Gov. Andrew Cuomo at a pro-charter school rally (Tim Roske/AP)

A proposal, which would provide $300 million in state tax credits to those who donate to public schools or to scholarship funds that help poor and middle class students attend private schools, that seemingly died during budget negotiations in March now appears to have a second chance to become law as the Albany legislative session nears an end. A controversial bill from the start, news of its resurrection comes to the delight of some and to the dismay of others.

The education tax credit legislation is supported by Senate Republicans and over 90 Assembly members, and has been pushed by the New York State Catholic Conference and Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Dolan has said the measure will help reduce class sizes in public schools while keeping parochial schools open by allowing more students to attend them.

There are currently two versions of the bill: the Assembly version sponsored by Assemblyman Michael Cusick that has not come to a vote in the chamber and the Senate version sponsored by Sen. Martin Golden that has passed the Senate twice but would also apply the tax credit to donations to charter schools.

A compromise bill would be structured whereby a two week period of eligibility for the tax credit is created. Opponents of the bill say that the rich would monopolize the $300 million in available tax credits with major gifts before most other people had the chance to make donations. They insist the legislation is being pushed by conservative think tank ALEC and hedge fund billionaires who want more and better tax breaks. Both groups are proponents of charter schools and are generally anti-union.

"This is about cutting their income tax - it cuts it dollar for dollar and it will go straight to the hedge fund managers in the first two weeks it is available. The Catholic Conference is foolhardy if they think this will solve the parochial school problem," said Barbara Bartoletti of the League of Women Voters. Bartoletti says passing the legislation would be a major step to "the privatization of the education system."

The bill enjoys some labor support, from the Police Benevolent Association, for example, but the New York State United Teachers Union is vehemently opposed and have called it an "attack on public schools."

Opponents of the tax credit argue that it allows for $300 million headed for public coffers to be diverted into private hands.

Billy Easton of the Alliance for Quality Education, a critic of the bill, says that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has taken up several policy positions that give short shrift to public schools while benefiting charter schools that are backed by his largest donors.

Easton explains that there "were four fronts" in education during the budget battle this year - public school advocates, private school advocates, charter advocates and prekindergarten advocates.

Mayor Bill de Blasio's push for pre-k funding was a game changer on the budget battlefield. Easton says Gov. Andrew Cuomo went out of his way to support charter programs to attack de Blasio and punish him for demanding he be allowed to raise city taxes to fund pre-k. Suddenly Cuomo was rallying with charter interests and promising them protection as de Blasio was rallying for pre-k funding. In the end de Blasio got pre-k funding without a tax but his power over city charter schools was undermined by new state law. Others have connected Cuomo's support for charter schools to some of the governor's largest donors.

Jim Cultrara of the Catholic Conference of New York agrees. "I think had the mayor not pulled the rug out on everything charters wouldn't have had the focus they had from the governor," he said, referring to de Blasio's rolling back of three Success Academy schools and the city DOE's shift of more than $200 million earmarked for charter capital spending. Cultrara says the Catholic Conference had assurances that the Cuomo administration and legislators supported the tax credit bill and were shocked to see Cuomo abandon the issue in favor of his charter school crusade.

But, it isn't clear to everyone that Cuomo supports the tax credit even now.

Easton says Cuomo's support of the bill is obvious because he has been "aligned with the most conservative education elements across the nation." He notes that Cuomo has not complied with the Campaign For Fiscal Equity lawsuit where a judge ruled that the state had been underfunding the poorest school districts and ordered the state to provide $2 billion more funding annually to New York City schools. In fact, Easton says Cuomo has gutted the ruling by instituting education spending caps.

Bartoletti, on the other hand, says she has been assured by the governor's office that Cuomo thinks the bill is "bad policy."

Cuomo's office did not return inquiries about whether the governor supports the measure.

But both Easton and Bartoletti are concerned that the bill has been brought back to life in end-of-session negotiations sparked by Cuomo's new focus on campaign finance reform and desire to placate the Working Families Party.

A number of legislators say the bill is in play again in renewed negotiations over campaign finance and other end-of-session bills.

"There is still a lot of concern the education tax credit could still come up before the end of session," said Easton. "The governor is clearly concerned about his progressive bona fides but one place he can't make a quick change is on education - there's nothing he can do on that in the short term."

It is thought that Sens. Simcha Felder and Marty Golden both badly need the bill to pass because their constituencies are extremely supportive of it, both could face substantial electoral challenges, and both caucus with Senate Republicans. Neither returned call for comment. Republican Senate Spokesperson Scott Reif did comment, saying, "The Education Investment Tax Credit continues to be one of Senator [Dean] Skelos' priorities for the remainder of the legislative session."

While opponents fear the bill is close to becoming law, proponents of the legislation appear unsure the bill has a chance this session.

Cultrara said he thinks the bill will go nowhere without Cuomo's direct intervention. "The legislature is not likely to pick up the issue without a clear indication from the governor that he backs its enactment."

Cultrara says that the Catholic Conference is particularly dismayed by Cuomo's lack of action on the issue. "The anger is palpable. The budget was healthy enough for this kind of credit and to have another issue take precedence is very disheartening. The Governor acknowledged the impact this would have on Catholic schools, so to see him go out of his way for charters and ignore our issue leaves us scratching our heads."

***
by David King, Albany Editor, Gotham Gazette
@DavidHowardKing

Gov. Andrew Cuomo (governor's office on flickr)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo began efforts this month to quiet his critics on the left, including election-reform activist Jonathan Soros, by coming up with a plan for larger campaign finance reform - if not actually get it passed. Cuomo met with good government groups and a Working Families Party (WFP) official last week and discussions between good government groups, Cuomo, and state legislators will continue this week. Cuomo has been hit hard of late by the WFP, advocacy groups like Citizen Action, and the Daily Kos for not forcing expansive public campaign financing as an issue in the state budget, when he had the most leverage, and for disbanding the corruption-investigating Moreland Commission.

It took only a few weeks after the budget deal for Cuomo to change his stance that state senate Republicans were blocking all attempts at reform and that he as a governor shouldn't force legislators to vote for something they don't support. "Well I should force them to do what they don't want to do," Cuomo had sarcastically said to reporters on April 24. "You know, that's not really the role of a governor, that's not really possible at the end of the day. Public finance, it's a close vote, but we don't have the votes."

It was a hard sell to good government groups and progressive media because Cuomo has previously been able to pressure legislators to act even when they said they had vowed not to, such as votes for gun control and same-sex marriage - even when it hurt their chances of reelection.

Last week Cuomo's tune changed drastically: "This cannot wait another year," he wrote in an op-ed for The Huffington Post, adding, "Hopefully I will not need to campaign on public finance because it will be a reality. But to end the session without the Senate Majority Coalition agreeing to public finance would be a true failure and a lost opportunity."

