Barely one in five private construction workers in New York State was covered by a union contract last year, according to newly released statistics that call into question a state public works "prevailing wage" mandate that assumes 30 percent union coverage of building trades occupations across New York. Read More
#NYCoronaVirus: Not a moment too soon, Governor Cuomo finally has acknowledging that a near-panic in financial markets amid rising fears of a global economic slowdown should prompt a re-set in the state's revenue forecast for the fiscal year that begins April 1, less than three weeks from now. Read More
For the third time in three years, health-care interests are airing TV ads favorable to Governor Cuomo in the thick of high-stakes negotiations over Medicaid funding. Read More
For decades, "Kill Urstadt!" was the rallying cry of New York City tenant activists and their political allies favoring more stringent rent control. The slogan referred to chapter 372 of the Laws of 1971, better known as the Urstadt Law, through which Albany barred the city from adopting rent limitations that are “more stringent or restrictive than those presently in effect.” Urstadt, who died this week at 92, was proud of the rent deregulation policies that made his surname an epithet in some quarters— and bemused to have been targeted for decades by calls for his (figurative) demise. Read More
A splinter group of Rochester teachers is threatening to stage a wildcat strike tomorrow, and the response from the school district, the teachers' union and state public-sector labor regulators could decide whether other New York districts face similar threats. Read More
#NYCoronavirus: "Hope for the best and prepare for the worst" is a favorite saying of Governor Cuomo, who has rolled it out again to describe how the state will deal with the coronavirus. But when it comes to the next state budget, Cuomo is hoping for better and preparing for more of the same. Read More
#NYCoronavirus: Amid growing fears that a coronavirus pandemic will severely disrupt the global economy, and with the stock market heading for its biggest weekly losses since the 2008 financial crisis, Governor Cuomo has been oddly quiet about the obvious budget implications. Read More
New enrollment numbers from the state-run health insurance exchange confirm a trend relevant to budget talks in Albany: The role of local governments in signing people up for Medicaid is smaller than ever. Read More
Albany police are among the latest group of workers benefiting from the 2018 Janus v. AFSCME decision. Read More
You’ve got to hand it to New York State United Teachers: the union maintains a remarkably straight face while arguing that the nation’s highest-spending schools and best-paid teachers are starved for funding. Read More
Data released at the first meeting of the governor's Medicaid Redesign Team on Tuesday provided an updated picture of the program's long-term care costs, and the results were eye-opening. Read More
In the face of New York's rapidly rising Medicaid spending, both the Cuomo administration and some of its critics have pointed to demographics as a driving factor. The state's population is aging, they have said, so long-term care costs should be expected to increase. There are two main reasons to doubt this narrative. Read More