What's the [DATA] Point?

What's the [DATA] Point? is a podcast by Citizens Budget Commission and Gotham Gazette on New York State and City policies.

 

It's hosted by Ben Max, Executive Editor of Gotham Gazette, and Andrew Rein, President of the Citizens Budget Commission, and produced by Kevin Medina and William J. Rice.

 

Stream below or download on your phone via iTunes, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher.

 

Episodes

90%, with Sean Campion

September 20, 2019
90% is the share of NYCHA units that are at risk of no longer being cost effective to repair by 2027 at the current rate of deterioration. NYCHA released a plan to address this in December 2018. CBC Senior Research Associate Sean Campion joins the pod to discuss progress, the urgency of success, and the dismal impact of failure.

16,000, with Council Member Cornegy and David Tipson

September 05, 2019
16,000 is the number of New York City students in Gifted & Talented programs, which the School Diversity Advisory Group recommended phasing out. David Tipson, Executive Director of Appleseed, and City Council Member Robert Cornegy discuss the report’s findings and recommendations.

118,997 with James Merriman

August 13, 2019
118,997 is the number of students enrolled in charter schools in NYC in 2019. That enrollment has grown 66 percent since 2014 and applications continue to surpass the number of available seats. James Merriman, CEO of the New York City Charter School Center, joined the pod to discuss the politics, policies, promises, and pitfalls of charter schools.

98,000, with Riley Edwards

July 19, 2019
98,000 is the number of seats for public school students constructed by the NYC School Construction Authority - about twice as many as in Yankee Stadium. Riley Edwards discusses alternative strategies for solving the crowding problem.

$3.2 billion, with NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer

July 03, 2019
$3.2 billion is the amount NYC spends on homeless services, double what was spent in 2014, earning the agencies providing these services a spot on NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer's Agency Watch List. Learn more about this list and the Comptroller's assessment of the City budget, rent regulation reform, and more.

6/15, the Rent Regulation Edition

June 07, 2019
6/15 is the date when NYS rent laws are set to expire. Strengthening rent regulation is a top priority for the Governor and state lawmakers in the closing days of the legislative session. Listen to REBNY President John Banks and Assemblymember Harvey Epstein share their perspectives.

1.28 cents, with Patrick Orecki

May 23, 2019
1.28 cents is the amount New York collects in fuel taxes for every vehicle mile driven. A recent CBC report "Switching Gears" explored the implementation of an innovative approach to finance highway and bridge improvements: a vehicle-miles traveled fee. What’s a VMT, and how does it work? CBC's Patrick Orecki joined the podcast to discuss what a VMT might look like in New York.

125,323, with Meera Joshi

May 09, 2019
125,323 is the number of vehicles licensed by the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission in 2018. The dramatic rise of for-hire vehicles has posed new challenges, and at the forefront of using data to tackle these challenges was former TLC Commissioner Meera Joshi, now a visiting scholar at NYU Wagner.