New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
This week we're awaiting gubernatorial campaign announcements from Republican Marc Molinaro and Democrat Cynthia Nixon.
As those election year moves happen, or don't, government is happening in Albany, where the Legislature will be in session four days this week as we enter crunch time for a new state budget, which is due by the April 1 start to the new fiscal year. One-house budgets are expected this week from the Assembly and Senate. The Independent Democratic Conference of the Senate may also put forth its own budget plan. As Governor Andrew Cuomo himself said this past week, once the one-house budgets are out, negotiations can really get going.
As Cuomo works on a budget, which may include a major overhaul of the state's tax system to respond to the new federal tax code, and waits to see if Nixon will challenge him in the Democratic primary, we're also waiting to see if former top Cuomo aide and brother-like figure Joe Percoco is convicted on any of the corruption charges in his federal case, which is in jury deliberations.
On Monday, however, Cuomo will wade deeper into his recent focus on NYCHA, which has been one of several areas around which his feud with Mayor Bill de Blasio has escalated of late and as he considers declaring a state of emergency at the housing authority -- see below for details.
As the week starts, we're also waiting for de Blasio to return from out of town, he's on a five-day, three-stop trip that has him returning to the city on Tuesday. On Friday, de Blasio left the city for Baltimore, Maryland, to deliver remarks at the Congressional Progressive Caucus Center Strategy Summit. On Saturday, he went to Austin, Texas, where on Sunday he was scheduled to "participate in a SXSW panel discussion with Mayor Adler of Austin, Texas and Mayor Wheeler of Portland, Oregon on the growing role of mayors nationally." The Mayor also made an announcement that New York will be among other cities that won't do business with internet companies that don't honor net neutrality.
On Monday, de Blasio will "attend a U.S. Conference of Mayors’ strategy session on the 2020 census and immigration...After that, the Mayor will travel from Austin, Texas to Washington, D.C. Later, the Mayor will deliver remarks at the National League of Cities spring meeting" at 4:45 p.m. Monday at Wardman Park Marriott in D.C.
Meanwhile, City Council budget hearings continue this week on de Blasio's preliminary budget plan -- details on those and a whole lot more below, via our day-by-day rundown
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The run of the week in detail:
Monday
At 10:15 a.m. Monday, Governor Cuomo will hold a press briefing at NYCHA Jackson Houses in the Bronx. "Before the press briefing, Governor Cuomo will tour residences at the Jackson Houses."
At the City Council on Monday, the following committees will hold preliminary budget hearings:
--Public Safety at 10 a.m., regarding the NYPD and Civilian Complaint Review Board
--Veterans at 1 p.m., regarding the Department of Veterans Affairs
--Public Safety and Justice System jointly at 2 p.m., regarding District Attorneys and the Special Narcotics Prosecutor
Also at the City Council on Monday:
--The Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises will meet at 9:30 a.m.
--The Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting, and Maritime Uses will meet at noon
--The Subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions, and Concessions will meet at 2 p.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Monday in Albany.
The New York State Board of Regents will meet on Monday and Tuesday in Albany.
At 9 a.m. Monday, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson will speak at Congressman Joe Crowley’s Annual National Women’s History Month Commemoration, at Bronx Botanical Garden.
At 10:30 a.m. Monday, Comptroller Scott Stringer will deliver remarks at Access Denied Campaign Rally and Press Conference, 163rd Street Subway Station, 161st Street and Amsterdam Avenue.
Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer will be in Washington, D.C. Monday for the National League of Cities Congressional City Conference. Brewer will chair a meeting of the Large Cities Council and participate in panel discussion on infrastructure.
At 6 p.m. Monday, First Lady Chirlane McCray will deliver an address to the New York City Bar Association about the ThriveNYC program. The address will be called “Breaking the Silence: A New Way Forward on Mental Health.”
At 6 p.m. Monday, there will be a march down 9th Street in Park Slope demanding greater safety for children and pedestrians on streets. The march comes in the wake of a hit and run in Park Slope that killed two children. The event is sponsored by Borough President Eric Adams and several community organizations, including Families for Safe Streets and Transportation Alternatives. City Council Speaker Corey Johnson and Comptroller Scott Stringer will also participate, as well as Council Members Brad Lander, Carlos Menchaca, Antonio Reynoso and Mark Treyger.
At 7 p.m. Monday, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson and EBC-Metro IAF Co-chair Rev. David K Brawley will hold the first in a series of forums on the Metro IAF “proposal to reconstruct NYCHA and build more senior housing.” The first forum will take place at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Brownsville. Comptroller Scott Stringer will deliver remarks.
Tuesday
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Tuesday in Albany.
At 9 a.m. Tuesday, the New York City Board of Correction will hold a public meeting at 125 Worth Street.
At 10 a.m. Tuesday, "New York’s top environmental advocates will convene on the steps of City Hall to forcefully call on policymakers to tackle the city’s transit and environmental crises and pass the Fix NYC plan as part of this year’s state budget." Participants will include Environmental Defense Fund, Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, Move NY, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York League of Conservation Voters, New Yorkers for Parks.
At 11 a.m., Governor Cuomo will speak at a Planned Parenthood rally in Albany. Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul will also deliver remarks. And at 4:15 p.m., Hochul will speak at the Orthodox Union Student rally.
