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New York Attorney General Letitia James on Friday, May 21, 2021 Credit: New York Attorney General's Office

New York Attorney General Seeks Statewide Use of Force Standard for Police

"This has rekindled a flame of righteousness, and righteous indignation that has been smoldering for centuries. We are in the midst of a racial reckoning in this country."

New York Attorney General Letitia James and Gov. Andrew Cuomo Credit: Gov. Cuomo's Office

Attorney General Rejects Cuomo's Political Claims, Defends Probe Into His Book Deal

“This is Albany politics at its worst — both the Comptroller and the Attorney General have spoken to people about running for Governor and it is unethical to wield criminal referral authority to further political self-interest."

Dorothy Foster, 90, receives the COVID-19 vaccine at her Queens nursing home. GARETH RHODES / NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

PA Nursing Homes, Hard Hit By Pandemic, Seek American Rescue Plan Funds

Providers’ groups say many long term care homes are on the brink of closure.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday, May 13, 2021 Credit: Gov. Cuomo's Office

Poll Finds Good And Bad News For New York's Embattled Governor

More New Yorkers think the embattled governor should hang on than think he should resign.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - DECEMBER 01: A flower lays on the engraved names of AIDS victims at the National AIDS Memorial Grove on December 1, 2015 in San Francisco, California. World AIDS Day has been observed on December 1, since 1988, and is dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, and to mourn those who have died from the disease. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

'The Quality Has Gone': Archie Harrison's HIV Journey, 1987-1988

In 1987, NPR's Patricia Neighmond first profiled Archie Harrison, a young man living with HIV. What followed was a year of highs and lows, of recovery and acceptance.

Some Yemenis Struggle For U.S. Visas Even After The End Of The Travel Ban

Yemenis who won the diversity visa lottery were stopped by the Trump administration's travel ban. Now they've had to start applying all over again. "Our lives have been destroyed," says one man.

Willis Sharpe Kilmer

In 1890, Willis Sharpe Kilmer arrived in Binghamton, New York where he took over the advertising department of the family patent medicine business. Young…

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said New York City restaurants can operate at 75% of capacity beginning May 7, bringing rules there in line with the rest of the state. While COVID-19 restrictions are easing for restaurants and bars across the state, the industry, hit hard by the pandemic, said more needs to be done. This week, the state Legislature ended an executive order by Cuomo that required food to be served with all alcoholic drink orders. It had been in place ever since bars and restaurants were allowed to reopen last summer. The measure passed unanimously in both houses on April 28. Sen. Ed Rath from the Buffalo area supported legal challenges from some western New York restaurants to end many of the restrictions, including limits on indoor dining capacity and curfews. “While this is a welcome step, it has taken far too long to get here,” Rath said on the Senate floor. “It shouldn’t take lawsuits and court hearings for our struggling restaurants to be heard.” Rath said the state’s own data shows that restaurants and bars account for just a small percentage of coronavirus transmissions. Hours before that vote, Cuomo announced that he, too, favored ending the food requirement. He also said he’d lift midnight curfews on restaurants and bars later in May. Many restaurants and bars expressed relief. Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, is also encouraged by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s announcement that he intends to fully reopen the city by July 1. But Rigie, in a statement, said government leaders can do more to help. They’d like to see a temporary rule that allows take-out alcoholic drinks be made permanent, saying it will be a while before everyone is comfortable dining inside. Patrick Noonan runs El Loco Mexican Café in Albany and is the chair of a group of independently owned restaurants and bars. He said the take-out drink sales helped keep restaurants from closing and decreased the need for layoffs. El Loco Cafe in Albany (Courtesy: Karen DeWitt) “Permanent to-go cocktail policy in New York would be most appreciated,” said Noonan, who added recent surveys show 63% of patrons intend to continue ordering cocktails to go, even when full indoor dining is allowed. Assemblyman John McDonald, a Democrat from Cohoes, supports the bill, which is sponsored by Albany Assemblywoman Pat Fahy. He said ordering mixed drinks as part of his New Year’s Eve to-go dinner order was a nice treat during the long pandemic-restricted winter. “It was great to have something professionally put together,” McDonald said. The restaurant groups also want to limit charges by third-party delivery services. They said some services like Uber Eats and Grub Hub take up to a third of the bill for a food order. And they said the federal and state bureaucracies need to be better at connecting restaurants to grants and loans that are now available in the federal Restaurant Revitalization Fund. They said the money can be used for, among other things, improving indoor air quality in their establishments.

Should To-Go Alcohol be Made Permanent in New York After COVID-19? Restaurants Say Yes

78% of New Yorkers want the option, implemented during the pandemic, to be made permanent in New York.

FILE - In this Sept. 25, 2019, file photo Giffords Law Center Senior Policy Advisor David Chipman speaks at a House Judiciary Committee hearing on assault weapons on Capitol Hill in Washington. (The Biden administration is expected to nominate Chipman, a former federal agent and adviser at the gun control group Giffords, to be director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

The Debate Over Gun Laws Will Center On One Man This Week

President Biden's pick to lead the ATF, David Chipman, will get a confirmation hearing Wednesday. The agency helps enforce U.S. gun laws but hasn't had a Senate-confirmed director in six years.

PA Probe Finds No Intentional Act To Derail Sex-Abuse Vote

“I still have a hard time believing that it wasn’t intentional, even with what was reported today."

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