New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
The state Legislature continues its post-budget session in Albany this week -- including Monday there are just 17 days of session left, it ends June 21. There are other events to watch in Albany this week, see below for details.
In New York City, the City Council continues its hearings this week on Mayor Bill de Blasio's executive budget proposal. The Council and de Blasio must agree on a new city budget by the July 1 start of the new fiscal year. De Blasio has one public event Monday, on Staten Island, where he'll be making an announcement about the Staten Island South Shore Little League with Senator Charles Schumer, Borough President James Oddo and Council Member Joe Borelli. The mayor will then travel to Washington, D.C. for meetings with federal officials and will attend the Infrastructure Week Leadership Dinner, before returning to New York in the evening.
We also know that Mayor de Blasio will hold a town hall Tuesday night in Brooklyn with City Council Member David Greenfield.
As always, there's a great deal happening all over the city, with many events to be aware of - see our day-by-day rundown below.
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The run of the week in detail:
Monday
At the City Council on Monday, there will be executive budget hearings on:
- The Human Resources Administration at 10 a.m.
- Department of Homeless Services at 11:30 a.m.
- The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) at 1:30 p.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Monday.
At 9 a.m. Monday, Mayor de Blasio will be at the Larry De Young Memorial Field in Staten Island to make an announcement about the Staten Island South Shore Little League with Senator Charles Schumer, Borough President James Oddo and Council Member Joe Borelli.
At 9 a.m. Monday, the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Freelancers Union will hold a launch event for New York City’s “Freelance Isn’t Free Act,” giving freelancers “the legal right to contract, timely payment, and freedom from retaliation.” The launch event will consist of distribution of informational material at Fulton Center and other subway stations, and a press conference at LMHQ at 10 a.m. featuring DCA Commissioner Lorelei Salas, Freelancers Union Founder Sara Horowitz, Council Members Brad Lander and Rafael Espinal, and members of the union.
At 10 a.m. Monday, outside City Hall, Republican mayoral candidate Paul Massey and Rev. Michel Faulkner, Republican candidate for city comptroller, will announce their endorsements of each other.
At 11 a.m. Monday, Senator Catharine Young, Assembly Member Matthew Titone, and representatives of police departments, unions, and animal advocacy groups will hold a press conference on the fourth floor terrace of the Capitol in Albany to announce “Mitchell’s Law,” making it a Class E felony to injure a police dog or horse and making it a Class D felony to kill them. Also joining the press conference will be Mitchell, a Jamestown K-9 officer who “suffered life-threatening injuries during the apprehension of a murder suspect in November 2016.”
At 4 p.m. Monday, the City Council’s Progressive Caucus, Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus, Public Advocate Tish James, and Lunch 4 Learning will hold a rally on the steps of City Hall urging Mayor de Blasio “to honor his campaign promise to provide Universal Free School Lunch to all 1.1 million New York City public school students.”
At 4:30 p.m. Monday, the United Federation of Teachers will host an immigration forum at their Manhattan headquarters. Juan Gonzalez, formerly of the New York Daily News, will moderate a panel featuring Nisha Agarwal, Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs; Carimer Andujar, President of UndocuRutgers; Steven Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition; Council Member Carlos Menchaca, Chair of the Immigration Committee; Jose Luis Perez, Associate Legal Counsel for Latino Justice; and Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers.
At 5:30 p.m. Monday, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, in conjunction with the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls, will host a "She's the Boss" community forum at St. Francis College, discussing economic development and empowerment for black women. Also present will be Illinois Congresswoman Robin Kelly, and media mogul Yandy Smith-Harris.
At 6 p.m. Monday, the New York League of Conservation Voters will hold its Annual Spring Gala, with a keynote address by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
At 6 p.m. Monday, Riders Alliance will host a meeting for new members of Fair Fares at the Countee Cullen Memorial Library in Harlem.
