Less than a full day before the murder of a 37-year old Minneapolis ICU nurse at the hands of ICE, thousands of New Yorkers were out on the street rallying and marching in support of removing ICE from Minneapolis, in solidarity with the unions, workers and businesses that walked out and shut down the city on January 23rd under the banner, “ICE OUT FOR GOOD National Day of Solidarity.”
They unified in horror and outrage after the murder of 37-year old mother and activist Renee Good, but mere hours later, there was yet another, as 37-year old ICU nurse Alex Pretti, acting as a monitor and assisting a woman assaulted by ICE, was also brutally murdered even after he was thrown down by half dozen agents, in a volley of bullets at close range, in the back of his head. It looked more like an execution than a “law enforcement action.” Because that is what it was. The feds immediately blocked out medical aid and state investigators, and had to be mandated by a judge not to destroy evidence.
Organized by DSA, Hands Off NYC, the NY Immigration Coalition, 1199SEIU, Make the Road NY, UFT, New York Working Families Party, Rise and Resist, DC37, Indivisible NYC, and dozens of partners, the protesters numbering the thousands were representative of every race, ethnicity, and age group – a reflection of New York City.
They spoke out against rising fascism and to pressure corporations, including Target, Amazon, Home Depot, and Palantir, “to stop collaborating with would-be authoritarians and instead stand up for our communities.”
“Every week sees a new escalation — they are arresting children and local movement leaders in Minneapolis! It’s vital that we stand together and speak out against these attacks on our rights and our people.”
“Silence is too costly,” declared one of the faithleaders. “They are killing our neighbors, our souls…March for justice. Enough is enough.”
“No more family detentions, detentions for profit. Reject cruelty of greed. We want justice now. Abolish ICE,” another said.
Gathering in front of a statue of George Washington, they decried a wannbe king and a society where lives are cheap but property sacred.”Stand up against the most sinister enemy.”
A Hands Off Coalition leader, a teacher and climate organizer and mother of two, said, “We are heart broken at the lawless, violence ICE assaults, who murdered a mother in cold blood, raid schools and day care centers, tear gas protesters, separate children from parents, detain a five year old in the cold.” And not just in Minneapolis, but in New York City. “These innocent children will never be the same. This regime is waging war on families, cutting funding for food, education, health care, violating the environment” for the benefit of corporate greed of Amazon, Palantir, and Home Depot.
Palantir is particularly singled out as an accomplice to the violence, using its super-duper AI data collection and spying technology at hospitals, schools, transportation systems it sells to government to target immigrants and activists, so ICE can kidnap, corporations can replace workers with machines, and governments can bomb and Peter Thiel and Alex Karp can make more money in one week, propping up the dictator wannabe Trump, than the average worker earns in a lifetime of toil.
“I refuse to live in a country where the feds terrorize, families are torn apart.,” Brendan Griffith, President of the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, told the crowd. “Stand together. An attack on one is an attack on all… NYC stands with Minnesota. Nearly 50 percent of NYC workers are immigrants. NYC is a union town. We want a country where workers can move through their lives with dignity.
Another speaker equated what is happening as tantamount to the Fugitive Slave Act. “No Slave Patrol 2.0, profiting off rounding up people based on the color of their skin. This isn’t about citizenship. It’s about creating a white ethno state.”
They implored every level of New York government to stand up for immigrants, defend our people.
One of the striking NYC nurses urged the state government to keep our immigrant patients safe, refuse to collaborate, and protect the immigrants who are the medical and health care providers. One fourth of New York’s healthcare workforce are immigrants. “Our staff fears ICE.”
They are advocating for the state to pass the New York for All Act (S2235/A3506), proposed state legislation restricting cooperation between local/state law enforcement and federal immigration authorities (ICE/CBP). It would prohibit local agencies from inquiring about immigration status, sharing sensitive information with federal agents, or facilitating detentions, aiming to protect immigrant communities – in other words expanding the Sanctuary City to the state.
Trump has used sanctuary cities and states to justify withholding federal funding in the billions.
The acceleration of violence and lawlessness by federal agents, hyped up by Trump aide Stephen Miller, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and Greg Bovino who commands the enforcers to believe they are above all law and can disregard civil rights with impunity, has prompted Senators, Congressmen and Governors to lash out (but not until after the House, helped with seven Democratic votes, passed increasing funding for ICE, hopefully prompting Senate Democrats to take a stand).
Governor Kathy Hochul, who has sued the Trump administration for withholding billions of dollars in appropriated funds to New York to extort support for his mass deportation policies, came out forcefully against ICE, after the latest horrific killing of Alex Pretti,and called for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who repeatedly lies and covers up her agency’s criminality, to resign.
“Videos don’t lie. And don’t stop believing what your eyes tell you,” Governor Hochul declared. “Their cruelty, these instances, what is going on and unfolding in streets of America today shocks the conscience of every human being with a heart.
“When federal agents use lethal force against civilians and then prevent state authorities from fully investigating, it violates the basic principles of a democracy. What it does is makes everyone feel unsafe — everyone. Nationwide over the last 13 months, ICE has detained hundreds of U.S. citizens, and dozens of people have died in their custody.
“Now, Donald Trump’s handpicked leader of the Department of Homeland Security has proven to be unable and unwilling to follow the law to stop these killings. Kristi Noem has referred to these peaceful protesters as “domestic terrorists” and lied about the shooting victims being the aggressors. She told law enforcement officers to put on masks and military fatigues to basically treat the American public as the enemy.
“[Noem] has shown a profound disregard for human life and created a culture where people feel unrestrained in how they’re handling encounters with the people in this country. Kristi Noem has forfeited her right to lead, and I’m calling on her to resign as Secretary of Homeland Security or Donald Trump to do the right thing and just fire her. And if not, she must be removed or impeached. And Gregory Bovino — who has helped lead, and defend and escalate these operations — should also be fired.
“It’s a shame I have to say this in America, but no one is above the law. No one, not an ICE agent, not a federal officer, not the President of the United States. And make no mistake, when these people who have abused the power entrusted to them by their offices are finally out of power, states, including New York, will hold them accountable.”
New Yorkers stood in frigid cold on January 20, 2026, marking one full year since trump’s return to office, under a “Free America Walk Out” umbrella. A crowd swelled to hundreds across the street from trump tower on Fifth Avenue – one of multiple demonstrations across the city and more than 600 across the country – to chant, sing and sneer, waving signs calling for ICE OUT NOW, stay out if Greenland and impeach tRump.
An hour later an even more animated crowd organized by the Party for Socialism & Liberation, rallied in front of the New York Public Library to call for revolution by workers to throw out the imperialists, capitalists here and around the world, and remake America to work for and by the people. They gave more of a vision of what might happen if Congress doesn’t rein in trump’s daily abuses of the Constitution and dismantling of the institutions that are foundational to a functioning democracy in the United States. They are calling for a general strike, beginning on Friday, January 23, in support of Minneapolis’ plan to strike.
Protesters decried the deployment of unconstitutional attacks on Americans in the course of his mass deportation crusade by ICE and other federal agents, decried the invasion of Venezuela and pirating of oil, and his latest threats to take over Greenland whether or not Greenlanders want to be acquired. (No where in his remarks about Greenland does he even suggest that Greenlanders have a say.)
A review of trump and his administration’s actions during this first year of enacting his Project 2025 shows some predominant themes: extortion and bullying and using gangster tactics to force, intimidate, threaten governments, corporations, universities, law firms, media companies to his will; defying the Constitution and court decisions; use of military force abroad (bombed 7 countries including Venezuela, iran, Nigeria and threatening Greenland) as well as in American cities; not to taking actions for his personal enrichment; unleashing a retribution campaign that overturns the Rule of Law, including pardoning the 1600 January 6 insurrectionists responsible for 5 deaths and injuring 140 Capitol police and turning the entire Justice and law enforcement apparatus for his own benefit, while giving a go-ahead to every fraudster, drug trafficker, domestic abuser who pays him a toll , including selling pardons for millions of dollars. Rule of Law? Pshaw.
Here’s a bit of a Year in Review of what you may have forgotten:
Day One, tRump signed (no doubt using an auto-pen!) 1,600 pardons for the January 6 insurrectionists who tried to overturn the 2020 election, in the process causing 5 deaths and injuries to 140 Capitol officers. With that action, trump sent a message that illegality in the service of Trump will be pardoned (next up, 2026 midterms, then 2028 election!).
He has continued to sell pardons to every fraudster, drug and human trafficker, and domestic abuser who pays him $1 million or more, as well as those who commit violence in support of him.
He breaks the Constitution’s prohibition against emoluments by on a daily basis accepting gifts and favors from those who then get favors from his administration, including accepting a $400 million “gift” from Qatar of a jet to be reconfigured for Air Force One at a cost to taxpayers of $1 billion, which he has said he would keep after (if ever) he leaves office. That set the stage for a parade of gifts from billionaires, corporate executives, government heads, climaxing with Machedo bestowing her Nobel peace prize on trump in the hopes he would support her to take over Venezuela’s government (fat chance), on top of the billions of dollars from foreign sources and criminals to purchase and bolster the value of his crypto crap, winning his okay on everything from arms sales and relief from his onerous and unconstitutional tariffs. In justt his first year, he has squeezed $1.4 billion from the presidency for his own pocket, not counting the millions in selling pardons (for which he has forgiven over $1 trillion in restitution to the victims).
He has unleashed tariff war (in violation of Constitution which gives that power to Congress), using tariffs to extort countries and companies to do his bidding, while pushing up financial desperation of Americans who pay the tariffs like a tax.
Unleashing DOGE to fire 20% of the federal workforce, shut down agencies, research, and public services, pushing out experts in everything from climate change to public health to cancer research, and decimating the entities that gave the USA “soft power” across the world, such as USAID (shutting it down has already caused 600,000 deaths and growing), and shutting down Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Asia and Radio Liberty (now moving to force Stars & Stripes to only report positively on Pentagon, while shutting out media entities that did not take a pledge to the Pentagon).
Trump has cancelled billions in grants, funding to blue states and municipalities (while he charges Democrats who call for police reform as “defunding police” he is the only one who has actually defunded law enforcement), to extort them to follow his anti-immigrant and anti-DEI vendettas.
While tRump inherited from President Biden the strongest economy on the planet, his policies have resulted in the loss of 1 million jobs and a breathtaking $2 TRILLION increase to the national debt – even without a global pandemic or Great Recession.
Meanwhile, Americans suffer from inflation that has not come down where Biden brought the rate to, 3%.
He has withdrawn from every international climate action, immigration, human rights organization and treaty, and is bullying other countries into throwing out the migrants that have sought asylum.
