Latest news with #AndreaStewartCousins
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SUNY announces $3.3M in new funding to North Country campuses
More than $3 million in new funding is coming to the three North Country SUNY campuses in the latest state spending plan signed off by lawmakers. The funding for SUNY Plattsburgh, Pottsdam and Canton is part of a $114 million in increased operating aid across State-operated SUNY campuses in the new budget budget. The funding marks a continued historic investment and commitment to public higher education under Governor Kathy Hochul's leadership with strong support from Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and the entire State Legislature. Every State-operated campus has received at least a 30% increase in operating aid over the last three years, officials said when announcing the funding. 'This year's budget continues a historic investment in New York's public higher education system — one that will bring essential support to our students and faculty,' SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. said. 'These resources ensure SUNY's continued affordability and invest in our academic and research excellence. There is a place at SUNY for every New Yorker, and this funding strengthens our ability to promote student success and advance upward mobility.' In the North Country, SUNY has allocated $1.483 million to SUNY Plattsburgh, $1.022 million to SUNY Potsdam and $799,000 to SUNY Canton. 'SUNY Plattsburgh, Clinton Community College and North Country Community College are vital parts of the North Country, and we all benefit when we invest in SUNY campuses and our students,' State Assemblymember Billy Jones said. 'This funding will not only help these schools continue to educate their students but also provides an opportunity for residents across the North Country to pursue a higher education.' 'This budget represents a bold affirmation of SUNY's pivotal role in New York's future,' the SUNY Board of Trustees noted in a press release. 'With this investment, Governor Hochul and the State Legislature are reinforcing their commitment to academic excellence and expanding the promise of opportunity for every New Yorker. These new resources will fuel innovation, support cutting-edge research, and ensure SUNY remains a powerful engine of economic opportunity.' Town of Plattsburgh Supervisor Michael Cashman, a member of SUNY Plattsburgh's University Council, praised the funding, saying investing in higher education is 'absolutely critical.' 'And we're very fortunate to not only have SUNY Plattsburgh here in the footprint of the North Country but we also have Clinton Community College,' Cashman said. 'So this investment is a critical, forward direction and I look forward to seeing what is done with it in the weeks and months ahead. But I am specifically interested in the ongoing development of Clinton Community College co locating with the SUNY Plattsburgh campus and while they're soon to be leaving the Bluff, I think it's a wonderful new collaboration that is going to elevate higher education in the North Country overall.'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hochul says lawmakers ‘very, very close' on deal to revamp NY discovery laws in budget breakthrough
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways Let's make a whatever-you-call-it. Gov. Kathy Hochul acknowledged Wednesday that lawmakers had reached a breakthrough in negotiations to revamp the state's discovery laws — even as she insisted it didn't count as a 'deal.' The governor instead opted for wonky jargon, describing the end of a budget stalemate revealed the day before by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) as a 'conceptual agreement' different from a done deal. 'I think we're very, very close to being done and perhaps, today will be the day we say, 'Pens are down,'' Hochul said during a news conference. Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that lawmakers are 'very, very close' on a deal for changing discovery laws. Robert Miller Hochul plans to meet with Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Westchester) Wednesday evening. A deal — or a deal by another name — likely will clear a major logjam to passing New York's massive $252 proposed budget, which has been held up for weeks by Hochul refusing to budge on her policy asks, especially changes to discovery Hochul stopped short of voicing support for the plan crafted by Albany Democrats and approved by all five New York City district attorneys. But rumors swirled around Albany after the deal was announced Tuesday that it was falling apart, prompting Heastie to clear the air. 'Everything is still fine conceptually. Staff is going back and forth on drafting,' Heastie told The Post. Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie swatted down rumors that the deal was on the ropes. Zuma / While Hochul contended there's no deal over discovery, last year she unveiled the state budget deal by calling it the 'parameters of a conceptual agreement' — almost the exact same term Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez used to describe the state of play on discovery. Changing discovery laws was one of Hochul's big priorities in the budget talks with state lawmakers, along with making it easier to involuntarily commit mentally ill people — a pair of policy pitches that grew from public safety concerns in the Big Apple. The city's DAs, including Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, argued that the state's 2019 discovery reforms led to a surge in criminal case dismissals based on often-trivial technicalities. Hochul backed their proposal to tweak the laws, narrowing the scope of evidence prosecutors have to turn over to defense attorneys and setting a 35-day time limit to challenge violations. Critics such as The Legal Aid Society, however, pushed lawmakers to stand firm against the changes — contending they'd give prosecutors too much power. They also argued the surge in dismissals is largely seen in New York City and stems from the NYPD failing to share evidence with prosecutors. Despite the pushback, Heastie said Tuesday that Dems had reached a 'framework' over discovery changes. The deal would: Require prosecutors to just turn over evidence 'relevant' to charges, narrowing it from evidence 'related' to the case, Clarify that judges should only dismiss cases in which prosecutors did not exercise 'due diligence,' Require defense attorneys to file discovery challenges within 35 days of prosecutors certifying to the court they've turned over evidence. Three of New York City's district attorneys — Manhattan's Alvin Bragg, Brooklyn's Eric Gonzalez and Staten Island's Michael McMahon — flanked Hochul during Wednesday's news conference. Robert Miller Three of New York City's district attorneys — Gonzalez, Bragg and Staten Island's Michael McMahon — flanked Hochul during her news conference, which was part of a tour pushing for the discovery changes. Gonzalez said the legislative teams from the DAs and Heastie's and Stewart-Cousin's offices were crafting the actual language for changes. 'Every word matters in a statute, because if a word is off or a standard is off, it changes the entire interpretation,' he said. 'We want to make sure that the language is clear that judges will have discretion to independently and individually review each case, and that a judge would not feel that they have to dismiss a case because a document is missing.'
