Jimmy Vielkind

Albany

Public Media Reporter at WNYC (New York, NY)

Public media reporter @WNYC covering Upstate America & New York politics. Papa to the RVs and partner to KN. Please don't DM me; email jvielkind at wnyc dot org

Articles

NY lawmakers pass watered-down consumer protections as session ends

1 week ago | wamc.org | Jimmy Vielkind

Albany lawmakers scaled down a consumer protection measure before concluding their annual session and walked away from proposed reforms to the live-event ticket market that could have capped fees. The changes came after a flurry of last-minute lobbying by business groups, who said the measures would hinder their operations and prompt a surge of lawsuits. Both bills passed in the final days of the scheduled state legislative session, which concluded early Wednesday.
NY lawmakers pass watered-down consumer protections as session ends

1 week ago | weos.org | Jimmy Vielkind

Albany lawmakers scaled down a consumer protection measure before concluding their annual session and walked away from proposed reforms to the live-event ticket market that could have capped fees. The changes came after a flurry of last-minute lobbying by business groups, who said the measures would hinder their operations and prompt a surge of lawsuits. Both bills passed in the final days of the scheduled state legislative session, which concluded early Wednesday.
Gov. Hochul to testify before Congress about NY immigration policies

2 weeks ago | gothamist.com | Jimmy Vielkind

Gov. Kathy Hochul will be in the hot seat Thursday when she joins other bluestate governors for a Capitol Hill hearing on immigration enforcement. Republicans who control the U.S. House Oversight Committee called Hochul along with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Minnesota Gov. Tim Waltz. U.S. Rep. James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky who chairs the committee, said the governors’ policies protect undocumented immigrants who commit crimes.
In Washington, Gov. Kathy Hochul spars with GOP over NY immigration policies

2 weeks ago | weos.org | Jimmy Vielkind

Gov. Kathy Hochul was in the hot seat Thursday when she joined other blue-state governors for a Capitol Hill hearing on immigration enforcement. Republicans who control the U.S. House Oversight Committee called Hochul, along with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. U.S. Rep. James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky who chairs the committee, said the governors’ policies protect undocumented immigrants who commit crimes.
How a shoplifting arrest in upstate NY summoned ICE and separated a family

2 weeks ago | gothamist.com | Jimmy Vielkind

The call was dispatched as a routine case of shoplifting in Rotterdam, a blue-collar suburb of Schenectady. Security cameras at a Hannaford grocery store caught a Hispanic couple stashing merchandise in the bottom of a stroller carrying a 3-year-old girl. But then the male suspect, Michel Garcia Rojas, presented police officers with the only ID he had, showing he’d served as a police officer in Nicaragua. The woman, Maria Duque-Muriel, hailed from Colombia and is also a noncitizen.
How a shoplifting arrest in upstate NY summoned ICE and separated a family

2 weeks ago | wamc.org | Jimmy Vielkind

The call was dispatched as a routine case of shoplifting in Rotterdam, a blue-collar suburb of Schenectady. Security cameras at a Hannaford grocery store caught a Hispanic couple stashing merchandise in the bottom of a stroller carrying a 3-year-old girl. But then the male suspect, Michel Garcia Rojas, presented police officers with the only ID he had, showing he’d served as a police officer in Nicaragua. The woman, Maria Duque-Muriel, hailed from Colombia and is also a noncitizen.
Lt. Gov. Delgado holds first campaign event in bid to unseat his boss

3 weeks ago | gothamist.com | Jimmy Vielkind

Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado staked out Gov. Kathy Hochul’s left flank Wednesday, declaring at his first campaign rally that she is beholden to powerful interests and the status quo. Delgado, a former U.S. representative elevated to the lieutenant governorship by Hochul in 2022, told several dozen people in Brooklyn that he would push for greater support for child care, statewide rental subsidies and a state office to help New Yorkers dispute health insurance companies when they deny claims.
Lt. Gov. Delgado holds first campaign event in bid to unseat his boss

3 weeks ago | weos.org | Jimmy Vielkind

Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado staked out Gov. Kathy Hochul’s left flank Wednesday, declaring at his first campaign rally that she is beholden to powerful interests and the status quo. Delgado, a former U.S. representative elevated to the lieutenant governorship by Hochul in 2022, told several dozen people in Brooklyn that he would push for greater support for child care, statewide rental subsidies and a state office to help New Yorkers dispute health insurance companies when they deny claims.
NY lawmakers want more judges on the bench to expedite cases. Why are judges opposed?

3 weeks ago | gothamist.com | Jimmy Vielkind

New York state lawmakers say they have a way to address a longstanding shortage of judges that contributes to people accused of crimes languishing in jail for years while awaiting trial: Make it easier to swear in more judges. But there’s an unexpected opponent of the measure — a group representing the judges themselves.
NY lawmakers want more judges on the bench to expedite cases. Why are judges opposed?

3 weeks ago | northcountrypublicradio.org | Jimmy Vielkind

State lawmakers say they have a way to address a longstanding shortage of judges that contributes to people accused of crimes languishing in jail for years awaiting trial: Make it easier to swear in more judges. But there’s an unexpected opponent of the measure — a group representing the judges themselves.