He has unleashed retribution campaign on political enemies, while shifting focus of every law enforcement agency from international crime, cybercrime, election interference, political corruption, drug cartels, human and drug trafficking, domestic violence to his mass deportation crusade, at the same time he has overturned any concept of Rule of Law, fair and equal justice for all, and justice “without fear or favor” – hallmarks of a functioning democracy.
He has extorted universities, law firms, media to end DEI and pay him homage – systematically trying to undue and remake the culture that over the last 30 years has become accepting and respectful of differences in race, religion, ethnicity, gender and age. Instead, he has shut down the civil rights division, overturned police brutality consent decrees and instructed the DoJ to instead invite white males to sue for some fantasy of being discriminated against in education or jobs.
He has reversed any steps toward environmental protection and climate action – forcefully undoing standards and funding in order to reestablish fossil fuels as the predominant energy of the economy, while also undermining public health. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has basically said that lost lives would no longer be considered in evaluating environmental regulation. Think about that.
His tax policy has shifted trillions of dollars to the top 1% who now have more wealth than the bottom 90% of Americans, while taking away health care from 22 million people, and threatening to topple the entire health care system. He doesn’t care.
He has gone after every alliance that has prevented the outbreak of a World War III, and enabled unprecedented prosperity – that is, until he took power. Showing he is merely Putin’s Puppet, he is bringing NATO to the brink of collapse, while he policies have incentivized Putin to continue his genocidal war against Ukraine and Netanyahu to continue his aggression against Gaza (while trump promised he could end the war on his first day, it is Kamala Harris who would have ended the war in Ukraine and in Gaza within months of taking office.)
And he has provoked war without notifying Congress, let alone get the authorization required under the Constitution (so much for his claim of “ending 8 ½ wars”, spending billions and billions of dollars in order for him to giddily watch the violence unfold on a video screen. And he basically said that because Norway snubbed him for the Nobel Prize, he felt no obligation to pursue peace.) Actually, he is itching to provoke a war because he desperately wants to be a War President, cementing power using Martial Law and the Insurrection Act, let alone having the fantasy of the country patriotically rallying around his flag.
Rather than “Make America Great Again” trump’s policies are incentivizing all our allies, from Europe and the United Kingdom, to Canada, Mexico and Brazil to detach from the United States – making new deals with China and Latin America. “America Alone.”
Trump at Davos has embarrassed the United States, yet again, and caused the rest of the world to mock and distrust Americans for bringing back this corrupt, ignorant, degenerate, deranged megalomaniac sociopath to office.
In response to Canadian PM Mark Carney describing the tearing apart of the Canada-US alliance as “a rupture, not a transition,” Trump chided, “They should be grateful to us. Canada lives because of the United States, remember that…”
And he mocked European leaders, and dismissed the sacrifices that Europeans made in World War II, and that NATO members, including Greenlanders, made on behalf of the United States after 9/11 – the only time in history when Article 5 was triggered.
If there is a bottom line, it can be summed up this way: Billionaires added more than $1 trillion in wealth in 2025, surging by 16 per cent, three times faster than the past five-year average, to $18.3 trillion The wealthiest 1% of U.S. households held 31.7% of all wealth – $55 trillion– the highest percentage (and the greatest wealth gap) since tracking began in 1989, and exceeds the combined wealth of the bottom 90%. Elon Musk, alone, has more wealth than the combined wealth of the bottom half of the population. The gap is now as great as it was in France at the time of the French Revolution, and during the Gilded Age (before income tax and unions).
Here are more photo highlights of the day’s events:
After 10 years of promising a healthcare plan that would be better and cheaper than the Affordable Care Act , and with a healthcare crisis unfolding as millions lose access to care through unaffordable insurance premiums or closing of hospitals and clinics, Donald Trump has finally come out with a one-page, 827-word plan. It is intended to repeal and replace Obama’s hard-won Affordable Care Act – 1000 pages with 10,000 more detailing implementation –negotiated and compromised over 18 months at a cost of all Obama’s “political capital.”
Let’s be reminded about what Obamacare did – and what Republicans have tried to repeal (and not replace) more than 80 times, doing now by sabotage what they couldn’t accomplish legislatively: it capped the amount that insurance companies could spend on marketing, administration and profit to 20%; it covered children on parents’ policy through age 26; it ended the higher premiums on “pre-existing conditions” (who doesn’t now, after COVID?) and on women just for the likelihood of having babies. Obamacare brought the obscenely high rate of uninsured to the lowest, 7.4% (half of what it had been), and covered a record 24 million in 2025 (50 million since its inception).
The United States, the richest, most powerful, most advanced country in human history, is also the only high-income nation without universal health coverage. Americans pay the most for health care and have some of the worst outcomes. Senator Bernie Sanders, who has been championing universal health care or some version of Medicare for All, says 68,000 people die each year for lack of access to health care. (https://www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Fact-Sheet_Medicare-for-All-2023.pdf)
Trump’s single-page plan to control the massive $5 trillion U.S. healthcare industry, representing nearly 18% of the nation’s GDP, the largest U.S. employer with over 17 million workers, that only continues to grow because of the aging population, increased demand, and yes, progress in medicine.
It boils down to this: in Trump’s America, health care is a privilege, not a right.
This is from the White House: –Karen Rubin, editor@news-photos-features.com
CALLING ON CONGRESS TO LOWER HEALTHCARE COSTS: Today, President Donald J. Trump called on Congress to enact the Great Healthcare Plan, a comprehensive plan to lower drug prices, lower insurance premiums, hold big insurance companies accountable, and maximize price transparency.
LOWERING DRUG PRICES: The Great Healthcare Plan lowers prescription drug prices for all Americans by building on President Trump’s historic actions to reduce costs for American patients.
The Great Healthcare Plan calls for codifying the Trump Administration’s Most-Favored-Nation deals to get Americans the same low prices for prescription drugs that people in other countries pay. This would build off President Trump’s landmark actions that made insulin more affordable in his first term and the successful voluntary negotiations following his recent Executive Order to lower drug prices. Voluntarily negotiated deals with HHS/CMS will be grandfathered in.
The Great Healthcare Plan makes more verified safe pharmaceutical drugs available for over-the-counter purchase. This will lower healthcare costs and increase consumer choice by strengthening price transparency, increasing competition, and reducing the need for costly and time-consuming doctor’s visits.
LOWERING INSURANCE PREMIUMS: The Great Healthcare Plan would execute the President’s vision to send money directly to the American people, lower health insurance premiums, and cut kickbacks that raise insurance premiums.
The Great Healthcare Plan stops sending big insurance companies billions in extra taxpayer-funded subsidy payments and instead send that money directly to eligible Americans to allow them to buy the health insurance of their choice.
The Great Healthcare Plan funds a cost-sharing reduction program for healthcare plans which would save taxpayers at least $36 billion and reduce the most common Obamacare plan premiums by over 10% according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The Great Healthcare Plan will end the kickbacks paid by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to the large brokerage middlemen that deceptively raise the cost of health insurance.
HOLDING BIG INSURANCE COMPANIES ACCOUNTABLE: The Great Healthcare Plan ends the days of insurance companies using complexity to make it difficult for Americans to hold them to account by creating the “Plain English” insurance standard and requiring insurance companies to prominently post the profits they take out of premiums as well as information on the frequency with which they deny care.
The Great Healthcare Plan creates the “Plain English” insurance standard by requiring health insurance companies to publish rate and coverage comparisons upfront on their websites in plain English—not industry jargon—so consumers can make better insurance purchasing decisions.
The Great Healthcare Plan will require health insurance companies to publish the percentage of their revenues that are paid out to claims versus overhead costs and profits on their websites.
The Great Healthcare Plan will require health insurance companies to publish the percentage of insurance claims they reject and average wait times for routine care on their websites.
MAXIMIZING PRICE TRANSPARENCY: The Great Healthcare Plan requires any healthcare provider or insurer who accepts Medicare or Medicaid to prominently post their pricing and fees in their place of business and ensure insurance companies are complying with price transparency requirements.
In President Trump’s first term, he issued historic regulations requiring hospitals and insurance companies to post prices in various forms.
The Biden Administration failed to enforce these requirements and took no actions to help patients access actual prices.
The Great Healthcare Plan requires all healthcare providers and insurers to answer to their patients up front on the prices they will be charged—restoring accountability, transparency, and rightly giving power back to patients.
DELIVERING ON PROMISES TO LOWER THE COST OF HEALTHCARE: President Trump promised to lower healthcare costs for ALL Americans and The Great Healthcare Plan will build off of critical actions already taken in his second term to help Americans afford high-quality healthcare.
On May 12, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled “Delivering Most-Favored-Nation Prescription Drug Pricing to American Patients” directing the Administration to take numerous actions to bring American drug prices in line with those paid by similar nations. Since that time, the Administration has secured 16 deals with major pharmaceutical manufacturers to bring prices in line with those paid in other developed nations, providing substantial price relief on numerous products taken by millions of Americans.
Shortly after returning to office, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled “Making America Healthy Again by Empowering Patients with Clear, Accurate, and Actionable Healthcare Pricing Information,” directing the Administration to, after years of neglect by the Biden Administration, promote universal access to clear and accurate healthcare prices. Since that time, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has ramped up enforcement against hospitals out of compliance with price transparency rules, finalized improvements to hospital price transparency rules, and proposed significant improvements to price transparency rules for insurance companies.
In his historic Working Families Tax Cuts law, President Trump expanded access to health savings accounts for up to ten million people on Obamacare, took the most significant actions to reduce healthcare fraud and abuse in history, and made the largest investment in rural healthcare ever.
WASHINGTON—The Century Foundation and Nate Schenkkan, Freedom House’s former director of research, announced the development of a new democracy index, United States Democracy Meter, which finds that the U.S. government under Trump in 2025 “slid well into authoritarianism.” While other established indices have previously found the United States to be gradually declining over the past twenty years, no measure has yet tracked the historic collapse of U.S. democracy on the scale we’ve seen in the last 12 months.
Based on in-depth analyses of the health of state institutions, non-state sectors, individual rights and elections, Century’s Democracy Meter scored the U.S. at a 57 out of 100 this year, down from 79 in 2024—an astonishing 28 percent drop in just one year, a decline so large that it’s typically only seen when countries have coups, our researchers say. To put this in context, our analysis suggests U.S. democracy is at greater risk than at any time since Watergate, and it may even be approaching its pre-Civil Rights Movement lowpoint.
“It’s no secret to anyone watching the world around them that America is suffering from a surge in authoritarianism,” said Nate Schenkkan, the report’s lead author. “But seeing it all laid out—especially against the backdrop of what’s happened in 2026 so far—is staggering and should force everyone to think about how seriously we take preserving and restoring our democracy.”
“Our democracy is not self-executing. Failing to vigorously defend and improve it only sows the ground for authoritarian movements and actors,”said Thanassis Cambanis, Director of Century International and coauthor of the report. “While it’s clear that authoritarianism has taken hold in America, we are not without recourse through elections and mass mobilization.”
