After years of seeing their projects rejected in New York, pipeline and power plant companies are eyeing a comeback as the state weighs a slower transition away from fossil fuels.

They’re not just watching from the sidelines. A national industry group, led by some of the country’s largest pipeline builders and a slew of other gas interests, has recently entered the fray, tapping former state politicians to help advance Governor Kathy Hochul’s “all of the above” energy strategy. Top of their agenda: pressing pause on the state’s climate targets.

The group, a nonprofit called Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, represents some of the companies with the most to gain if Hochul’s proposed rollbacks to the state’s climate law go through. Speaking at a conference in late March, its New York chapter co-chair, former assemblymember and Bronx borough president Ruben Diaz Jr., gave a spirited defense of the governor’s plan, calling it “responsible leadership.”

When a member of State Senator Luis Sepúlveda’s staff faced eviction in 2023, the staffer had good reason to be hopeful: Sepúlveda, a practicing attorney, agreed to be his lawyer. Sepúlveda, who chairs the Senate’s powerful Judiciary Committee, then failed to show up to court twice, causing his staffer to lose by default and ultimately leave his home with an eviction on his record.

This wasn’t unusual behavior for Sepúlveda, who for years has maintained a private law practice marked by skipped court appearances, faulty paperwork, and missed deadlines, New York Focus has found.

His legal missteps stretch back to at least 2017, when a judge rejected his request for a default judgment after he failed to appear at a hearing and submitted a legal filing improperly.

A Manhattan lawmaker facing a primary challenge from the Democratic Socialists of America will be aided by a super PAC.

Jordan J.G. Wright, who has represented Harlem in the state Assembly since his 2024 election, will be boosted by an outside fundraising vehicle called Moving Harlem Forward. The super PAC, also known as an independent expenditure committee, was registered with the state Board of Elections on Wednesday.