Hoylman Condemns New York Republicans Who Emboldened Right-Wing Terrorists
State Senator Brad Hoylman (D-Chelsea, Midtown) released a statement yesterday following the massive attack on Capitol Hill.
A mob of Trump supporters stormed Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. yesterday, in an attempt to disrupt the certification of the 2020 election results. The ensuing chaos resulted in a woman being shot and killed, and more than one explosive device was discovered at the scene.
“Every Republican who enabled and encouraged Donald Trump’s unhinged and anti-democratic efforts to overturn the results of November’s election owns responsibility for the violent coup attempt the world is witnessing in horror,” said Hoylman. “The members of the New York Congressional delegation who have carried Trump’s water — including Chris Jacobs, Nicole Malliotakis, Elise Stefanik and Lee Zeldin — have failed the people of our State. You broke it, you own it.”
James Denounces EPA’s Adoption of Science Transparency Rule
New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) released a statement yesterday in response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) adoption of the “Science Transparency Rule”.
The rule limits the research that the EPA can use to craft public health policy. Researchers will have to disclose the data involved in their studies before the EPA can use said studies in crafting protective rules. However, critics argue that scientific studies often utilize confidential medical records and other data that can’t be released out of privacy concerns.
“For the past four years, Trump’s EPA has unrelentingly sought to undercut the use of scientific evidence, which serves as the foundation of our federal environmental and public health laws,” said James. “The so-called Science Transparency Rule serves as a capstone to this cynical, dangerous, and illegal campaign. The only thing ‘transparent’ about this rule is its clear intent to censor, exclude, and undermine science at the expense of our health and environment. This anti-science rule arbitrarily restricts the use of the best available science in agency decision-making, which is blatantly illegal, and I am committed to working with states, counties, and cities across the county to overturn it in the courts.”
Cuomo Announces Proposal to Legalize Cannabis
Yesterday, Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) announced a plan to legalize and regulate cannabis in New York as part of his State of the State Address.
His proposal would create a new Office of Cannabis Management to oversee a new adult-use program, as well as existing medical marijuana programs. It would also offer licensing opportunities to businesspeople in neighborhoods of color, in order to provide compensation to the communities disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs. Cuomo predicts that the program will generate more than $300 million in tax revenue.
“Despite the many challenges New York has faced amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it has also created a number of opportunities to correct longstanding wrongs and build New York back better than ever before,” Cuomo said. “Not only will legalizing and regulating the adult-use cannabis market provide the opportunity to generate much-needed revenue, but it also allows us to directly support the individuals and communities that have been most harmed by decades of cannabis prohibition.”
Maloney Applauds Passage of Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act
Last Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens) released a statement in support of H.R. 22, a bill to increase transparency in federal spending.
Each year, federal agencies issue congressional budget justifications, which outline how they will spend the money they request from Congress; however, these reports aren’t always available to the public. The Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act would ensure that all congressional budget justifications are made available on a public searchable database.
“The bill before us, the Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act, is a common sense, good government measure every Member should support,” said Maloney. “It would require the congressional budget justification documents that agencies prepare for Congressional committees to be posted on-line in a centralized, searchable database. This would make these detailed, plain-language explanations of how agencies plan to spend taxpayer dollars more accessible to the public.”
The bill passed overwhelmingly in the House, with a vote of 412-2.
