Greetings from Albany, NY  

In this edition, we provide updates on Governor Hochul’s recent action on bills, the general election, NIH funding, artificial intelligence debates, Medicaid work requirements, and other important topics.  

Governor Hochul’s Recent Actions on Bills  

Since the beginning of the 2026 legislative session, Governor Hochul has signed 307 bills into law. There are currently 447 bills that have passed both houses and are awaiting delivery to her desk.  The Governor has signed an additional 11 bills since our last newsletter, and another three remain on her desk with action due on Oct. 3. Approximately half of the ones she recently signed are to authorize individuals to take the civil service examination, in addition to a few other local bills. Three remain on her desk including establishing the electric landscaping equipment rebate program, extending the time period for recovery of energy performance contract costs from energy savings incurred by school districts, and one that would authorize the dormitory authority to provide financing for a construction project.

Forty more bills have been introduced. Here’s a sampling of them:

• Relates to student athlete contracts (A11712)
• Relates to limiting the amounts that may be loaned to candidates or political committees (A11715)
• Requires all school districts to screen all students for dyslexia and dysgraphia (A11716 / S10141)
• Establishes the volunteer and municipal ambulance services grant program (A11718 / S10689)
• Relates to the use of artificial intelligence and attorney-client privilege and work product (A11723)
• Provides for the protection of children from amplified sound
  (A11726)
• Relates to the handling of tips received through the office of the Medicaid inspector general’s Medicaid fraud hotline (A11731 / S10680)

We Are Less Than Six Week Out from the General Election 

The 2026 general election on Nov. 3 is less than six weeks away. All 150 Assembly seats and 63 Senate seats are on the ballot, along with races for governor and lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, members of Congress, and NY Supreme Court justices.

Early voting in New York runs from Oct. 24 – Nov. 1.

The election could bring significant turnover in Albany, as several lawmakers have chosen not to seek re-election, are running for different offices, or lost their primary races.

Democrats hold a 41-22 majority in the Senate, and 103-47 majority in the Assembly.

We look forward to providing detailed updates as we get closer and will follow up with a full breakdown after the election.

Locally, a few statewide debates hosted by Spectrum News will be taking place:

• Comptroller: Oct. 1 at 7 p.m.
• Attorney General: Oct. 8 at 7 p.m.
• Governor: Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.

 

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