| | | | |  | | By Nick Reisman, Emily Ngo and Jeff Coltin | | Presented by |  | | | |  Gov. Kathy Hochul is proposing a session agenda that is focused on the cost of living. | Susan Watts/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul | Donald who? When the legislative session convenes today in the Capitol’s gilded halls, “affordability” and not “Trump” will be the watchword. Democrats — including top party leaders, state lawmakers and operatives — have expressed little appetite to bring back the resistance movement of the first Trump term. But the issues that catapulted him back into the presidency — inflation, immigration and public safety — are nevertheless expected to dominate Albany. Gov. Kathy Hochul has signaled she wants to tackle cost-of-living issues during the annual six-month legislative session. She’s already rolled out proposals for rebate checks and tax credits to help New York families. And the governor has also made it clear she wants to make it easier to involuntarily commit people with severe mental illnesses after headline-grabbing crimes on mass transit. Hochul insisted the themes she’s been hammering over the last weeks — dubbed the “affordability agenda” — are about responding to New Yorkers’ needs, not President-elect Donald Trump’s win. “I did not need the November elections to tell me affordability and public safety are the number one and two concerns,” she told reporters recently. “I will do it independent of elections, it’s the right thing to do. People are hurting right now and we cannot be tone deaf as a party, as a nation or a state to those cries for help.” Many of her plans to fight crime and costs will need legislative approval, as will the agenda of Mayor Eric Adams, who wants to eliminate the city income tax for low-wage families and further pare back the cashless bail law. It’s a delicate time for Hochul, an unpopular incumbent who is expected to face competitive primary and general election challenges next year. Republicans are trying to build on Trump’s gains in New York and are eager to flip the governor’s mansion for the first time in 20 years. And while the GOP down-ballot lost three battleground House seats, Democrats are nervous their generation-long hold on statewide power could finally slip. Top GOP lawmakers believe a mix of issues — the expense of living in a high-tax state, a costly migrant crisis and high-profile violent crime — will persuade voters. “A lot of these issues — they’re not siloed,” state Senate Minority Leader Robert Ortt said. “There’s a connection to them in people’s daily lives and how people look at what’s going on in whether the state and city is headed in the right direction.” Hochul has pledged she will fight Trump when she thinks it’s necessary, especially when it comes to LGBTQ+ people and undocumented immigrants. She called the possibility of the new Trump administration blocking New York cars and trucks from reentering the country over the Canadian border “bizarre.” But the desire to engage Trump in a food fight has ebbed. Democrats in the past have tried to erase his name from a state park or allow House lawmakers to access his state tax returns. “This is a different time and it’s a different circumstance,” New York Democratic Chair Jay Jacobs told Playbook. “You have to read the room. Voters are not looking for either party to engage in personal attacks and the like. They’re looking for results.” — Nick Reisman HAPPY WEDNESDAY. Got news? Send it our way: Jeff Coltin, Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman.
| | | | A message from RHOAR NYC: Help Make NYC Homeownership Affordable. Pass Bill 1107 to restore short-term rental rights to small, neighborhood homeowners. NYC neighborhoods thrive through the stability of owner-occupied homes. Bill 1107 will restore short-term rental rights to one- and two-family homeowners who live in their homes and relied on short-term rental income to maintain and stay in their homes. Learn more at www.rhoar.org. | | | WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany with no public schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? Doing a radio interview with 94.7 The Block's "Jonesy in the Morning." QUOTE OF THE DAY: “My first apartment was on Hancock Street for $300 a month. That same apartment, I think, is going for $4,500 now.” — New York City Charter Revision Commissioner Valerie White, at the body’s first meeting Tuesday, on why Adams’ new commission plans to make changes to boost housing production.
