NYC NOW - January 26, 2024: Morning Headlines

Episode Date: January 26, 2024

Get up and get informed! Here’s all the local news you need to start your day.

Welcome to NYC Now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Friday, January 26. Here's the morning headlines for Michael Hill. Governor Kathy Hochle says she wants to expand New York's hate crime law. The governor wants to add 31 offenses to the 66 that prosecutors can charge and try as hate crimes. Hockel says data show hate crimes spiked in the state by 90% between 2020 and 2022.

Why should New Yorkers have to change their everyday lives because of fear of a hate crime? Let's stop that. Let's commit to stopping that. Graffiti, arson, criminal possession of a weapon, and sex trafficking are among the new categories. She wants added to New York's hate crime statute. Governor Hokel also says she's making $10 million in additional grants available through the state's securing communities against hate initiative.

It's for organizations to tap in. to bolster their physical security and their cyber security. The MTA says its new open gangway trains could roll out to the public as soon as next week, but on the C line. The accordion-style trains allow people to walk freely between cars. New York City Transit President Richard Davy downplayed a memo previously obtained by WNYC, stating the new trains can't run on the A-Train Express track due to safety protocols. For a new car class, we just thought it was more prudent to have that car stopping at stations more frequently.

So this is not a mistake. It's not a design flaw. Davey emphasized the open gangway trains are in a testing phase. So far, the MTA has bought two of those trains. People in Southeast Queens are looking for help to squash an apparent raccoon infestation in their neighborhood. A resident raised a question at a mayoral town hall in the borough last night. Assistant Commissioner of Government Affairs, Ricky Wong, says the animals are protected and should not be harmed. He adds it's up to the property owner to hire a state-licensed wildlife trapper.

When they remove them, they don't kill them. They actually take them off the property and place them somewhere else because, again, they are protected under state regulations. That may be the case with raccoons, but the mayor says it is okay to kill rats. The EPA says the air quality is moderate today due to particle pollution. 43 with clouds in some spots, light rain and others. Rain this morning and then fog should clear by early afternoon, Ohio 47. Tomorrow, mostly cloudy and 48.

Rain likely Saturday night. Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. And subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See you this afternoon.