The drumbeat about New York's high cost of living gets loudest over the need for more housing, increasing wages or lowering taxes.

It rarely touches on making a change to a 140-year-old state law.

New York State just might be able to make a dent in our high costs if elected officials had the courage to tackle the Scaffold Law.

The law requires property owners, contractors and landlords to have "absolute liability" for any construction site injury that's gravity related, including a worker's fall or an object that falls and hits someone. No matter what the circumstance, no matter who's at fault, in New York, the property owner or contractor is 100% liable. No defense can be made in court.

That increases insurance premiums, which in turn pushes up the cost of public projects like school

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