|  | ABOVE THE FOLD | | | 
Democratic Rep. Laura Gillen is among the New York House lawmakers pressing for SALT relief. | Emily Ngo/POLITICO | SEASONED DEBATERS: They’re coming at it from different angles, but New York House members — Republican and Democrat — all have a key goal in common this year: Get the state and local tax deduction, or SALT, reinstated. Freshman Rep. Laura Gillen, a Long Island Democrat, will send a letter today to congressional leadership — her first as a House member — wholly devoted to advocating for a SALT restoration. “I am confident that there is a bipartisan path to eliminate the harmful SALT cap and restore the deduction as part of an upcoming tax package,” she writes to Mike Johnson, Hakeem Jeffries, John Thune and Chuck Schumer, pushing against double taxation. Meanwhile, Rep. Tom Suozzi, also a Long Island Democrat, used his reappointment Tuesday to the influential House Ways and Means Committee to talk about the issue that had earned him the nickname Mr. SALT during his first stint in Congress. But it’s Trump’s fellow Republicans who currently have the best shot at convincing the incoming president to nix the $10,000 cap. And several New York House Republicans, including Reps. Mike Lawler and Nicole Malliotakis, are set to meet Saturday in Mar-a-Lago with Trump as part of a GOP delegation from highly taxed states to pressure him on SALT. SALT is expected to play a central role in congressional debates this year over the renewal of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts package. Many members see the SALT deduction as a handout to wealthier states, but New York representatives have hope after the president-elect voiced support for lifting the cap on the campaign trail. “I would not vote for a big beautiful bill without a SALT fix,” Long Island Republican Nick LaLota told Newsday. Rep. Pat Ryan of the Hudson Valley quipped that Democrats should be part of the SALT talks at Trump’s transition HQ this weekend. “I’ll go to Mar-A-Lago myself if that’s what it takes,” Ryan said. Trump’s transition spokesperson Karoline Leavitt didn’t specify where he stands on SALT ahead of the summit but said, “President Trump received a historic mandate from the American people to Make America Wealthy Again. He will work across the political spectrum to deliver on his agenda for the American people.” — Emily Ngo
| | CITY HALL: THE LATEST | | | | 
Jesse Hamilton, a key aide to Mayor Eric Adams, is once again under scrutiny. | Mike Groll/AP | DCAS INTERFERENCE: A powerful mayoral aide, Jesse Hamilton, demanded a commercial brokerage hire his preferred pick to manage lucrative city real estate deals, according to a lawsuit filed Monday and an interview with City Council Member Lincoln Restler. JRT Realty Group claims Hamilton — who runs the city’s multimillion-dollar real estate portfolio at the Department of Citywide Administrative Services — insisted Cushman & Wakefield dispatch his friend Diana Boutross to ink deals that are now the subject of a corruption probe. Hamilton and Boutross then traveled to Japan with a lobbyist and the mayor’s closest aide — the recently indicted Ingrid Lewis-Martin — on a trip the mayor has described as a vacation. Law enforcement officials are scrutinizing that excursion as well. Revelations in the lawsuit add a new layer of intrigue into the relationship between Hamilton, Lewis-Martin and Boutross. Upon returning from their group vacation to Japan, officials from the Manhattan district attorney’s office seized the phones of all three. Read more, from POLITICO’s Joe Anuta and Jeff Coltin. VOLUNTARILY WITHHELD: The Adams administration missed its deadline to submit an annual report on involuntary removals by police and outreach workers, which were expanded under a controversial 2022 policy from the mayor, POLITICO Pro reports. The Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health was required to submit the report to the City Council by Jan. 1 under a subsequent local law that calls for a tally of involuntary removals conducted during the preceding calendar year and aggregate data on the location and demographics of affected individuals. Mayoral spokesperson Allison Maser said the deadline was not feasible for including December’s data. City Council Member Linda Lee, who chairs the body’s mental health committee and sponsored the legislation on annual reporting, said she understood the rationale and was willing to accommodate the delay. Her bill became law in August 2023, after it was returned unsigned by the mayor. Now the Adams administration is exploring options to permanently amend the legal deadline. Meanwhile, the report is expected to be ready by the end of this month. — Maya Kaufman FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Shelter provider Win and other housing advocates will detail their 180-day action plan to counteract the Trump agenda today, laying out steps to protect vulnerable New Yorkers in a blueprint they’re calling “Project Hope.” The coalition will urge the city to increase funding for CityFHEPs housing vouchers and the SNAP food assistance program, among other priorities. They also want the state to pass legislation prohibiting arbitrary shelter limits and pass the New York for All Act, which would make New York a sanctuary state. — Emily Ngo More from the city: — City lawyers briefed agencies on sanctuary city laws Tuesday to ensure compliance with the protections in anticipation of Trump’s crackdown. (Daily News) — Board of Elections Director Michael Ryan made racial and sexual remarks to female employees, a city probe found. (THE CITY) — The ex-transit police employee who accused Adams of sexual assault filed for bankruptcy last summer — and days later sued the city asking for at least $75,000 from a slip-and-fall she had in Queens. (Daily News)
