Jan. 17, 2023 - A more transparent budget process, with independent oversight and less wiggle room with spending are just some of the reforms to crafting and adopting a state budget in New York that the Citizens Budget Commission recommends. Patrick Orecki, director of state studies for the group, discusses these changes in advance of the governor unveiling her executive budget.

Jan 17, 2023 - A quirk of the health coverage for more than 200,000 retired public employees in New York limits their access to skilled nursing once they sign up for Medicare, so the Retired Public Employees Association is trying to have this benefit restored during the budget process. The group's executive director, Ed Farrell, talks about the history have this gap in coverage and make the case for increasing the cost of living adjustment to public employee pensions.

Jan. 17, 2023 - Catskill Center for Conservation and Development Executive Director Jeff Senterman and Catskill Mountainkeeper Katherine Nadeau discuss new recommendations designed to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Catskill Park.

Jan. 16, 2023 - After two-and-a-half decades with the state Board of Elections, including 15 years as co-executive director, Republican Todd Valentine retired recently. He spoke with The Capitol Pressroom about retiring the lever voting machines, utilizing the internet, the bipartisan nature of boards of elections and his future.

Jan. 16, 2023 - More than 7,000 nurses at two New York City-area hospitals went on strike last week, ending their work stoppage after three days when they secured commitments for higher wages and increased staffing levels. Politico New York health care reporter Maya Kaufman explains what led to this showdown, how hospitals coped during the strike and the concessions labor secured.

Jan. 16, 2023 - The Legal Aid Society's Heidi Bramson discusses a new state law designed to ensure that homeless and runaway youth in New York are able to consent to medical care in non-emergency situations.

Jan. 13, 2023 - New York has failed to develop an adequate indigent legal defense system in the wake of a 2014 legal settlement, according to a new lawsuit filed by civil rights advocates. New York Civil Liberties Union staff attorney JP Perry discusses the state of public defense in the Empire State and how it could be improved.

Jan. 13, 2023 - The future of Gov. Kathy Hochul's planned overhaul of Penn Station has been thrust into jeopardy by precarious economic conditions and critics of her vision for the transit hub hope this is an opportunity to craft a new plan. State Sen. Leroy Comrie, a Queens Democrat, talks about the future of this project and how it could be paid for.

Jan. 13, 2023 - Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Westchester County Democrat, discusses the likelihood of a minimum wage hike being approved this year, considers reforming the process of nominating judges to the state's top court and comments on her working relationship with Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Jan. 12, 2023 - Gov. Kathy Hochul has identified affordability and job creation as two major priorities for 2023, but her State of the State address won't do much on either front for New Yorkers, according to Justin Wilcox, executive director of Upstate United, a coalition that advocates for lower taxes across upstate New York. Wilcox discusses the governor's minimum wage proposal and lays out his organization's wish list for the year.