After weeks of infighting and political grandstanding, Democratic leaders in New York said yesterday that they had reached agreement on a contentious issue holding up this year’s state budget negotiations: criminal discovery.

For years district attorneys have pushed for changes in state law governing the timing and scope of what evidence prosecutors must produce, which is known as discovery, before a trial. Prosecutors argued that they lacked the staffing and resources to comply with the demands and deadlines laid out in the law, resulting in serious cases being dismissed. Benjamin Oreskes and Grace Ashford report in THE NY TIMES that the D.A.’s campaign was backed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, who spent considerable political capital pushing to loosen the rules for prosecutors — even going so far as to refuse to sign any budget that would not reduce the number of criminal cases that are dismissed on procedural grounds.

On Tuesday, the NYS Legislature passed Hochul’s fifth emergency spending measure to keep the state operating until a 2025-26 budget is adopted.

The "extender" measure authorized $437.7 million in spending to fund state government into tomorrow. Since the 2025-26 fiscal year began, Hochul and the Legislature have approved $6.6 billion in emergency extenders to keep programs funded and most state workers paid.

Michael Gormley reports in NEWSDAY that the latest pressure to seal a deal is the need for most school districts to know state school aid figures so local school district budgets can be finalized on April 22 before district votes on the budgets are held statewide on May 20.

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Another federal deadline is approaching this Sunday for New York to take down congestion pricing, but MTA officials say the program is here to stay — offering new data showing a 13% reduction in cars in Manhattan’s toll zone that they say shows the program is working. Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that after Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials blew off the Trump administration’s March 20 deadline to cease charging vehicles for driving at or below 60th Street in Manhattan, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Patrick Duffy gave the MTA a 30-day extension, with the warning that "continued noncompliance will not be taken lightly."

With the matter tied up in courts, MTA officials have said they won’t take down the tolls unless ordered to do so by a judge.

New data released by the MTA shows that 82,000 fewer cars a day entered Manhattan’s congestion relief zone in March as compared with the historical average for the month — a reduction of 13%. That’s more than the 8% reduction when the tolls started in January.

MTA figures indicate that for the full month of March, there was a reduction of 2,544,945 cars in the toll zone below 60th Street in Manhattan as compared with the historical average.

MTA Construction and Development President Jamie Torres-Springer said, “"Congestion pricing is working. It’s an extraordinary success ... It is a generational change. Traffic is down. Quality of life is up all across the city."

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Friends of The Big Duck, a nonprofit organization, celebrates the arrival of spring with the 12th annual Easter Duck Egg Hunt at Big Duck Ranch, 1012 Flanders Road (Route 24), Flanders. The free event is this coming Saturday, April 19, 12 noon sharp, so families should arrive by 11:45 a.m. Participating children must bring their own basket to carry eggs.

The grass field behind The Big Duck will be dotted with filled plastic “duck eggs” that children 2 to 9 years old can easily find. To make it a safe event, the children are grouped into three separate age groups. A prize basket is awarded to “The Good Egg” in each group who discovers the special egg. The family fun will include games and a visit from the Easter Bunny.

Friends of The Big Duck is the Southampton Town-appointed steward of Big Duck Ranch, where the Big Duck sits. The organization manages the Long Island Duck Farming Exhibit in the Victorian Barn (open to the public that day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and services the public bathrooms.

The Big Duck, open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., is on the national register of historic places. It was built in 1931 on West Main Street, Riverhead. A roadside sign, funded by the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, marks the original location. It was moved to its current location in 1936, moved to Sears-Bellows County Park in 1987 and returned to the heart of Flanders in 2007.

Both admission and parking for the event are free.

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U.S. Congressman Nick LaLota from Amityville who represents the East End in the U.S. House of Representatives joined fellow House Republicans and a handful of Democrats to pass last week the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, which would require people who want to register to vote to provide proof that they are American citizens. The bill is not expected to be approved in the U.S. Senate. Stephen J. Kotz reports on 27east.com that it is the latest attempt by Republicans to tighten voting rules in response to widely debunked claims that there has been widespread fraud in American elections — most pointedly when President Donald Trump falsely claimed that the 2020 election was stolen from him. While Republicans say the measure will safeguard the ballot box, Democratic critics have countered that its requirements actually will suppress voting among both Republicans and Democrats. Congressman LaLota’s office shared a statement he made about the SAVE Act, “As a former commissioner of the Suffolk County Board of Elections, I deeply respect the dual importance of ballot access and election integrity. I remain committed to making it easier to vote and harder to cheat.” The 1st Congressional District representative stated, “The SAVE Act, which passed the House Thursday with my support, includes a commonsense voter ID requirement backed by over 80 percent of Americans —including strong majorities of Republicans, independents and even Democrats. This measure helps prevent fraud and strengthens public confidence in our elections.”