| | | | A message from RHOAR NYC:   | | | | | NEW FROM PLANET ALBANY | | |  Supporters of the NY-HEAT Act are making another push for the climate measure. | Hans Pennink/AP | FIRING UP GAS ADS: A coalition backing a sweeping measure to transition buildings off natural gas is ramping up their efforts as lawmakers return to Albany. The “six-figure ad campaign” in support of the NY HEAT Act includes newsletter sponsorships, digital ads and billboards at the charming Albany-adjacent Amtrak station starting next week, according to supporters. NY HEAT is a major priority for several environmental groups this session after the issue faced roadblocks in the Assembly during talks last year. The complex measure would end the legal “obligation to serve,” which requires utilities to provide gas on request, stop requiring other gas customers to subsidize the cost of new hookups and ultimately enable the Public Service Commission to remove neighborhoods from the gas system. It also seeks to shield some New York residents from rising costs by limiting utility bills to 6 percent of their income. Suburban and upstate Democrats have expressed concerns about how the measure will impact existing gas customers. Business groups and the fossil fuel industry, particularly gas-only utility National Fuel Gas, have fought the measure, focusing on affordability concerns for gas-to-electric conversions. The pro-NY HEAT campaign is a coordinated effort between the Renewable Heat Now coalition, Spring Street Climate Fund, the New York League of Conservation Voters and the Building Decarbonization Coalition. — Marie J. French FOR YOUR RADAR: Public relations guru Todd Shapiro is celebrating his 60th birthday tonight with a little help from some friends in Albany. Shapiro is throwing the bash at The War Room, his politics-themed bar a block east of the Capitol. Hochul is slated to attend along with Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, according to an invite that was first snagged by Bloomberg News’ Zach Williams. — Nick Reisman More from Albany: — A watchdog report found signs politics were at play in Trump DOJ probes of New York and New Jersey nursing home policies. (POLITICO) — Raising revenue will be part of the negotiations in Albany, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said. (Spectrum News) — The DMV came out swinging to defend a law allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses. (City & State) — A new session means refreshed committee leadership posts in the Legislature. (Capitol Pressroom)
| | KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION | | | 
Not all Democrats were on board with a bill to crack down on illegal immigration. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | BORDER SHIFT: Six New York House Democrats were among the 48 in their party who voted Tuesday with Republicans to advance the Laken Riley Act, which would crack down on illegal immigration. The increased Democratic support for the measure reflects a rightward shift nationally on immigration, POLITICO’s Daniella Diaz, Nicholas Wu and Myah Ward report. Just 37 Democrats voted in March for the GOP-led legislation named for a Georgia student killed by an undocumented immigrant. In New York, new members Laura Gillen, John Mannion and Josh Riley voted to pass the legislation that would require the detention of undocumented immigrants charged with theft or burglary. Their fellow frontline Democrat Tom Suozzi did, too. Reps. Joseph Morelle and Ritchie Torres voted in support for it after voting against it in March. While some Democratic backers cited their focus on border security as their reasoning, the majority of their conference voted down the Laken Riley Act. “This appears to be a ham-handed attempt to circumvent recent Supreme Court rulings limiting state standing to sue the federal government over immigration enforcement matters,” Rep. Jerry Nadler said on the House floor. Murad Awawdeh, president of the New York Immigration Coalition, said in a statement, “If this bill becomes law, immigrants who are swept up in this enforcement, without even being convicted of a crime, could be permanently separated from their families before having the opportunity to defend themselves in a court of law.” — Emily Ngo More from the delegation: — A decision to add Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and about half a dozen other members to the House Energy and Commerce Committee is causing some angst among Dems. (POLITICO) — Rep. Mike Lawler is in the one-bill camp for Trump’s domestic policy agenda. (Fox Business) — Sen. Chuck Schumer, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and other congressional leaders delivered wreaths to the casket of former President Jimmy Carter. (CBS News)
| | NEW YORK STATE OF MIND | | — A law taking effect next month will try to stop the underground restaurant reservation market. (Gothamist) — A lack of affordable housing is being blamed for the spike in New York homelessness. (Newsday) — Electric vehicle charging stations will be installed at SUNY campuses. (Spectrum News)
| | | | A message from RHOAR NYC: When New York City passed and began enforcing its overly strict short-term rental law, many hard-working families who relied on income from sharing their homes were financially devastated. After a year of advocacy and thousands of letters into City Hall from homeowners across NYC’s five boroughs, the New York City Council recently introduced Bill 1107 to restore short-term rental rights to registered one- and two-family homeowners who live in their homes. Passing Bill 1107 will mean increasing the economic tools available to everyday New Yorkers to maintain and stay in their homes, creating stability for the city’s most vulnerable homeowners and the local communities and businesses that depend on them. Learn more at www.rhoar.org. | | | | | SOCIAL DATA | | Edited by Daniel Lippman BETTER AND BETTER: First in Playbook, the Association for a Better New York has tapped Adams administration insider Emma Pfohman as its new CEO. Pfohman’s last day as a senior adviser to First Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer will be Jan. 17, capping more than a decade in city government dating back to the last days of the Bloomberg administration. But she’ll keep a tie to City Hall — she’s married to Adams’ communication director Ryan Birchmeier. Pfohman won’t start at the nonprofit civic booster until May, since she’s about to have a baby. At ABNY, she hopes to focus on affordability and “continue the work around keeping young families in New York City” — leading by example. — Jeff Coltin MAKING MOVES: Clara Feldman has joined Blank Rome LLP and will serve as the firm’s chair of its luxury brands practice. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: State Sen. John Liu … NYC Council Member Shaun Abreu … NYC Council’s Jae Ko … Greater New York Hospital Association’s David C. Rich … Heather Podesta … Anita Dunn … David Chavern Missed Tuesday’s New York Playbook PM? We forgive you. Read it here. | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