The report reveals that the core problem for the United States is the expansion of the executive branch’s powers, aided by a Republican-controlled Congress’s acquiescence and abetted by a highly ideologically aligned Supreme Court. More than half of America’s overall drop in score was in the evaluation of the category “state institutions,” which covers the executive branch, Congress, the judiciary, and grand corruption. This category fell from 22/30 points to 10/30.
The only category that did not have a decline was elections, with the score holding at 12/15 both years, as the lack of federal authority over election administration has so far prevented the Trump administration from changing the rules of the game. Elections can still be a means of contesting and changing power.
“American democracy is at greater risk than at any time since Watergate, and it may even be approaching its pre-Civil Rights Movement lowpoint.
“The U.S. government has become authoritarian in its intentions and its practices, even if it cannot always achieve its authoritarian goals.”
Alarming but Not Irreversible
“The swift decline of U.S. democracy this year is alarming. It is the result of choices by the right wing of American politics, which is committed to transforming the state from the inside out, and complacency, particularly from elite institutions, about the risk of authoritarianism. Importantly, however, the right wing has not yet succeeded in consolidating an authoritarian system. The United States’ size and diversity, tradition of independent civil society, its wealth, and its decentralized electoral system all make it difficult to keep power.
“The typical post-World War II democracies to which the United States is most often compared—Canada, Japan, and those in Europe—have not had these sorts of democratic declines. Other less healthy democracies have experienced similar collapses, but only after coups, attempted coups, or major shocks. The democratic decline in the United States over the last year is remarkable in modern history.
“The first priority for action is to defend the areas that are still robust, and will be needed for democracy to make a comeback. Media, civil society, and the protection of individual rights are essential to halting and then reversing democratic decline. For the opposition to have a chance of winning power, the electoral system needs to be sustained. These institutions need to be protected through legal campaigns, but also through protests, donations, and individual choices.
“The second priority—possible to pursue if there is a change in political power—must be to remedy the gaping structural weaknesses in the U.S. system. The executive’s ability to enact such rapid and extralegal changes in such a short time has been conditional, first and foremost, on the Supreme Court’s highly partisan tilt and the Republican Congress’s abdication of its role. Neither branch has acted to check the executive, and have mostly supported it running roughshod over the law and the constitutional order. When even federal judges are no longer extending to the government the “presumption of regularity,” and are expressing frustration that the Supreme Court operates without clear reasoning, the system is broken.
“Democracy is not self-implementing. Without decisive action to address these issues, it will remain vulnerable to concerted efforts to undermine it. The first responsibility is to defend democracy, and the second one is to rebuild it.”
See the report: https://tcf.org/content/report/centurys-new-democracy-meter-shows-america-took-an-authoritarian-turn-in-2025/
I’m betting Nassau County Bruce Blakeman doesn’t bother seeking any of this $265 million in state funding for water quality and climate resiliency projects because he doesn’t want to give Hochul a win. Likes to claim she hasn’t done anything in 5 years, but that’s because he’s shut County out of all the state programs that would fund infrastructure projects, including making Nassau’s dangerous roads safer. I would also bet that Blakeman, if he (god forbid) becomes NYS Governor, will end the state’s leading climate action and resiliency initiatives, and reverse course like his puppetmaster Trump did, opening the state to drilling and pipelines again, canceling the clean energy projects – wind and solar, EV charging stations – that have been so-hard fought for and just taking hold. Hochul’s focus on water quality and climate resiliency projects is all the more vital coming just after the ex-Long Island Congressman, now EPA Chief Lee Zeldin declared that lives lost would no longer be factored in decisions to regulate air and water quality. Take that in.
Meanwhile, Governor Hochul issued a statement after a federal judge in Washington issued a ruling allowing the Empire Wind 1 offshore wind project to move forward – projects considered vital to supplying Long Island with sufficient, affordable energy without contributing to climate change – after the Trump Administration tried to shut them down: – Karen Rubin, editor@news-photos-features.com
We just received word that a federal judge in Washington has sided with us and the company Equinor, and other companies who are providers of offshore wind. The developer, Equinor, sued because the Trump administration arbitrarily issued a stop work order on a project that had been underway, contemplated for over a decade as part of our [renewable] energy strategy. The work was done. The platforms are built. Thousands of workers from Long Island to New York City and beyond have been working through all kinds of weather — extreme weather — to do something that is critically important for our energy future and has been contemplated as part of our grid. The Trump administration shut it down, we went to court and now the stop work order must be lifted and people get back to their jobs.
And I’m sick and tired of having to go to court time and time and time again to stop these decisions. They’re designed to do nothing other than hurt workers, hurt our states, hurt our economy and hurt our energy future.
So we won. The federal court ruled in favor of restarting the work at Empire Wind Offshore Wind Project, clearing the way for it to go forward. And this is what we’re talking about, two of these projects that were shut down along the East Coast. Two were in New York, Empire Wind and Sunrise Wind off the coast of Long Island.
They were stopped under the bogus pretense of national security. When I heard this, I said one thing, “I’m the Governor of New York. If there is a national security threat off the coast of New York, you need to tell me what it is — I want a briefing right now.” Low and behold, they had no answer. They had fake claims about radar. Radar can be addressed and handled as it has happened on many other projects in the past.
So, we rallied just last Friday on Long Island, surrounded by hundreds of hardworking union members, environmentalists, residents, businesses, who are part of the supply chain. Businesses, Republicans and Democrats stood together with us to say, “Turn it back on, lift the stop work order.” And I’m really proud that a judge has agreed with this, that the billions of dollars of private investment can stay right here in New York. And also reminding us that energy security is part of national security. We have been contemplating on this for years to literally next year, or perhaps even later this year to turn on this clean renewable energy source, to power half a million homes in Brooklyn alone.
When they shut this down right before Christmas, shut it down, it drove a huge hole in our energy resiliency grid planning. So, I’m proud to say that the company has been successful in court. We’re going to continue doing what we have to do every single step of the way, but for now the wind turbines will be turning on.
–Karen Rubin, editor/news-photo-features.
$211 Million inWater Quality Improvement Grants for 175 Projects Protecting Drinking Water, Updating Water Infrastructure, Reducing Contributors to Harmful Algal Blooms
$55 Million in Resilient Watersheds Grants for 24 Climate Resiliency Projects To Alleviate Flooding and Safeguard New Yorkers from Severe Weather
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced more than $265 million in grants to support projects that will help protect drinking water, improve climate resilience, update aging water infrastructure, reduce contributors to harmful algal blooms, and secure access to clean water. The funding complements the historic environmental investments announced earlier this week in the 2026 State of the State, building upon the record support for New York’s premier grant programs that fund critical water infrastructure, protect drinking water and safeguard communities.
“Every New Yorker deserves clean water, which has been a top priority of mine since taking office,” Governor Hochul said. “These grants continue our critical investments to update aging water infrastructure across the state. They will also help our local governments enhance resiliency against flooding caused by severe weather, again demonstrating our commitment to a safe, affordable, and sustainable future for all New Yorkers.”
Today’s announcement is supported by funding from multiple grant programs administered by the State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) and investments from the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, Environmental Protection Fund and other sources. The programs help protect New York State communities and water quality, while reinforcing the State’s support for municipalities by making these critical projects more affordable and minimizing the financial burden on local taxpayers.
More than $209 million was awarded to 131 projects through DEC’s Water Quality Improvement Project (WQIP) grant program. WQIP grants fund projects that directly improve water quality or habitat, promote flood risk reduction, restoration, and enhanced flood and climate resiliency or protect a drinking water source. A full list of grant awards can be found here.
A total of $2.9 million is being awarded to 44 projects through DEC’s Non-Agricultural Nonpoint Source Planning and MS4 System Mapping Grant (NPG) to fund projects that help pay for the initial planning of water quality improvement projects such as replacing undersized culvert, green infrastructure, and State permit-required storm sewer mapping in urban areas. NPG projects reduce the amount of polluted stormwater runoff entering lakes, rivers, and streams and improve resiliency against the impacts of climate change. A full list of grant awards can be found here.
Governor Hochul also announced $55 million in new grant funding for 24 climate resiliency projects in 15 communities across New York State. EFC, in coordination with DEC, administers the Resilient Watersheds Grants (RWG) program funded through the Bond Act. RWG projects were selected to reflect the diverse, statewide issues that New Yorkers are facing and include stream and floodplain restoration, removal of dams, culverts and other barriers, culvert replacements and property buyouts. The RWG program builds on the success of DEC’s Resilient NY, which delivers state-of-the-art studies of flood-prone, high-risk watersheds across the State. All awarded projects were recommended actions by Resilient NY studies or a comparable flood study. A full list of grant awards can be found here.
RWG awards include two projects in Yonkers, where an announcement was made with State and local partners. The City of Yonkers will receive two grants totaling more than $6.66 million for culvert replacement and streambank stabilization along Troublesome Brook near the Scarsdale Road and Manhattan Avenue crossings. The announcement also celebrated two WQIP grants in the Lower Westchester area: the Village of Sleepy Hollow and the Sleepy Hollow Local Development Corporation will receive $600,000 to construct a salt storage facility and protect water quality in the Hudson River and groundwater. Save the Sound, Inc., will receive $2 million for dam removal and critical habitat restoration along the Bronx River.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Amanda Lefton said, ”Since taking office, and most recently in the 2026 State of the State, Governor Hochul continues to provide unprecedented resources to invest in climate resiliency and water infrastructure to support communities across the State. With more than $265 million from multiple programs, including $185 million supporting improvements in environmental justice communities, the awarded projects will help our municipal partners achieve meaningful reductions in flood risk, protect drinking water, improve aquatic habitat and safeguard residents from increasingly severe weather events.”
New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation President and CEO Maureen Coleman said, “Governor Hochul is investing billions in water infrastructure every year to help local governments affordably advance crucial water quality and resiliency projects. By pairing Environmental Bond Act funding with other State program funding to support new and signature programs, every dollar goes further and brings New York closer to a safer, more sustainable future. The new Resilient Watersheds Grant program will jumpstart flood-mitigation projects in some of the most at-risk communities while creating good-paying jobs that drive local economies.”
Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “Now more than ever, when the federal government is trying to halt New York’s progress towards environmental goals, it is crucial that our state continue leading on environmental stewardship. Today’s announcement of $211 million in grant funding through the Water Quality Improvement Project Program is a reflection of the Senate’s commitment to ensuring New York’s communities are more resilient to extreme weather events and safeguarding our state’s water resources. I am proud to stand with my partners in government, including Governor Hochul and DEC Commissioner Lefton, to announce these vital investments.”
State Senator Peter Harckham said, “This major investment from the state through water quality improvement grants will ensure public health standards, support local municipalities and businesses, and create good jobs as well. Maintaining safe, accessible drinking water sources and supply systems is integral to future growth and prosperity, and I thank Governor Hochul, my colleagues in the State Legislature and the Department of Environmental Conservation for making the financial commitment to see this through.”
