Karen DeWitt
Capitol Bureau chiefKaren DeWitt is Capitol Bureau chief for New York State Public Radio, a network of public radio stations in New York state. She has covered state government and politics for the network since 1990.
She is also a regular contributor to the statewide public television program about New York State government, New York Now. She appears on the reporter’s roundtable segment, and interviews newsmakers.
Karen previously worked for WINS Radio, New York, and has written for numerous publications, including Adirondack Life and the Albany newsweekly Metroland.
She is a past recipient of the prestigious Walter T. Brown Memorial award for excellence in journalism, from the Legislative Correspondents Association, and was named Media Person of the Year for 2009 by the Women’s Press Club of New York State.
Karen is a graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo.
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Changes to the state's bail reform laws and increasing taxes on the wealthy are two budget issues supported by New Yorkers, but they are dividing Governor Hochul and the legislature. -
The ad — from the political action committee American Opportunity, associated with the Democratic Governors Association — relies on a large contribution from billionaire Michael Bloomberg.
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Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has said she prefers the right budget to an on-time budget, appears ready to dig in her heels to get enough Democrats on board to win passage of the latest bail law changes. In 2022, the budget was nine days late as the governor held out for previous changes to the law.
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The meeting of the General Conference Committee, known colloquially as the “mothership,” marks the start of the end phase of budget talks, when legislative leaders start making deals with the governor in order to agree on a spending plan.
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With two weeks before the state budget is due, Gov. Kathy Hochul and the legislature have different ideas on how the spending plan should look, with the Senate and Assembly rejecting most of the governor's key items.
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Ed Cox and other Republicans at the party’s annual meeting are buoyed by some unexpected wins in New York in 2022.
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Walgreens stopped the sale of mifepristone one of two drugs used in a medication induced abortion, after attorneys general in those states threatened the pharmacy chains with legal repercussions. Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Attorney General Letitia James say the medicine must remain available in New York.
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Some recent off-the-cuff comments by Gov. Kathy Hochul on whether she might support a tenants’ rights measure known as the Good Cause Eviction law caused a stir among advocates and landlords. But a spokeswoman for the governor said people shouldn’t read too much into it.
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New York farmers are asking for more money in the state budget for a safety training program that they say saves lives and helps prevent injuries among farmworkers.
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Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to lift the regional cap on the number of charter schools in New York City and allow the licenses of charter schools that have closed in the past few years to be reissued to new ones. The change would allow for about 85 more charter schools across the state.