Cuomo, a master of the state's current campaign finance system, has a war chest of over $33 million. 

So what changed the governor's mind? According to a number of sources Cuomo was moved to action by a Siena Poll that showed his 58-28 head-to-head lead reduced to 39-24-24 if the WFP backed its own candidate. Cuomo wants to win relection by the widest margin possible to position himself as a national force and his campaign chest might not be able to overcome the hurt feelings of his base. 

Over the last two weeks the Cuomo administration has faced quite a bit of fire: reports about its lack of transparency, with news of aides conducting government business via personal e-mail accounts and Blackberry messenger so that their communications won't be subject to FOIL; questions about its involvement in the Bridgegate scandal; blistering editorials from The New York Times and other major news outlets about its decision to scrap the Moreland Commission; and perhaps most strikingly, having Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, openly question Cumomo's decision to shutter Moreland and then subpoena the commission's cell phones, records and communications (Bharara also issued subpoenas to The Joint Commission on Public Ethics, Cuomo's other often criticized ethics watchdog).

Papers also lambasted Cuomo for what was perceived as a hyper-political move in the budget to include some form of public campaign finance that established a pilot system for the comptroller's race for one year. Cuomo is known to have a rocky relationship with incumbent Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

Earlier last month, former and current members of the Cuomo administration began a stealth campaign, doggedly trying to tip off reporters and members of good government groups to issues they have with the Astorino campaign in hopes of producing damning stories and ethics complaints. Since then the state Democratic party has taken most of the public measures to attack Astorino while Cuomo's emissaries have made the rounds at political club events trying to assuage the more liberal members of the party.

Cuomo may be able to tack left and thus right the ship and garner national attention if he were to enact a campaign finance system. Achieving such reform is all-the-more likely because IDC head Sen. Jeff Klein has been facing his own deluge of criticism from activists and his new primary challenger, Oliver Koppell, for failing to deliver on big ticket progressive items. Republicans may not be able to risk losing their alliance with Klein and have reportedly begun considering different campaign finance reform measures.

One proposal that has been floated would phase in public financing of campaigns in races without incumbents, another plan would offer different levels of funding depending on the region. A number of senate Democrats remain skeptical and say they won't support a watered-down plan. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver issued a statement saying he was "encouraged by Cuomo's commitment" to the issue, but added, "We need a strong campaign finance law that lessens the influence of big money on our elections and levels the playing field for all New Yorkers who want to compete for public office, and we need to enact such a law to take effect sooner rather than later - 2020 would be too late."

A number of good government group members indicated that they will not buy in to a measure that is "half a loaf" and delivers Cuomo a political victory without serious reform.

***
by David King, Albany editor, Gotham Gazette
@DavidHowardKing

Council Member Ben Kallos (center) is a sponsor, (William Alatriste)

Filing a request under the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) or simply checking the status of a request, could get easier if a new bill being introduced this week to the New York City Council becomes law. 

On Wednesday, May 14, City Council Member Ben Kallos will introduce a bill to require a centralized, public, online FOIL system. If it passes the Council and is signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, the measure would bring greater transparency as well as accountability to what is currently a very opaque and often frustrating process. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, a long-time open data and transparency advocate, is a co-sponsor on the bill.

"What this hopes to correct is the fact that certain agencies are more responsive than others and it will hopefully provide uniformity," Kallos, who is chair of the council's government operations committee, said by phone May 9. "Certain FOIL requesters tend to get preferential treatment over others. This would provide a fair playing ground for all."

FOIL requests can be filed by anyone, but are often filed by journalists or advocates trying to obtain unpublished information from government agencies such as emails surrounding a particular event, politicians' schedules, or statistical records.

Currently, if someone wants to request information from the City, they send the request (which can be sent via email or regular mail, or faxed) to each relevant individual agency. Larger agencies, like the NYPD, often employ a FOIL officer who handles requests while smaller agencies, like the Mayor's Office of Veterans Affairs, tend to respond to requests through staff members with other responsibilities.

New York City does not currently have a method to track exactly how many FOIL requests city agencies receive because some agencies simply do not keep a record. There is also no centralized or public method to track how long processing FOIL requests takes, to inform people who is handling the request, and how long until the request will be answered.

Many of these issues were brought up by then-Public Advocate Bill de Blasio in an April 2013 report, "Breaking Through Bureaucracy." The report, which took two years to compile, found that 10 percent of FOIL requests are simply ignored. The NYPD, who has a reputation for being one of the least transparent agencies in the City, received an "F" from de Blasio along with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). Other than media stories expressing outrage over the current state of the FOIL system, there is no data-driven, public mechanism to hold city agencies accountable for fulfilling FOIL requests.

"The foil system as we know it in New York City is a bit of a mystery. It is a black box," John Kaehny, executive director of the good government organization Reinvent Albany, said by phone May 9. "The irony is that this is the single most important transparency tool the public has, and yet the process itself is completely opaque."

Creating an online portal could solve many of the transparency issues that plague the current system. Through what the bill calls "Open FOIL," requests would be sent to one centralized website, ending the time spent tracking down the correct email or physical address for a particular agency. Requests would be entered electronically and anyone would be able to see who is requesting what information from which agency.

Each time a request moves along in the process, progress will be tracked and the system will notify the sender. Once the FOIL request is filled, the information requested would not only be emailed to the person who sent the request, but also published on the portal so anyone could access the information.

"We are not changing FOIL per say, but we are making it more transparent," Brewer said by phone May 9. "FOIL is the best way to make people aware of what is being asked for and there is no better way than to put it up on the web"

She added the system would require no additional work for staff processing FOIL requests.

Kaehny said it would not only ensure transparency, but fairness. If an agency was consistently choosing to answer requests from more influential groups and not smaller organizations, or was not answering a FOIL request because the topic is politically sensitive, the evidence would be there for all the world to see.

Competitive Advantage
Having FOIL data online will bring transparency to the process, a welcomed change for frequent users of the system, like reporters. But it will also lift the veil on what issues news agencies are investigating. In a hyper-competitive media market such as New York City, this could cause some publications to at least pause before lending their support to the legislation. But Kallos, Brewer, and Kaehny all said that the FOIL requests of news agencies are not as top secret as we assume.

"Open FOIL has already happened in other cities, including Oakland and Chicago, which still have a robust free press and Fourth Estate," Kallos said. "Furthermore, reporters already have the capacity to FOIL other FOIL requests, so the only change is an improved and centralized system."

Kaehny said he has seen evidence of news agencies submitting FOIL requests to obtain the FOIL requests between, for example, the New York Daily News and the NYPD. He said it happens a lot more than one would think. The key differences with the proposed new portal are that everyone will easily be able to see who is doing what and all will have access to the same information.