New York State’s Commitment to Water QualityImprovements
Governor Hochul remains committed to ensuring New Yorkers have access to safe, clean drinking water. As outlined in the 2026 State of the State, Governor Hochul is proposing a bold five-year, $3.75 billion commitment to modernize New York’s water systems, providing $750 million annually to provide clean water while also unlocking the state’s economic potential. This historic funding level will also continue to uplift and support New York’s premier water programs, such as WQIP, the Water Infrastructure Improvement program and the Lead Infrastructure Forgiveness and Transformation program. In addition, the new Smart Growth Water Grant Program will fund the essential sewer and water infrastructure required to build new housing and support the state’s growing economy.
Since 2017, Governor Hochul and the State Legislature have invested $6 billion in clean water infrastructure to replace aging water mains, upgrade sewage treatment plants, replace lead pipes, filter toxic PFAS chemicals and much more. The Governor’s new commitment would raise that total to nearly $10 billion.
New York’s Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act
On November 8, 2022, New Yorkers overwhelmingly approved the $4.2 billion Environmental Bond Act. State agencies, local governments, and partners will be able to access funding to protect water quality, help communities adapt to climate change, improve resiliency and create green jobs. Bond Act funding will support new and expanded projects across the state to safeguard drinking water sources, reduce pollution, and protect communities and natural resources from climate change. A total of $1.9 billion is invested to date. Learn more at www.environmentalbondact.ny.gov.
About the Consolidated Funding Application
The grants announced today were issued following completion through the Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) process. The CFA was created to streamline and expedite the grant application process. The CFA process marks a fundamental shift in the way state resources are allocated, ensuring less bureaucracy and greater efficiency to fulfill local economic development needs. The CFA serves as the single-entry point for access to economic development funding, ensuring applicants no longer have to slowly navigate multiple agencies and sources without any mechanism for coordination. Now, economic development projects use the CFA as a support mechanism to access multiple state funding sources through one application, making the process quicker, easier, and more productive. Learn more about the CFA here.
Washington, DC – Yesterday, the Trump Administration, suddenly and without warning, notified several agencies across Long Island and throughout America of the immediate termination of grants. Several Long Island institutions quickly reported to Congressman Suozzi’s office that nearly $2 million in SAMHSA grants have been cut, and possibly more. Nationwide, 2000 organizations have been cut off from $2 billion in funding.
Congressman Suozzi reached out to the affected organizations. He joined more than 100 colleagues in the House of Representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, on the attached letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy to express bipartisan outrage at these sudden cuts.
“We strongly urge you to rescind all of the terminations immediately. Too many people across the country are suffering without the necessary resources. We must ensure that SAMHSA programs serve their congressionally intended purpose of getting lifesaving resources to our communities,” the letter reads.
That evening, the cuts were reversed.
“This pattern and practice of cutting programs without warning that not-for-profits are counting on, in the middle of the fiscal year, is unfair, unproductive, and maddening. While I’m relieved these cuts were reversed, we can’t keep doing this,” said Suozzi.
“Without warning, grants were terminated. It’s a reckless and awful move that undermines efforts to deliver drug treatment, alcohol counseling, and mental health care,” said Suozzi. “These programs are how we save lives and help our neighbors and loved ones escape the grip of opioids and other addictive drugs. Cutting off already-awarded grants throws organizations into chaos and puts patients at risk. Addiction and mental health crises do not stop mid-year, and neither should the support systems people depend on.”
Nearly $2 million in funding cuts would have impacted organizations in the 3rd Congressional District. CN Guidance has reported $1,250,000 in cuts to programs to address child trauma, drug addiction, and mental health first aid training. The Family and Children’s Association has reported $125,000 in cuts to mental health first aid training. The YES Community Counseling Center has reported $544,970 in cuts to its Bridge Program to curb addiction in young adults.
Suozzi’s office is in contact with local organizations and will ensure their funding cuts are reversed.
The bipartisan letter to Health and Human Services is here.
In what can only be considered a kangaroo court intended to trap former President Bill Clinton and Secretary Hillary Clinton in further prosecution (echoing the perjury charge that led to Clinton’s impeachment because, as Senator Lindsey Graham said, “character counts”), the Clinton have refused to testify before the House Oversight Committee. MAGA GOP Chairman James Comer promised to bring charges of contempt of Congress. In a letter to Comer, they lay out why they are resisting this latest act of weaponizing government for retribution and political gain—Karen Rubin, editor@news-photos-features.com
Chairman Comer,
We want to take a moment, given everything, to address you directly.
This past year has seen our Government engage in unprecedented acts, including against our own citizens. People have been seized by masked federal agents from their homes, their workplaces, and the streets of their communities. Students and scientists with visas permitting them to study and work here have been deported without due process. The people who laid siege to the U.S. Capitol have been pardoned and called heroes. Agencies vital to the country’s national security have been dismantled. Universities, media companies, and law firms have been subjected to threats to their funding, access, and licensing unless they made concessions and surrendered their right to constitutionally protected free speech. American troops have been deployed on the streets of our towns and cities. The Justice Department has been used as a weapon, at the direction of the President, to pursue political opponents. And most recently and searingly, an ICE agent killed an unarmed mother only days ago.
Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences.
For us, now is that time.
We are lucky by virtue of the positions we held, and the protections afforded by them. But we are not blind. Every day we see the country we have dedicated our lives to improving take step after step after step backwards.
As chairman of this powerful congressional committee, you have immense power to target anyone and subject them to closed door interrogation and more. The decisions you have made, and the priorities you have set as chairman regarding the Epstein investigation, have prevented progress in discovering the facts about the government’s role.
The facts speak for themselves: You subpoenaed eight people in addition to us. You dismissed seven of those eight without any of them saying a single word to you. You made no attempt to force them to appear. In fact, since you started your investigation last year, you have interviewed a total of two people. Two.
A legal analysis prepared by two law firms and provided to you yesterday makes clear your subpoenas are legally invalid. You claim your subpoenas are inviolate when they are used against us yet were silent when the sitting President took the same position, as a former president, barely more than three years ago. We call on you to release that analysis to the public to allow them to see how this is yet another example of the casual disregard of the law of the land. All the while, you have done nothing with your oversight capacity to force the Department of Justice to follow the law and release all its Epstein files, including any material regarding us as we have publicly called for.
Over the last year in the House, extending health care for Americans in any state succeeded only because enough Republicans joined with Democrats. The fact that the public and we are seeing any of the Department of Justice’s Epstein files is only because four Republicans, out of 220, joined every Democrat to reach the minimum number of Members to force a vote. You were not one of those four. Even now, despite the Department of Justice’s failure to follow the law the Congress passed, you have chosen not to consider subpoenaing the sitting Attorney General to follow the law.
Despite everything that needs to be done to help our country, you are on the cusp of bringing Congress to a halt to pursue a rarely used process literally designed to result in our imprisonment. This is not the way out of America’s ills, and we will forcefully defend ourselves.
Indeed, bringing the Republicans’ cruel agenda to a standstill while you work harder to pass a contempt charge against us than you have done on your investigation this past year would be our contribution to fighting the madness.
We have tried to give you the little information we have. We’ve done so because Mr. Epstein’s crimes were horrific. If the Government didn’t do all it could to investigate and prosecute these crimes, for whatever reason, that should be the focus of your work – to learn why and to prevent that from happening ever again. There is no evidence that you are doing so. Instead, you have forced the victims to relive their painful experiences, while doing little to give them and everybody else what’s deserved: truth and justice. There is no plausible explanation for what you are doing other than partisan politics.
You accepted the least from those who know the most but demand the most from those who know the least. To say you can’t complete your work without speaking to us is simply bizarre.
You have asked what we know. To answer your inquiry, we are providing you with the same or more than seven of the other eight individuals you subpoenaed regarding the handling of the Epstein investigations and prosecutions, which may be why you have not publicly released their written statements.
We expect you will say it is not enough. We expect you’ll reject it. You may even set out an empty chair or stand in front of the cameras and outright dismiss what we have provided. We expect you will direct your committee to seek to hold us in contempt. You may even release irrelevant, decades-old photos that you hope will embarrass us. You will say your caucus, and the Speaker and the President are behind you 100%. We hope, perhaps in vain, that they will not allow you to singlehandedly hijack the Congress by unilaterally making this decision for your colleagues, your party, and our country.
You will say it is not our decision to make. But we have made it. Now you have to make yours.
We are prepared to make our case to your 45 committee members, and if need be, more. Importantly, we also will defend ourselves in the public arena and ensure this country knows exactly what you are doing and why you are doing so, instead of helping the American people who need this Congress’s work and protection.
For most people, maybe even the bulk of the Congress, today will be the first they learn of this dispute. We are confident that any reasonable person in or out of Congress will see, based on everything we release, that what you are doing is trying to punish those who you see as your enemies and to protect those you think are your friends.
Continue to mislead Americans about what is truly at stake, and you will learn that Americans are better at finding the truth than you are at burying it.
Continue to pursue autopens instead of penning laws Americans need, and you will learn that you are signing away any remaining chance of being on the right side of history.
Continue to abet the dismantling of America, and you will learn that it takes more than a wrecking ball to demolish what Americans have built over 250 years.
Sincerely,
Bill Clinton
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Later, a spokesperson for the Clintons added:
You probably don’t know this because James Comer doesn’t want you to. President and Secretary Clinton swore to the truth under penalty of perjury. James Comer hasn’t told you that and has instead resorted to lying in every appearance he’s made this week.
We are fighting back with facts and accountability.
He is lying with impunity.
FACT: Bill & Hillary Clinton took the extraordinary step of – without being asked – each submitting comprehensive statements to Jim Comer directly in two documents. Each was a sworn legal document listing everything they have to offer. Read what the Clintons said. It’s a lot. And when Comer says it’s not enough, he won’t admit he was given the opportunity to tell us what else he wanted.
TRUTH: Below is what the Democrats on the Committee said today. It’s all worth reading – but the most important part is in bold. The Clintons have provided sworn legal statements (attached), going above and beyond what others Comer excused have done. You can see for yourselves how comprehensive they are, how little the Clintons know, and why there is absolutely no reason for them to appear. We have, from the beginning, over and over, approached this process in a good faith and truthful manner and will continue to do so, no matter the transparent game he is playing.
If you’d like to see any of the letters we’ve sent to Comer, or the sworn declarations provided by the other individuals he’s excused, we’re happy to share those as well. As a comparison, you can see how much more we provided.
Statement read into the record today by Oversight Committee Democrats.
