After more than 150 staffers at the Environmental Protection Agency aired concerns about Lee Zeldin’s partisan leadership in a letter, the administrator responded with gusto—placing 144 on administrative leave for “undermining” his agenda. Under Zel…
New York’s grand climate ambitions may singe wallets in Co-Op City, whose 50,000 Bronx residents face monthly maintenance charges leaping from $950 to $4,000 if state and city laws force the shutdown of their famously efficient natural-gas plant. Solar panels offer only a faint glimmer; a billion-dollar retrofit looms. Affordable housing, it seems, risks being priced out before it’s powered down.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is toying with postponing his executive budget, citing stalled talks with Governor Kathy Hochul, who herself is knee-deep in resolving Albany’s own budget—now more than 25 days overdue. Hochul has steered $1.5 billion citywards, but insists Mamdani trim further before handing over more. With seven budget extenders and counting, fiscal brinkmanship is the dish of the day.
New York’s Mayor Mamdani has named Elizabeth Adams, late of Transportation Alternatives, as the city’s inaugural “Senior Adviser for Fast and Free Buses”—a role with the unenviable task of delivering voters’ dream of quicker, fareless commutes. Smarter bus lanes and free rides could indeed open up Gotham, if Adams can conjure up the missing $1 billion and keep both Yankees fans and Albany on board.
Leaked internal training material suggests the Trump administration’s Department of Homeland Security may soon instruct staff to deny green-card applications to those expressing “anti-American” or “antisemitic” views, notably targeting pro-Palestinian protesters and even including acts like flag-burning—despite Supreme Court protections. Officials must now flag such cases for legal review, though whether ideology trumps law in practice remains open to the usual American interpretation.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani has asked New York’s City Council to delay the city’s budget deadline, citing a yawning $6 billion gap and a fruitless expedition to Albany for new taxes. Speaker Julie Menin obliged—if the mayor hunts for “savings”—while Governor Hochul chips in with child care funds and a pied-à-terre tax. It seems fiscal brinkmanship, like Times Square neon, never really dims for long.
New York state is suing President Trump’s administration to reclaim $73 million in frozen highway funds, as federal officials allege the state improperly issued commercial driver’s licenses to non-citizens. Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James claim the move threatens road projects and could trigger a bus-driver shortage—a grim scenario in a city already allergic to congestion, though not, apparently, to lawsuits over road rules.
A chorus of New York legislators and transit advocates has demanded more sunlight on the $7 billion Penn Station overhaul, claiming that details are as scarce as honest subway cell service. Amid worries that developer choices are too chummy with the former Trump administration, locals insist the MTA needs a seat at the table—though Washington’s grip on the project appears as unyielding as the station’s infamous rush hour crowds.
Despite a broiling New York City summer, state officials have finalized a policy letting utilities cut power for unpaid bills during heat waves, diluting earlier rules that offered the city more protection. While state regulators tout clarification and uniformity, 8.3 million downstaters may feel clarity is scant comfort when the air conditioners go silent—a curious victory for consistency as temperatures, and tempers, continue to rise.
