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Rick Karlin reports in the Times Union that this week the state Senate declined to take a vote on Gov. Kathy Hochul's nomination of New York Power Authority acting President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll to permanently take over the position. For now, Driscoll will remain in the position in an acting role. This is the second major nomination defeat for Hochul this year as the Senate voted 39-20 against her nomination of Appellate Justice Hector D. LaSalle to lead the state Court of Appeals. In this case, progressive senators, backed by climate activists and the SEIU 1199 labor union, said they thought Driscoll was too close to the fossil fuel industry to become the chief of the state's largest power producer. PublicPowerNY, an activist group that opposed Driscoll's nomination, in a statement said, "New Yorkers realized we need far more visionary leadership to pave the way. Justin Driscoll is not that nominee to lead NYPA.... For the good and future of NYPA, Justin Driscoll must resign immediately as we search in earnest for a leader who has a history of negotiating in good faith with labor, fighting for environmental justice.” Activists did not like that Driscoll previously worked as a lobbyist at Brown & Weinraub, which has relationships with fossil fuel companies, and also did not like Driscoll’s campaign contributions to Republicans, and NYPA’s sale of discounted power to companies such as Amazon. NYPA was mandated by lawmakers earlier this year to go completely fossil-free by 2030. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

The Daily Freeman reports that Ulster County could raise its occupancy tax on hotel, motel, and short-term rental stays from 2 percent to 4 percent if Gov. Kathy Hochul signs a bill approved by the State Legislature. State Sen. Michelle Hinchey and Assemblymember Sarahana Shrestha sponsored the bill, that was voted on June 8. Dutchess County has had a 4 percent occupancy tax rate since 2005, while Orange and Sullivan counties each have a 5 percent occupancy tax and Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger said, “We are long past due for a sensible tax rate that better aligns with our neighbors, and keeps money in the pockets of our local taxpayers while providing revenue to tackle urgent priorities, like the housing crisis." If Hochul signs the bill, the Ulster County Legislature would have to pass a bill to raise the tax rate. Metzger previously said that a portion of the new occupancy tax could be directed to expand Ulster County Area Transit bus service, with the remaining 50 percent of revenues divided between tourism and offsetting costs for those who pay property taxes. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

Kate Lisa at New York State of Politics that in the final hours of the state legislature this past weekend, lawmakers approved a bill that would automatically seal criminal records three years after sentencing for a misdemeanor, and eight years after a person is released from prison for a felony conviction. The Clean Slate Act, which Gov. Kathy Hochul needs to sign to become a law, does not apply to class A felonies or crimes that required a person to register as a sex offender. Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz, who sponsored the bill, said, "People can change.... People can get better. People can repent. People can be forgiven. Our society should not be judged on the behavior of one member at its worst moment, but on our ability to forgive them and to grant them the ability to move forward and heal and to become productive members of our society." The bill was approved June 9 by the Assembly 83-64 and by the Senate 38-25. Republicans, such as Assemblyman John McGowan, opposed the bill saying, "People are entitled to a second chance, they certainly are, but what this legislation does is it creates a blanket opportunity for certain offenses that should not qualify for automatic sealing." Assemblyperson Eddie Gibbs is the first formerly incarcerated member of the state Legislature, and he voted for the bill, saying, "There's the conversation throughout the chambers regarding me, so I felt like a prop.... But I'm proud to be a prop. If it's going to help these 2.3 million New Yorkers come home and re-enter society and do something good in their communities, use me." Kate Lisa at New York State of Politics

