{"id":348840,"date":"2026-09-17T00:52:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T00:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/348840\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T00:52:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T00:52:12","slug":"scaffold-law-on-affordable-housing-agenda-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/348840\/","title":{"rendered":"Scaffold Law on affordable housing agenda"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week, Capital Tonight spoke with pro-business groups that are laying the groundwork for reform<\/a> of the 140+ year old Scaffold Law in New York.<\/p>\n

The Scaffold Law is unique because New York is the only state in the nation which holds contractors and property owners to a strict liability standard when it comes to gravity-related injuries.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Capital Tonight learned that pro-business organizations may have some potent political allies in their quest for reform during the next legislative session: Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has made building housing a centerpiece of several consecutive budget proposals, told an affordable housing advocate that she\u2019s interested in the issue.<\/p>\n

For years, critics of the law have argued that the Scaffold Law needs to be reformed because it adds to the costs of construction.<\/p>\n

That issue appears to have collided with the state\u2019s urgent need for more affordable housing, something that Carlina Rivera, the president & CEO of the New York State Association for Affordable Housing, addressed when she appeared on Capital Tonight on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to take on Scaffold Law reform,\u201d she said. \u201cLabor unions and developers have come together over the past few years to make sure workers feel safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also said the governor appears willing to take on the issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems that Kathy Hochul is on board; I just talked to the governor this morning and she wants to push a housing agenda that is even more aggressive than last term,\u201d Rivera said.<\/p>\n

When asked if that agenda would include Scaffold Law reform, Rivera said that the governor has mentioned it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have started the conversation and hopefully we get enough people on board.\u00a0 I really think we can create a diverse coalition around this,\u201d Rivera said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Governor is always looking for ways to improve how New York builds, but there is no proposal to announce on scaffolding requirements,” a spokesperson for Hochul said in a statement. “As always, she\u2019ll lay out her policy agenda in January.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rivera is in Albany for the New York State Association for Affordable Housing\u2019s annual upstate housing conference<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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