Committee Democrats support cooperation with the Committee and believe that anyone with firsthand knowledge of the crimes of Epstein and Maxwell, or the actions of their co-conspirators, should come forward and provide that information to the Committee. That commitment flows directly from Oversight Democrats’ determination to pursue the truth about the horrific crimes committed by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell—no matter where the facts lead.
With today’s proceeding, the Majority has relentlessly pursued Secretary Clinton, yet the Majority has taken no steps to enforce the duly issued, bipartisan subpoena for the release of the full Epstein files in the possession of the Department of Justice. Nor has the Majority moved to compel numerous other witnesses with firsthand knowledge of Epstein’s criminal enterprise—including Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell—to appear before this Committee.
Adding to these concerns is President Trump’s direction to his Attorney General, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation—via a Truth Social post—to initiate a criminal investigation into prominent Democrats, including President Clinton, to distract from his own close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. And President Trump likewise has, for years, famously and repeatedly demanded that DOJ investigate and prosecute Secretary Clinton.
President Trump’s targeting of the Clintons is part of a continuing pattern in which President Trump has weaponized the Department of Justice against his perceived political enemies, including, among others, former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and most recently, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
Against that backdrop, Oversight Democrats have grave concerns about the President’s publicly stated expectation that DOJ and the FBI will incriminate leaders of the opposition party, as well as the President’s demonstrated willingness to use the nation’s law enforcement agencies to distract from his own lengthy relationship and interaction with Epstein.
Finally, yesterday the Committee received factual declarations from former President Clinton and Secretary Clinton regarding their interactions with Jeffrey Epstein. I am entering those declarations, both dated January 13, 2026, together as Exhibit A.
Committee Democrats reaffirm that this investigation is not political and not partisan. Its purpose is truth and justice for the victims and survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s horrific crimes.
Governor Kathy Hochul, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch today announced that New York City remains the safest big city in the country. New 2025 data released by the NYPD and detailed this morning during a press conference show that the city is safer above and below ground, with murders, retail theft, robberies, and subway crime continuing to decline. Shooting incidents and the number of individuals harmed by gunfire also reached record lows last year across the city.
“When I became Governor, I made keeping New Yorkers safe my top priority and tackled crime head-on in New York City and across the state. Since then, I have made unprecedented investments in police and public safety – more than $3 billion – to make New York’s neighborhoods and subways safer,” Governor Hochul said.“Our aggressive approach is paying off: crime has fallen to record lows, making New York a safer place to live, work and visit. I look forward to continuing this work with Mayor Mamdani, Police Commissioner Tisch and the brave men and women of law enforcement who sacrifice so much to ensure New York remains the safest big city in the country.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said, “Last year, New York City had its safest year for gun violence ever. This achievement—among many others—is a testament to the leadership of Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, the dedication of the NYPD, and the tireless work of community-based organizations that help keep our neighborhoods safe. This work, however, is not done. Together with Police Commissioner Tisch and Governor Kathy Hochul, we will continue to drive down crime—addressing the needs of New Yorkers and working with our officers to deliver public safety.”
“These historic reductions in crime did not happen by chance or accident — they are the direct product of a deliberate, data-driven strategy achieving unprecedented public safety milestones for New York City,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch said. “The NYPD drove shooting incidents and shooting victims to the lowest levels in recorded history and delivered the safest year on our subway system, outside of the pandemic era, since 2009. These numbers describe an agency that’s firing on all cylinders: taking down violent gangs, removing thousands of guns off the street, and shattering record-low violent crime numbers. New York City is still the safest big city in the country, thanks to the extraordinary work of the women and men of the NYPD who answer the call every day to protect and serve.”
The following data were compiled by the New York City Police Department as of December 31, 2025.
Record-Lows for Shooting Incidents and Victims, Shattering Previous Records
In 2025, New York City recorded 688 shooting incidents, shattering the previous record low set in 2018 by 10 percent with 66 fewer shootings (688 vs. 754). Compared to 2024, shooting incidents declined 24 percent, a staggering 216 fewer shootings (688 vs. 904). In the fourth quarter of 2025, shooting incidents decreased 36 percent (134 vs. 211) compared to the same period last year. In December, there were only 35 shooting incidents citywide — the fewest shootings ever recorded in any single month in New York City history.
For comparison, Chicago – a city of roughly 3 million people — recorded more than 1,400 shooting incidents last year, more than double New York City’s total, despite having roughly one-third of the population. Philadelphia — less than one-fifth of the size of New York City, with 1.5 million people — recorded more than 825 shooting incidents in 2025.
The number of people shot in New York City also fell 5 percent to a historic low in 2025 with 856 shooting victims citywide, compared to the previous low of 897 reported in 2018. Compared to 2024, shooting victims declined by 22 percent, a stunning 247 fewer people shot (856 vs. 1,103). In the fourth quarter, the number of shooting victims fell by more than 34 percent (161 vs. 246), with December experiencing the lowest victim total ever recorded.
The historic decline reflected a citywide effort, with reductions across all five boroughs in 2025 and Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island each recording the lowest number of shooting incidents in their history. Shooting incidents declined by 38 percent in Manhattan, 26.7 percent in Staten Island, 25.4 percent in the Bronx, 24.4 percent in Queens, and 15 percent in Brooklyn.
The NYPD’s work to remove guns from the streets and take down the most dangerous gangs also helped achieve historic lows in shootings. Last year, officers seized more than 5,293 illegal guns and NYPD detectives carried out 70 gang-related takedowns, getting the most dangerous criminals off the streets and out of our communities.
Reductions in Major Crime Across All Five Boroughs
In addition to addressing gun violence, the NYPD successfully drove down major crime by implementing a data-driven, precision policing strategy that resulted in consistent declines throughout the entire year. The Department deployed an unprecedented number of officers assigned to nightly foot posts to areas with high crime across precincts, public housing, and the subway system. This targeted strategy led to a three percent decline in major crime in 2025 (121,542 vs. 125,026).
Across the city, murders declined by 20.2 percent (305 vs. 382), with 77 fewer murders compared to 2024. In December, there were only 15 murders citywide, down nearly 38 percent from 2024 (15 vs. 24). Alongside those reductions, the NYPD’s Detective Bureau maintained a murder clearance rate of 69 percent in 2025. Murders also decreased in four of the five boroughs. On Staten Island, murders fell by more than 60 percent in 2025, with no murders reported in December. Murders decreased 33 percent in Manhattan, 24 percent in Brooklyn, and 18 percent in the Bronx. In Queens, murders increased seven percent.
Citywide, robberies declined by nearly 10 percent, with 1,600 fewer incidents compared to last year (15,065 vs. 16,696). For the month of December, robberies declined by 15 percent (1,039 vs 1,224). Burglary dropped nearly four percent (12,777 vs. 13,301), marking the third consecutive year of declines. In December, burglary decreased by more than 15 percent (1,017 vs. 1,201) and by 9.9 percent (3,168 vs. 3,518) in the fourth quarter. Auto theft decreased by five percent (13,520 vs. 14,233) citywide in 2025, with a nearly eight percent (3,127 vs. 3,386) drop in the fourth quarter compared to 2024. Grand larceny declined nearly two percent (48,034 vs. 48,963).
In the city’s housing developments, crime declined by 3.6 percent (5,794 vs. 6,009). Hate crimes decreased by 12 percent compared to 2024 (576 vs. 657). Antisemitic incidents were down three percent, but still accounted for 57 percent of all hate crimes reported in 2025, despite Jewish New Yorkers representing approximately 10 percent of the city’s population.
Rape incidents increased by 16 percent (2,049 vs. 1,767). The rise in reported incidents is partly attributed to legislative changes made in September 2024 that importantly broadened the legal definition of rape in New York State to include additional forms of sexual assault.
Domestic-violence-related rapes increased by 25 percent, and now account for roughly half of all reported rape cases citywide. To address this concerning trend, the NYPD launched the Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) in October 2025 — the largest unit of its kind in the nation with 450 fully dedicated domestic violence investigators — to investigate domestic violence cases, build stronger relationships with survivors, and receive enhanced training. The NYPD continues to encourage survivors of sexual assault to come forward and report these incidents.
Felony assault increased slightly: 29,792 vs. 29,684, or 0.4 percent. During the month of December, however, there were 106 fewer felony assault victims compared to the same period in 2024 (2,235 vs. 2,341), a decrease of 4.5 percent citywide. The increase in felony assaults is largely driven by assaults on public sector employees and domestic violence. Assaults on public sector employees, which include police officers, increased by roughly 25 percent in 2025. Domestic violence incidents accounted for 41 percent of recorded felony assaults. To address this issue directly, the Domestic Violence Unit will continue its work with providers and survivors to prevent and investigate domestic violence incidents.
Safest Year on the Subways in 16 Years, Excluding the Pandemic Years
Below ground, the NYPD delivered the safest year on the subways since 2009, excluding the pandemic years. For six consecutive months, major crime on the subways declined, contributing to a four percent reduction in 2025 (2,160 vs. 2,251). Officers recovered an all-time high of 77 firearms, which helped drive a reduction in shooting incidents from eight to three as well as a reduction in shooting victims from 14 to three. This decline in violence also contributed to a drop in murders in the subway system, which reached their lowest levels in five years and declined by 60 percent (four vs. 10) from 2024.
Transit robberies reached their lowest levels ever, including the pandemic years, and fell 12.5 percent (398 vs. 455), compared to last year. Grand larceny pickpocketing within the subways declined to its lowest level outside of the pandemic years, down nearly 44 percent (122 vs. 217), compared to last year.
In January, the NYPD strategically shifted officers onto trains and platforms where the vast majority of transit crime — 73 percent in 2025 — occurs. Governor Hochul secured $77 million in the current state budget to support this effort and has committed to funding an additional $77 million for enhanced patrols in her FY 27 Executive Budget proposal. This additional funding and targeted deployment has led to a more secure, orderly transit system. New Yorkers are feeling the results: a recent MTA poll revealed that seven out of ten subway riders say they feel safe in the transit system, an increase of 12 percent from the start of 2025. Finally, the NYPD continues to deploy drones to monitor, respond to, and intervene in subway surfing incidents. Drones enabled 163 rescues and overall subway surfing incidents declined 37 percent (11 vs. 16) compared to 2024.
Addressing Retail Theft
In addition to these historic declines the NYPD’s revamped strategy on retail theft led to a 14 percent (52,696 vs. 61,328) decline in retail theft citywide compared to 2024. Last year, the NYPD developed and executed a new strategy to respond to retail theft, a recidivist-driven crime, including identifying the patterns driving retail theft, concentrating resources at high-propensity locations during peak hours, and shifting from pass-through enforcement to sustained investigation.