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Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union that the legislative session may have seemed to end on June 10, but assembly members, not senators, are expected back in the “near future” to finish work, according to spokespersons for Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. Solomon says Republican lawmakers walking down the hall in the state Capitol were overheard chatting about returning in “two weeks.” Assembly spokespersons did not give a definite date. The legislative session was scheduled to conclude on June 8, but lasted two more days, with more work, at least by the Assembly, to be done. The Assembly will discuss a casino deal with the Seneca Nation, and an amended version of a “wrongful conviction” bill, when they return. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Mid-Hudson News reports that the state legislature adjourned on June 10 without passing a measure to ban the dumping of radioactive water into the Hudson River. The bill unanimously passed the Senate, but failed to reach a vote in the Assembly. The Assembly is going to return shortly to address some uncompleted work, and could pass the bill then. For years, the now-closed Indian Point nuclear plant has discharged diluted radioactive wastewater into the Hudson River. Holtec International Decommissioning, the company overseeing the dismantling of the Indian Point nuclear power plant, wants to release more into the river this year. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission currently allows, “the controlled releases of effluent at nuclear power plants, within specified regulatory limits designed to ensure protection of the public health and safety and the environment, is an activity that occurs throughout the operation and decommissioning of a facility.” The activist groups Riverkeeper and the Sierra Club support the ban on releasing radioactive wastewater into the Hudson River. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.

Liz Montgomery at Porcupine Soup reports that New York's Department of Environmental Conservation is reminding New Yorkers that while newborn fawns and other young wildlife wander the area this spring, it is best not to touch or pick them up. DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said, "This is the time of year New Yorkers are more likely to see young or newborn animals in their yards and mistakenly think these animals need help.... The recently fledged birds or baby rabbits in your yard likely have parents hiding nearby keeping an eye on their offspring. Please resist the urge to touch these wild animals and instead enjoy the encounter from a safe distance. Remember―if you care, leave it there." The DEC says, "White-tailed deer fawns are born during late May and early June. Although fawns can walk shortly after birth, they spend most of their first several days lying still in tall grass, leaf litter, or sometimes relatively unconcealed. During this period, a fawn is usually left alone by the adult female (doe), except when nursing. People occasionally find a lone fawn and mistakenly assume it has been abandoned, which is rare. Fawns should be left alone." Read more about this story at Porcupine Soup.

Here is this week's WGXC Congressional Report, tracking the votes, statements, positions, and campaigns of the representatives and candidates for the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st Congressional seats in New York. Democrat Pat Ryan is representing the 18th Congressional District, Republican Marc Molinaro represents the 19th Congressional District, Democrat Rep. Paul Tonko represents the 20th District, and Republican Elise Stefanik represents the 21st District. Click here to listen to this report.

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports in the Times Union that three of the last four 19th Congressional District representatives are lobbying for a bill that would allow the adult children of service members to stay on their parent’s health insurance until age 26. Current 18th Congressional District Rep. Pat Ryan, a Democrat, and Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro and former Rep. Chris Gibson, also a Republican, were in Saugerties on June 3, saying the bill would create fairness between insurance coverage for military families and the rest of Americans, who have been able to stay on their parent’s insurance until 26 since the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Ryan called the disparity between coverage for armed services families and civilian families “a grave injustice” and said the kids of soldiers “really, really bear a tremendous burden.” He asked, “If we can’t solve something like this, what are we doing?" Molinaro, the current 19th Congressional District representative, said the bill, “will expand health care coverage for military families who have made tremendous sacrifices in protection of our nation, freedoms and way of life.” Gibson said his 21-year-old son was kicked off his plan when he graduated college early and he said that the current structure of the law did not “incentivize productivity.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Austin Jefferson reports in the Daily Freeman that Rep. Pat Ryan held a town hall gathering at Congregation Emanuel in Kingston on June 4, said he is concerned that fellow lawmakers are pushing back on “common sense” gun legislation and fact-finding efforts targeting antisemitism and hate groups. Ryan, a Democrate who represents the 18th Congressional District, is part of an antisemitism task force that has requested funding from the Department of Homeland Security to begin a study of Holocaust education’s prevalence in the nation’s public schools after Republican lawmakers blocked funding from other sources. Ryan said, “I risked my life for this country for fundamental rights and freedoms that we just cannot let be taken away from us.... Those are red lines.” On migrants arriving in the Hudson Valley Ryan said, “We need real federal resources to deal with a federal problem,” adding that the federal government should declare a state of emergency to free up resources to combat the crisis. Ryan also said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is blocking gun legislation. Ryan said, “No Republicans are speaking out and saying we want a vote on this. There’s not a small extreme sector, it’s the entire group, unfortunately. I think it’s a real shame.” Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

