The popular Citi Bike program is facing serious financial and operational troubles, and officials are looking for ways to raise tens of millions of dollars to save it. Those running the program are hoping the de Blasio Administration will allow them to raise rates. One reson for the revenue shortfall is that more 24-hour rentals were expected, as opposed to the less profitable yearly memberships. Damages from Superstorm Sandy and software glitches created other problems. But advocates blame Alta Bicycle Share, the company operating Citi Bike, for failing to improve the program, resolve problems, and find new sponsors beyond Citigroup.

Other Stories We're Following

Mayor Vows Reforms On Rikers Island (NY Times)

Kid Sneaks To Top Of WTC, Which Has No Cameras (NY Post)

Congestion Pricing Plan Gains Actual Momentum (Capital)

De Blasio Finding Victories In Pursuit Of Liberal Agenda (NY Times)

Public Authorities' Financial Data Now Available Online (Associated Press)

City To Broker Peace Between Schools Sharing Space (WNYC)

Pols Silent As Thousands Await Charter Spots In Their Districts (NY Post)

City To Revamp Bloomberg’s Restaurant Grades (Capital)

Dream Act Revived In Assembly Budget Negotiations (Wall Street Journal)

Housing Chief Says Plan Will Be Unveiled By May (Crain's)

D Train Grimiest In Subway System (DNAinfo)

Tuberculosis Cases Rise In City (am New York)

Investigators are probing the death of a homeless former Marine on Rikers Island whose cell had overheated to at least 100 degrees. One official said "He basically baked to death." The inmate hadn't been checked on for hours, although he was supposed to looked in on every 15 minutes and was complaining of the heat. He was in a mental-observation unit and was taking medication that may have made him vulnerable to heat. An autopsy was inconclusive and that more tests were needed. He was arrested for sleeping on the roof of a project building. Problems with the handling mentally ill patients on Rikers Island have been escalating in recent years.

The Latest from Gotham Gazette

Miss any of our recent stories at GothamGazette.com? We published an op-ed from two CUNY professors on expanding youth opportunities; a profile of a troubled Bronx assembly district and the prospects for new leadership there; a look at the city's vacant lot policies; a report on New York government transparency; and more. Get caught up on our latest!
Other Stories We're Following

ConEd Paying East Harlem Explosion Victims (Wall Street Journal)

Silver Picks Prominent Lobbyist For Harassment Appeal (Daily News)

City Courts Cut Time Between Arrest And Arraignment (NY Times)

Cuomo To de Blasio Pre-K Supporters: Back Off (Capital)

City's Public Hospitals Get Obamacare Boost (Crain's)

NYPD On Alert For Car Bombs (Daily News)

Cuomo Gives Subtle Boost To Possible Klein Challenge (Politicker)

‘Mansion Tax’ Produces Geyser Of State Revenue (NY Post)

Parents To City: No More School Trailers (WNYC)

Democrats All Around Atop City Government (Wall Street Journal)

Familiar Consultants Hired By de Blasio’s Pre-K Drive (NY Times)

Riders Can Now Track City Buses Using Phones (Associated Press)

NY Attorney General Steps Up Campaign Against Wall St. (Crain's)

Building A Neighborhood On Top Of A Rail Yard (The Atlantic Cities)

The de Blasio Administration agreed yesterday to $98 million in back-pay to settle a class action lawsuit that the Fire Department entrance exams were racially biased against people of color. Brooklyn Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis had mandated reforms to increase the diversification of the force in 2011, but his decision that the discrimination was intentional was overruled by a U.S. Court of Appeals, leading to the class action suit.. A trial was scheduled for the end of this month. In 2002 the Vulcan Society, a group of black firefighters, brought the original complaint to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. It was handed over to the courts in 2007. As part of the settlement, the department agreed to appoint a chief of diversity and inclusion, and the city even asked that Garaufis oversee the settlement. The number of minority firefighters has increased from 8 percent in 2002 to 16 percent in 2013, according to the Fire Department. The department is one agency still awaiting appointment of a new commissioner by Mayor Bill de Blasio.
It's Sunshine Week!
Tune in today: As part of national efforts to bring more transparency to government, Citizens Union, along with Reinvent Albany and NYPIRG will live-webcast four State Assembly committee meetings this morning. Starting with a press conference at 10:15 a.m. and using mobile phones to show how easy and inexpensive it can be for the Assembly to webcast its committee meetings, members of these good government organizations will live-stream committee meetings via a special page at GothamGazette.com. Currently, the Assembly does not publicly broadcast its committee meetings, while the State Senate does (as does the NY City Council).
Tune in to watch the live webcast of Assembly committee meetings and join the conversation via #citizenwebcasts on Twitter.
Date: Wednesday, 3/19/14
Time: 10:15 a.m. press conference; 11 a.m.-noon committee meetings
Site: GothamGazette.com/CitizensWebcasts
For a quick primer on what is and what is not transparent about our state and city governments, read Gotham Gazette’s informative article, “ Letting the Sun In: The State of New York Government Transparency.”
(Note: Gotham Gazette is a publication of Citizens Union Foundation)
New at Gotham Gazette
Opinion:  Expanding de Blasio’s Agenda for Youth Opportunities
by CUNY professors Robert Cherry and David C. Bloomfield