New Legislation Will Help Protect Kids from Predators, Scammers and Harmful AI Chatbots on Online Platforms
New York Will Lead the Nation in Teen Mental Health First Aid Training
Expands Resources To Allow Every Tenth Grader to Be Trained in Teen Mental Health First Aid, Empowering Kids to Support Their Peers
Builds on Governor’s Nation-Leading Work To Ban Smartphones in Schools, Enact Social Media Warning Labels and Restrict Addictive Feeds, Create Safeguards Against Harmful AI Companions, and Open More than 1,300 School-Based Mental Health Clinics
Governor Kathy Hochul today unveiled her first State of the State proposals, which will continue to build on her progress to keep New York’s kids safe online and combat the youth mental health crisis statewide. The new legislation will help protect children from online predators, scammers and harmful AI chatbots integrated on online platforms. Additionally, the Governor is proposing a first-of-its-kind, statewide expansion of Teen Mental Health First Aid training, designed to give young people the tools to identify, understand, and effectively respond to signs of mental health and substance abuse challenges among their friends and peers. These proposals build on Governor Hochul’s nation-leading work to ban smartphones in schools, enact social media warning labels, restrict addictive feeds, and create safeguards against harmful AI companions. Governor Hochul’s focus on youth mental health also led to the creation of more school-based mental health clinics, community-based treatment options, and peer-based supports for youth and adults.
“As New York’s first mom Governor, the well-being and safety of our children has always been one of my top priorities, and today we are continuing to break new ground to give our kids the tools and safeguards they need to contend with the unprecedented mental health challenges and real world dangers that can sometimes be a byproduct of navigating today’s digital world,” Governor Hochul said.“These proposals will create a nation-leading standard that will ensure our kids’ safety in online and real world environments where they spend time.”
New Protections for Kids on Online Platforms
Numerous lawsuits and investigations have alleged that online platforms have not taken appropriate steps to protect the children using them. These online platforms allow children and adults to contact each other worldwide — which leaves children susceptible to grooming, child abuse, and exposure to violent and inappropriate content, including suicide.
The Governor’s proposed legislative package to keep kids safe from emerging threats on social media and online gaming platforms will include:
Expanding Age Verification: Expanding requirements for platforms to conduct age verification, including online game platforms.
Privacy by Default: Kids will be set to the highest privacy settings on covered platforms by default, meaning non-connections cannot message kids, view their profile, or tag them in content. Location settings will be turned off by default, and children under 13 must receive parental approval for new connections.
Disabling AI Chatbot Features: Disabling certain AI chatbot features on social media platforms for kids.
Parental Controls: Parents must be able to set limits on children’s financial transactions.
This package draws on existing legislation sponsored by State Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assemblymember Nily Rozic.
New York Attorney General Letitia James said, “Online platforms like Roblox are enabling unsafe environments for children, including allowing predators to send explicit messages to children. We urgently need to pass crucial online safety protections to stop predators from exploiting children and create safer online environments for children to play. I am proud to continue working with Governor Hochul, Senator Gounardes, and Assemblymember Rozic to push for nation-leading legislation that will protect children and families online.”
Senator Andrew Gounardes said,“It’s a grim reality of the modern internet: the online platforms where our kids spend so much time are failing to protect them from predators. From toys to food to cars, we regulate all sorts of products to keep children safe. There’s no reason platforms like Roblox should be different. This proposal sends a clear message that New York will always prioritize our kids’ safety over Big Tech’s profits. I’m grateful to Governor Hochul for her partnership on this important proposal.”
“Protecting kids online means more than limiting harm. It means empowering them with knowledge, skills, and resources,” Assemblymember Nily Rozic said. “This legislation responds directly to the concerns parents like me have raised about harmful and addictive online design, and it gives us the tools to hold companies accountable. I’m grateful to Governor Hochul for listening to parents across our state and taking decisive action to protect our kids’ mental health and well-being.”
Common Sense Media Founder and CEO James P. Steyer said, “Common Sense Media applauds Governor Hochul’s inclusion of these important new children’s online safety protections in her State of the State proposal and we thank Senator Gounardes and Assemblymember Rozic for their leadership on this issue. The online games kids play and the social media platforms they use for hours and hours a day have become veritable hunting grounds for predators. Kids and teens need these new protections now more than ever.”
“These common-sense proposals by Governor Hochul will better safeguard New York’s youth from the harms of addictive and manipulative tech, and help put an end to the ongoing national emergency in child and adolescent mental health,” Mothers Against Media Addiction (MAMA) Founder and Executive Director Julie Scelfo said. :The parents of the MAMA movement are grateful for the Governor’s continued national leadership on this issue, and we look forward to working with her and with the State Legislature to enact policies that protect our kids.”
Expanding Youth Mental Health Training For 180,000 Teens
Governor Hochul will propose to make Teen Mental Health First Aid training available to all 10th graders across New York State. New York would phase in a commitment to make training available to more than 180,000 students annually, ensuring that over time most high school students will have the basic skills to support themselves and each other.
When teens experience mental health and substance use challenges, often their first resort is to talk to their peers. Likewise, friends are often best positioned to identify and empathize with stressors that may be acting on fellow students. Research demonstrates that with training, young people have the capacity to both identify and effectively respond to mental health challenges in ways that can improve and even save lives.
This training is designed for young people between the ages 15 and 18 so they can identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges in their friends and peers. It equips them with skills to recognize common signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges; the impact of bullying and school violence on mental health; how to have impactful conversations with classmates about mental health concerns or to seek help from an adult; formal and informal support, and self-care.
As part of this initiative, the State will also offer new Youth Mental Health First Aid training for adults who regularly interact with youth in schools and community programs. This nationally-recognized curriculum introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations.
New York State Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, “In our discussions with young people about mental health issues, one consistent thread became clear — youth reach out to their peers when they are in distress. Teen Mental Health First Aid helps young New Yorkers talk with their classmates and friends about mental health issues and provides them with the know-how to get them help when it is needed. By expanding this program, Governor Hochul is continuing her steadfast commitment to improving youth mental health and providing our young people with the skills they can rely on to live and thrive among the challenges they face today.”
President and CEO of the National Council for Mental Wellbeing Chuck Ingoglia and Vice President of Mental Health First Aid Tramaine EL-Amin said, “This announcement represents a historic and transformative investment in youth mental health. We are deeply grateful to Governor Hochul for her bold leadership and unwavering commitment to the mental wellbeing of New York’s students. By expanding teen Mental Health First Aid to reach all 10th graders statewide, New York is setting a powerful national standard — normalizing conversations about mental health, reducing stigma and equipping an entire generation with critical, potentially lifesaving skills. The National Council is proud to partner in this effort and remains fully committed to supporting schools, educators, parents and communities as this landmark initiative moves forward.”
This State of the State proposal builds on Governor Hochul’s ongoing efforts to address the youth mental health crisis statewide and help keep kids safe online. This work has established New York as a global leader in securing a safer online world for children. Initiatives include:
The SAFE for Kids Act, which restricts addictive features of social media for kids, and establishes important national precedent about age verification.
The Child Data Protection Act that prevents online operators from collecting and monetizing children’s data without informed consent.
AI Companion legislation which set first-in-the-nation safeguards, diverting user conversations about self-harm to mental health resources and interrupting unhealthy addictive behaviors. The Governor also outlawed AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Material.
The Unplug and Play Agenda which helps encourage the healthy socialization and child development by funding social infrastructure, physical sites like playgrounds, community centers, and pools, and expanded youth programming.
New York’s Distraction Free Learning Policy which is already resulting in greater academic achievement, improved student wellbeing, and safer school environments for students.
The recently signed Warning Labels bill that will require social media companies post warnings about the platform’s potential impact on mental health.
Governor Hochul’s nation-leading $1 billion mental health initiative and hundreds of millions of dollars in funding in subsequent budgets is significantly expanding access to care for young people and their families –from increasing inpatient and residential treatment capacity to building community-based services designed to help youth remain at home and in their community.
Governor Hochul also expanded school-based mental health clinics, which help students get a licensed mental health care provider in a familiar stigma-free setting on their school campus. The state now supports 1,300 clinic satellites, up from 872 in 2020, covering 25 percent of all NYS public schools.
Governor Hochul’s focus on youth mental health also led to the creation of new Youth Assertive Community Treatment teams to support young people with serious emotional disturbances who are either at risk of entering, or are returning home from high intensity services, such as inpatient settings or residential services. New York funds 42 new Youth ACT teams — 23 now operational — in 31 counties, providing youth and family therapy, medication management, family and peer support, and skill-building.
There are also now 65 Home Based Crisis Intervention Teams – including 60 that are now accepting referrals – which serve youth between the ages of 5 and 20 and provide intensive individualized services to help families support young people recovering from mental illness in their own homes.
Governor Hochul also established the Youth Mental Health Advisory Board, a 30-member advisory board which includes youth between the ages of 11 and 17. The advisory board convenes quarterly and is designed to ensure that youth-informed best practices continue to be incorporated in developing behavioral health programs and policies.
Governor Hochul also expanded Youth Safe Spaces programs, which provide a place for young people between the ages of 12 and 24 to access behavioral health and wellness resources, foster positive relationships with their peers, and receive support in a comfortable setting. To support the initiative developed with input from the Governor’s Youth Mental Health Advisory Board, the Office of Mental Health awarded $7.5 million to establish four sites this fall and is soliciting proposals for additional locations to be awarded early next year.
27 Million Fewer Vehicles Entered the Congestion Relief Zone, Traffic Down 11%; Crossing Speeds Up by as Much as 51%; Transit Ridership Up 7%
Congestion Pricing Delivers Cleaner Air and Safer Streets: Pollution Down 22% in the Zone and Down Throughout Region; Crashes Down 7% and Traffic Injuries Down 8%
Manhattan Economy is Thriving: Best Year for Office Leasing in 23 Years; Foot Traffic Up From 2024; Sales Tax Receipts up Over 6%
$15 Billion in Funding Unlocked to Advance Critical Transit Improvements Including New Railcars, Signal Upgrades and the Second Avenue Subway
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that on its one-year anniversary, New York City’s first-in-the-nation congestion pricing program has been a transformational success, reducing traffic, improving quality of life and supporting billions in transit upgrades. In its first year, congestion pricing resulted in 27 million fewer vehicles entering the Congestion Relief Zone (CRZ) of Manhattan south of 60th St, an 11 percent reduction in traffic. Reduced gridlock has improved commute times across the region, especially at crossings into the CRZ, with some drivers saving as much as 15 minutes each way. Congestion pricing has reduced emissions, made streets safer, improved quality of life, and has generated over $550 million in net revenue in its first year, allowing the MTA to proceed with $15 billion in transit improvement projects. Governor Hochul has also stood strong to defend congestion pricing from unlawful federal efforts to terminate the program. One year in, congestion pricing is working and it is legal.
