Wednesday Headlines: Poly Sci Edition

The governor has put political pressure on state lawmakers to pass her disastrous car insurance scheme, but that cuts both ways.

State Senate Deputy Majority Leader Mike Gianaris told reporters on Tuesday that he’s not sure how members of his conference are supposed to explain her proposal to voters when it’s unclear how it lowers rates, and it would harm crash victims.

“Anything we do here needs to be explained back home when you go before the voters,” Gianaris said. “And so we want to do something that makes sense and that benefits people. If you can go home and say, ‘I did this, and it’s going to lower your insurance rates,’ people will be very happy. I don’t see in the proposals that have happened that that’s where we are.”

State Sen. Jeremy Zellner (D-Buffalo), who doubles as Erie County Democratic Party Chair, said he also needs to see where these alleged savings are in the governor’s plan as he prepares for his own reelection, as well as that of other Western New York politicians.

“We need to make sure that we see how this is going to lower our rates,” Zellner told Streetsblog.

Hochul, in her attempts to ram through her proposal, has suggested that voters will punish state lawmakers who stand in the way. But her proposal would make it either more difficult or impossible for crash victims to seek damages for pain and suffering, and the savings from combating fraud and jackpot lawsuits she speaks of appear disconnected from reality – especially as insurance companies give no indication they’ll charge less as a result.

You can spin a bad bill in your district a lot of ways, but politicians don’t see daylight on this one.

More news:

• Hochul and Uber’s marriage of disinformation campaigns and political pressure is part of a national campaign. Read more from Streetsblog New York City’s Kevin Duggan.
• Assembly Member Andrew Hevesi officially filed a criminal complaint against his Democratic primary opponent, Jonathan Rinaldi, for allegedly changing his party affiliation without his knowledge. (QNS)
• Rep. Joe Morelle (D-Rochester) had to explain why he dismissed claims of abuse against a prominent staffer of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. (The New York Post)
• The budget will be at least two weeks late after state lawmakers passed another extender yesterday. (The New York Post)
• Dean of the Buffalo delegation and Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes is not seeking reelection, but it looks like party bosses already have a replacement in mind. (City & State)
• State Sen. James Skoufis (D-Cornwall) has one less challenger after Conservative Party candidate Tim Mitts dropped out. (Mid Hudson News)
• Truckers are backing Hochul’s car insurance scheme as the governor continues to look for support. (State of Politics)
• Gas prices are so high these days that e-bikes and e-scooters are gaining popularity. (The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle)
• The six Democrats hoping for the opportunity to challenge Rep. Mike Lawler (R-Rockland) are set to debate tomorrow. (The Journal News)
• Watertown police are prepping an e-bike crackdown that includes a “zero-tolerance” approach to violations like sidewalk riding. (The Watertown Daily Times)
• Ah yes. The old “cause the crash and then brandish a knife” routine never fails. At least that’s what one idiot driver in Batavia thought. (The Syracuse Post-Standard)