Assemblyman Democrat Sheldon Silver introduced new legislation to increase New York State’s minimum wage today. The proposed law will increase the current $7.25 an hour to $8.50 an hour and become permanently fixed to the inflation rate by 2014. Silver said the increase would "give flight to the American dream." more ›

The grandmother of 12-year-old Dashane Santana, who was struck and killed by a car crossing Delancey Street last week, is in the midst of raising the $8,500 for Dashane's funeral while she grieves for her granddaughter. "Right now we need about $3,000 by Tuesday," Teresa Pedroza tells us. "It's coming in little by little." Pedroza has sold candy and gone door-to-door asking for donations, which yielded around $600. She hopes that two fundraisers she's organizing, one today and another tomorrow, will be enough. "All this is out of the blue. Her birthday is in February—we're supposed to be celebrating that. Now I'm planning a funeral." more ›

In the wake of the death of 12-year-old Dashane Santana, who was struck and killed crossing Delancey Street last Friday, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is asking the Department of Transportation to assign crossing guards to the dangerous thoroughfare. "With traffic coming on and off the Williamsburg Bridge and a wide area for pedestrians to cross, there is an urgent need for a more aggressive approach to safety," Silver wrote in a letter to commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan obtained by DNAinfo. "We simply cannot wait for another tragedy to occur." more ›

After a Tennessee resident was arrested on felony gun possession charges after checking her 0.38-caliber gun in at the National 9/11 Memorial, NY State politicians are now wondering if our gun laws are maybe a little too much. Medical student Meredith Graves did have a permit to carry the gun in Tennessee, but she didn't have a permit to carry it in New York (because that's what all tourists need in New York—their own guns), so she was in jail for days, including Christmas. And her plight has touched even Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. more ›

After Capital New York reported that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was injured when, while riding his bicycle, he hit a pothole and fell, his press office couldn't explain where the accident occurred (a woman who answered the phone said, "I assume it was New York City") although the powerful 67-year-old lawmaker sported a "stitches over his left eyebrow and a scab across his nose and the back of one of his hands." Now the mystery is out: Silver was brought down by a Puerto Rican pothole. more ›

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is considered one of the most powerful men in New York State, but even he doesn't have power over the conditions of the streets he bikes on. Capital New York's Azi Paybarah reports, "Half of Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's face is bruised and purple, and there are stitches over his left eyebrow and a scab across his nose and the back of one of his hands. Silver sustained the injuries while riding a bicycle when he hit a pothole and fell, according to a spokesman for the lower Manhattan Democrat." more ›

Now that unemployment and poverty rates are sky high, why not open a few casinos? The Post reports that both parties agree: legalized gambling should happen. It'll give people a chance to discover a new rock-bottom get back on their feet, inject some cash into the state's austere budget, and finally allow us to knock Native Americans out of the one position of power that they currently hold. Everybody wins! more ›

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver does not want a full-blown casino opening within the five boroughs, because he thinks New Yorkers are weak, won't be able to resist the lure and may very well do something stupid when money is involved. Silver told The Daily News, "I don't want to see people going out for lunch during work and losing a week's pay or a month's pay." more ›

Former NYC mayor Ed Koch is pissed that President Obama suggested this spring that a Palestinian state should be created from the 1967 borders. So much so that he's written, "If President Obama does not change his position, I cannot vote for his reelection." Nevermind that what the president actually meant was that negotiations would start from those borders and work outward, Koch wants to "put a shot across Obama's bow," and is doing so by endorsing GOP candidate Bob Turner over Democrat David Weprin for the special election in former Congressman Anthony Weiner's Ninth District. Orthodox Jew and New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is not happy about this, calling Koch's behavior "totally inappropriate." more ›

While New York's same-sex couples prepare for their big day, the MMA community will have to wait for the next legislative session for any hope that their sport of kings will be legalized. Earlier this month Speaker Sheldon Silver doused any hopes for legalization, despite the bill passing the Senate and speeding through the Assembly's various committees. "It's a promotion of violence at a time when we're trying to eliminate violence," Assemblyman Rob Reilly tells the Times, making us wonder if he's suggesting for supporters to wait until violence is back in season. How much longer must New Yorkers wait to feel the joy that only comes with watching a grown man do a cartwheel into another man's face? more ›

Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of the octagon: it seemed like the page was about to turn for Mixed Martial Arts aficionados—after a long struggle to get their beloved, bloody sport legalized in New York, the MMA bill was overwhelmingly approved by the Assembly Tourism Committee this week. But the bill was then unceremoniously bodyslammed by none other than the heavyweight champion of the Assembly, Sheldon Silver. "There does not appear to be widespread support in the Assembly for this legislation," he told the News. more ›

April Fools Day can be a stressful day for many, between the Improv Everywhere faux-attack videos and the actually-not-so-ridiculous dog highchairs. It must be especially tough for politicians, who are used to receiving lots of strange mail on a good day. Assembly Democratic Speaker Sheldon Silver was one of a handful of politicians to receive one such rambling, threatening email today, and as with everything today, police weren't sure how seriously to take it. more ›

After emerging from a closed door meeting with Governor Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos sounded optimistic that a budget agreement could be announced tomorrow. But New Yorkers demanding changes to the rent regulation rules are bound to be disappointed, as are those who think the state's budget crisis should be solved, in part, by an income tax surcharge on New Yorkers making more than $200,000. "It’s off the table, it’s gone, it’s done, it’s dead," Skelos told reporters, referring to the so-called "millionaire's tax." more ›

