New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
Mayor Bill de Blasio is in the Bronx this week for the second installment of “City Hall in Your Borough.” He was on Staten Island previously for a week of events, constituent office hours, and meetings. See below for his Monday schedule of events. We know of two other events thus far: the de Blasio administration is holding constituent hours and a resource fair on Tuesday morning and a town hall meeting Wednesday night. He's also said to be attending his first Yankees game since becoming Mayor at some point this week (the team is at home all week, including Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night games, and a Thursday 1 p.m. game).
Meanwhile, the state Legislature’s legislative session continues to wind down. There are three more session days this week. After this week, there will be just 11 more, all in June.
The City Council concludes its executive budget hearings this week. There are also a variety of other Council committee hearings and a full Council session where new bills will be introduced and others already voted through committee will be voted through the full Council.
Tuesday is a special Election Day! There are two races, one for state Assembly and one for state Senate, on the ballot. See below for details.
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
The de Blasio administration starts it's City Hall in Your Borough week in the Bronx on Monday. The following is from the mayor's office:
--"In the morning, Mayor de Blasio will tour the Hunts Point Cooperative Market and meet with business owners. The tour is closed press. Following the tour, the Mayor will deliver brief remarks [at 7:30 a.m.]. This portion of the event is open press, and there will be no Q-and-A."
--"Later, the Mayor will host a cabinet meeting with senior staff in the Bronx. This meeting will be closed press. Prior to the meeting, the Mayor will deliver remarks and hold a brief photo spray [at 10 a.m.]. This photo spray is open press. There will be no Q-and-A."
--"After, the Mayor will tour EMS Station 17 and make an announcement about EMS resources. This [noon] event is open press. There will be no Q-and-A."
--"In the afternoon, the Mayor and Police Commissioner O’Neill will hold a photo spray and deliver brief remarks prior to conducting their weekly meeting in the Bronx. This meeting is closed press. The [3:30 p.m.] photo spray is open press. There will be no Q-and-A."
--"In the evening, the Mayor will appear live on NY1’s Road to City Hall", which airs in the 7 and 10 p.m. hours
At the City Council on Monday, there will be executive budget hearings on the NYPD at 10 a.m. and the District Attorneys and Special Narcotics Prosecutor at 12:30 p.m.
Also at the City Council on Monday
--The Committee on Civil Service and Labor will meet at 10:30 a.m. to discuss proposed laws relating to fair work conditions for fast food and retail workers, as well as resolutions affirming the right to collectively bargain and “urging Congress to vote against proposed ‘right-to-work’ legislation.”
--The Committee on Youth Services will meet at noon to discuss a proposed law relating to a “disconnected youth workforce development program.”
--The Committee on Technology will meet at 1:30 p.m. to discuss a proposed law relating to “requiring direct telephone access to 911 service.”
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Monday in Albany.
At the State Legislature on Monday, the Senate Standing Committee on Banks and the Assembly Standing Committees on Banks, Consumer Affairs and Protection, and Small Business will meet in Albany at 10 a.m. “to gain insight on the online lending industry and determine whether legislative action is necessary to protect consumers and small businesses from predatory lending practices.”
The New York State Board of Regents will hold a public hearing on Monday regarding a proposal to make Glasgow Caledonian University a New York State degree-granting institution.
At 8:30 a.m. Monday, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer will host an information session regarding funding for the New York City Regional Economic Development Council at the Harlem State Office Building, in conjunction with the REDC, the Empire State Development Corporation, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, and NYC Innovation Collectives.
At 10 a.m. Monday, New York City elected officials and activists will gather on the steps of City Hall for a press conference and to release a letter “urging Mayor de Blasio to reform the crushing commercial rent tax.” The rally will be led by City Council Member Dan Garodnick and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer.
At 10 a.m. Monday, Assembly Members Didi Barrett, Aileen Gunther, Michael Cusick, and Melissa Miller will deliver opening remarks at the Assembly’s annual “Legislative Disability Awareness Day,” putting a spotlight on individuals with disabilities as well as disability advocates. Speaker Carl Heastie and Minority Leader Brian Kolb will speak at 11:45.
On Monday at 11:30 a.m. City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito will speak at "#DefendPR Parade Rally" at 32 BJ SEIU Union Headquarters. At 7 p.m. Mark-Viverito will speak at the Participatory Budgeting NYC Celebration at El Museo del Barrio.
On Monday at 12:30 p.m., Comptroller Scott Stringer will deliver remarks at Impacto Latin News Latino Leaders Forum Luncheon.
On Monday at 1 p.m. in Queens, City Council "Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer will join veterans and community members to announce that $750,000 from the FY18 budget will be allocated to revitalize Doughboy Park in Woodside, which will include work to the memorial statue and plaza."
At 6:30 p.m. Monday, #GetOrganizedBK will hold a full group meeting at Congregation Beth Elohim in Park Slope, featuring a panel discussing the Trump administration’s attacks on reproductive rights and how to address them in the future. Public Advocate Tish James will moderate the panel; panelists will include Susannah Pasquantonio, Chief of Staff for Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon; Dr. Linda Pine, the Medical Director for the Reproductive Health Access Project; and Adjoa Tetteh, a member of Planned Parenthood NYC’s Board of Directors.
On Monday evening, mayoral candidate Paul Massey will attend and give remarks at the Metropolitan Republican Club's 115th Annual Dinner.
Tuesday
On Tuesday, special elections will be held to fill the vacant seats in the Ninth Assembly District, vacated by the resignation of Joseph Saladino, and the 30th State Senate District, vacated by the resignation of Bill Perkins.Democrat Brian Benjamin is expected to easily win the Harlem State Senate seat.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Bronx County Building, “Mayor Bill de Blasio and Bronx Borough President Ruben Díaz, Jr. will host a City Resource Fair during City Hall in Your Borough week. Top representatives from City Hall, the Department of Transportation, Department of Finance, NYPD, Economic Development Corporation, Department of Education, Department of Health, Small Business Services, Department of Parks and Recreation, among others, will be available to answer Bronx residents’ questions.”
Mayor de Blasio's schedule for Tuesday includes appearing at the resource fair at 10:30 a.m.; for "Bronx constituent office hours"; at 12:30 p.m. "the Mayor will visit small businesses along Arthur Avenue in the Bronx"; and at 5 p.m. "the Mayor and Council Member Vacca will attend at the Northeast Bronx Senior Center Senior Gala."
At the City Council on Tuesday
--The Committee on Health will meet at 10 a.m. to discuss a proposed law relating to “requiring mobile food vendors to post letter grades received for sanitary inspections.”
--The Committee on Housing and Buildings will meet at 1 p.m. to discuss a proposed law relating to “minimum temperatures required to be maintained in dwellings.”
--The Committee on Governmental Operations will meet at 1:30 p.m. to discuss several proposed laws relating to the board of standards and appeals.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Tuesday in Albany.
At the State Legislature on Tuesday, the Senate and Assembly Standing Committees on Children and Families and the Task Force on Women’s Issues will meet in Albany at 10:30 a.m. “to examine the barriers to accessing quality child day care and how such lack of access relates to a variety of issues including child development, family stability and the economy.”
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics will meet on Tuesday in Albany.
At 7 a.m. Tuesday, "AARP New York members will rally outside Gracie Mansion, calling on Mayor de Blasio to ensure funding of Department for the Aging (DFTA) keeps pace with the city’s growing senior population. DFTA programs help New Yorkers age in their own homes – rather than in much costlier, taxpayer-funded institutional settings such as nursing homes."
Starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday, the City Council Progressive Caucus will host a “Resistance and Progress” policy convening to discuss issues such as the sanctuary city debate, affordable housing, public education, criminal justice, climate change, and transportation.
On Tuesday at 11 a.m., "First Lady Chirlane McCray will visit Jericho Project's Kingsbridge Terrace and meet with veterans from its veterans community, which provides housing and services."
At noon Tuesday, Governor Cuomo will make an announcement at the CUNY Graduate Center in Manhattan.
