August 8, 2025- State Sen. Jake Ashby, a Capital Region Republican who did combat tours overseas with the Army Reserves, talks about increasing services for Purple Heart awardees and reflects on the Trump administration's handling of U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs.

August 8, 2025- We go through the agenda items in Albany for New York's nearly 500,000 public sector retirees with Tom Tatun, the recently anointed executive director for the Retired Public Employees Association.

August 8, 2025- Gov. Kathy Hochul is promising affordable and reliable energy from new nuclear power plants, but how achievable is her vision? We get a contrarian take from John Howard, the former head of the New York Public Service Commission.

August 7, 2025- The state's "All-Electric Buildings" mandate will begin to be phased in next year and, while environmental advocates are welcoming the change, the construction industry is continuing to warn about unintended consequences. We discuss the transition with Mike Fazio, executive director of the New York State Builders Association.

August 7, 2025- In the wake of Gov. Kathy Hochul pushing to make it easier for New Yorkers to be involuntarily committed, President Donald Trump issued an executive order designed to promote more forced psychiatric institution of the country's homeless population. We unpack the significance of the action at the federal level, which could also hurt undermine harm reduction efforts in New York, with Patrick Wildes, director of the Government Law Center at Albany Law.

August 7, 2025- Starting in August, the more than 30,000 people incarcerated in New York don't have to pay to make outgoing phone calls. We unpack this policy decision from the Hochul administration, including how it could benefit society, with Bianca Tylek, founder and executive director of Worth Rises.

August 6, 2025- More than 100 marijuana dispensary owners are grappling with the revelation that their approved locations are in violation of a state law as the result of a measuring mix up by the Hochul administration. We consider possible remedies to this situation with Joe Rossi, founder of Modern Advocacy and a cannabis lobbyist, and Joseph Levey, founding partner of Helbraun Levey, a law firm focused on cannabis and hospitality.

August 6, 2025- As we continue to unpack the ramifications of the Big Beautiful Bill adopted by Republicans in Washington D.C., we're turning our attention to what it means for community health centers that serve low-income New Yorkers in medical deserts. Our guest is Rose Duhan, president and CEO of the Community Healthcare Association of New York State.

Aug. 5, 2025 - Shontell Smith, the former political director for Andrew Cuomo's unsuccessful mayoral primary bid in New York City, reflects on what went right and what went wrong during this Dispatches from Planet Albany excerpt.

August 5, 2025- School districts have been encouraged by the state to find regional partnerships that might save money and improve operations. We consider what regionalization has looked like in the past and how it could happen in the future with Anita Murphy, a retired superintendent from the Capital Region BOCES, and Brian Backstrom, director of Education Policy Studies at the Rockefeller Institute of Government.