Kaehny believes because of this, the practice of identifying the requester's name online could be one of the more contentious points of debate. Oakland puts a point of contact on their online database. Chicago puts the name of the requester, as well as of the organization.

What Will it Look Like?
How the portal will look has yet to be determined, but the City does have an example to go by. The City of Oakland, California implemented an online FOIL portal called RecordTrac in 2013 after public records requests there became larger and more complex following the Occupy Oakland movement.

Oakland partnered with Code for America on the project, beginning the process in February of 2013 and launching a one-department pilot program by that July, according to Richa Agarwal, a Code for America fellow on the team that developed the portal. During a May 9 phone interview, Agarwal said that the Oakland police department was the most difficult agency to get online, but by October 2013, all city agencies in Oakland were using RecordTrac to process FOIL requests.

Agarwal, along with several of her Code for America colleagues, created a company called PostCode to help maintain the RecordTrac site and help other cities use the technology they created.

The Oakland system was made open source, meaning anyone can take the software, copy it, and manipulate it for their own use - all for free. New York City Council Member Kallos said that while the bill he is proposing does not mandate using free software, he will champion for it.

"We wouldn't have to pay for the software and would likely have to devote a few hours of a software developer who is already on our payroll to set up," Kallos said. "If we are using free libre and open source software, we would have the chance to develop our software in a more agile way, more like the way Google does things than how government has historically worked."

He estimated the process could be set up and fully operational in New York in a matter of a few months.

Mayor Transparency?
The mayor finds himself in an interesting position on FOIL reform. As public advocate, de Blasio brought the FOIL issue to the forefront with his 2013 report, demanding then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg create a more transparent FOIL process. Bloomberg didn't budge, and de Blasio used it as a rally cry on the campaign trail.

But as mayor, his actions have not matched his words. Shortly after taking office, Mayor de Blasio found himself on the receiving end of a FOIL request he didn't seem to want to answer. The press wanted to know if he in any way helped get a campaign supporter, Bishop Orlando Findlater, out of jail on Feb. 12. In a picture of irony, neither the mayor's office nor the NYPD (a department for which the mayor is responsible), returned repeated FOIL requests.

Azi Paybarah, a senior reporter for Capital New York, wrote an extensive piece on April 4 detailing how the de Blasio administration handled the situation, including Paybarah's many inquiries. Later that day reporters finally got their response: "A diligent search for the records responsive to your request did not produce any responsive records."

With this legislation, the mayor will be given another opportunity to let his actions match his campaign promise. Gotham Gazette reached out to the mayor's office to guage de Blasio's support for the bill and was given a measured response.

"The mayor's office applauds the broad objective and intent of the bill, [and are] looking forward to reviewing the legislation more closely," Phil Walzak, the mayor's press secretary, said by email May 11.

The bill sponsors have not forgotten de Blasio's public advocate report, and are prepared to hold him to his word.

"As long as the mayor signs [the bill], I think he will have met his public advocate recommendation criteria," Brewer said.

Kallos said he has spoken briefly with the mayor about the legislation and he said de Blaio seemed enthusiastic.

Kallos added, "I am confident I will be able to work with our council and the mayor to get Open FOIL passed because it is, after all, his idea."

***
by Kristen Meriwether, Gotham Gazette
@MeriwetherK

New York City Hall

What to look for this week, via the City and Albany:

New York City
This week features a visit from President Obama, who will be in New York City on Wednesday appearing near the Tappan Zee Bridge and advocating for increased infrastructure spending. Many, including the president, have advocated for upping government investment in infrastructure, both as a means to addressing the need of upgrading existing roads, bridges, etc., and as a job-creation and economic stimulus measure.

Other highlights of the week include Mayor Bill de Blasio speaking at a Monday forum sponsored by the federal Department of Labor; the City Council formally addressing the recent arrest of Council Member Ruben Wills, and the start of the council's executive budget hearings; and a Wednesday night Democratic primary debate in New York's 13th congressional district.

Here's the run of the week in more detail:

Monday
The mayor will speak at 9:15 on Monday morning in Lower Manhattan at one of several forums that the Department of Labor is hosting around the country leading up to a June 23 "White House Summit on Working Families." The local forums are meant to "identify initiatives that benefit America's working families, businesses and economy."

Later on Monday, the mayor visits another pre-K class and will deliver remarks at a school in Queens. According to his public schedule, de Blasio is also scheduled to meet with fasion icon Diane Von Furstenberg at City Hall.

Also on Monday, there will be a press conference on the steps of City Hall regarding "reforms on how college campuses address rape," according to a Sunday evening tweet from Council Member Helen Rosenthal.

Tuesday
A slow start to the week for the Council does include both a veterans committee meeting and a civil service and labor committee meeting on Tuesday at 10am.

The agenda for the veterans committee states that it will address a "resolution calling upon the United States Congress to pass, and the President of the United States to sign S.2182, the Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, legislation expanding and improving care provided to veterans and service members with mental health disorders or are at risk for suicide." It is unclear if other topics will be broached, such as the mayor's executive budget not including the additional $400,000 in funding for the Mayor's Office of Veterans Affairs (MOVA) that the Council had requested. A veterans committee executive budget hearing has not yet been scheduled as of 9 p.m. on Sunday, May 11.

The civil service committee resumes its work regarding minimum wage home rule, which could become a larger wedge issue between the City and Albany.

On Tuesday evening the New York City Campaign Finance Board and its Voter Assistance Advisory Committee will hold a meeting and public hearing on its 2013-2014 Voter Assistance Annual Report beginnng at 5:30 p.m.

Wednesday
At 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday the Council will hold a full-body "Stated Meeting." Among the bills being introduced is a bill to create an online portal for FOIL requests. Read the exclusive details of the bill, as well as how a similar system was rolled out in other cities here.

Before that 1:30 meeting, the council's rules committee meets again, with no agenda yet uploaded to the council website as of 9 p.m. Sunday evening. The rules committee is likely to pick back up on the rules reform package it discussed and heard public testimony regarding on May 7.

Also just before the Council's full-body meeting on Wednesday, its standards and ethics committee will meet on the "Matter of Council Member Ruben Wills pursuant to Section 10.80 of the Council Rules," according to the council site. Wills was arrested on corruption charges last week. It will be months before Wills has his day in federal court, but his case as it relates to the City Council will be heard on Wednesday. The ethics committee will discuss what, if any, further action will be taken against Wills. He stepped down as chair of the substance abuse sub-committee and Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito stripped Wills of his member items. The County chairs and the Council will distribute the member items to Wills' district this year.

On Wednesday night in Harlem, the candidates for New York's 13th congressional district will meet at a forum sponsored by the Urban Justice Center and moderated by Dr. Christina Greer. Incumbent Democratic Congressman Charles Rangel is facing primary challengers State Sen. Adriano Espaillat and Rev. Michael Walrond. The rapidly approaching primary is June 24th! 

