Author Archive

Annie McDonough

is the deputy City Hall reporter at City & State New York.

Heard Around Town

Policy

NYC is revising its request to modify the right to shelter for migrants

“The fact that they are making a motion at all and carrying through with that, asking to be relieved of their obligations under the right to shelter, is an escalation,” Legal Aid attorney Josh Goldfein said.

Immigration

Policy

Which counties are closing their doors to asylum-seekers?

More than 30 counties around the state have taken steps to block New York City from sending migrants to local hotels and shelters.

New York City

Policy

New York City schools are embracing AI. Lawmakers had some questions.

After an about-face on ChatGPT, the Department of Education plans to develop AI policy for grades K-12 by June.

Heard Around Town

Politics

Prince William gets canceled on by Eric Adams

The Prince of Wales was to meet with the mayor during his latest visit to New York City, but instead settled for greeting FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh at a Lower Manhattan firehouse.

Workforce

Policy

Staffing shortages are still disrupting New York City services

Ahead of a hiring freeze, the mayor’s management report showed how insufficient staffing hampered some agencies’ operations.

Campaigns & Elections

Politics

2023 New York City Council general election races to watch

There will be battlegrounds across the city as Republicans try to add to their gains in recent years.

Heard Around Town

Politics

Report: NYC unable to process most welfare applications on time

Timely processing of cash assistance and SNAP applications continued to drop in the last fiscal year, according to the Mayor’s Management Report.

Interviews & Profiles

Personality

Sam Berger’s victory could hold lessons for Democrats in other purple districts

The Assembly candidate in Queens said: “Everything we had been looking at said that it was going to be a very tight race.”

Campaigns & Elections

Politics

Democrat Sam Berger wins Queens Assembly special election

He was able to flip key areas of Kew Gardens Hills that went big for Lee Zeldin in the race for governor last year.

MagazineShow All

Campaigns & Elections

Politics

Queens Assembly District 27 special election results

Democrat Sam Berger has defeated Republican David Hirsch in the race to replace former Assembly Member Daniel Rosenthal.

Workforce

Policy

20,000 city jobs would stay vacant under Adams’ hiring freeze

Facing mounting asylum-seeker costs on top of other budget shortfalls, the mayor plans to use the tool for the first time.

Campaigns & Elections

Politics

‘All hands on deck’: Democrats, unions rally behind Berger in special election

Democrat Sam Berger has outraised and outspent Republican David Hirsch in the Queens Assembly special election, but insiders said Hirsch could succeed – in part by playing on frustrations about the migrant crisis.

News & Politics

Politics

Can the comptroller really block the city's DocGo contract? (No.)

Former New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer saw the authority to register contracts as a first line of defense against financial impropriety and corruption.

Policy

Policy

Meta, TikTok and more take down thousands of subway surfing videos

Eric Adams has blamed social media for a lot. Now those platforms are stepping up to discourage subway surfing.

Policy

Policy

Adams: plan to close Rikers was ‘flawed from the beginning’

The mayor cited ballooning costs and more incarcerated people as reasons the complex may not close by the 2027 deadline.

News & Politics

Politics

Key council committee approves five-year permit for Madison Square Garden

James Dolan gets five-year extension of Madison Square Garden’s special operating permit – one forever short of what he asked for.

Personality

Personality

Sherif Soliman discusses the mayor’s Albany wish list

A Q&A with Eric Adams’ chief policy and delivery officer on housing progress and more.