WPDH reports that Rep. Marc Molinaro has listed his Dutchess County home for sale. On June 5, Molinaro's Red Hook home appeared on Relator.com. The Republican did not announce the sale, but he currently represents New York's 19th congressional district but does not live within that district, after redistricting changed the lines in 2022. Molinaro is selling a 2,600-square-foot home with four bedrooms and 2.5 baths, on five acres with a wooded backyard. The home is currently listed for $625,000, with estimated property taxes of $9,500 a year. Read more about this story on the WPDH website.

The Daily Freeman compares the votes this week in Congress of Democrat Pat Ryan and Republican Marc Molinaro. On June 5 Molinaro and Republican Elise Stefanik did not join the eleven members of the far-right House Freedom Caucus voting with Democrats on a procedural vote, House Resolution 463, to protest the debt ceiling compromise negotiated by Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden. After the Republican revolt, the usually routine measure failed 206-to-220. So McCarthy then shut down all legislative business for the week to deal with the revolt, and no other votes or legislative action happened. Republicans were set to vote on easing the regulation of gas stoves and stovetops and to empower Congress to veto major federal regulations before they take effect, but those votes are now delayed by at least a week because of Republican infighting. Read more about this story in the Daily Freeman.

WWNYTV reports that Rep. Elise Stefanik, the Republican who represents Rensselaer County and the rest of the 21st Congressional District, came out with full support of former President Donald Trump after he was indicted on 37 charges, including 31 counts of violations of the Espionage Act, as part of special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into Trump's handling of classified documents from his time in the White House. Stefanik said, "The American people are smart and understand this is the epitome of the illegal and unprecedented weaponization of the federal government against Joe Biden’s leading opponent, President Donald J. Trump." Stefanik's statement failed to address anything about the allegations of the former president's mishandling of top secret government documents. Read the full story at WWNYTV.

Today's audio daily news update.

Joshua Solomon reports in the Times Union that the Albany legislature has failed to pass any significant legislation this year to address the large affordable housing crisis in the state. State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie released a joint statement on June 8 to blame Gov. Kathy Hochul for their failure to pass any legislation. “Unfortunately, it was clear that we could not come to an agreement with the governor on this plan,” Stewart-Cousins and Heastie said. “All three chambers must immediately redouble our efforts and come up with a plan that the governor will sign into law.” But the legislative session ends this week, so there will not be any help to renters and buyers across New York any time soon. Hochul’s spokesperson, Julie Wood, blamed the legislature. Hochul originally proposed building 800,000 housing units across the state over the next ten years. Other bills have proposed converting commercial buildings into housing, and to give tenants more rights. None of it passed. Open New York, a group that supports both good cause legislation and housing development, denounced both the governor and the legislature, with Annemarie Gray, the group’s executive director, saying in a statement, “While Albany is spending the day finger-pointing their way through failure, it is beyond clear that there is more than enough blame to be spread around.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Kate Lisa reports at New York State of Politics that as the legislature in Albany comes to a close, lawmakers are expected to approve a last minute bill to move most town and county elections to even-numbered years. Bill sponsor Sen. James Skoufis says the idea is to get more people voting. He said, "As it stands right now, in a lot of these local, town and county elections, you have 20 or so percent of voters deciding the outcome for the entire jurisdiction.... Why are you so afraid of 50, 60, 70 percent of voters determining who should hold these local positions?" But the bill is only a half-measure, as it would not apply to city or village elections, nor for county clerk, sheriff, district attorneys, and elections for local judges protected in the state Constitution to be held in odd-numbered years. Michael Zurlo, president of the state Association of Counties and the Clinton County Administrator, said, "In local elections forced to be with state and national elections, it's going to suck up the media time — it's going to take the air out of the room.... How is that a town board member or a county legislator or supervisor is going to have the opportunity in the platform to discuss real issues — issues that affect the day-to-day concerns of their communities? Are they going to be able to afford a 6 p.m. news slot? Probably not." Gov. Kathy Hochul seemed to be leaning in favor of the bill, saying on June 7 that, "If you're talking about turnout I would say having a year when there's more people turning out for a presidential or gubernatorial race, it's an increase in turnout, and more people voting in these elections is always better for democracy," the governor said. "But I've not had a chance to look at the details." Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.