Thursday and Friday
Several weeks of executive budget hearings begin on Thursday, a process that will continue through early June and lead to the adoption of the budget by July 1. Agencies and advocates will have the opportunity to formally lobby the Council for more funding and the Council will be questioning agency representatives about key issues of concern to council members and their constituents.

This week the committees on Transportation, Sanitation and Solid Waste Management, Higher Education, Community Development, Youth Services, and Consumer Affairs, will all meet, some jointly with the Committee on Finance.

Saturday
Bonus advocacy event: On Saturday, 5/17, City Hall Park will be home to a "Taking Back Our Schools" march and rally. The event is being organized by a large number of education advocacy groups and will feature a message from Diane Ravitch. According to the website event page, the rally welcomes all those "seeking to create & sustain a public school system that provides a fully funded, equitable, community-based education for every child. This means that decisions about our children's schooling would be made democratically by families and professional educators, free of corporate and political intervention."

And in Albany:
The president's visit to the Tappan Zee is a big victory for Gov. Andrew Cuomo following weeks of negative press over the Moreland Commission and the administration's secrecy.

The state is replacing the Tappan Zee after years of constant repairs thanks to a $1.6 billion federal loan. The state is also selling bonds to finance the new bridge. Obama's visit coincides with the state Republican convention in Rye Brook where Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino is expected to officially be named the party's gubernatorial candidate.

Public financing of campaigns will be a major issue in the backrooms as the Working Families Party's May 31st convention nears.

The Cuomo administration is expected to continue to work towards some sort of deal on campaign financing with the state legislature so that they can head off the WFP from backing a challenger to Cuomo's left.

Good government groups will meet with Republicans and Independent Democrats starting on Monday in an attempt to negotiate a deal on campaign financing. The groups and a Working Families Party official met with Cuomo last week.

In other state-wide campaign news, Republican attorney general candidate John P. Cahill, Sr. has officially announced his challenge to incumbent AG Eric Schneiderman and will be campaigning across the state on Monday. There are now official Republican challengers to the incumbent Democratic governor, comptroller, and attorney general. Stay tuned as election season heats up. 

***
by Kristen Meriwether and Ben Max in New York City and David King in Albany
@GothamGazette

Mayor de Blasio with NYU President John Sexton (Diana Robinson for the mayor's office)

In mid-April, Mayor Bill de Blasio went to Washington Square to speak to a crowded room of NYU alumni as part of the school's "Speaker on the Square" series. A Class of '84 graduate himself, the Democrat reflected on his time at the school, when he was still involved in campus labor politics and community activism. Meanwhile, in the crowd, a pamphlet entitled "NYU in the New Millennium" was passed around, laundry-listing the university's achievements and describing its plans for the future in Greenwich Village. "Over time, NYU may create as much as 1.9 million square feet of added space," it read.

The line is a reference to NYU 2031, the university's massive expansion plan, which, if implemented, would permanently establish the school as the real estate power of Greenwich Village by its target completion year and the school's bicentennial, 2031. And, one of, if not the, most important developments in the plan's ongoing saga came this past November, with the election of the man in the room that early April evening.

De Blasio's rise to the most powerful office in New York City has become a staple of pride for New York University, but almost immediately , the alumnus has found himself in the midst of a firestorm taking place on his old campus. While NYU 2031 is one of the largest land grabs in recent New York City history, it's also one of the most controversial.

The blueprint for more academic space calls for the establishment of two "superblocks" near or around the university's epicenter - Washington Square Park - and the construction of four towering high-rises - the largest of which, the Zipper building, would be located on top of the current Coles Sports Center and could possibly reach 26 stories. The plan would drastically change the face of the neighborhood, plain and simple. But the key word in that pamphlet's declaration: may.

Since its introduction, NYU 2031 has pitted NYU President John Sexton, the forefather of the plan, against a significant portion of his own faculty, employees who call the expansion outrageously invasive of the Greenwich Village area just north of Houston Street. After Community Board 2 struck down the plan entirely, the faculty-staffed Space Priorities Working Group was formed by the NYU administration in May of 2012, tasked with finding common ground on complaints with the plan. These tensions were the major driving force behind last year's 'no confidence' vote of Sexton by majorities of faculty members from several of NYU's individual schools and, although heralding no concrete change, the gesture became a symbol of the tarnished reputation the plan continues to retain amongst professors.

While the revised plan has continued to find success, albeit limited, in the city's (ULURP) land use review process, it has fallen under siege in the courts. The most recent legal obstruction came this past January. In a lawsuit filed by 11 different community organizations, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Donna Mills struck down a major part of the project, faulting the Bloomberg administration and the City Council for letting NYU use three public spaces, deemed 'implied parklands,' for its high-rises without the requisite State Legislature approval. However, the ruling does not prevent the school from initiating construction on the Zipper Building by 2015, nor does it force the administration to redo the ULURP process, and the saga continues.

As Public Advocate, de Blasio had an issue with NYU's original expansion plan, known as the Core Project - one that called for 2,275,000 square feet of new space, or, as community activists liked to say, the equivalent of a new Empire State Building in the Village. The plan painted an unsure future for 505 LaGuardia Place, a towering, 30-story Mitchell-Lama cooperative made up of 170 affordable housing units, all with a lease that was set to expire this year. After renegotiations made with former Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, the plan's space estimates were slimmed down by 19 percent and the plank was removed from the plan, which fostered support from the local city council member, Margaret Chin, and the Public Advocate.

"With recent changes to building size, allowances for open space and additional community spaces, I believe this plan deserves the city's full support," de Blasio said in July 2012, just as the City Council, amidst boos and sneers from community activists, overwhelmingly passed the expansion plan in a 44-1 vote.

"Mayor Bloomberg wholeheartedly embraced Sexton's plan, and made that very clear," Mark Crispin Miller, the head of NYU Faculty Against the Sexton Plan, told me. "Mayor de Blasio appears to embrace it more quietly. But it's our hope that we can persuade him to change that position." With that said, Miller also contested the truth of that particular line, "NYU in the New Millenium," arguing that the recent state Supreme Court decision places the entirety of the plan - 1.9 million square feet and all - in a subsequent legal limbo.

Since his inauguration as mayor, de Blasio has remained relatively quiet on the issue, only mentioning it publicly once, on the day of Mills' decision this past January. And, even then, his stance on the issue appeared a bit murky. "I think a lot of the community concerns were valid, and we're going to work with the community going forward," the mayor reiterated. He told reporters he reversed his position as public advocate after changes were made, but would "withhold legal judgment" until the court process was over. Now, sources say his administration has been in talks with both the NYU administration and its opponents, and would implement the land use actions as approved by the courts.