Governor Cuomo's proposed $132.9 budget would cut spending 2.7%, slashing $1.5 billion in education aid and $2.8 billion from health care. But it would also get rid of a tax on incomes over $200,000 for single filers and $300,000 for joint filers, first levied in 2009. Cuomo promised during the campaign that he would close the budget gap without raising taxes, and the affluent people in New York would be so disillusioned if they saw a politician breaking his promises. But Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver and a growing army of other Democrats want him to do just that! more ›

Governor Andrew Cuomo presents his first state budget today, and he gave a heckuva of a preview yesterday in an op-ed on how budgets don't work in New York State. As Cuomo presents it, one of the major roadblocks to a "balanced" budget is pinpointing exactly what you are balancing. In many states, and especially in New York State, the budget is weighed down by a number of programs that are designed to increase up to 13% annually, just because they can. Take it away, Andy: "A 13 percent increase, in this economic climate, is wholly unrealistic. Wouldn’t you like your salary or savings account to be based on a formula that gave you a 13 percent increase even though inflation was under 2 percent? The world doesn’t work that way—except in Albany." more ›

Forty years after it was cleared, the long-fallow Seward Park Urban Renewal Area (SPURA) is as close as its ever been to seeing some actual renewal. Last night a Community Board 3 task force assigned to figure out what do with the area voted unanimously on a plan for the parcel and, best of all, Sheldon Silver, who carries enormous weight in the area and has previously been against plans for it, came out in favor of the latest proposal. more ›

Just as Andrew Cuomo was getting ready to take the stage at today's State of the State speech, word came out of more confusion in the State Senate. We aren't in the midst of another coup, but four state senators have decided to leave the Democratic conference. The change won't be as dramatic as last time—the Republicans control ain't going anywhere—but it does give the troubled state party another headache to worry over. more ›

After 40 years, is the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area (SPURA) finally going to, well, be renewed? Maybe! After much back-and-forth it appears that Community Board 3 is nearly in agreement over what should happen to the largest patch of undeveloped city-owned land south of 96th Street. That is, unless the ever-present State Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver decides he doesn't like what ever they come up with. more ›

To paraphrase Captain Renault, were shocked, shocked to find that secret Albany wheeling dealing was going on in the failed AEG Aqueduct deal. Earlier this year, Governor Paterson picked Aqueduct Entertainment Group to install slot machines at the Queens Aqueduct, but AEG's selection was controversial, not only because the group was politically connected but also because its bid sucked. Now, according to the Daily News, the State Inspector General has issued a report, finding "a bidding process rife with inside dealing, secret lobbying and more than $100,000 in campaign donations from the bidders." more ›

In the course of a heated political race, storylines change frequently; politicians treat their gaffes like mass hallucinations, or a bad bender they shouldn't be reminded of. One week, they may be accusing their opponent of extramarital affairs, and nearly coming to blows with reporters, but the next week it's all about the economy. Carl Paladino is certainly trying his darnedest this week to change his rage-filled storyline, blaming Cuomo for starting the negative campaigning: “We’ve left that gutter politics. We’re interested in talking about the issues,” he said on the Today Show, a week after gleefully rolling around in a mud-caked gutter. more ›

New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver grew up in the historic Bialystoker Synagogue on the Lower East Side. He was Bar Mitzvahed there, and until last year served as the synagogues vice president. But many suspect he didn't run for re-election because of the Orthodox congregation's tradition of not allowing women to hold positions of authority. And now, that edict is beginning to cost the synagogue its members. more ›

Because the state budget was due on April 1 but hasn't been approved yet, state law prohibits legislators from getting paid. And, guess what, going almost four months without pay is hard! But, don't worry, many lawmakers understand if you don't care: Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Queens), who is dipping into his savings to pay for his mortgage, tells the NY Times, "People are rightfully fed up with the lack of effectiveness in state government. I would quickly forgive them for not having sympathy for our personal plight." more ›

When Governor Paterson called for a special Sunday session to discuss the long overdue state budget (it was due on April 1), lawmakers did head back to Albany. But this is what happened, according to the Times Union: "The Senate and Assembly gaveled in and out in "extraordinary" sessions that, added together, totaled less than 10 minutes," and "ignored every item on the governor's to-do list... Paterson had asked them to address plans to revamp SUNY's tuition schedule and set up a contingency fund for a potential $1 billion federal shortfall in Medicaid funding." more ›

The State Assembly has reportedly agreed to lift the cap on charter schools from 200 to 460 over four years, which would enable NY to compete for "Race to the Top" funds. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver says the Assembly will vote on the contentious issue this morning (well, the Senate had passed raising the cap, while the Assembly opposed it). The Daily News reports, "Senate Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) met with Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver at about 2 a.m. to discuss the measure and afterward said only 'we’re working on it.'" Wow, lawmakers actually working! How's that budget coming along? more ›

After blaming longtime Albany lawmakers for the dysfunction that's crippling the state, gubernatorial candidate Andrew Cuomo sort of made nice with Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. First he told the Post's Fred Dicker, "Shelly Silver is not an obstacle. I’ve gotten legislation passed with Shelly Silver.” more ›