Dispatches from Planet Albany

After state lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul emerged from the 2023 legislative session without a grand compromise on housing, there is growing optimism - at least on the left - that the 2024 budget process has the potential to result in some new action on housing.

But if there is a deal, will it include some form of "Good Cause," a roll back of rent stabilization protections, or housing vouchers?

To answer some of these questions, as well as how the housing sausage gets made, we spoke with Rebecca Garrard, deputy executive director at Citizen Action of New York, and Michael Tobman, membership and communications director for the Rent Stabilization Association.

The fate of New York's congressional lines will soon be in the hands of state lawmakers, who will either approve the boundaries set by a bipartisan redistricting commission or take their second stab at drawing maps based on the 2020 census.

Bill Mahoney, a Capitol reporter for Politico New York, and Jeff Wice, a senior fellow with the New York Law School's Census and Redistricting Institute, join the show to discuss the future outcomes with redistricting, including the possibile court challenges and navigating statutory restrictions.

Then pollster Steve Greenberg talks about the February survey of New Yorkers by the Siena College Research Institute.

Gov. Kathy Hochul voiced the frustration of nearly all the stakeholders in New York's burgeoning marijuana marketplace, when she recently conceded to the Buffalo News editorial board that the rollout (under her watch) had been a "disaster."

And it's through this lens that we're examining the marijuana landscape in New York, including why state lawmakers and the governor have been inclined to delegate so much authority to state cannabis regulators and whether they're going to take control of the issue in the future. We're joined by Hal McCabe, executive director of the Cannabis Association of New York, and Joe Rossi, the head of the cannabis lobbying group at Park Strategies.

Before signing off, we check in with Times Union Capitol reporter Dan Clark to learn about his new newsletter.

Politico New York's energy and environment reporter at the Capitol, Marie French, schools us on the state's effort to realize its renewable energy goals for 2030, the potential backlash to a proposed overhaul of transmission siting, and Gov. Kathy Hochul's opportunity to shape a key utility regulator.

Then we'll talk about a recent Siena College Research Institute poll with Joe Reubens, who leads the qualitative and quantitative research department at The Parkside Group.

We're back with another recording in front of a raucous audience at the Bull Moose Club down the hill from the Capitol, with Jasmine Gripper, co-director of the New York Working Families Party, and Shontell Smith, head of the New York practice for Tusk Strategies.

The show features a discussion about the ideal karaoke partners and road trip companions, as well as a conversation about Gov. Kathy Hochul's budget priorities, the possibility of increasing taxes, and when the final budget deal will be struck.

Somewhere between a governor vetoing a bill and simply signing legislation that makes it to their desk is the approval message and subsequent chapter amendment, which has become an ever increasingly popular tool for New York's chief executive.

We explore how chapter amendments come together, consider why they're being used at comparatively high levels by Gov. Kathy Hochul, and discuss whether state lawmakers should play hard ball over the issue.

Our guests are Beth Garvey, a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig and former counsel to then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and Doug Clark, a co-managing partner at Shenker, Russo & Clark and a former senior associate counsel for the Assembly majority.

And a reminder that we're hosting a free, live recording of the show at 5 p.m. on Jan. 29 at the Bull Moose Club in Albany, with NY WFP co-Director Jasmine Gripper and Tusk Strategies NY practice head Shontell Smith. Reserve your space on Eventbrite.

The budget season officially kicked off this week with Gov. Kathy Hochul revealing her $233 billion spending plan for New York, which includes her commitment to address an influx of asylum seekers, slower growth in school aid, and a lot of Medicaid money.

We talk about the underrated and overrated aspects of the proposal, as well as the potential stumbling blocks with the state legislature, with Freeman Klopott, a vice president with Marino, and Patrick Orecki, director of state studies for the Citizens Budget Commission.

Gov. Kathy Hochul shared her vision of New York and priorities for the upcoming legislative session as part of her third State of the State address this past week at the Capitol. The Democratic leader focused on fighting crime, addressing mental health issues, and making the Empire State more affordable.

This week's episode, which comes from a webinar hosted by Marathon Strategies, analyzes the content and style of the speech, as well as what comes next at Planet Albany. The conversation is moderated by Liz Benjamin, a managing director at Marathon Strategies, and features Chris Bombardier, president at Catalyst Government Relations, and David Lombardo, host of WCNY's The Capitol Pressroom (and usually this podcast).

Before embarking on the 2024 legislative session, we look back at some of big stories from Planet Albany in 2023 and consider the big news that could come out of the Capitol in the year ahead.

We look back and ahead with BerlinRosen Vice President Loren Amor and Citizen Action of New York Deputy Executive Director Rebecca Garrard.

All the votes have yet to be counted from this year's local elections in New York, but that won't stop us from looking ahead to 2024 with the help of the unofficial results from 2023.

Actum Managing Director Chapin Fay and BerlinRosen Vice President Loren Amor will consider what this year's races mean for state legislative battles and the upcoming session in Albany. We'll also discuss the potential significance of New York's equal right amendment referendum.