Andrea Macko from Porcupine Soup reports that the State and National Registers of Historic Places nominated two local properties this week. Fairview Manor in Columbia County and The Alpine in Greene County were nominated. Getting nominated makes properties eligible for various public preservation programs and incentives, such as matching state grants and federal and state historic rehabilitation tax credits. Fairview Manor in Claverack is also known as the Alonzo & Mary E. Flack House. The house was damaged by a fire in 1998. The Alpine, meanwhile, is a summer lodging house in Haines Falls. It could host up to thirty-five guests, and was open through 1963. Read more about this story in Porcupine Soup.

Today's daily news audio update.

Click above to download or play the "Better Weather." Produced by Joe Demanso of the Catskill Makers Syndicate.

Rachel Silberstein reports in the Times Union that rainfall on June 8 was expected remove some of the wildfire smoke from New York skies, and may end air-quality advisories in much of the state, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The fires are still burning in Canada, but the wind changed on June 8 too, which should also help the Hudson Valley air quality. National Weather Service Meteorologist Lee Picard in Albany said on June 8, “We might have some persistent haze, but we’re hopeful that we’re going to start seeing some clearing through this evening.” New York now plans to send several forest rangers to Canada to put out the fires. Gov. Kathy Hochul said, “These are such remote areas, they are almost impossible to access.” Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Emily Kenny at Spectrum News talks to some New York farmers about the impact of the lingering smoke in the air on crops. Kara Atwood, a farmer at Kubecka Farms in Kirkville, complained about the lack of rain lately and said of the smoke, “It is reducing plant growth from a slow crawl to a complete standstill.... This is almost like a one-two punch to early crops.” Justine Vanden Heuvel, who studies grapes and is a professor in the horticulture department at Cornell University, said, “The big worry in situations like this is smoke taint, which is basically when certain compounds are absorbed by the skin of the grape and then they’re released at fermentation.... It results in wines that taste burnt or smokey or ashy.” But right now grapes are in a flowering stage, and Vanden Heuvel said,,“To our knowledge, flowers don’t absorb those aromas, so there is no reason to think it would impact the grapes.” The larger problem on farms now, she said, is that people need to do all sorts of work outdoors on farms right now, and it is dangerous to breathe the air outside right now. Read more about this story at Spectrum News.

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports in the Times Union that about 40 people protested June 7 outside the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office after a man being held by the sheriff's office was detained by federal immigration agents. A man was about to be released from the sheriff's office on June 2 after serving time for an alcohol-related offense. But before he made it out of the building, the sheriff's office turned him over to agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Advocates for local migrants argue that violated policies against the sheriff’s office colluding with ICE. Columbia County Sanctuary Movement co-founder Bryan MacCormack won't say the man's name, as disclosing could unnerve other undocumented people the sanctuary movement works with. The issue was discussed at a June 6 meeting of Hudson's Police Reform Implementation Committee, where Columbia County District Attorney Paul Czajka said he did not know “why anyone thinks that they have the authority to make an inquiry of the sheriff,” saying the sheriff’s office was a governmental entity separate from the county Board of Supervisors, and said that Columbia County Sheriff Don Krapf did not have to continue to cooperate with the reform committee. Krapf said ICE learned the man was at the jail due to “biometrics,” meaning that fingerprints were taken of the man and sent to state and federal databases. Krapf called the ICE detention a “transfer,” and said it happened 20 minutes before his release time. Columbia County Board of Supervisors Chair Matt Murell said County Attorney Robert Fitzsimmons assured him no policies had been broken, saying, “From what I can gather, the sheriff’s office did not contact ICE, (ICE) contacted them." The issue will discussed at the county Board of Supervisors Public Safety meeting on June 20. Read more about this story in the Times Union.

Today's audio daily news update.