NYC says rats are on the run as trash rules kick in and bins pile up

Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay

Weather: ☔ Cloudy this morning, with afternoon showers and highs in the lower 70s.

It's Wednesday in New York City, where 311 rat complaints have fallen for eight straight months.

Mayor Eric Adams yesterday hailed the drop in complaints as a sign of a "trash revolution," noting that residents have already ordered or purchased nearly 900,000 official New York City trash bins — well ahead of new containerization rules that take effect next summer.

The mayor said he's also looking to get more New Yorkers signed up for “Rat Academy,” the city’s education campaign on rodent prevention.

Here's what else is happening:

• The Trump administration yesterday threatened to withhold some funding from the MTA, claiming the agency’s leaders keep underplaying the safety risks transit workers face on the job.
• The NYPD this morning is looking for a mother and young daughter who went missing from their East Flatbush home this week.
• As Hurricane Erin churns offshore, officials have banned swimming at ocean beaches across New York City, Long Island and parts of the Jersey Shore.
• New York City officials are condemning the deportation of a young girl who was detained with her family at a Lower Manhattan immigration court last week.
• Prospective tenants in Jersey City can face fees of up to $150 just to apply for an affordable apartment. At least two mayoral candidates said they want to ban those fees. 
• New Jersey officials are investigating a reported case of malaria in Morris County — and the possibility that it's the state's first locally acquired case of the mosquito-borne disease since 1991.
• About 3,000 New York City families are currently waitlisted for child care vouchers, despite a huge funding boost from both the city and state.
• 🚆 After a century of false promises, the MTA says construction is finally set to begin on the extension of the Second Avenue Subway into East Harlem. 
  • We want to answer your questions about the project, its history and what comes next. Submit your question here, and we might answer it in our On the Way transit newsletter.

• Mayor Adams, who has so far shown a willingness to cooperate with the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, demanded yesterday that ICE agents stop making arrests at local immigration courts.
• "[Andrew Cuomo] lost badly to the dangerous Mamdani in the primary, and Mamdani knows how to and will beat him again," warns a call going out from a pro-Adams Super PAC.
• Meet the Trump-supporting "memelord" who made some stuff for the Cuomo campaign.
• The Yankees hit a franchise record-tying nine home runs in their win over Tampa last night. 
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has added a tank top option to its list of sanctioned women's undergarments.
• A Pee-Wee Herman look-alike contest and broader Pee-Wee party is coming to Coney Island on Sunday.
• Stuffed bagels.