Albany

Senator Tim Kennedy has been getting a lot of newfound attention following the Democratic Party’s takeover the Senate chamber last November.  He was even named the Chairman of the Transportation Committee by Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins of Westchester County. His

Payroll data for 73,884 public authority employees, totaling almost $4.5 billion, have been added to SeeThroughNY. The new data come from 298 employers and include: New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (43,436 employees) New York State Thruway Authority (3,952 employees) Urban Development

Senator Chris Jacobs‘ announcement that he intends to primary Rep. Chris Collins in the Republican Party primary contest in the 27th congressional district is creating a frenzy of speculation and posturing from prospective candidates on both sides of the aisle

Erie County Republican Party Chairman Nick Langworthy is likely to receive the support of President Donald J. Trump in his bid to unseat Ed Cox — an establishment figure from Manhattan who has been hostile to the President. It’s rumored

Overtime payments jumped nearly 16 percent last year at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), fueling agency-wide average pay hikes of 6 percent, according to newly posted payroll records at SeeThroughNY.net. The increase in MTA payroll costs for 2018 alone was $418 million—$82

New York State’s Republican Party is facing an existential crisis, having lost control of the State Senate chamber last year, the party’s last bastion of power in Albany.  If the party is unable to retake the chamber next year, then

State lawmakers spent $7.8 million on postage for campaign-style mailings to constituents in the six-month run-up to last year’s elections, according to data added today to SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website. Senators spent $4.2 million and Assembly members spent $3.5 million

BY EJ MCMAHON The impending enactment of a permanent property tax levy cap in New York is a truly historic moment. Since its founding in 2005, the Empire Center has identified a broad cap on property tax levies as a

Political operatives with close ties to the Governor’s office tell The Chronicle that Andrew Cuomo is planning to roll out signature energy and environmental legislation. In recent weeks, it has been rumored that Cuomo plans to enter the Democratic Presidential

BY MIKE MADIGAN Governor Andrew Cuomo has been accused of using taxpayer dollars to fund propaganda that promotes his administration, perhaps most infamously, in the form of hundreds of millions of dollars in StartUp NY advertising buys at friendly media

President Donald J. Trump‘s Department of the Interior is issuing approvals for new off-reservation casino projects.  Despite an increasingly competitive gaming industry, some Tribes are advancing new projects — but not here in New York State, where Governor Andrew Cuomo‘s

Senator Tim Kennedy — the newly appointed chairman of the Transportation Committee — will be overseeing the architecture of a massive omnibus spending bill designed to address New York City’s mass transit crisis. Modernizing the New York City subway system

The newly ascendant Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes is expected to play a key role in housing legislation that is expected early this session. Agencies like the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and the Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority, have

Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes‘ ascendancy to highest echelons of Albany’s political power structure, could mean big gains for the East Side neighborhoods that she represents. Her relationship with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie will be a critically important one if

BY TODD ALDINGER, ESQ The Libertarian Party has emerged from the 2018 midterm elections as a meaningful player in New York State politics. There will necessarily be some electoral competition between Republicans and Libertarians; however, because we live in deep-blue

BY TODD ALDINGER, ESQ A significant legislative pay raise would help Republicans recruit and retain the caliber of candidates they need to compete with Democrats. With Democrats firmly in control of both the State Senate and Assembly, potential Republican candidates

BY TODD ALDINGER, ESQ New York State Republican Senate Campaigns outspent Democrat candidates for State Senate by nearly three million dollars — and still lost eight seats in the 2018 midterm elections. Much of these funds were spent defending State