New York City in brief

With Albany’s grand spring ritual again running fashionably late, New York lawmakers are wrangling over a more-than-$260-billion budget—larger than most nations’—and weighing everything from pensions and child care to the fate of climate policy. Opaque horse-trading remains the order of the day, though given the labyrinthine pages and endless priorities, one suspects even Kafka would ask for an index.

New York’s battle over expanding the $1.2 billion CityFHEPS voucher—already the nation’s largest rental assistance scheme—continues, as Mayor Zohran Mamdani digs in his heels against City Council, citing projected costs ballooning to $4.7 billion by 2030. While more than 65,000 households benefit, thousands like Ciro Sollazzi and Kevin Cuffy remain stuck in bureaucratic limbo. Evidently, eligibility can feel more elusive than affordable rent.

As New York wrangles over its state budget, we note that the tried-and-tested J-51 tax incentive for housing repairs risks being overlooked in the din about flashy new projects and climate tweaks. Given half the city’s rentals pre-date 1960 and expenses outpace rents nearly threefold, skipping vital upgrades means letting buildings—and perhaps old policy wisdom—crumble together, which is one way to trim the skyline.

Shovels will finally bite Brooklyn soil this autumn as the $1 billion Northeast Supply Enhancement pipeline begins, connecting Pennsylvania gas to over 2 million tri-state homes—this after years of New York vetoes and shifting federal winds. Backers tout jobs, lower bills and a timely charge for AI’s hunger; green groups brace for heartburn, but apparently, at least someone’s energy isn’t running out.

Former Bronx Assemblyman Michael Blake is again challenging Rep. Ritchie Torres, as federal funding cuts and persistent neglect threaten to deepen woes for New York City's 500,000 NYCHA residents. Despite Torres’s past successes at prying loose some funds, chronic underinvestment means tenants still endure broken lifts, peeling paint, and long repair waits—a campaign season reminder that, sadly, hope does not fix a leaky roof.