But, to Miller, just the fact that the City recently filed a notice of appeal for the ruling symbolizes the mayor's ultimate support for twenty years of construction in Greenwich Village, especially as it runs in conjunction with the NYU administration's own notice of appeal. The written filings were due this past week, and oral arguments for the appealed case are expected to be scheduled in September.

"I will leave it to the City to address their reasons for also filing a notice of appeal, but clearly there were some serious public policy implications in the ruling that could have a major impact on city-owned open spaces that are not parkland," NYU spokesperson John Beckman said in an email. Beckman, however, had no comment on the mayor's position, saying the school's principal source of contact with City Hall is through de Blasio's Law Department.

One must keep in mind who de Blasio has surrounded himself with. By the end of February, the mayor's inner circle was stacked with NYU insiders, with First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris (former NYU Langone head); head of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development Vicki Been (former NYU Law professor, wife of former NYU Law Dean, Richard Revesz, and a beneficiary of NYU's controversial mortgage program); chair of the City Planning Commission Carl Weisbrod (former chair of NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate); and Corporation Counsel Zachary Carter (an NYU Law School trustee). While the appointees' influence remains to be seen, Village activists are worried the school has an outsized seat in City Hall.

"We're hoping the merits of our case will weigh more heavily with the Mayor than his allegiances to the NYU administration," Miller said. "Will he continue to share their perception, or will he step back and take a cooler view?"

But de Blasio's choices haven't bent entirely aligned with the NYU administration. See Michelle de la Uz. When NYU 2031 came up for a vote with the City Planning Commission, de la Uz, a member, was the only person to vote against it, citing familiar, community-based concerns voiced by the anti-NYU-2031 movement. And, she was appointed by none other than Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, providing yet another plot twist in an already confusing tale. (Michelle de la Uz has been reached for comment, but has not yet responded.)

Off campus, the polarizing power of the project, charged by the Supreme Court decision, has been apparent, too, as elected officials on the local and state levels continue to take sides. For the most part, the Council Members who voted for the plan originally, including Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Council Member Chin, have kept quiet as issues surrounding its implementation have arisen. However, the list of skeptics now consists of New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, Council Member Corey Johnson (who recently replaced pro-NYU-2031 Christine Quinn in District 3, which includes a part of the involved area), Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, and Public Advocate Letitia James - in other words, some of de Blasio's closest legislative and ideological allies.

"This is a victory," James said at a March rally in support of the Mills decision. "For all of those who really care about low scale communities and really want open space and parks and a place to have a safe haven from the intrusion of these mega developers and rapacious individuals who want to build these monuments in the sky."

"As Borough President, I am committed to ensuring that the community also benefits from NYU's planned expansion and have expressed strong support for Judge Mills' ruling in favor of retaining publicly available open space," Brewer said in a statement. "My office has met with every stakeholder – the local Community Board, the NYU Working Group, NYU's project team, and we have a representative serving on the Open Space Oversight Organization."

Along with James, Gale Brewer voted for the plan while in City Council, but both have since re-examined their decisions. However, in terms of actual influence, these statements made by James and Brewer have limited levers behind them. The future of NYU 2031 lies in the offices and agencies of the Mayor, or in the courts.

Meanwhile, when the January ruling was issued, Council Member Johnson called it "an affirmation of the community's fight to preserve public open space" and that the NYU administration's process was "completely disrespectful" of that community. "We've seen too much over the past 12 years of needless overdevelopment," he added.

Of course, the election of Mayor de Blasio was meant to be a populist correction of the Bloombergian view that development always equals growth. And already, we've seen de Blasio use his pulpit to enforce his more progressive demands with the recent Domino Sugar Factory deal, in which he secured 40 additional affordable housing units, adding to the 660 established under the Bloomberg agreement on the impending waterfront high-rise. But NYU 2031 is different.

Unlike Domino, this is a situation that is much more charged with the emotions of those who already reside in the area; Greenwich Village is not as supportive to high-rises as the Williamsburg waterfront is. Also, many of the big names in the anti-NYU-2031 movement supported de Blasio's campaign for mayor, including celebrities like Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker, and John Leguizamo. But, most importantly, it involves one of the most powerful real estate entities in all of New York, let alone his alma mater: NYU.

"This is a trickier situation for de Blasio than Domino was. That's because there's no affordable housing involved - the NYU administration doesn't want it, nor is there any space for it," Miller added. "The fact of the matter is that the community is dead set against the project. The faculty is overwhelmingly against it. So if the mayor is on the side of the community, he has to stand with them against the Sexton Plan."

All in all, NYU 2031's fate poses a serious challenge to a mayor who, in the eyes of the electorate and his own party, is supposed to side with the people, not the developers. It's an issue that has significant implications to how de Blasio will treat public space, real estate interests and community involvement in the post-Bloomberg years. And it's a controversy that the mayor will need to take a position on fast, as the expansion continues to divide his elected allies and his alma mater.

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John Surico is a freelance journalist. His reporting can be found in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Village Voice, and here, for Gotham Gazette. He is a graduate of NYU, too.

@GothamGazette

CM Cornegy & Mayor Bill de Blasio (William Alatriste)

A few months into his first term as a member of the New York City Council, Brooklyn's Robert Cornegy Jr. has tapped into his experience in city government and community activism to embrace his role as chair of the Council's small business committee and pursue legislation to help those in his district and around the city. Recently, the council member, who represents Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights neighborhoods, sat down with Gotham Gazette to discuss a wide range of issues, including two new pieces of legislation he has introduced to the Council, his role as committee chair, gentrification, public safety, and more.

Here, in the fifth and final part of the interview (see below for links to parts 1-4), Cornegy discusses his take on NYPD commissioner Bill Bratton, police-community relations, and policing of public housing with Gotham Gazette's executive editor Ben Max:

In part one of the interview, Cornegy discusses his proposed amendment to the new paid sick leave law and his audible alarms bill.

In part two, Cornegy outlines his expectations of the new Department of Education leadership and several aspects of his approach to chairing the Council's small business committee.

In the third installment, the council member goes into greater detail about efforts to help small businesses and reduce unemployment and underemployment, including looking at what the City Council can do regarding contracts for women and minority owned businesses (WMBEs); the work of Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito in appointing committee chairs; and more.

And in the fourth segment of our interview, CM Cornegy discusses his public lactation station, what it means to be progressive, and the issue of gentrification in his district and beyond.