On Tuesday at 11 a.m. at Hispanic Federation, "First Lady McCray and Deputy Mayor Palacio will make an announcement about New York City’s assistance to Puerto Rico’s hurricane recovery efforts."
At 12:45 p.m. Tuesday in Washington, D.C., Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer will participate in a "panel on local infrastructure with Mayor Marie Melendez-Altier (Ponce, PR), Council Member Rachel Hundley (Sonoma, CA), and Council Member Rebecca Viagran (San Antonio, TX), during lunch session of the National League of Cities Congressional City Conference."
"House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley (D-NY) will hold a press conference with students from the Renaissance School in Jackson Heights, local elected officials, and community activists from MomsRising on Tuesday, March 13, at 1:30 p.m. to demand congressional action on gun safety." City Council Member Danny Dromm will be among those participating.
At 2:45 p.m. Tuesday in Albany, "As part of Advocacy Day for #HALTsolitary, in which 300+ New Yorkers from across the state will convene in Albany to meet with 70 legislators, survivors of solitary, their family members, and other advocates will hold a speak-out and press conference outside Governor Cuomo’s office. The Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement (CAIC) will also deliver a card inviting the Governor to spend 24 consecutive hours in solitary confinement in one of his prisons, as Rick Raemisch, the Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Corrections, did upon taking the job. (Mr. Raemisch’s experiences ultimately helped inspire significant reforms in that state that are similar to legislation pushed by CAIC.) This will be the second invitation; advocates delivered the first one just before X-mas but received no response. CAIC will also be calling on Governor Cuomo and the State Legislature to enact the Humane Alternatives to Long Term (HALT) Solitary Confinement Act (A.3080B-Aubry/S.4784A-Parker)." The event is being organized by Vocal-New York, JustLeadershipUSA, and others.
City Council Speaker Corey Johnson will appear on NY1's Inside City Hall Tuesday evening.
Wednesday
Wednesday will mark one month since the school massacre in Florida, during which 17 people were killed, that has led to a student-led movement for gun control. There are 17-minute-long school walkouts planned all over the country, including in New York City.
At the City Council on Wednesday, the following committees will hold preliminary budget hearings:
--Environmental Protection at 10 a.m., regarding the Department of Environmental Protection. The Subcommittee on the Capital Budget will join at 11:30 to discuss the DEP capital budget
--Housing and Buildings at 10 a.m., regarding the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the Department of Buildings
--Sanitation and Solid Waste Management at 1 p.m., regarding the Department of Sanitation and the Business Integrity Commission
--Public Housing and Capital Budget jointly at 1 p.m., regarding NYCHA
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Wednesday in Albany.
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, the City Planning Commission will hold a public meeting at 120 Broadway.
On Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. in Albany, "Legislators, families, providers and advocates will be urging the Legislature and Governor to reject the Executive Budget proposal to cap and cut child welfare services reimbursement to NYC, which includes child protective services and preventive services. New York’s child welfare financing structure, in place since 2002, incentivizes good outcomes by capping foster care reimbursement while reimbursing counties 62% of the costs for the services that keep children and youth safe and out of foster care. New York City has leveraged this funding stream to lower child protective caseloads, decrease juvenile justice detention and placement, dramatically reduce the use of foster care, and become a national model for its continuum of high quality, effective preventive services. The budget proposal puts the safety of children at risk." The event is being organized by Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York.
At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Civilian Complaint Review Board will hold a public board meeting at the Adam Clayton Powell Jr State Office Building in Harlem.
Thursday
At the City Council on Thursday, the following committees will hold preliminary budget hearings:
--Land Use at 9:30 a.m., regarding the Landmarks Preservation Commission and Department of City Planning
--Criminal Justice at 10 a.m., regarding the Department of Probation, the Department of Correction, and the Board of Correction. The Subcommittee on the Capital Budget will join at 11:30 a.m. to examine DOC’s capital budget.
--Land Use and Technology jointly at 11:30 a.m., regarding DoITT
--Hospitals at 1 p.m., regarding the Health and Hospitals Corporation
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Thursday.
On Thursday at 6:30 p.m. "What's Happening in Albany: The NY DREAM Act: A Panel Discussion with Candidates, Experts, and Activists" will take place at Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York in Manhattan. Empire State Indivisible is hosting, with panelists Zellnor Myrie, candidate for State Senate District 20; Luis Yumbla, United We Dream; Karina Davila, Yonkers Sanctuary Movement; and Yatziri Tovar, Make the Road NY.
On Thursday at 7 p.m. "at the Local 46 the Metallic Lathers Union (1322 Third Avenue), neighborhood organization Eastsiders for Sensible Development will hold a meeting with Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts and Urban Planner George Janes to learn about the 370 ft tower in development on Third Ave between East 74th and 75th streets and what the Community can do about it."
Friday and the weekend
At the City Council on Friday, the following committees will hold preliminary budget hearings:
--Cultural Affairs at 10 a.m., regarding libraries and the Department of Cultural Affairs
--Youth Services at 1 p.m., regarding the Department of Youth and Community Development
At 9:30 a.m. Friday, City Council Member Carlina Rivera will deliver keynote remarks at the Bellevue Hospital Community Advisory Board Legislative Breakfast.
Mayor de Blasio is expected to make his weekly appearance on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show at 10 a.m. Friday.
At 2 p.m. Sunday, Let NY Vote will rally at Foley Square to urge the state legislature to early voting in the final state budget.
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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
