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City Limits: Hochul May Gut Major Deforestation Bill, Advocates Say
Gov. Kathy Hochul is yet to sign a bill, passed by lawmakers this summer, to stop companies that have contracts with the state government from contributing to tropical deforestation.
This week, Hochul’s team sat down with supporters of the bill and presented them with a “gutted” version of the legislation that would essentially render it useless, advocates who had access to the proposal told City Limits.
“[Hochul] is proposing some chapter amendments and my staff have just started to review them, so I’m not at a point where I’m prepared to comment on them,” the bill’s sponsor, State Sen. Liz Krueger, told City Limits.
“But what I’ve heard so far from the advocates, frankly, is that her first proposal would not be acceptable,” Krueger added. In an emailed statement, Hochul’s office said that the governor “is reviewing the legislation” and made no further comments.
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