NAN SEQUITUR: Civil rights leader Al Sharpton is getting behind a push from the governor and a collection of district attorneys to modify the state’s discovery laws. Hochul has penned changes she hopes would result in fewer cases being dropped because of previous reforms that require prosecutors to turn over evidence within a certain timeline. “I stand behind the sentiment of the discovery law reforms enacted in 2019, but they have had dangerous unintended consequences for our city,” Sharpton said in a statement. “When public safety is being impacted and survivors of violence, including domestic violence, are not getting their days in court and losing their orders of protection as a result of the law, we must make commonsense changes to address that.” Sharpton’s blessing, coupled with support from Attorney General Letitia James, could help the proposal find favor with the Legislature as lawmakers negotiate the budget with Hochul in the coming weeks. “I’m grateful to Reverend Sharpton for his support of the Governor’s discovery proposal, which will protect victims of crime while maintaining New York’s status as the state with the most open and transparent discovery laws in the nation,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is among the district attorneys across the state who support the plan, said in a statement. — Joe Anuta LG THE VOICE: Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado is trying to raise his profile from the shadow of the little-noticed job after he severed himself from the Hochul administration. “The status quo is broken,” he told Playbook on Thursday. “It is. And I didn’t want to be a part of something that in my mind I could actually speak to in a way that pushes us in a better direction.” And he’s not stepping down — even as the governor takes away his staff, office space and government-issued devices, which Playbook first reported Thursday. The punishment was a very Planet Albany move for Hochul, who had pledged to take a different approach in the job. (The late Michael Bragman, a former assembly member who tried to unseat Sheldon Silver from the speakership, was familiar with that sanction.) Delgado wasn’t phased, however, when asked about the consequences of his new-found independence. “Whatever the obstacles might be, whatever the challenges might be, doesn’t change the fact that I’m still going to do what I know is important to do in this moment, in any moment,” he said. Team Hochul has been frustrated with Delgado for months. He called for President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid as the governor remained in his corner, and he wants Adams to resign while Hochul takes a more incremental step of bottling him up with oversight measures. He has not shied away from embracing the more independent role after a Hochul spokesperson this month said the LG has never spoken for her administration. But Delgado wouldn’t be pinned down beyond generalities: He believes the minimum wage should be higher and that fixes are needed for health care. The “political system” overall is broken, he added. And Delgado insisted he isn’t specifically criticizing Hochul — a Democrat he’s not ruling out challenging next year. “It’s bigger than her,” he said. “This is about a system of people who are operating within it that I’m choosing in my own way to say, ‘Here’s what I would do in this system, here’s how I’m going to operate, here are the issues I’m going to talk about.’” Asked if he’s talking to campaign donors, he pivoted to say he’s “talking to everyday New Yorkers.” “I am thinking about how I can be the best voice for the people, how I can be an independent voice, how I can be accountable,” Delgado said. — Nick Reisman FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Influential private-sector groups — including the Business Council and the Long Island Association — are making a push to overhaul New York’s decades-old alcohol and beverage control laws. A coalition of organizations this week in a letter to Sen. James Skoufis cheered his support for measures that would change many of those laws and regulations, some of which have been on the books for nearly a century. Potential changes include allowing bars and restaurants to buy directly from liquor stores, permitting liquor store owners to have more than one location and backing the sale of non-alcoholic items in liquor stores. The changes could be consequential for the industry and Hochul has been willing to take a consumer friendly approach to alcohol laws. Plus, booze is big business for New York, a state that ranks third in wine production. “That’s why it is so important to review the ABC laws since they have remained virtually unchanged on the sales end since the Prohibition era of the early 1930’s,” the groups wrote in a letter. “Just to put that in perspective, the Ford Model Y with an 8-horsepower engine was the top selling car when these laws were created.” Skoufis told Playbook he wants “common sense” changes. “Most of the state’s alcohol laws date back to Prohibition and were put in place to curtail the mob and limit consumer choice — the only people who prefer today’s system are the folks who financially benefit from these protectionist laws,” he said. — Nick Reisman More from Albany: — New York plans to defy the federal government’s congestion pricing order. (Times Union) — Cuts to Medicaid could have a big impact for New York. (LoHud) — Rep. Ritchie Torres criticized Hochul for not moving fast enough on a mask ban. 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