Other Stories We're Following

Rikers Struggles With Surge In Violence, Mental Illness (NY Times)

Big Education Questions In Budget Talks (Capital)

How de Blasio Toughened An Affordability Formula (Capital)

NYPD Supervisor Countersues Whistleblower (NY Post)

City Seeks After-School Providers (DNAinfo)

Super PACs Could Lead To Corruption Without State Law (Daily News)

Bidder For LICH Has Checkered Record In Role of Rescuer (NY Times)

Source Of Gas Leak In Harlem Blast Discovered (NY Post)

City Sees Spike In Pre-K Applications (WNYC)

Another Push For The Dream Act (Associated Press)

Call For Elections For Empty Legislative Seats (Associated Press)

A Silent Infrastructure Challenge: Aging Public Buildings (City Limits)

Letting the Sun in: The State of New York State Government Transparency

Other Stories We're Following

Cuomo Defends Closed-Door Budget Process (Lower Hudson Journal)

Cuomo’s Elite-Republican Strategy (Capital)

Death of Brooklyn Boy Latest in Spate as City Turns to Traffic Safety (NY Times)

Possible Suitor For LICH Has Checkered Record as Savior (NY Times)

City’s Largest Residential Building Gets Green Light (NY Post)

Federal Suit Filed Over Harlem Charter School (Daily News)

State Suspends Licenses of Tax Deadbeats (Daily News)

Mayor Holds Public Hearing on Paid Sick Leave Bill (NY 1)

Astorino Tries to Translate Spanish Into Votes (Wall Street Journal)

De Blasio Declines to Engage Cuomo on Pre-K (Crain's)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo lobbied to reduce the amount of prekindergarten funding in the state Senate's budget proposal, according to The Wall Street Journal Cuomo called Sen. Jeff Klein on Tuesday to tell him the $540 million in prekindergarten funding proposed in the Senate budget and requested by Mayor Bill de Blasio was excessive. Cuomo suggested that Klein was looking to score political points to avoid a primary. Cuomo's sensitivity to the issue shows how delicate a political issue prekindergarten funding has become. The Senate budget resolution was passed on Thursday and now committees in both houses of the legislature will meet on the spending plan and negotiate with Cuomo on a final package. The pre-k figure included in the Senate budget is essentially meaningless. Cuomo has taken a number of jabs at de Blasio and his education plans over the last month.

Letting the Sun In: The State of Transparency in New York

At the dawn on Sunshine Week Gotham Gazette examines the state of open data and transparency in the City and State. Advocates say the state is leading the nation in open data accessibility but has a lot of catching up to do when it comes to transparency and the Freedom of Information Law. 

Other Stories We're Following

State Offices Ignore Freedom of Information Laws (Ithaca Journal)

De Blasio’s Costly Education Victory (Capital)

Cuomo Hedges on Mayoral Control (Capital)

De Blasio Visits Mourners in East Harlem (NY Times)

Guinness Withdraws Sponsorship of St. Patrick’s Day Parade (NY Times)

City and Teachers Union Resuming Multiyear Contract Talks (Daily News)

Senate Rejects Push For Renters Tax Credit (Daily News)

Mayor and Speaker Fill Ranks Will El Diario Alums (Politicker)

De Blasio Criticizes Sandy Recovery (Wall Street Journal)

New Panel Will Consider Port Authority Reforms (Wall Street Journal)

State Paid Double Estimated Market Value For Some Sandy-Damaged Homes (DNAinfo)

PR Pros Tell Mayor How to Recover (Crain's)

The state senate passed a budget resolution yesterday providing $540 million a year over five years for funding of full-day pre-K and after school programs in the city. They would pay for it by removing Gov. Andrew Cuomo's corporate tax cut from the budget. The amount meets the new standards Mayor Bill de Blasio requested last week. The Assembly passed their own budget resolution authorizing the mayor's wealth tax to pay for pre-K. But Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said he was fine with a plan that fully funded pre-K without a tax, as long as there are no strings attached. The senate's resolution did include a catch for the mayor, as it would rescind his charter school co-location decisions and impose new mandates on how the city deals with the schools. Silver made it clear he doesn't support the charter rules. The chambers will have to negotiate the final budget with the governor, who was quick to change the subject from pre-K to charter schools, saying that discussion "is going to be powerful and is probably going to be one of the more controversial and complex matters that we wind up dealing with in the budget."

