Have you all seen this:

City May Seek Permit and Insurance for Many Kinds of Public Photography (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/29/nyregion/29camera.html?ei=5090&en=71135caff6fefe6a&ex=1340769600&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=print)

There's already another thread on this.

http://www.apug.org/forums/forum49/40461-article-new-york-may-require-photography-permits.html

One thread is plenty on this topic.