At 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez will host the 2017 “Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration” at Geraldo’s Cafe at Brooklyn Law School. Honorees include Louie Liu, Chairman of the Brooklyn Asian Civilian Observation Patrol, and Steven Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition. The “Judicial Award” will be presented to New York Supreme Court Justice Randall T. Eng.
On Tuesday, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito will speak at Ranaqua Park Groundbreaking Ceremony with Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver & Bronx Parks Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa; speak at the City Council’s Jewish Heritage Event at City Hall; and speak at the Children’s Health Fund Gala.
On Tuesday at 1 p.m. Republican mayoral candidate Paul Massey will deliver brief remarks on public safety and hold a media availability, at Barretto Point Park overlooking Rikers Island.
At 5 p.m. Tuesday, Civic Hall will hold the “Finalist Expo & Winner Award Ceremony” for the 2017 BigApps competition.
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation will hold a public meeting “to provide an update on the ongoing remediation efforts underway at the Former Paragon Oil Company site and the Apollo Street Creek Parcels sites.”
Wednesday
The full City Council will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. This will be prefaced by the usual press conference led by Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. Also at the City Council on Wednesday: the Finance Committee will meet at 10 a.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Wednesday in Albany.
The state Senate Joint Task Force on Heroin and Opioid addiction will meet at 3 p.m. at Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown to “examine the issues facing communities in the wake of increased heroin abuse.”
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, the City Planning Commission will hold a public meeting at 22 Reade Street.
At 11 a.m. Monday, City Council members, anti-hunger advocates, and emergency food providers will gather at the steps of City Hall to demand that Mayor de Blasio fully fund the Emergency Food Assistance Program. The rally is being led by City Council Member Steve Levin.
At 6 p.m. Wednesday, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Senator Liz Krueger will hold a “State of the Resistance” discussion at the CUNY Graduate Center regarding the role of state AGs in the Trump resistance and Schneiderman’s role in particular. City Council Member Dan Garodnick will give opening remarks.
At 7 p.m. Wednesday at Adlai E. Stevenson High School in the Bronx, “as part of City Hall in Your Borough week, Mayor Bill de Blasio will host a town hall with residents of the 18th Council District, represented by Council Member Annabel Palma in addition to Bronx Borough President Ruben Díaz, Jr., U.S. Representative José Serrano, State Senator Ruben Díaz, Sr. and State Assembly Member Luis Sepúlveda....Co-sponsors for the town hall include Community Board 9, the 43rd Precinct Council, Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club and Phipps Neighborhoods.”
At 7 p.m. Wednesday, City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley will hold an information session about the Penelope Ave Sewer Project at PS 128.
Thursday
At the City Council on Thursday, there will be the final executive budget hearing, featuring:
--The Office of Management and Budget at 10 a.m.
--The Comptroller at noon
--The Independent Budget Office at 12:30 p.m.
On Thursday, former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and “Making a Murderer” co-creator Laura Ricciardi will deliver keynote addresses at the 2017 commencement ceremony for New York Law School.
At 8 a.m. Thursday, City & State will host “State of New York Women.” Influential women in New York politics will speak about how they “rose through the ranks, how they established a work-life balance, and the impact of solutions and innovation to the work-in-progress.” Keynotes will be delivered by Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen and Department of Financial Services Superintendent Maria Vullo. Other speakers include Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul; Assemblymembers Shelley Mayer, Deborah Glick, and Rodneyse Bichotte; City Council Member Helen Rosenthal; and New York City Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg, among others.
At 11 a.m. Thursday, Riders Alliance will hold a rally at Marci Triangle in Brooklyn “for better buses during the L train shutdown.”
At 6 p.m. Thursday, the New York City Bar Association will host “Self Driving Cars: Legal Impact and Issues.” Ydanis Rodriguez, chair of the City Council’s Transportation Committee, will join a panel of lawyers and academics to discuss “the self-driving car technology, challenges to the automotive industry, its legal ramifications and potential impact on the public.”
Friday and the weekend
Mayor Bill de Blasio may make his weekly appearance on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show on Friday morning.
Otherwise, no other events on our radar for Memorial Day weekend. We’ll bring you the next Week Ahead on the night of Monday, May 29 because of the holiday weekend.
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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