[Related: See our video interview with Public Advocate Letitia James on a wide range of topics including her efforts to push more women into politics]
***
Video production generously donated to Gotham Gazette by GZIPUSA.HumanityCode.com

@GothamGazette

@RobertCornegyJr

@TweetBenMax

Mayor de Blasio's delivers his executive budget address (@NYCMayorsOffice)

NEW YORK - Mayor Bill de Blasio released the first executive budget of his mayoralty on Thursday, May 8. The $73.9 billion, fiscal year 2015 budget sets a path for the de Blasio administration's vision of a progressive city with a focus on education, affordable housing, and infrastructure.

The document signifies another step toward the City Council and the mayor negotiating a final budget agreement by June 30. Between public hearings and closed-door meetings, the Council will spend the next six weeks trying to coax the mayor into funding particular additional initiatives its members deem necessary. The mayor will try to keep the city's budget balanced and fiscally responsible.

The annual game of cat and mouse had grown contentious in years past under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The yearly budget dance - where Bloomberg would cut money to 'vital' programs leaving the Council to fight to restore them - has ended under de Blasio, something council members have openly welcomed. The Council and the mayor share a similar progressive agenda, leaving less ground to cover to get to an agreement.

"It does not seem like it will be a contentious budget process," said Council Member Mark Weprin at City Hall on Thursday following a budget briefing with the mayor.

While there is a more open, working dialogue, the Council will continue to push for the items the mayor has yet to fund from its April 23 budget response.

"There are a lot of items out there that we have requested that are not in there yet, but that doesn't mean that by the end of June we won't see some more changes," Weprin said. "The negotiations are not over. This is still the middle of the process."

The mayor's executive budget shows a mixed bag of results on six key issues from the Council's wish list:

Transparency
For years council members have expressed frustration over the size of the units of appropriation in the budget. These units, the money allotted for particular budget line items, have been as large as several billion dollars (usually within the NYPD or Department of Education allocations). During the 2013 election season, several council members sent a letter to the mayoral candidates asking them to promise greater budget transparency. As a candidate, de Blasio never responded to the letter, but as mayor, he vowed to bring a greater level of transparency. That promise did not materialize in his executive budget, which did not go over well with the members.

"We are greatly concerned with the lack of transparency in units of appropriation in the Executive Budget," said Speaker Mark-Viverito in a statement. "Dividing funding for Universal Pre-Kindergarten, Elementary and Middle Schools and High Schools into smaller units of appropriation would increase accountability and transparency in a massive budget, making it easier to track categories of spending and ensure that all school funding is scheduled in the appropriate budget code."

"I was hoping there would be more detailed units of appropriation in this budget but there are not," Council Member Dan Garodnick, among the signees of last year's letter, said at City Hall May 8. "They have said they will improve, but have not yet done it."

De Blasio, when asked about the issue by Gotham Gazette on Thursday, countered by saying, "We will work with them on that. There is more to come on that as we move towards the adopted budget."

Fund 1,000 More NYPD Officers
In the Council's budget response, a request was made for funding to hire 1,000 new officers to support community policing, Vision Zero initiatives, and more. The estimated cost is $94.3 million for the first year and $97.9 million the second.

The mayor, as well as NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton, came out against the proposal almost immediately, saying the current force headcount is fine, citing the continued drop in crime as evidence. The mayor did not fund more police in his executive budget.

"We think with the resources we have, we can keep crime low and continue to do better in terms of the Vision Zero program," de Blasio said, adding there were budget priorities elsewhere. "The fact is, thank God the NYPD is achieving what they are achieving with the resources they have now."

The mayor did put in $13 million for NYPD traffic enforcement to implement Vision Zero and added $110 million over the next three years to rehab two NYPD precinct buildings and construct a new 40th Precinct in the South Bronx.

Speaker Mark-Viverito, who has been a strong proponent of adding the additional police officers to the force, said in a statement, "We are disappointed to see that while the Executive Budget addresses skyrocketing overtime costs for the NYPD, it does not include funding to hire the additional 1,000 police officers needed to reduce understaffing at City precincts and provide support for Vision Zero."

While the mayor shows no sign of budging, the budget process is not over and the Council will keep pushing.

"While the proposed budget does not include funding for additional officers in local precincts, I remain hopeful that as we go through the budget process the administration will see the urgency of adding additional police to address the public safety needs of communities throughout the City," Council Member Vanessa Gibson, chair of the public safety committee, said in a statement.

Fund Universal Free School Lunch
To eliminate inequality in the school cafeteria, the Council, with support from Public Advocate Tish James, asked the mayor to make all public school lunches free. The Council estimated the program would cost the Department of Education $24 million, but would generate $60 million in additional State and Federal aid.

De Blasio did not include the initiative in his budget, but not because he doesn't agree with the idea. He said his team is examining whether or not initiating such a program would negatively impact the city's school funding as a whole.

"We are not convinced at this point that it won't unfortunately have the negative impact of reducing our federal funding substantially," de Blasio said. "Until we know if there may be a net negative in that, we have to be very careful."

Mark-Viverito said she was "distressed" the lunch fees were not waived in the budget. "Eliminating lunch fees are a simple, financially prudent way to address hunger in our City and ensure sure that every child can focus on learning," said Mark-Viverito in a statement.

Increase Funding for Anti-Gun Violence Initiatives
While the city as a whole has seen a dramatic decrease in crime in recent years, there are still neighborhoods with high incidents of gun violence. The Council asked the mayor to fund anti-gun violence programs to 10 additional communities, at a cost of $12 million.

The mayor did not fully meet the request, but did baseline $6 million - a first for the program.

"I think we need a little bit more to get there, but I am happy [the funding] was in there," Council Member Jumaane Williams, deputy leader and co-chair of the Task Force to Combat Gun Violence, said at City Hall May 8.

Williams said he is not only looking for funding, but hopes a change in philosophy in dealing with the problem will help. He wants to see more collaboration across multiple city agencies to combat gun violence on the ground including legal aid, job preparation, and help with mental health issues.

"We have to make sure we have a collaborative effort to get to the gun violence," Williams said. "Law enforcement is one aspect, but not the only aspect."

Expand Summer Youth Employment Programs
February's preliminary budget funded 28,000 summer youth jobs, the lowest in five years. The Council requested the funding be baselined to include more opportunities for youth.

The mayor's budget put an additional $8.5 million in the Summer Youth Employment Program budget which will support a total of approximately 36,000 participants in 2015. It is worth noting these numbers are based on an assumption of federal funds. Since the federal budget has not been finalized, the funding could be less than expected, which may lead to fewer slots in the city program.

"Investing in the Summer Youth Employment Program is an investment in the futures of our young people," said Council Member Mathieu Eugene, chair of the Committee on Youth Services. "I hope the City continues to support this and other initiatives that give youth the opportunity to develop skills to succeed in life."

Increase Funding for Road Resurfacing
Through a particularly rough winter, potholes became a major issue in the city. The Council asked the mayor for an additional $53 million in fiscal year 2015 to allow the Department of Transportation to resurface 1,000 lane miles.