Critics say the SAVE Act will unfairly punish both the poor and women. The bill would require voters to show proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport. Many poor Americans lack both, and with the cost of a passport exceeding $130, critics say the SAVE Act is a modern version of the poll taxes once associated with Jim Crow laws in the post-Civil War South. Only about half of all Americans have a passport, and those numbers are more concentrated in states that typically vote Democratic, which could disenfranchise voters in states that typically lean Republican.

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Five East Hampton Town department heads have resigned since last summer. One reason could be that the town’s salary for those posts lags behind its neighbors’ in two key spots: planning and housing. To combat the retention issue, the East Hampton Town Board is mulling changes to the town’s work-from-home policy. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that since the end of January, four department heads have quit — Town Attorney Rob Connelly, Housing Director Eric Schantz, Code Enforcement Director Kevin Cooper and Chief Building Inspector Joe Palermo — while Planning Director Jeremy Samuelson left in the latter half of last year. Tina LaGarenne stepped up to fill Samuelson’s spot internally, and Cooper’s replacement started on Monday, April 7. However, the other three posts remain in flux. At the start of the year, the East Hampton Town Board approved a resolution to pay Schantz, the housing director, $120,056. In Southampton, that same position earns $140,520; in Riverhead, $149,086; and in Brookhaven, $144,200. Southold, notably, does not have a housing department. The respective planning departments show similar discrepancies. In 2024 — his position was unfilled at the start of 2025 — the East Hampton Town Board approved a resolution to pay Samuelson $122,200. In Southampton, the same job nets $141,052; in Brookhaven, the equivalent position pays $140,675.

However, East Hampton Town offers more money than many of its neighbors in one area: town attorney.

While each town budget varies, one clear issue emerges: East Hampton Town must contend with a reality in which its employees could make more money, live more affordably and face a less rigorous commute by living and working in a town further west.

Recently, the affordable housing issue has taken center stage at East Hampton Town Board meetings.

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On the North Fork this coming Saturday morning in commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the battle at Lexington & Concord in Massachusetts, the Sons of the American Revolution will be dedicating a plaque in honor of the ten Revolutionary War Veterans interred at the Cutchogue Old Burying Ground. This will be an early semiquincentennial event. There will be a brief history of the grounds, a speech by the Southold Town supervisor, and a roll call with a musket-fired salute by Revolutionary War Soldier reenactors for each veteran. Refreshments will be served. Presented by the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Historical Council and Museums. That’s 11 am this coming Saturday at the Old Burying Ground in Cutchogue, corner of Harbor Lane and Main Road.

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The directors of the Springs Food Pantry, the Sag Harbor Community Food Pantry and Heart of the Hamptons agree: Food supply is shrinking even as need is growing on the South Fork. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that each faces its own hurdles, with the directors citing federal funding cuts, tariffs on Chinese goods and rising food prices. In the meantime, the food pantries have sought ways to adapt.

Last week, the Springs Food Pantry served 383 families, totaling around 1,700 people; the Sag Harbor Food Pantry served 106 families, equating to around 500 people; and Heart of the Hamptons served around 500 families most recently, totaling around 2,500 people.

For the Springs Food Pantry, that number is a record high, Director Holly Wheaton said.

“It seems like every week now we’re feeding more and more recipients in Springs.” The food pantry served 32 percent more families last week than last year at this time.

Demand for Heart of the Hamptons has grown at a similar clip. At this time last year, the organization fed about 320 families — that is, it served around 36 percent more families last week.

As for federal funding, the Springs Food Pantry hasn’t “seen a cutback yet,” but the recent bout of tariffs has caused some concern for Wheaton.

Through a volunteer, the food pantry found a bag supplier willing to donate “heavy duty, recyclable” plastic bags. In the past, the food pantry paid around $200 per case, and it went through two cases per week.

However, Wheaton recently discovered that the bags are made in China, so “I can’t expect that that’s going to continue for very long in our current climate.”

The Springs Food Pantry is run entirely by volunteers, and Wheaton said it just rolled out a new website, so people can “hop on to see what we’re all about.”

As for donations, 92 percent of the money given goes directly to purchasing food, while the remainder goes to rent and utilities...where costs are rising.