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POLITICO's must-read briefing informing the daily conversation among knowledgeable New Yorkers | | | | |  | | By Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman | |  Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams want to change the city's right-to-shelter rule. | Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office | Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams are more aligned than ever ahead of a court hearing Tuesday on the city’s right-to-shelter provision. In ramping up messaging that discourages new migrant arrivals, both argue the 40-year-old mandate was not envisioned as an open invitation to New York City — or a requirement that a bed be provided for every new person who enters the state. “This was intended to help homeless people stay off the streets, help families, but it was never intended to be an unlimited, universal right, an obligation to shelter the entire world,” Hochul told MSNBC on Friday. “I don’t think that the right to shelter as it was originally written should be applied to this humanitarian crisis in its present form,” Deputy Mayor Anne Williams-Isom told WNYC a day earlier. But their challenge to the rule could be complicated by two recent major developments: Adams limiting shelter stays for adult migrants to 30 days and President Joe Biden expanding temporary protected status for Venezuelans. The Legal Aid Society and the Coalition for the Homeless, who will also be in court, countered that the efforts to scrap the right to shelter “will not end homelessness nor deter new arrivals from coming here.” They said shortening newcomers’ stay to 30 days from the previous 60 days is “arbitrary and devoid of compassion,” calling it unnecessary in light of the TPS update helping more migrants move out of shelters as they get work permits. Adams, for his part, has continued to stress that he needs every tool to curb the surge of migrants into the city. “We cannot spike the ball because this is not going to deal with all of the migrants and asylum-seekers who are in this city,” he told WABC-TV on Sunday of the TPS expansion that he estimates will allow about 15,000 Venezuelans in the city to apply for work authorization. In the interview, Adams reiterated that he also seeks “real immigration reform at our southern border” and a “real decompression strategy in this city, the country and in the state.” Hochul has joined him in the push, even as she opposes legal challenges that could make right-to-shelter a statewide policy and puts the onus on Washington to make changes. “We should have a decompression [strategy] either in Mexico or right across the border, where decisions are based on where there's capacity,” she told MSNBC, adding, “It also has to start in Washington with common sense immigration reform.” WHERE’S KATHY? In Harlem making an announcement at a National Guard building and also in Albany. WHERE’S ERIC? In Brooklyn distributing food to New Yorkers and at City Hall thanking first responders who rescued someone from a shark attack in August. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “This free bus is not just a socialist dream. It’s a reality to New York.” — state Assemblymember Phara Souffrant-Forrest told WABC-TV of the fare-free bus program pilot that launched Sunday.
| | | | GO INSIDE THE CAPITOL DOME: From the outset, POLITICO has been your eyes and ears on Capitol Hill, providing the most thorough Congress coverage — from political characters and emerging leaders to leadership squabbles and policy nuggets during committee markups and hearings. We're stepping up our game to ensure you’re fully informed on every key detail inside the Capitol Dome, all day, every day. Start your day with Playbook AM, refuel at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report and enrich your evening discussions with Huddle. Plus, stay updated with real-time buzz all day through our brand new Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here. | | | | | |  | ABOVE THE FOLD | | | |  Even as federal pandemic aid slows, business leaders are calling on Albany to spend on infrastructure like roads and bridges. | Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images | BUSINESS ANXIETIES IN ALBANY: Business leaders have concerns they want Albany to get a handle on next year: Addressing crumbling infrastructure and accelerating the state’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. They also worry the issues could snowball during a state budget crunch next year. “People are voting with their feet — even the financial industry is voting with its feet,” said Justin Wilcox, the executive director of Upstate United, a pro-business advocacy group. “That’s going to have a toll on New York state’s economy.” Hochul has benefitted from a flood of tax revenue and federal pandemic aid — revenue that is expected to slow significantly into the fiscal year that starts April 1. Hochul has also stuffed billions of dollars into the state’s rainy day fund in order to offset a decline in revenue and the impact of a slower economy. The state budget director Wednesday in a letter to agency chiefs instructed them to be frugal in their requests for next year. Nevertheless, some business leaders believe there are more wide-ranging issues facing New York, including the escalating cost of road and bridge projects. “Declining road bridge conditions are a sign of a declining state,” said Mike Elmendorf, the president of the Associated General Contractors of New York. “It becomes another reason why people don’t want to invest here.” What should Albany do about it? Elmendorf wants to boost funding for the Department of Transportation’s capital fund for the vital, though unsexy, infrastructure needs like bolstering bridges. — Nick Reisman