“The results are in and it is clear that in just one year, congestion pricing has been an unprecedented success in New York,”Governor Hochul said. “By every measure, this program has met or exceeded expectations: traffic and gridlock are down substantially, people are moving faster, air quality is improved, streets are safer and our economy is stronger. New Yorkers are benefitting from congestion pricing every day, and that’s why we have fought to stop any unlawful federal attempt to end this program. And there are even more benefits to come: $15 billion in transit upgrades with major projects already underway, improving the commutes of millions of New Yorkers.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said, “As we mark the one-year anniversary of congestion pricing going into effect, its benefits are clearer than ever. Traffic crashes and noise complaints are dropping, while funding for the MTA and air quality are rising. Working New Yorkers deserve less congestion, a well-funded transit system, and a safer and quieter place to call home, and I’m proud to see congestion pricing deliver on that promise.”
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, “I want to thank all who worked on this program over the years. The congestion pricing experience demonstrates what the new MTA can accomplish working with our State and City partners. The result here is flawless execution and unprecedented benefits for all New Yorkers.”
New York State and the MTA have successfully fought off repeated legal challenges to congestion pricing and have stood up to block the unlawful attempts of the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Trump Administration to terminate the program. In May, a preliminary injunction was issued in the case of Metropolitan Transportation Authority v. Duffy, keeping congestion pricing in effect pending further court proceedings and enjoining the federal government from taking retaliatory measures in response.
Since congestion pricing commenced at 12:00 am on January 5, 2025, it has delivered a wide array of benefits according to data from the MTA and other reports from business groups, government agencies and academic institutions.
Congestion Pricing Has Reduced Gridlock
Following the launch of congestion pricing, over 27 million fewer cars have entered the CRZ. On any given day, over 73,000 fewer vehicles are entering the zone, an 11 percent reduction on average. Crossings entering and exiting the CRZ experienced especially pronounced speed improvements, with morning rush hour traffic speeds up an average of 23 percent.
Brooklyn Bridge: 15 percent faster
Holland Tunnel: 51 percent faster
Hugh L Carey Tunnel: 10.8 percent faster
Lincoln Tunnel: 24.7 percent faster
Manhattan Bridge: 6.7 percent faster
Queensboro Bridge: 29.3 percent faster
Queens-Midtown Tunnel: 18.4 percent faster
Williamsburg Bridge: 28.3 percent faster
Reduced gridlock is speeding up trips for motorists and transit riders. Within the CRZ, bus speeds increased 2.3 percent, reversing the trend of declining speeds seen in 2023 and 2024. Weekday vehicle speeds in the CRZ were up 4 percent compared to 2024, with weekends seeing a 6.2 percent improvement. Deliveries and the movement of goods in the CRZ are also being completed faster, with truck speeds up 5.6 percent compared to 2024.
The amount of driving done in the CRZ has declined as well, with the total Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) down by 7.1 percent. The share of personal vehicles like cars, pickup trucks and vans entering the CRZ has declined by six percentage points since the launch of congestion pricing.
Congestion pricing has also yielded benefits outside of the CRZ, including in previously identified Environmental Justice Communities. The BQE saw a 5 percent reduction in total traffic and a 10.2 percent reduction in truck traffic. The Cross Bronx Expressway saw total traffic decline by 7.4 percent and truck traffic drop by 4.3 percent. The Major Deegan Expressway in Mott Haven experienced a total traffic reduction of 7.1 percent, with truck traffic down 9.2 percent.
Roads approaching the CRZ are moving faster as well: sections of Flatbush Ave approaching the Manhattan Bridge saw speed increases of 6 percent, I-495 in New Jersey has experienced a 15 percent speed increase approaching the Lincoln Tunnel, and the Gowanus Expressway saw a 7 percent improvement between the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel.
New York City’s Economy is Thriving
The launch of congestion pricing has coincided with a booming Manhattan economy. On metrics ranging from office leasing rates to Broadway ticket sales, 2025 saw business up in the CRZ and in New York City as a whole.
Manhattan’s office economy is thriving. In July of 2025, New York City became the first major American city to exceed pre-pandemic office traffic, according to data from placer.ai. Office leasing has surged in 2025: according to a recent report from Colliers, office leasing activity in Q3 2025 was up 9.2 percent year over year, exceeding pre-pandemic levels and on track for the highest volume of new office leases since 2002. There are one percentage point fewer vacant storefronts in the CRZ in the year since the program launched, according to NYC Economic Development Corporation data. Jobs increased as well, with NYS Department of Labor statistics showing private sector employment in New York City up 2.0 percent in August, more than double the national rate of 0.9 percent.
Economic activity has increased both in the CRZ and across New York City. Data from the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance shows that sales tax receipts were up 6.3 percent in New York City in 2025 through November, exceeding the state’s average, three times higher than neighboring Westchester County and more than six times higher than neighboring Nassau county. In 2025, Broadway had its best season in history, with $1.9 billion in ticket sales, up 23 percent from the previous season. Restaurant reservations and retail sales were also up in the CRZ, according to industry reports.
More people are entering the CRZ to work and visit since the launch of congestion pricing. Foot traffic increased by 3.4 percent in the zone, compared to a boroughwide increase of 1.4 percent. Transit ridership also rose entering and within the CRZ; according to MTA data, subway trips entering the zone increased by 9 percent, with express bus trips up 7.8 percent and local bus trips up 8.4 percent.
Congestion Pricing Has Improved Quality of Life
Congestion pricing has produced benefits that extend far beyond reduced traffic and faster trips; it has yielded transformative benefits to the quality of life of New Yorkers.
Preliminary data has shown improved air quality since congestion pricing launched. A recent study from Cornell University found that air pollution, in the form of particulate matter 2.5 micrometers and smaller, dropped by 22 percent in the CRZ, with reductions seen across the five boroughs and surrounding suburbs. MTA data also found a 6.1 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions within the zone through Q3 of 2025. Reduced gridlock is also driving down noise pollution. According to 311 data, vehicle noise complaints for issues like horn honking decreased in the CRZ by 17 percent compared to 2024.
Reduced traffic has corresponded with a record year for street safety in New York City. Crashes within the CRZ declined by 7 percent, with traffic injuries down 8 percent. Traffic fatalities were down by 40 percent in the CRZ as of July, according to data from the NYPD. Citywide, 2025 saw the fewest traffic deaths in recorded history, with fatalities down 19 percent from 2024. Safety was improved for motorists, pedestrians, and the cyclists who take 600,000 trips each day: pedestrian fatalities were down 9 percent, and cyclist fatalities on New York City’s streets decreased to 20, compared to 23 in 2024.
Critical Transit Improvement Projects are Underway
Congestion pricing has consistently met monthly revenue targets needed to generate the projected $500 million in annual net revenue. As of November 2025, $518 million in net tolling revenue has been collected and allocated to support transit improvements and mitigation initiatives, with preliminary projections for year-end exceeding $550 million in net revenues.
Overall, the program allows the MTA to proceed with $15 billion in funding for the 2020-2024 Capital Plan, advancing projects to rebuild, improve and expand the transit system. A third of that funding is dedicated towards performing critical state of good repair work to ensure the continued reliability of the transit system.
Projects funded by congestion pricing include:
Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 ($3B)
Signal upgrades along the AC and BDFM lines ($3B)
Accessibility improvements to 23+ subway stations ($2B)
New railcars and buses ($2B)
State of Good Repair projects ($5B)
As of January 1, 2026, more than $6 billion in projects unlocked by Congestion Relief are in construction, including Second Avenue Subway Phase 2, ADA upgrades at nine stations, new signals serving more than 600,000 A/C riders in Brooklyn and Queens, and systemwide state of good repair work.
Mitigation Initiative Progress
The MTA and its project sponsors continue to deliver on the mitigation and monitoring commitments outlined in the Final Environmental Assessment (EA). The MTA and sponsors committed to $125 million in total mitigations across eight initiatives, with every initiative now in progress. Final implementation has now begun for three mitigations:
Expand NYC Clean Trucks Program ($20M): Implementation has begun. NYC DOT will begin accepting new applications for rebate incentives by the spring.
Expand NYC DOT Off-Hours Delivery Program ($5M): Implementation is in progress. In partnership with NYC DOT to improve safety and reduce daytime truck traffic, NYC DOT will begin onboarding new participants in Q1 2026.
Replacement of Truck Refrigeration Units (TRUs) at Hunts Point Market ($15M): Implementation is in progress. Replacing up to 1,000 TRUs will result in major nitrogen oxide and particulate matter reductions — replacement of a single TRU avoids the equivalent of particulate-matter emissions from 330 truck trips a day on the Cross Bronx Expressway. The first unit was delivered in December 2025.
New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn said, “In just congestion pricing’s first year, we’ve seen fewer vehicles entering Manhattan’s central business district, cleaner air, safer streets, and more people choosing to bike, walk, and take mass transit. All New Yorkers are benefiting, with new investments in mass transit and other projects that make it easier to get around without a car. Congestion pricing is a reminder that when you dare to be bold, you can achieve big things. That is why NYC DOT will lead with ambition and innovation—determined not just to make our streets better, but to make them the envy of the world. I thank the Governor and the MTA for their leadership, as well as the NYC DOT staff who are working every day to support this invaluable program.”
Representative Jerry Nadler said, “The bottom line is this: One year later congestion pricing is making New York better. We know it works. It’s cut down on traffic, and commuting times into the city are dramatically faster. Less traffic brings faster emergency response times, cleaner air, and safer streets—all while funding MTA accessibility improvements and transit extensions like the Second Avenue Subway that rely on the revenue congestion pricing generates. So I say this to anyone who tries to derail congestion pricing: get out of the way. This train is staying on the tracks. Congestion pricing will continue. We will fund the MTA. And we will protect the rights of New Yorkers to make decisions about their own city.”
Representative Dan Goldman said, “The results of the first year of Congestion Pricing in Lower Manhattan are clear: reduced congestion, fewer traffic accidents, cleaner air, increased foot traffic, and new revenue that will be used to improve the nation’s largest public transportation system that services the vast majority of New York City commuters. I’m looking forward to continuing to work alongside Governor Hochul and the MTA to make sure our commuters, our city and our environment continue to reap the benefits of this vitally important policy.”
State Senator Kristen Gonzalez said, “Congestion pricing is working for New York City. One year after implementation, we are already seeing the benefits of safer streets, cleaner air, and a better funded transportation system. These benefits improve the quality of life for working class New Yorkers across the five boroughs and regions. I commend Governor Hochul, Mayor Mamdani, and MTA Chair Lieber on their commitment to congestion pricing and defending this vital program from attacks from the Trump administration.”
Assemblymember Tony Simone said, “Fighting for the working class is never easy, but always worth it. We are one year in, and Congestion Pricing is already delivering results far beyond expectation. For the millions of New Yorkers who rely on transit, we have invested billions into expansion and improvement. For New Yorkers who choose to drive, traffic is down and speeds are up. And for my constituents who live in the zone, noise is down, pollution is down, and business is up. Congestion Pricing has quickly proven to be one of the single most effective public policy measures in history.”
