Mayor Adams scores wins with Hochul policy rollouts, but more migrant aid still unclear – New York Daily News

Gov. Hochuls State of the State address on Tuesday and the policies she embedded in it include several new measures that are sure to be music to Mayor Adams ears but one noticeable omission was how to manage the migrant crisis in 2024.

Hochul floated plans to give local governments more power to combat unlicensed cannabis sellers and retail theft, and she aims to counter the harms of social media on teenagers through penalizing companies that rely on addictive algorithms all issues Adams has spoken about frequently.

Those measures are contained in a 180-page policy book Hochul put out as part of her State of the State address a book that also neglected to make mention of New York Citys migrant crisis, which had been included in last years policy book. Adams has struggled mightily to manage the migrant surge for nearly two years, and it ranks as one of his top priorities.

And while the words migrant and asylum seeker do not appear once in Hochuls policy book, the governor did raise the situation, however glancingly, during her Albany address, saying that she plans to focus more attention on the issue next week when she presents her budget plan.

Adams said he wasnt disappointed about the scant attention on migrants Tuesday, though.

We met a few weeks ago, and she clearly understands. We both agree this is a national problem, he told reporters in Albany after Hochuls speech. National government must deal with this issue, but its in our lap right now. We both understand that, and she did acknowledge that she will be talking about that in her budget.

Adams wouldnt say how much money in state aid hed like to see from Hochul for migrants in the upcoming budget, but said his budget honcho is working on it with the governors team.

Were going to work together to come to a real number to deal with the financial cost of this, Adams said.

Despite avoiding the migrant issue in large part on Tuesday, Hochul had other goodies to offer Adams.

The mayor has for weeks been calling for the ability to better enforce rules against unlicensed weed shops, which have proliferated in the city since the recreational use of cannabis was legalized in 2021 under a law that allows licensed shops to sell marijuana.

In the administrations policy book, Hochul vows to strengthen enforcement authority to expedite the closure of unlicensed businesses and deter this illicit activity through legislation that will beef up state and local governments ability to shut down unlicensed sellers.

Hochul also unveiled a plan to crack down on shoplifting, citing stats that show larcenies have risen 58% in the city since 2017. To do that, shell task a dedicated team of state police to build cases against organized theft rings and a new joint task force to coordinate efforts with local law enforcement district attorneys. In addition, Hochul plans to increase funding for state Crime Analysis Centers and direct money to cities that partner with them though it is not clear exactly how much money, if any, the city will receive as part of that initiative.

Social media companies which Adams has railed against for months will feel the heat from the state if Hochul has her way as well.

Shes floating a bill that would prohibit social media companies from using addictive feeds with kids under 18 unless a parent consents to them. Instead, it would allow for feeds that have a default chronology from users they already follow. Under her proposal, the state attorney general would be empowered to bring cases against companies with civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation.