New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
We’re watching this week for the next major step in the potential deal among city, NYCHA, and federal officials for a consent decree related to public housing that has to be presented to a federal judge who rejected an earlier version. That is due Friday.
It will be another busy week at the City Council and with the MTA as both bodies head toward wrapping up their work for the year. The City Council will hold a number of hearings this week, as well as a full-body Stated Meeting where new bills are introduced and bills that have passed committee are voted on by the full Council. Two highlights hearings of the week will be an oversight hearing on the deal to bring Amazon to Queens and a hearing on a package of bills aimed at fighting tenant harassment -- see details below.
The MTA continues its public hearings around a planned toll and fare hike, and the MTA Board will meet again as it works on its 2019 budget -- 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
"On Monday, Mayor de Blasio will deliver remarks at the Civilian Complaint Review Board’s 25th Anniversary Ceremony," at 1 p.m. at City Hall.
At the City Council on Monday:
--The Committee on For-Hire Vehicles will meet at 10 a.m. for an oversight hearing regarding TLC’s Critical Driver and Persistent Violator programs, and to discuss laws to repeal the Critical Driver program and amend the Persistent Violator program.
--The Committee on Public Safety will meet at 1 p.m. for an oversight hearing regarding neighborhood policing.
On Monday and Tuesday, the New York State Board of Regents will meet.
At 5:50 a.m. Monday, schools Chancellor Richard Carranza will appear on Ebro in the Morning on HOT 97 radio.
At 11 a.m. Monday, “Housing Justice For All” and several other advocacy groups will rally at the City Hall steps to call for stronger tenant protections, closing “the loopholes driving up rents in NYC,” and to “remove geographic restrictions from the Emergency Tenant Protection Act.”
At City Hall at 4:30 p.m. Monday, "First Lady Chirlane McCray will join the Commission on Gender Equity (CGE) and the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender Based Violence at a vigil to mark the end of 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence."
At 5 p.m. Monday, the MTA will hold a public hearing on proposed fare and toll hikes at Long Island University’s Kumble Theater in Fort Greene. Before the hearing, at 4 p.m., the “Fix The Subway Coalition” will rally outside the theater to demand that no fare hike take effect, and instead that congestion pricing be included in the next state budget, among other measures to finance the MTA.
At 6 p.m. Monday, the 2019 Charter Revision Commission will hold a public meeting at City Hall.
At 6 p.m. Monday, the CUNY Tech Meetup will hold its fourth annual end of year gathering, sponsored by Microsoft Cities and its New York City-based director, John Paul Farmer, and hosted by partner institution John Jay College. "We'll explore technology's role in cities to address civic challenges. We’ll feature a lineup of dynamic speakers using and building technology solutions to improve citizen-centered city life." Speakers will include Farmer, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, and several others.
On Monday evening, Mayor de Blasio and Comptroller Scott Stringer will be among those to deliver remarks at the Co-op City 50th Anniversary Gala in the Bronx.
And at 9 p.m., Stringer will deliver remarks at the West Side Federation of Neighborhood and Block Associations Holiday Party.
Tuesday
"On Tuesday, Mayor de Blasio and First Lady McCray will deliver remarks at the Gracie Mansion Conservancy Gala. This event is closed press."
The City Council will hold a Stated Meeting on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. City Council Speaker Corey Johnson is expected to host the usual pre-Stated press conference at 12:30 p.m.
At the State Legislature on Tuesday:
--The Assembly Standing Committee on Racing and Wagering will meet at 10 a.m. in Albany for an oversight hearing on the State Gaming Commission’s 2018-19 budget “and its regulation of the gaming industry in New York State.”
--The Assembly Standing Committees on Children & Families and Mental Health will meet jointly at 11 a.m. in Albany for a public hearing regarding “access to mental health services in the juvenile justice system.”
--The Assembly Standing Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse will meet at 11 a.m. at 250 Broadway in Manhattan for a public hearing regarding “adequacy of funding for addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery services.”
On Tuesday, city public school students will rally on the City Hall steps to demand equity in school sports. They will be joined by City Council Member Antonio Reynoso, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, and the Fair Play Coalition.
At 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson will deliver remarks at Holiday Toy Donation Event with the Uniformed Fire Officers Association at FDNY Engine 1/Ladder 24 in Manhattan. At 7 p.m., Johnson will deliver remarks at the Human Services Council Benefit.
At 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, "Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul Tours Irving Tissue with State and Local Officials" in Fort Edward. At 1:15 p.m., "Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul Visits National Purple Heart Hall of Honor" in New Windsor.
At 2 p.m. Tuesday, OATH Commissioner Fidel Del Valle, City Council Member Peter Koo, and Queens Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Grech will host a “Building Bridges for Small Businesses” symposium at the Flushing branch of the Queens Library. Del Valle will give advice on how small businesses can challenge agency summonses through OATH.
At 5 p.m. Tuesday, the MTA will hold a public hearing on proposed fare and toll hikes at York College’s Milton G. Bassin Performing Arts Center in Jamaica, Queens.
At 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office will host a meeting at the Office of Assemblymember Tremaine Wright in Bedford-Stuyvesant, where individuals with previous misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions “will be able to meet with a defense lawyer at no cost and fill out a motion asking to erase that conviction.”
At 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, schools Chancellor Richard Carranza will attend the "Sloan Awards for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics and delivers brief remarks" at The Cooper Union.
Wednesday
At the City Council on Wednesday:
--The Committee on Economic Development will meet at 10 a.m. for an oversight hearing on Amazon HQ2, specifically “exposing the closed-door process.”
--The Committee on Women will meet at 10 a.m. for an oversight hearing regarding “female genital mutilation/cutting and health care for women in New York City.”
--The Committees on Mental Health and Civil & Human Rights will meet jointly at 10 a.m. for an oversight hearing regarding the “negative mental health consequences of discrimination and bias incidents.”
--The Committee on Justice System will meet at 1 p.m. for an oversight hearing regarding “the future of bail.”
--The Committee on Parks and Recreation will meet at 1 p.m. for an oversight hearing regarding “the state of the city’s recreation centers.”
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, the Assembly Standing Committee on Veterans and the Subcommittee on Women Veterans will meet jointly in Albany for a public hearing regarding “veterans employment programs.”
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, the MTA will hold a board meeting.
At 4 p.m. Wednesday, the Civilian Complaint Review Board will meet at 100 Church Street.
This week’s Max & Murphy on WBAI radio will air at 5 p.m. on 99.5FM and wbai.org -- the episode will be part of the Gotham Gazette-City Limits Agenda 2019 project’s week focused on health and will include an interview with State Senator Gustavo Rivera, the Senate’s lead sponsor of the New York Health Act, which is the state’s single-payer health care bill, and Bill Hammond of the Empire Center, who is perhaps the leading critic of the New York Health Act and has written extensively on the bill and related issues.
Thursday
At the City Council on Thursday:
--The Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises will meet at 9:30 a.m.
--The Committees on Higher Education and Veterans will meet jointly at 10 a.m. for an oversight hearing regarding “veterans and access to higher education.”
--The Committee on Housing and Buildings will meet at 10:30 a.m. to discuss several proposed laws relating to tenant protections.
--The Subcommittee on Landmarks will meet at noon.
--The Committee on Technology will meet at 1 p.m. to discuss several proposed laws related to cybersecurity, including one to create an “Office of Cyber Command.”
--The Subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions, and Concessions will meet at 2 p.m.
At 9 a.m. Thursday, City & State will host the “Ethics & Accountability Summit” at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. Speakers, including politicians, government officials, attorneys, and good government advocates, will “address the ethical challenges facing New York’s our public institutions.” Incoming City Investigations Commissioner Margaret Garnett will deliver keynote remarks. There will be several panels, including one on sexual harassment in state government and the next steps for laws passed earlier this year and one on government ethics and reform, which will be moderated by Gotham Gazette’s Ben Max.
At 10 a.m. Thursday, the Campaign Finance Board will meet at 100 Church Street.
The latest episode of the What’s The [Data] Point? podcast will be published Thursday afternoon and feature a conversation with the Manhattan Institute’s Stephen Eide on New York’s inpatient mental healthcare system and Eide’s recently published report on “deinstitutionalization in New York.”
At 5:30 p.m. Thursday, the MTA will hold a public hearing on proposed fare and toll hikes at the Palisades Mall Adler Community Room.
At 6 p.m. Thursday, Arena will host a forum for candidates for Public Advocate at Wagner College on Staten Island. Attending candidates will be former City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, City Council Members Jumaane Williams and Rafael Espinal, Assemblymembers Mike Blake and Dan O’Donnell, attorney Dawn Smalls, and activists Nomiki Konst, Theo Chino, Ifeome Ike, and Ben Yee.
On Thursday at 6 p.m. in Brooklyn, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson and City Council Member Laurie Cumbo will co-host a town hall for Cumbo's constituents in the 35th Council District, at Medgar Evers College Prep School.
Friday and the weekend
Mayor Bill de Blasio may make his weekly appearance on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show at 10 a.m. Friday.
At noon Friday, the New York State Board of Elections will hold a commissioners’ meeting in Albany.
At 6:30 p.m. Friday, VocalNY and the FreeNY Campaign will host “Bringing our People Home: A National Conversation on Bail Reform” at St. Francis College in Brooklyn Heights. Activists from around the country will discuss measures to end mass incarceration. Speakers will include Rena Karefa-Johnson of FWD.US, Ivette Alé of JusticeLA, Sharlyn Grace of the Chicago Community Bond Fund, Reuben Jones of JustLeadershipUSA, and leaders of the FreeNY campaign.
At 10 a.m. Saturday, the Brooklyn DA’s office will host a meeting at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Flatbush, where individuals with previous misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions “will be able to meet with a defense lawyer at no cost and fill out a motion asking to erase that conviction.”
At 7 p.m. Saturday, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will join NPR’s Nina Totenberg for a discussion of her tenure on the Court. The event will take place at the New York Academy of Medicine on the Upper East Side.
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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