Assemblymember Deborah J. Glick said, “The first year of the congestion pricing program has delivered to the MTA more resources than anticipated to support critical capital improvements to our essential transit system. I’m heartened to see this strong foundation that will enable the MTA to make desperately needed upgrades to our transit system, upon which millions of New Yorkers rely. It’s also great to see reduced traffic, improved commute times, and a reduction in air pollution throughout the Congestion Relief Zone.”
Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal said, “The cumulative impacts of congestion pricing cannot be overstated as we confront the realities of climate change. The Legislature understood the immense benefits that such a policy would have on the Big Apple when we originally passed it back in 2019 – and that foresight is certainly paying off. In just one year, Midtown is being released from gridlock, noise complaints are down, traffic-related incidents are becoming less frequent and the MTA is using the fees to make much-needed repairs to our transportation system. That is why we must remain steadfast in our commitment to this policy and continue rejecting any federal overtures to end this transformative program.”
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine said, “After just one year, congestion pricing has proven to be a resounding victory for transit riders, our communities, and the city. Despite the early hand-wringing, congestion pricing has stimulated economic activity across our restaurants, storefronts, and cultural hubs, all while generating millions for the MTA. By standing up to the Trump administration, Governor Hochul has ensured New York can invest in subway accessibility, reduce traffic and crashes, improve air quality, and deliver a reliable transportation system for generations to come.”
New York City Councilmember Gale Brewer said, “One year in, congestion pricing has proven to be exactly what New York needed. It’s been incredibly effective at reducing car trips, easing gridlock, and expanding subway and bus usage, while also delivering cleaner air and safer streets. The data shows that fewer vehicles are entering Manhattan, transit ridership is up, and our economy continues to thrive — all at the same time. This program is working. I look forward to the report that NYC DOT is producing with recommendations for the future so we can build on this success and ensure congestion pricing continues to benefit New Yorkers across the city and the region.”
New York City Councilmember Harvey Epstein said, “After one year, it is clear that congestion pricing is delivering real benefits for everyday New Yorkers. We’re seeing less traffic and noise, cleaner air, and faster, more reliable transit, creating a safer, greener, more efficient city for everyone.”
New York City Councilmember Erik Bottcher said, “After one year, congestion pricing has proven what so many New Yorkers believed all along: when we put people first, our city works better. We are seeing fewer cars, cleaner air, safer streets, and faster commutes, while unlocking billions of dollars to modernize and expand our transit system. This is a win for working New Yorkers, for our environment, and for the long-term health of our economy. I commend Governor Hochul for standing strong and defending this program, because the data is clear—congestion pricing is working, and New York City is better because of it.”
New York City Councilmember Virginia Maloney said, “Traffic has always been a headache for New Yorkers, especially here in the heart of Manhattan. One year later, congestion pricing has delivered on its two main goals: cutting down on gridlock and raising much-needed funding for mass transit. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the City Council and in Albany to make sure the Congestion Pricing Program continues to deliver results and works for all New Yorkers.”
Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal said, “Again and again, congestion pricing works. One year in, with traffic down 11 percent and over half a billion dollars in substantial new revenue for the MTA raised, the program is proving exactly why bold, smart policy matters. New Yorkers are feeling the benefits of fewer cars, faster commutes, cleaner air, and safer streets every day. Thank you to Governor Hochul for her continued leadership standing up for this critical program and New Yorkers.”
Roosevelt House at Hunter College Transportation Research Program Chair Samuel I. Schwartz (Gridlock Sam) said, “I’ve been wrestling with NYC traffic for nearly 60 years having started as a cabdriver circa 1967 and 15 years later as traffic commissioner. I’ve seen avenues converted to one-way, traffic signals retimed, several thousand traffic agents hired but I never saw a program as effective as congestion pricing in improving traffic flow and safety. Kudos to the governor and the MTA for a near flawless roll-out.”
Environmental Defense Fund Senior Advisor Andy Darrell said, “One year in, congestion pricing has delivered on its promise of cleaner air, safer streets, and a healthier city. Fewer cars mean less pollution, faster buses, and cleaner air for communities citywide. And the program is strengthening New York’s economy by funding transit improvements that keep New York City affordable for millions of people every day and supporting good jobs across the state. New York has set a national example for how environmental leadership can drive economic opportunity and improve quality of life.”
Regional Plan Association President and CEO Tom Wright said, “By every measure we have data for, the nation’s first-ever congestion pricing program has delivered positive results for commuters and residents both in New York City and across the tri-state metropolitan region. Residents, businesses, and commuters are enjoying cleaner air, faster travel with less delays, and improved transit. New York’s congestion pricing program has proven to be a wildly successful proof of concept for policy interventions that improve quality of life in every community it touches. Thank you Governor Hochul for leading the way.”
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) New York City Environment Director Eric A. Goldstein said, “The success to date of New York’s congestion pricing program is no accident. It took years of planning and analysis, public engagement, and attention to detail. But on the program’s one year anniversary, the results are clear – reduced congestion, faster commutes, reduced pollution, and enhancements to the region’s irreplaceable transit network that moves millions of commuters every day. Bravo to Governor Kathy Hochul, MTA Chair Janno Lieber, and their staff for the accomplishments to date and the progress yet to come from implementation of this landmark transportation strategy.”
StreetsPAC Executive Director Eric McClure said, “New York City’s congestion pricing program has been an unequivocal success and has delivered on all of its promises – reduced traffic volumes, improved travel times, cleaner air, critical revenue for the transit system – and then some, like fewer crashes and increased pedestrian and retail activity. We should have implemented it decades ago, but we’re grateful to be celebrating its first anniversary. Congratulations to everyone responsible for making it happen.”
New York Building Congress President & CEO Carlo A. Scissura said, “One year in, New York’s congestion relief program has shown that when we invest in moving people better, we move the entire region forward. In just 12 months, the program has started to generate the reliable funding needed to modernize our aging transit system and help keep the city flowing. We’re already seeing accelerated repair work, progress on long-planned infrastructure projects, and new economic activity across the state, including in upstate communities that build the railcars and equipment that power our system. This first year has proved that smart policy can reduce gridlock and air pollution, and lay the foundation for a stronger, greener, more connected New York.”
Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC) Executive Director Lisa Daglian said, “By every measure imaginable, the congestion relief program has exceeded expectations in its first year, benefiting transit riders and drivers alike while breaking the gridlock that has choked our city and region. As longtime advocates for this program, we could not be prouder of its enormous successes, even as we continue to defend it from its misguided detractors. We celebrate today’s anniversary milestone because it is a win for all New Yorkers, and thank Governor Hochul, MTA leadership, and the many people who had the political courage to implement this historic and transformative program.”
CIVITAS Executive Director Sharon Pope-Marshall said, “New York City’s Congestion Pricing Program has yielded undeniable benefits, particularly significant reductions in traffic volume, particulate pollution, motor vehicle crashes, traffic-related injuries, and noise. Data also shows that traffic is down outside of the congestion relief zone. The Program generated $500 million in substantial new revenue for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This vital funding stream will help advance transit infrastructure and other transit-related projects across the city. Investment in public transit reinforces a core tenet of urban planning: efficient and accessible transportation is an essential link to support thriving, sustainable, and resilient urban neighborhoods.”
Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) President James Whelan said, “Congestion pricing has delivered tangible benefits for the people of New York City — decreased traffic, improved air quality, and a critical revenue stream for important transit improvements. We commend Governor Hochul for her ongoing commitment to this program, and we expect to see even greater benefits from congestion pricing in the years to come.”
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest Disability Justice Program Managing Attorney Christopher Schuyler said, “Congestion pricing benefits all New Yorkers, particularly people with disabilities. Congestion pricing funds subway accessibility improvement projects, reduces traffic so that people who use Access-A-Ride and emergency vehicles can get to where they are going faster, makes the roads and crosswalks safer for all pedestrians including people who use wheelchairs – a group disproportionately harmed by traffic related-incidents, and reduces emissions in the zone thereby improving air quality. One year in, the data proves that congestion pricing is a resounding success for all New Yorkers!”
Tri-State Transportation Campaign Executive Director Renae Reynolds said, “One year in, we can finally settle the debate: congestion pricing was the right move not just for New York City but for the entire region and the people who call it home. Traffic is down, streets are safer, crashes and noise complaints have dropped, truck traffic is easing, and we can breathe cleaner air. We’re seeing long overdue subway improvements, the establishment of an asthma case management program in the Bronx, and more visitors enjoying what the city has to offer, proof that this world-class city is building the world-class transportation system we imagined, with even better days ahead.”
Evergreen Action Senior Transportation Policy Lead Liya Rechtman said, “One year of congestion pricing in New York has been an unmitigated success for commuters and the climate. We are thrilled that New Yorkers are sitting in less traffic, breathing cleaner air, and investing in long awaited public transit upgrades. And we are deeply grateful to Governor Hochul and leaders in this state for holding the line in the face of ongoing spurious attacks from the Trump administration. Congestion pricing is here to stay and we’re excited for New Yorkers to continue reaping the benefits.”
New York League of Conservation Voters President Julie Tighe said, “One year in, congestion pricing is delivering what New Yorkers were promised. Traffic is down 11 percent. Travel times are faster and more reliable. Bus, train, and subway ridership are up, and the MTA is investing $15 billion to modernize the system and deliver more frequent, reliable service. At its core, congestion pricing reflects a simple truth: we can’t drive our way out of the climate crisis. By reducing the number of cars on the road, it’s cutting congestion while strengthening the transit system millions of New Yorkers rely on. It takes bold leadership to advance policies that improve our communities and daily lives — especially when they aren’t universally popular at the start. That’s exactly what Governor Hochul showed by moving congestion pricing forward to deliver real results for New Yorkers.”
Riders Alliance Policy & Communications Director Danny Pearlstein said, “Public transit riders organized and won congestion relief, which has now survived infancy and shows great promise at the start of year two. America’s slowest buses are moving faster. New revenue is improving subway service and upgrading stations. New York’s air quality is getting better. Of the entire parade of horribles that the program’s opponents threatened, just one has come true: Success has once again proven the worth of government action and emboldened everyday New Yorkers to continue to tackle persistent challenges together.”
Hudson Square Business Improvement District President & CEO Samara Karasyk said, “At the doorstep of the Holland Tunnel, Hudson Square is seeing firsthand how effective congestion pricing can be. With fewer cars on our streets and dramatically faster tunnel crossings, the neighborhood feels calmer, safer, and more welcoming. Pedestrian activity has risen by nearly 20 percent year over year, and we’re seeing the benefits in improved air quality, reduced horn honking, and growing momentum in our retail and commercial spaces. For the Hudson Square community, congestion pricing is helping create a healthier, more vibrant environment where people, not traffic, take priority.”