At 7 p.m. Monday, the Four Freedoms Democratic Club will host a candidates’ night at the Church of the Holy Trinity on 88th between First & Second. Candidates who will attend include Scott Stringer, Gale Brewer, Council Member Ben Kallos, and the candidates for the open seat in Council District 4.
At 7:30 p.m., City Council Member Andrew Cohen, Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz, and Senator Jeff Klein will hold a discussion regarding the expansion of P.S. 19 at St. Barnabas School in the Bronx.
Tuesday
At the City Council on Tuesday, there will be executive budget hearings on:
- Education (expense) at 10 a.m.
- Education (capital) and the School Construction Authority at 1 p.m.
Also at the City Council on Tuesday: the Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises will meet at 9:30 a.m., the Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting, and Maritime Uses will meet at 11 a.m., and the Subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions, and Concessions will meet at 1 p.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Tuesday.
At 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, City Council Member Helen Rosenthal "will lead a rally...for residents concerned about a development proposed for 200 Amsterdam Avenue (at West 69th Street)."
At 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Capitol in Albany, "State Senator Liz Krueger, along with members of the Senate Democratic Conference and civic groups, will announce the introduction of an amendment to the State Constitution that would extend equal rights to every New Yorker regardless of gender, sexual orientation or identity, or physical or mental disability. The broadly inclusive language of the amendment surpasses the equal rights provisions of every other state in the nation, as well as the US Constitution. No state has explicitly granted equal rights to LGBT people or the disabled."
At 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Capitol in Albany, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie will hold a "press conference on the New York Health Act. He will be joined by members of the Assembly Majority and advocates." Speaker's Conference Room.
"The United Federation of Teachers to Host Press Conference with Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez" on Tuesday at 3:15 p.m. at the UFT's Brooklyn office.
At 6 p.m. Tuesday, the New York City Bar Association will host its “Annual Meeting of the Association.”
At 6 p.m. Tuesday, NYU’s Institute for Public Knowledge will host “Safe at Home? Broken Windows Policing and the Sanctuary City,” aiming to produce “clarity” on both issues, at 20 Cooper Square in Manhattan. Speakers will include Council Member Rory Lancman; Oscar Diaz-Jacuinde of ICE FREE NYC; and Dennis Flores, “El Grito de Sunset Park.”
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the New York League of Conservation Voters will host the “Climate, Jobs, and Justice Accountability Forum” at the Ethical Culture Society Concert Hall, for a “mass people’s interview” regarding those issues. Mayor de Blasio, Public Advocate Tish James, and Comptroller Scott Stringer are invited.
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, City Council Member Rafael Espinal and schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña will attend the District 32 Community Education Council Town Hall at P.S./I.S. 384.
At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Mayor de Blasio and City Council Member David Greenfield will host a town hall meeting at FDR High School in Brooklyn.
At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Public Advocate Tish James will host a “Talk to Tish” event at CUNY School of Law in Long Island City.
At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Brooklyn Young Democrats will host a candidates forum at BK9 for city council candidates in Central Brooklyn. The candidates from the 35th, 40th, 41st, and 45th council districts will attend.
Wednesday
At the City Council on Wednesday, there will be executive budget hearings on:
- The MTA at 10 a.m.
- Taxi & Limousine Commission at 11 a.m.
- Transportation at 11:45 a.m.
Also at the City Council on Wednesday: the Committee on Land Use will meet at 11 a.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Wednesday.
Starting at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, the Queens Chamber of Commerce will host its 2017 Business Expo at Citi Field.
At 9 a.m. Wednesday, Riders Alliance will hold an event outside the City Hall R train station inviting those who have jumped turnstiles, and their attorneys, to speak out in support of Fair Fares. Following this, they will attend the executive budget hearing of the City Council’s Transportation Committee at 10 a.m.
At 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, "Mayor de Blasio will participate in an armchair discussion on poverty with Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation."
