would actually adjourn. Both houses are prepared to return on Friday to continue negotiations and voting on pending legislation, though any new or amended bills would require the governor to waive a three-day aging period if they are to be put to a vote immediately.
Some lawmakers are taking a better-safe-than-sorry approach.
“I’m packed through Sunday,” said Assemblymember Amy Paulin, a Westchester County Democrat.
This story was updated to include the latest information about the Legislature's housing plan as well as additional comment.
Tagged
education
new york state
new york city
housing
public safety
Kathy Hochul
Politics
eric adams
Jon Campbell
Jon Campbell covers the New York State Capitol for WNYC and Gothamist. Prior to that, he covered the Capitol for more than a decade for the USA TODAY Network. He has twice earned the Walter T. Brown Memorial Award, an honor given annually by the Legislative Correspondents Association alumni for outstanding state government coverage. Jon grew up in the Buffalo area and graduated from the University at Albany. Got a tip? Email Jon at [email protected] or Signal at JonCampbellNY.90.
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