The New York City Charter Revision Commission voted this week to place five proposed amendments on the November ballot. The first bill would create a more streamlined process for reviewing publicly financed affordable...more
7/30/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Ballot Measures ,
City Councils ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Immigration ,
Immigration Reform ,
Local Elections ,
Mayors ,
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Zoning Laws
BOSTON—City’s First Office-to-Residential Conversion Project Begins -Construction has officially begun on Boston’s first office-to-residential apartment conversions. This effort is a part of a City pilot program aimed at...more
7/24/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Apartments ,
City Councils ,
Crime Statistics ,
Housing Market ,
Local Elections ,
Minimum Wage ,
Mixed-Use Zoning ,
Office Space ,
Opioid ,
Public Schools ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
State Budgets ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Zoning Laws
PHILADELPHIA—Waymo to Begin Testing Driverless Cars This Summer -Waymo is launching manual test drives of its autonomous vehicles in Philadelphia to familiarize its technology with the city. While public rides are not yet...more
7/10/2025
/ Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) ,
Affordable Housing ,
Automotive Industry ,
Driverless Cars ,
Gig Economy ,
Housing Market ,
Minimum Wage ,
Public Health ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transit ,
Sales Tax ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
State Funding ,
Unions
NYC Mayoral Primary Results -
On June 24, Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani received the most first-choice votes in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary, securing 43.5% of ballots. Former Governor Andrew Cuomo received...more
6/30/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Casinos ,
Cybersecurity ,
Election Results ,
Housing Market ,
Mayors ,
New York ,
Political Campaigns ,
Political Candidates ,
State and Local Government ,
State Elections
NEW YORK—Waymo Applies for NYC Permit -
Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving car unit, plans to begin manually operating vehicles in Manhattan as a first step toward launching autonomous ride-hailing in New York City. The company...more
6/26/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Curfews ,
Driverless Cars ,
Gig Economy ,
Housing Market ,
Minimum Wage ,
New York ,
Property Tax ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
State and Local Government ,
Technology Sector ,
Transportation Industry ,
Unions ,
Urban Planning & Development
The 2025 New York State legislative session has concluded. For the 2025-2026 session, all bills not passed this year will remain live, and session is scheduled to begin again in January. We anticipate that the Governor will...more
6/19/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Healthcare Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transportation ,
Renewable Energy ,
State Budgets ,
State Health Departments ,
State Legislatures ,
State Taxes
Mayoral Candidates Debate as Early Voting Opens -
In the final Democratic mayoral debate, Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani debated over experience and ethics. Cuomo, Mamdani, Brad Lander, Adrienne Adams, Zellnor Myrie, Scott...more
6/16/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
City Councils ,
Landlords ,
Mayors ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Political Campaigns ,
Real Estate Brokers ,
Real Estate Market ,
Rent ,
State Elections ,
Tenants
BOSTON—City Receives $7.4M for Office-to-Residential Conversions -Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey (D) allocated $7.4 million to support two office-to-residential conversion projects in downtown Boston, part of a broader...more
6/12/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Housing Market ,
Mayors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Health ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
Tax Reform
Adams Appoints Rodriguez-Rosa as New NYC Parks Commissioner -
Mayor Adams has appointed Iris Rodriguez-Rosa as the new Commissioner of NYC Parks. Rodriguez-Rosa previously served as the Bronx Borough Parks Commissioner, and...more
Candidates Named For First Mayoral Primary Debate -
Nine candidates have qualified for the first NYC Democratic mayoral primary debate on June 4, including Adrienne Adams, Michael Blake, Andrew Cuomo, Brad Lander, Zohran...more
BALTIMORE—City Seeks Return of Sports Betting Lawsuit to Local Court -
The City of Baltimore is requesting that its consumer protection lawsuit against DraftKings and FanDuel be moved back to Baltimore City Circuit Court,...more
5/29/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Algorithms ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Housing Market ,
Investigations ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Safety ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sports Betting ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Laws
Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro is considering cancelling a planned affordable housing development at Elizabeth Street Garden. He has suggested that the apartments instead be built on a nearby lot, which was initially reserved for...more
BALTIMORE—Bill Introduced to Address Housing Shortage-
On Monday, Mayor Brandon Scott (D) introduced his Housing Options & Opportunity Act, which aims to expand zoning laws for multi-family homes and provide more housing...more
New York State legislators passed the $254B Fiscal Year 2026 state budget, reflecting an increase of $17B from FY25. The FY26 budget included inflation refund checks (up to $200 for individuals and $400 for families), an...more
Yesterday, state lawmakers passed the $254B FY26 state budget, reflecting an increase of $17B from FY25. The budget was passed over five weeks after the deadline of April 1, and will be retroactively in effect from April 1,...more
Mayor Adams Unveils FY 2026 Executive Budget -
Mayor Eric Adams released New York City's $115.1 billion Fiscal Year 2026 Executive Budget, dubbed the "Best Budget Ever.” It focuses on investments in public safety, criminal...more
NEW YORK—Mayor Adams, CTO Announce City’s First Crypto Summit-
New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Matthew Fraser will host New York City’s first Crypto Summit next month, bringing together...more
BALTIMORE—City Files Lawsuit Against DraftKings, FanDuel -
The City of Baltimore filed a lawsuit against DraftKings and FanDuel, alleging that the sports betting companies exploit vulnerable gamblers through promotional...more
4/17/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
New York ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Health ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transportation ,
Sports Betting ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Taxes ,
Wage and Hour
CHICAGO—City Begins Converting Loop Office Buildings to Housing -Chicago’s La Salle Corridor Revitalization Initiative kicked off last week, beginning with the transformation of a historic 14-story Loop office building into...more
CHICAGO—City Incentives Aim to Attract Data Centers -
Chicago is positioning itself to capitalize on the data center boom, with the City Council adopting an ordinance offering incentives for developers to store municipal...more
3/20/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Data Centers ,
Employment Policies ,
Gig Economy ,
Labor Reform ,
Minimum Wage ,
Property Tax ,
Public Health ,
Real Estate Development ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Incentives ,
Technology
Speaker Adams Delivers State of the City-
Council Speaker Adrienne Adams’ 2025 State of the City Address emphasized housing affordability, economic equity, public safety reform, and protecting democracy. She highlighted the...more
Last Tuesday, Mayor Adams, along with other mayors of cities throughout New York State, stated the city’s priorities at the state budget “tin cup day.” Adams advocated for “Axe the Tax for the Working Class” legislation,...more
CHICAGO — Data Shows City’s Labor Market Stabilizing -
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said the latest jobs report suggests the labor market is stabilizing at full employment and is not a sign of an...more
1/23/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
City Planning Departments ,
Economic Development ,
Housing Developers ,
Immigration ,
Infrastructure ,
Local Ordinance ,
Public Policy ,
Public Safety ,
Public Transportation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rent Control ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Policy ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Wildfires ,
Zoning Laws
Last Tuesday, Governor Hochul delivered her 2025 State of the State address, laying out her vision for the year ahead. Highlights from the State of the State are below. The Governor will release her Executive Budget soon to...more
In his 2025 State of the City address, Mayor Eric Adams detailed his administration’s efforts to create a safer, more equitable, and family-centered New York City. He noted achievements like reducing crime, expanding...more
1/13/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Workweek ,
Homeless Issues ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Paid Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures ,
Tax Relief ,
Wage and Hour