SOCIAL MEDIA LAWS SIGNED: Hochul today signed into law the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation for Kids act, which will prohibit social media companies from providing children under 18-years-old with addictive feeds without parental consent. The legislation will instead require social media feeds for minors include only content followed by the young users and content must be presented in chronological order. Hochul also signed the New York Child Data Protection act, a bill that prohibits websites from collecting or selling minors’ data without parental approval. "Other state's should start paying attention to New York, even our Surgeon General called this [legislation] out at the federal level," Hochul said in her remarks. “We are not only leading the nation, but other states have been watching us and are going to take this bill and bring it to their state, so that eventually this will be the law of the land,” New York State United Teachers president Melinda Person said. State Attorney General Tish James said the new law will likely face opposition, as it did prior to its passage, from social media groups that lobbied to delay it. “Tish James loves litigation and Tish James is not afraid to stand up to any bully,” she added, referring to potential legal pushback. — Katelyn Cordero IRC STICKING AROUND: New York’s new Independent Redistricting Commission is planning to remain in existence in some form for the remainder of the decade. Commissioners have interpreted the constitutional language that created the commission to mean it doesn’t wither away once maps are finalized. They’re budgeting $900,000 to stay afloat this year, with a focus on producing a report to lawmakers about how New York’s first go-around with the new process went. “That’ll be carefully done and carefully researched, and we will expect to see a work product by the end of the year or sometime next year,” GOP Chair Charlie Nesbitt said. The first time with the new redistricting rules was certainly a bumpy experience. Five major court cases have led to multiple changes in the congressional and state legislative maps since the commission released its first draft in 2022. — Bill Mahoney ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS LEFT BEHIND: Lawmakers and environmental advocates in Albany had clear environmental goals they wanted to achieve this legislative session. They went home accomplishing virtually none of them. None of the major elements of the state’s plan to slash emissions 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by 2050 were acted on this year. Measures to reduce plastic packaging, begin plans to transition buildings off gas and mitigate vehicle traffic all ended up failing. “What we're seeing is just basic climate indifference," Eunice Ko, the deputy director for the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance told POLITICO Pro. "Partly what we're seeing is an overemphasis, I think, on affordability from the governor and the Legislature.” “I would argue affordable for who,” Ko added. “You can subsidize suburban people, I guess, but won't be willing to subsidize caskets in the Bronx when people are dying from extreme heat." POLITICO Pro’s New York energy and environment reporter Marie French took a look at what the lack of progress this session means for the state’s climate goals and how reducing emissions and achieving climate law mandates remains elusive. You can read her report here. — Jason Beeferman STOPPING THE COMSTOCK ACT: Rep. Pat Ryan, of Kingston, introduced legislation with his fellow Democratic House colleagues to eliminate an 1873 federal law the Democrats fear a second-term President Trump could use to implement a national abortion ban. Some anti-abortion proponents say the 19th-century Comstock Act law could enable them to enact a federal abortion ban without needing to pass any new legislation. “This is a hidden ticking time-bomb that must be immediately defused,” Ryan said in a statement. Today he and five fellow House Democrats introduced the “Stop Comstock Act,” which resembles a measure introduced today by Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith. Ryan also claimed that Trump has a “detailed playbook to weaponize an archaic law from 1873 that would impose a nationwide abortion ban,” referencing a New York Times article that showed a person close to Trump was intent on using the law should Trump become president again — but the former president previously stated he intends to keep abortion up to the states. Trump said in April that it should be “up to the states to do the right thing” on abortion, while painting Democrats as “radical” on the issue. — Jason Beeferman | 