Republican mayoral candidate Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis will speak at the Bronx Republican Party on Wednesday evening.
At 6 p.m. Wednesday, the Community Service Society will host “The Color Line in the 21st Century,” discussing the Poor People’s Campaign of 1968 and whether it can be “resurrected to advance economic and social justice in 2017.” CSS President David Jones will deliver opening remarks; following that, Juan Gonzalez, co-host of Democracy Now!, will moderate a panel consisting of the Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes Jr, Minister Emeritus of Riverside Church; Mark Winston Griffith, Executive Director of the Brooklyn Movement Center; and Marvin Holland, a candidate for City Council in CD9 and the Legislative and Political Director of TWU Local 100.
At 6 p.m. Wednesday, the Panel for Education Policy will hold their monthly meeting at M.S. 131 in Manhattan.
Starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday and continuing until 6:30 p.m. Thursday, the Economic Development Council and Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen will host “The Sharing Cities Summit” at Battery Gardens in Manhattan on Wednesday and New Lab in Brooklyn on Thursday, discussing “the impacts of the sharing economy” and to discuss how to “work together to shape its future.”
At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Queens Public Transit Committee will host a town hall featuring Republican mayoral candidate Paul Massey, focusing on “transportation and citywide issues.” The town hall will take place at the Knights of Columbus Hall in South Ozone Park.
Thursday
At the City Council on Thursday, there will be executive budget hearings on:
- NYCHA at 10 a.m.
- Information and Technology and Telecommunication at noon
- Parks and Recreation at 1 p.m.
Also at the City Council on Thursday: the Committee on Land Use will meet at 11 a.m.
At 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Riders Alliance will hold a rally demanding Governor Cuomo improve bus service in front of the Children’s Place in Washington Heights.
At 4 p.m. Thursday, the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute will host Andy Fisher, a professor at Portland State University, to discuss his new book “Big Hunger: The Unholy Alliance Between Corporate America and Anti-Hunger Groups.”
At 6 p.m. Thursday, Council Member Laurie Cumbo will give a State of the District speech for the 35th council district at the Ingersoll Community Center in Downtown Brooklyn.
At 6 p.m. Thursday, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Senator Liz Krueger, and Council Member Ben Kallos will hold a tenants' rights forum at the Julia Richman Education Complex on the Upper East Side.
At 6 p.m. Thursday, the New York City Economic Development Corporation and NYClimate will hold a workshop regarding the Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency Project at St. Paul’s Chapel of Trinity Church.
At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, City & State will host the reception for the Queens iteration of their “Borough Series” at Central, a bar in the borough. Borough President Melinda Katz will deliver the keynote address.
At 7 p.m. Thursday, Public Advocate Tish James will host a “Talk to Tish” event regarding LGBTQ issues at the LGBT Center in the West Village.
Friday and the weekend
At the City Council on Friday, there will be executive budget hearings on:
- Libraries at 11 a.m.
- Cultural Affairs at 12:30 p.m.
At 8:30 a.m. Friday, the Manhattan Institute will host “Assessing the Obama Era,” discussing the impact of Obama-era regulation of the financial industry.
At noon Friday, City & State and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr will host a stickball tournament for elected officials at Joyce Kilmer Park in the Bronx, as part of Bronx Week’s “Health Day.” Players will include Diaz, Council Members Costa Constantinides, Rafael Salamanca, Corey Johnson, Mark Levine, Jumaane Williams, and Dan Garodnick, and Assembly Members Marcos Crespo and Michael Benedetto.
At 9 a.m. Saturday, Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Council Member Debi Rose will host a Key to the City resource event at Port Richmond High School on Staten Island.
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Have events or topics for us to include in an upcoming Week Ahead in New York Politics? E-mail Gotham Gazette executive editor Ben Max any time: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (please use "For Week Ahead" as email subject).
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by Ben Brachfeld and Ben Max
@GothamGazette