The mayor, calling himself an "outer borough motorist," has expressed empathy for city drivers, and provided $49 million in additional capital funding for road resurfacing. When completed, it should bring 1,000 lane miles into a state of good repair. De Blasio also added an additional $346 million for bridge rehabilitation.

"It is no secret that our City's underground infrastructure is aging, and that roads that protect those utilities have been badly battered by a harsh winter," said Council Member Daniel R. Garodnick in a statement. "These funds are an important investment toward keeping our roads in good repair, and, significantly, protecting our gas pipes, water mains, and electrical wiring underground.

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by Kristen Meriwether, Gotham Gazette
@MeriwetherK

(Courtney Dudley for WNYC)

Advocates hope to see the State Senate address several bills that deal with equal rights and pay equity before legislators call it a day and return to their districts for election season. A bill that would create protections for migrant workers; one for additional protections to prevent pay discrimination based on sex or race; and one to allow counties and cities to supplement the state's minimum wage have all received attention recently, whether in the form of a committee vote or increased advocacy.

Each of the three bills has heavy support in the Assembly.

When the State Senate returned to Albany last week it got right to work - passing resolutions to honor local basketball teams, commending students for participating in dance-offs and celebrating Bronx Week. Then, this week, the now infamous debate over making yogurt the official state snack.

Senators admit that there isn't exactly a rush to get things done, despite the fact that there are 19 days left in session and an election ahead for most legislators. 'We're just getting our bearings,' was a familiar refrain from legislators when asked last week what their priorities were for the rest of session, which is set to end mid-June but could see its plug pulled even sooner.

But that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of controversial issues left to tackle; it just means that in the Senate, where the ruling coalition is leaders of the Independent Democratic Conference and the Republican Conference, finding common ground can be a difficult and frustrating mission.

Amidst all the Senate's ceremonial actions, though, the labor committee, chaired by the IDC's Sen. Diane Savino, voted to move two somewhat controversial bills out of committee. The Farm Workers Bill of Rights, sponsored by Sen. Adriano Espaillat, and Sen. Liz Krueger's New York State Fair Pay Act were both reported out of labor committee and referred to the finance committee with bipartisan votes - something that has advocates hoping Senate leadership may be interested in moving on both issues.

The Farm Workers Bill of Rights would provide for overtime, workers' compensation, the right to one day off a week, rights to collective bargaining, and standards for health and safety. The Assembly has passed this sort of legislation for years, only to see it stall or fail in the Senate. The Farm Bureau, a pro-business group that functions much the way the AARP does, but for farmers, stands against a number of the bill's measures because, it asserts, farms don't function under the rules of a standard workplace. The Bureau says migrant workers have to pack in as much work as they can while crops are in season and the weather is right.

Supporters of the bill have been heartened over the last few years because a number of Senate Republicans have expressed some interest in pursuing the legislation. Three Long Island Republicans voted to move the bill out of the labor committee last week. A number of Republicans represent districts on Long Island with growing Latino populations, where an issue like farm workers' rights plays big. Savino worked on bringing together legislators from both houses as well as the Farm Bureau last year to move on the issue, but the bill did not come to a vote.

Savino said it is up to the Farm Bureau to come to the negotiating table to balance protections for workers with amendments that can assist farms. "This has always had bipartisan support and opposition," said Savino, who notes that downstate Republicans, Democrats and IDC members seem basically in favor of the motion, whereas upstate members who represent more farmers are very hesitant to lend their backing. "We need the Farm Bureau to participate in negotiations in a real way," said Savino. "This is their chance to come in and support their workers."

Some legislators say they think the farm workers bill could be passed if the DREAM Act is not addressed in a year-end "big ugly" (massive deal on several pieces of legislation at once), but Espaillat said he thinks the bill "stands on its own."

Krueger's Fair Pay Act may not be that hard a push in the Senate; last year the measure passed as one of the ten planks of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's ten-point Women's Equality Agenda. But the Senate voted on nine of the measures, leaving out one that would have codified a woman's right to an abortion in state health law. The Assembly refused to pass the bills separately, and none of the other planks - which include fair pay, protections for victims of domestic violence, and strengthening human trafficking laws and sexual harassment prevention - became law.

"No one was more surprised when the Fair Pay Act passed the Senate unanimously last year," said Savino, "but the Assembly refused to pass it separately, so the question is 'what will they do this year?'"

Cuomo, facing a possible re-election challenge from the left, told a gathering of Democrats last week that he would push the legislature on The DREAM Act and the Women's Equality Agenda and make them campaign issues if they did not become law. The Cuomo administration has reportedly been telling advocates that he will target his campaign against the IDC/Republican coalition if it fails to act. And it is becoming more likely that the coalition will not act on those big-ticket items, as more legislators are talking about riding out the clock in Albany and then running their re-election bids on on-time budgets and tax relief. However, Sen. Jeff Klein is facing more pressure from advocates now that he is facing a primary challenge from former New York City Council Member Oliver Koppell, and fellow IDC member Sen. Tony Avella may face a challenge from former City Comptroller John Liu.

Advocates seem to be taking some of Cuomo's message to heart. A group of female legislators have taken up the cause of letting the State allow cities and counties to set their own minimum wages by framing it as an equality issue. They cited studies showing that 40 percent of women in the state make less than $15 an hour, while only 34 percent of men make so little. "A majority of minimum-wage earners are women, many of whom are simply trying to provide for their families and make ends meet," said Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who sponsors the bill. "We must use the remaining time in the 2014 legislative session to take decisive actions to raise the state's minimum wage and provide greater authority to local governments to address the needs of their constituents."

The measure has seen support from Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Comptroller Scott Stringer. But Cuomo has dismissed the idea, citing the state's plan to raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour by 2015 and saying that having different wages within the state could be a "chaotic situation." The bill remains in the finance committee.

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by David King, Albany editor, Gotham Gazette
@DavidHowardKing

(nycmarines via flickr)

In mid-2013 the Robin Hood Foundation gave the City a $250,000 grant through the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York. The money would pay for the salaries and training of three veterans benefits counselors for one year. The counselors, formally called Service Officers, act as a resource point for veterans asking about and pursuing their benefits from the federal Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The counselors assist veterans in preparing paperwork and guide them through the life of a claim.

The grant is slated to expire by September of this year. Its terms stipulate that if the program is successful, the City could pick up the tab for the three positions moving forward. Despite the success of the program, funding for the benefits counselors was not included in the mayor's preliminary budget, leaving veterans advocates to wonder how the counselors will be funded.

"We are making a positive impact," said Mayor's Office of Veterans Affairs (MOVA) Commissioner Terrance Holliday by phone May 1. "I want to see this thing continue in some form, but I have to have that discussion with City Hall."

