New York State

What could still get passed in the New York legislative session?

Protections for tenants, survivors of sexual assault and formerly incarcerated people are all being considered. Eric Adams’ control of New York City schools also hangs in the balance.

State legislative chambers in Albany.

State legislative chambers in Albany. Walter Bibikow/Getty Images

State lawmakers are set to break for the year in less than a month, with the last scheduled session day on the calendar for June 2. And like most years, they still have a fair amount of work to get done with just a handful of days to do it.

Advocates and activists have flooded the Capitol in recent weeks to push for their post-budget priorities, with some organizations sending buses full of people to take their messages directly to state leaders. With visitors once again allowed in the Capitol after two years of COVID-19 restrictions, the end-of-session lobbying blitz has returned in full force as lawmakers scramble to complete their legislative business before heading back to their districts to shift into campaign mode. 

While the majority of the hundreds of bills the Legislature passes throughout the year are fairly mundane and often address hyperlocal issues, several major issues generally drew the lion’s share of attention during the budget season, and again at the end of the year. And this year is no different. 

Although many contentious issues got done in the budget, perhaps most notably another rollback of bail reform in the wake of rising crime statewide, many others still remain outstanding in the waning days of the legislative year in Albany. That means lawmakers are in for some more late nights of conference meetings as leaders continue to hash out deals with the governor and among themselves to get as much done as possible, likely in a last-minute omnibus bill.

Here are some of the biggest legislative issues still facing state officials as they count down the days of the session.

Clean Slate Act

For the second year in a row, lawmakers are working to get legislation approved that would clear the records of most people convicted of crimes after a certain amount of time after their release. The intent of the Clean Slate Act is to make it easier for those who have previous convictions get jobs, provided they don’t get arrested again. The bill came close to passing last year in June, but a deal between the Legislature and the governor fell apart at the last minute. Earlier this year, lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul appeared to be on the same page regarding the legislation, both having proposed it as part of their budget plans. However, it didn’t make it into the final deal as talks continued. The Clean Slate Act once again hovers close to a final deal as legislators prepare to leave Albany for the year. Assembly Member Catalina Cruz, the measure’s sponsor, recently expressed confidence that the bill will pass before then, although precedent has shown how quickly a deal can fall apart. 

Good Cause Eviction

As more upstate towns and cities offered their support for local versions of the tenant protections law, legislators at the state level had hoped to capitalize on that success to approve statewide “good cause” eviction legislation. The bill would make it harder for landlords to evict tenants. One of the more controversial aspects would effectively cap rent increases in many cases as the legislation would not allow landlords to dump a renter for nonpayment of rent in the case of an “unconscionable” increase. The highly contentious proposal has faced strong opposition from real estate and landlord groups who have argued that it would disproportionately harm them while making it impossible to afford necessary building upkeep. Lawmakers held a hearing on the measure at the beginning of the year, but it has otherwise made little progress that would indicate it’s poised to become law.

Mayoral control

For New York City Mayor Eric Adams, few items on the agenda for Albany lawmakers are as important to him as renewing mayoral control of city schools – though one might not know by the way he’s been acting. The former state senator has barely shown his face around the Capitol since taking office, and his relationship with state lawmakers seems lacking at a time one would expect that he would engage in a strong lobbying campaign. Mayoral control is set to expire in June, giving lawmakers and Adams little time to come to a final deal. The mayor had originally planned to visit Albany this week, but chose not to at the last minute, a decision that has raised some eyebrows. Although the state has renewed mayoral control when the time came for years, the specifics of what a deal to renew it this year remain unclear.

421a

The controversial tax break for developers to build affordable housing is also set to expire in June, and lawmakers must decide what they want to do with the program. Doing nothing is an option if legislators choose simply to allow the 421a program to lapse, as they did in 2016 the last time it came up for renewal. Gov. Kathy Hochul had proposed a similarly-structured replacement as part of her initial budget proposal at the beginning of the year, but it faced strong resistance from housing advocates as well as members of the state Legislature. They dropped the proposed program from the final budget, with lawmakers saying they had time to revisit the issue later in the legislative session. However, since budget season, there has been little public discussion on renewing or replacing the tax incentive, leaving its future in a state of limbo. 

Abortion rights

With the leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft decision overturning Roe v. Wade, abortion rights quickly emerged as a hot issue for lawmakers and the governor. Although New York has already codified the right to an abortion in state law, legislative leaders pledged to pass additional protections as well as new means to make access to the procedure easier. Officials also anticipate an influx of out-of-state people coming to New York for an abortion if the Supreme Court officially overturns Roe, something the state wants to prepare for. State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said that lawmakers would not leave Albany before approving additional abortion rights legislation, although neither chamber has yet to pass existing bills. They included bills to create an abortion access fund, to establish a fund for abortion services providers and enabling telehealth abortions. 

Adult Survivors Act

In a repeat of last year’s unusual circumstances, the state Senate has once again unanimously approved the Adult Survivors Act, which would open a lookback window for adult victims of sexual abuse to file civil suits against their abusers. It’s a similar bill to the Child Victims Act, which became law in 2019. Last year, the Assembly failed to bring the legislation to the floor for a vote despite its broad bipartisan support. Once again, the Assembly has not yet acted on the bill even after it sailed through the state Senate without any objections. Advocates for survivors of sexual abuse have made trips to the Capitol in recent weeks to push the Assembly to vote on the bill this year, though it still remains in committee without it appearing on an upcoming agenda.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.