Heastie and enviros spar over packaging bill blockage

And Hochul has started signing the mountain of bills approved by the Legislature.

Good afternoon — it’s Friday and the Summer Solstice.

In today’s CapCon:

• Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie hit back at environmental advocates, who said Friday they still think the packaging reduction bill had the votes to pass.

• SUNY has filed its proposed rule that would change how presidents of community colleges are chosen.

• Hochul has signed 21 of the more than 700 bills that await her decision before the end of the year. Read what they are.

• New bills would require that medical corporations be owned by doctors and ban discrimination based on housing status.

Names in today’s CapCon: Carl Heastie, Kathy Hochul, Judith Enck, John B. King, Jr., Steve Cohen, Steve Rhoads, Luis Sepulveda, Rachel May

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❗ CapCon Note: If you’re one of the many readers who found CapCon during this year’s legislative session, you might be wondering what to expect from us now that it’s come to an end. (If you’re not, feel free to skip this.)

But don’t worry. The Capitol will slow down but our reporting will not.

Legislation: There are about 650 bills, as of Tuesday morning, approved by the Legislature this year that haven’t yet been considered by Gov. Kathy Hochul. She’ll have until the end of the year to sign, veto or negotiate changes to each of them.

Politics: Believe it or not, the 2026 election cycle has already begun. Republicans and Democrats alike are already lining up to challenge Hochul for the governor’s office, and run for Congress and the state Legislature.

Federal actions: President Donald J. Trump’s administration is a frequent target of lawsuits from New York — and vice versa — and Congress is expected to approve a spending bill that could include cuts for the state. That could bring the Legislature back to readjust state spending.

State actions: There’s also more time in the second half of the year to keep a closer eye on the actions of state agencies, commissions and other public entities. That could include proposed regulations, regulatory approvals and new public reporting.

Litigation: There’s a lot of litigation to track in New York’s state courts and the four federal court districts housed here. That litigation often involves the state or a related entity and can result in decisions with broad consequences.

Those are all reasons to keep reading CapCon each day but I’m curious if there’s anything else you’d like to see from us. Have an idea? Reply to this email or email me: Dan.Clark@TimesUnion.com. 📨

(Will Waldron/Times Union)

🗣️ Heastie says votes weren’t there for packaging bill, enviros disagree

If you read Wednesday’s CapCon, you already know that environmentalists are not happy about the Assembly leaving Albany without a vote on the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act.

That’s the extended producer responsibility bill that would have required companies to reduce their packaging and pay fees that would fund municipal recycling efforts. It passed the Senate in that chamber’s final days.

It was the second year the Assembly moved the bill through committee but didn’t bring it to the floor for a vote. Supporters were surprised and disappointed because they thought it had the votes to pass.

One of them is Judith Enck, the president of Beyond Plastics and a former regional administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

After a spicy statement overnight from Enck Tuesday that blamed the bill’s blockage on Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie, implying he wasn’t serious about environmental issues, Heastie fired back in his own statement.

“I personally was a ‘yes’ on the bill, but what should be gone are the days of lazy advocacy that expect a top-down approach from the speaker. Instead of spending time attacking me and my character, I suggest Ms. Enck put in the work to gain the necessary support for her bills,” Heastie said.

“Contrary to popular belief, I am the most accurate vote counter in the Assembly, so I have three words for Ms. Enck: ‘Continue the work,’” he added.

Heastie also responded to the argument that the Assembly hasn’t acted on environmental protections, pointing out bills that have made it through the chamber since 2019 — the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, the Build Public Renewables Act, the All Electric Buildings Act, the Birds and Bees Protection Act, and the $4.2 billion Environmental Bond Act.

“Any suggestion that the Assembly doesn't take protecting the environment seriously is ridiculous and counter-factual,” Heastie said.

That first bill, New York’s landmark climate law, was ironically sponsored by Sen. Todd Kaminsky, a Democrat who chaired the Environmental Conservation Committee but is now one of the lobbyists who lobbied against the packaging bill this year.

Enck and other environmentalists spoke with reporters Friday about the bill’s fate and the speaker’s position and didn’t let up on their war of words, as one might call it.