Gotham Gazette spoke with the Robin Hood Foundation, which confirmed it will not fund the program past the life of the grant. If the positions are not funded when the mayor's executive budget is released on Thursday, the positions will be on track for termination by September unless funding comes from elsewhere. Emails to the mayor's office were not returned.

For its part, the City Council did include a request for $400,000 in additional funding for MOVA in its response to the mayor's preliminary budget.

The veterans claims counselors at MOVA have become a useful resource for helping the city's veterans navigate a federal VA dealing with an excess backlog of claims. In recent years, the number of claims, as well as the length of time claims sit open, has grown exponentially. This has been fueled by the increase of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan as well as rules allowing more Agent Orange-related, Vietnam era claims to be filed.

In May of 2013 there were 880,000 open VA claims nationwide, 68 percent of which had wait times over 125 days, according to data on the VA website. The average wait to close a claim was 272 days.

MOVA benefits counselors do not process the claims directly, but receive training from the State VA office to learn the system. The idea behind creating the counselors' positions is that if the paperwork is submitted correctly and to the right department the first time, the process would be expedited, the total number of claims reduced, and veterans would receive benefits more quickly.

The VA has implemented a variety of new processes and procedures to expedite VA claims, with benefits counselors playing one role, and combined efforts have worked to bring claims numbers down nationwide. In the May 5, 2014 report from the VA, there were 590,000 claims pending of which 308,000, or 52%, were over 125 days old.

Since they do not resolve claims, there is no data to show what kind of direct impact the three benefits counselors funded by the Robin Hood Foundation are having on claims numbers. Holliday said since they completed their training and began work on October 1, 2013, they have seen over 300 veterans, exceeding the goal set forth in the grant by 100.

Holliday said he would not credit any drop in claims numbers solely to the benefits counselors, but said they are another important access point for veterans to get their claims resolved.

Joseph Bello, a U.S. Navy veteran and a veterans advocate who runs NY Metro Vets, said the idea of utilizing the counselors in lieu of veterans working on the claims themselves has picked up in the veterans community.

"As we have gone along and more people are starting to find out about the program, they want to get to these counselors because they are doing a good job," Bello said by phone May 2.

Bello said if the City does not pick up funding for the three benefits counselors, veterans would be able to find new counselors through private organizations or the State, but that a switch could easily delay the claim because the new counselor would have to pick up in the middle of the process. Bello added that there are also significant issues of trust because these counselors are dealing with extremely personal issues - issues like physical disability, emotional and psychological trauma, and residency and job security.

"Like any relationship, you want to feel comfortable with that individual when meeting with them," Bello said of the veteran-counselor relationship. "There has to be some sort of trust because this individual is handling your disability claim with the VA."

Bello said he hopes to see the funding picked up by the City.

"If veterans agree this has been a successful program, then I don't understand why we would discontinue this program," Bello said. "There has to be a way the administration can re-fund it and keep the program going."

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by Kristen Meriwether, Gotham Gazette
@MeriwetherK

Mayor de Blasio unveils his affordable housing plan (@NYCMayorsOffice)

BROOKLYN - On Monday, May 5, Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled his plan to yield 200,000 units of affordable housing in the next 10 years. The plan, which is projected to cost $41 billion, will preserve 120,000 units and build 80,000 new units. The City expects to invest just $8.2 billion over the 10 years.

Housing built during de Blasio's 10-year timeframe aims to provide rent relief to today's New York City residents, but the buildings will be there long after de Blasio is mayor. In the next several decades climate change is projected to increase the severity of storms, and sea levels are projected to rise. The city's housing stock, newly built or preserved, will need to withstand all that Mother Nature throws at it.

The de Blasio housing plan, entitled "Housing New York" and outlined in a 115-page booklet, donates only four pages to environmental sustainability and resiliency, though the mayor has promised to prioritize these elements.

"In everything we do from now on, sustainability is going to be a part of our thinking," de Blasio said at Monday's Brooklyn press conference unveiling the plan. "Every development going forward is going to be looked at from the prism of sustainability, not just in terms of resiliency...but also environmental sustainability."

Following Superstorm Sandy, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) updated their flood maps. The new, 2013 maps increase the size of the city's high-risk zones by more than 50 percent, according to de Blasio's housing plan. Despite the risk of flooding, and higher insurance premiums, the City will not shy away from building or preserving affordable housing in those areas.

Carl Weisbrod, chair of the City Planning Commission, said he believes if the City accords with sustainability and resiliency measures, "we should be able to build in almost all parts of the city." He added the only off-limit areas would be parts of Staten Island that participated in the State buyout program. Those parcels of land will be returned to their natural state per homeowner deals with the State.

Much of what was said Monday echoed what Daniel Zarrilli, director of the city's newly created Office of Recovery and Resiliency, recently told Gotham Gazette regarding the City's resiliency plans.

Meanwhile, FEMA allows for insurance breaks for homes that use mitigation measures such as elevating the home, or raising critical building systems like boilers and electrical boxes. But for many of the large buildings that make up the New York City housing stock, elevation is not possible. De Blasio's housing plan says, "we will advocate for Federal recognition of other forms of risk reduction other than elevating structures."

Without the relaxation of the Federal requirements, which are set to kick in during 2015, insurance premiums could make owning affordable rental units cost prohibitive.

The City will continue to expand coastal flood protection measures such as bulkheads, sand dunes, wetlands, and other physical structures in order to reduce the risk and damage of flooding.

The Future is Green
Energy costs have been a contributing factor to increased rents in recent years. Utility costs rose more than six percent between 2012 and 2013, with the cost of fuel oil rising 20 percent during the same period, according to the housing report. The rise in energy costs could continue to push rents higher and thus turn more currently affordable units unaffordable, particularly for low-income residents.

De Blasio's housing plan calls for a pilot outreach program aimed to slow rising utility costs. According to the plan, this program will include financial assistance of grants or loans to help speed up investment in energy and water efficiency. The loans could help bridge the monetary gap for the oil conservation plan that is already in place from work done by the prior administration.

Under former mayor Michael Bloomberg, the City passed laws banning No. 6 oil by July 1, 2015. Buildings using No. 6 have the option to convert to less dirty No. 2 oil or to natural gas. The conversion rate has been slow: barely more than half of the 10,000 buildings using No. 6 oil have converted, according to the New York Times. Cost was given as the biggest reason for not converting.

The de Blasio program will target housing that serves low-to-moderate income residents in the city's oldest and most vulnerable housing units. These efforts could reduce energy and water consumption by 30 percent.

"The plan's focus on retrofitting existing housing for energy and water savings is a win for both the environment and affordability," Marcia Bystryn, president of the New York League of Conservation Voters, said by email Monday.

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by Kristen Meriwether, Gotham Gazette
@MeriwetherK