'Buy Now, Pay Later' has exploded in popularity. NY wants to regulate it.

Plus: More snow [View this email in a browser.]( Gothamist relies on your support to make local news available to all. Not yet a member? [Consider donating and join today.]( ['Buy Now, Pay Later' has exploded in popularity. NY wants to regulate it.]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ❄️ [Snowy]( with 1 to 3 inches of accumulation expected and highs around 30. It's Friday in New York City, where people keeping cozy indoors might be tempted to do a little online shopping — and to check out via "buy now, pay later" services that operate with little oversight. With companies like Affirm, Klarna and Zip exploding in popularity, Gov. Kathy Hochul is trying to pass regulations as part of the state budget that would [limit the late fees they charge and impose other fraud protections](. Here's what else is happening: - The city's sanitation department [issued more than 2,000 summonses]( this week to property owners who failed to clear ice and snow from the sidewalk. - Asian American parent groups are suing the New York State Education Department over an [extracurricular STEM program for low-income and "historically underrepresented" students]( saying it unfairly excludes Asian and white students. - Police said [two girls were reported missing]( Thursday night from Brooklyn and the Bronx. - Four members of a Union County, N.J., family were found dead by gunshot wounds this week in [what police said was a murder-suicide](. - The department of buildings said 20% of recently inspected Manhattan parking garages have [unsafe conditions](. - The garages were evaluated after a Lower Manhattan structure collapsed last April, [killing the onsite manager](. - Prosecutors are seeking to vacate the conviction of a Brooklyn man who spent [14 years in prison for a killing he didn’t commit](. - Former Comptroller Scott Stringer set up a campaign committee to [challenge Eric Adams]( for the 2025 Democratic mayoral nomination. - [A Bronx nonprofit]( wants to turn the long-vacant Kingsbridge Armory into a combination high-tech manufacturing hub/food hall/performance space/affordable housing complex. - A Bronx restaurant owned by NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban's ex-cop brother is [facing eviction and more than a dozen FDNY citations]( for its hazardous outdoor dining area. - The Bronx Zoo has revived its $15 [name-a-cockroach]( Valentine's Day special. - Kids' Night returns to Broadway on Tuesday, Feb. 13, allowing theatergoers under 18 to [attend a show for free]( with a paying adult. - The Port Authority is [replacing all the Sandy-damaged white tiles]( inside the Holland Tunnel. - You can still score [a good deal on a house]( if that house was once the site of a murder. - The Salad Wars [are on](. - These rodeo guys [look awesome](. - Have some time for a game? [Play]( our mini local news crossword. - Sign up for reminders when we publish new games [here](. [“Quite literally the entire sidewalk is just a sheet of ice, so everyone’s taking little baby steps and walking and waddling around. It’s really slippery.”]( - Elena Bater, a 21-year-old trying to walk on [ICY SIDEWALKS]( in Manhattan on Thursday More from Gothamist [second image]( [NYC’s 1st public observatory is coming to the Bronx]( The Amateur Astronomers Association and the city parks department have agreed to install a small aluminum observatory at Jerome Park near the Bronx High School of Science and open it to stargazers as soon as this spring. [G Whiz: MTA proposes partial 6-week shutdown of G train this summer]( To allow the agency to revamp the G line's signal operating system, three major shutdowns would occur between June and Labor Day. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Most New Yorkers try to avoid rats. NYC’s 'rat daddy' goes looking for them.]( After finishing his cashier shift at a Queens pizzeria on a recent Thursday night, Kenny Bollwerk, who goes by "Rat Daddy" on TikTok, did what he does several times a week: donned a reflective safety vest, headlamp and gloves, and made his way to Grand Central to film rats for his thousands of followers. [A highly anticipated $10 burger arrives in Bed-Stuy]( The Thai-American cafe Little Grenjai opens on Jan. 26 with a pared-down menu featuring a burger inspired by pad krapow, or holy basil stir fry. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.