| | WHAT CITY HALL IS READING | | | 
Mayor Eric Adams introducing the NYPD's K5 robot at the Times Square subway station on Friday. | Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office | BYTE-ING CRITICISM: Good thing the NYPD robot unveiled Friday by Adams doesn’t have feelings. K5, which is being leased by the city to patrol Times Square station, was the subject of snark and derision as only New Yorkers can deliver. A “trash can on wheels,” Albert Fox Cahn, the executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, called it in The New York Times. A “dystopian robot,” the Legal Aid Society termed it, also making a reference to NYPD Digidogs. Adams “with the robocop, which cannot make the heart with the mayor because it has no arms,” wrote The City reporter Katie Honan in viral social media post. “Mayor Adams: we need to make cuts to every agency because of the migrants! Also Mayor Adams: here’s fascist R2D2!” posted City Council Member Chi Ossé, using the robot to slam Adams’ proposed budget cuts. “We’ve lost more than 5,000 talented, experienced cops in the past 1.5 years. Do NYers really want them replaced by all-seeing surveillance droids?” asked the PBA, using the device to dig at staff shortages. — Emily Ngo More from the city: — The Bronx day care death and the dilemma over how to crack down on fentanyl. (The New York Times) — City Council members to consider legislation after bomb threat to Brooklyn “Drag Story Hour.” (Gothamist) — Cuomo says Adams is “right” to claim the migrant crisis could destroy NYC. (New York Post)
| | WHAT ALBANY'S READING | | | | 
New York's Upstate cities and towns like Rochester are getting older, according to a recent report. | Ted Shaffrey/AP Photo | GRAYING UPSTATE: Communities in Upstate New York are getting older even as the population overall has stagnated over the last decade. A report released this month by AARP New York and compiled by the Center for an Urban Future found population centers in upstate communities have a lot more grayer heads these days. In the city of Rochester, the population of people age 65 and older grew by 64 percent from 2011 to 2021. In Albany County, the senior population grew by 32 percent during that same time period. Starting this week, AARP is hosting a series of forums on aging in New York and the challenges that need to be addressed with an older population. The first event will be held Tuesday in Buffalo. — Nick Reisman More from Albany: — Acting State Police Superintendent Steven Nigrelli resigns following a harassment probe. (Times Union) — State Sen. John Mannion criticizes the “ignorance” of people concerned with migrants being bused upstate. (New York Post) — New York will require people selling their homes to disclose whether there's a risk of flooding. (The Associated Press)
| | | | Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of the first episodes in September – click here. | | | | | | | AROUND NEW YORK | | — Spectrum News is nixing its morning shows in the Syracuse and Rochester/Buffalo markets in favor of a single “Your Morning” program with Albany-based anchors. (Times Union) — Where to see the best fall foliage in the Adirondacks, county-by-county. (Democrat and Chronicle) — For $16,500 you can board a seaplane in the Big Apple and land directly at a Finger Lakes region luxury hotel. (Democrat and Chronicle) — Attorney General Tish James sends a cease-and-desist letter to a Newburgh-based group accused of intimidating voters around the state. (Newsday)
| | SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN | | THE PARTY YOU WISH YOU WERE AT — Ford Foundation President Darren Walker celebrated his birthday on Thursday at the Greenwich Village townhouse of Cary Davis and John McGinn. SPOTTED: Mike Bloomberg, Huma Abedin, Spike Lee, Gloria Steinem, Billie Jean King, Laurene Powell Jobs, Don Lemon, David Remnick, Joe Kahn, Charles Blow, Jacob Bernstein, Jim Stewart, Alex Levy, Tali Farhadian Weinstein, Cesar Conde, Fred Hochberg and Tom Healy, Agnes Gund ... ... Steve Ells, Holly Peterson, Ursula Burns, Blair Effron, Jerry Speyer, Anna Deavere Smith, Misty Copeland, Simone Leigh, Ken Chenault, George Walker, Thelma Golden, Emma Tucker, Ray McGuire, Sean Eldridge and Chris Hughes, Laurie Tisch and Tony Coles. MAKING MOVES — Samantha Schwab now works on business development at the current events exchange Kalshi. She recently got her MBA from Stanford's Graduate School of Business and is an alum of former VP Mike Pence. ENGAGED — Alexander Krinitski, a senior account executive for tech sales at Trustpilot, on Sept. 8 proposed to Maya Bronstein, an account director for corporate PR at comms firm M Booth. The couple, who met on Hinge in Dec. 2019, got engaged on their condo’s balcony after he secretly set up rose petals and candles in their living room and balcony. They celebrated with a surprise engagement party with over 70 friends and family the next night at her parents’ house. Instapics HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) (7-0) … Chamber of Commerce’s Jack Howard … NBC’s Ryan Reilly … Bloomberg’s John Lauinger … Steve Wozencraft … Joe Householder … Monica Wagner … Danny Yadron WAS SUNDAY: WSJ’s Katy Stech Ferek … CNN’s Nicky Robertson … Lou Dobbs … Amazon’s Jessica Schumer WAS SATURDAY: Kristen Silverberg … Sean Spicer … Treasury’s Corey Tellez … Elise Jordan … NYT’s Mike Schmidt … NBC’s Julia Ainsley and Grace Dubay … Ana Marie Cox (51) … CNN’s Gregory Wallace … David Harris of the American Jewish Committee … John Tamny ... James Fitzgerald ... Chinua Green ... Armaan Pai ... Abby Glassberg … (was Friday): Ari Goldman ... Stephanie Taylor Butnick
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