The 'Imperfect Messenger': Anthony Weiner on Policy and Politics

A Gotham Gazette two-part exclusive interview with the mercurial former congressman, two-time mayoral candidate, political commentator, and New York idea guy.

Now up:
Part Two: Politics (discussing keys to being politically effective; the differing styles of mayors de Blasio, Bloomberg, and Giuliani; what it means to be a progressive; and the upcoming mid-term congressional elections, among other things).

And in case you missed it or want to read it again:
Part One: Policy (discussing Sandy recovery, the teachers union contract, seniors and development, among other things).

Other Stories We're Following

Metro-North Safety Lacking, Review Finds After Fatal Crash (NY Times)

Harlem Explosion Sheds Light On Old Infrastructure (Crain's)

De Blasio: We’ll Talk About Infrastructure Later (Capital)

Bar Association Urges Steps To Improve Ethics Panel (NY Times)

Senate Seeks Tweaks In Budget (Albany Times Union)

New Kind Of Hospital Emerges In The Bronx (WNYC)

Health And Hospitals Deficit Faces Further Expansion (Wall Street Journal)

What Klein Delivered For Progressives As Breakaway-Leader (Capital)

Ex-Fire Commissioner Blasts FDNY For Bigotry (Daily News)

Labor Contract Talks Off To Good Start (Daily News)

Commissioner Bratton "Over" Jaywalking Questions (Capital)

An explosion in East Harlem yesterday killed at least six people and leveled two buildings. Nine people are still missing. Neighbors reported smelling gas, and the explosion is suspected to have been caused by a leak. Century-old cast iron piping, which is prone to leaks and that ConEd had been replacing, is a possible cause. A new gas line was installed in one of the buildings a few months ago. Acrid smoke has made recovery difficult and nearby residents have been stocking up on face masks. The explosion prompted a call for increased infrastructure spending and for the mayor to speed up his appointment of a Department of Buildings commissioner. Authorities renewed their appeals to the public to report possible gas leaks immediately.

News From Gotham Gazette: Our New Executive Editor!

Gotham Gazette is happy to announce the hiring of Ben Max as Executive Editor. Ben begins work at Gotham Gazette this week after leading comprehensive coverage of the 2013 New York City election cycle at DecideNYC.com, a website he began early last year. Ben is being accompanied to Gotham Gazette by some of his Decide NYC team and some of their most recent content. Reach Ben at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Find more information on Ben's joining Gotham Gazette here.

Ben will also be writing at Gotham Gazette, starting with a two-part interview with former congressman and mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner. Part One of this series is focused on policy and is live this morning at Gotham Gazette:
The 'Imperfect Messenger': Anthony Weiner on Policy and Politics

Other Stories We're Following

More City Teachers Fleeing To Suburbs: Union (Daily News)

Federal Housing Chief Faults City For Sandy Aid Delays (WNYC)

Study Looks At What Makes Pre-K Successful (NY Times)

Senate Makes Bid To Undo Mayor's Charter Moves (NY Post)

Elderly Jaywalker Hurt By Cops Still Faces Charges (NY Post)

How A Taxi Share System Could Transform The City (The Atlantic Cities)

Senate Budget May Not Include ‘Specific Number’ For Pre-K (Capital)

Cops Hand Out Fake Warning Notices To Jaywalkers (StreetsBlog)

John Liu Files Suit Against Campaign Finance Board (Wall Street Journal)

Critics Fault Cuomo's Bank Tax Proposal (Associated Press)

Cuomo's Juvenile Justice Reform Falls Short Of Goals (City Limits)

The city has seen a 2 percent drop in crime since Mayor Bill de Blasio took office, and yesterday he attributed the reduction to his policing approach. Murders fell by 21 percent, shootings dropped by 14 percent, and the city went 10 days without a murder. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, who again mixed up some statistics while speaking, conceded that unseasonable cold and numerous snowstorms probably helped. Major felonies in the city's biggest parks rose, however, and last year saw an 18 percent jump. Meanwhile, the commissioner will be transferring at least 100 NYPD commanders in a sweeping overhaul.

Other Stories We're Following

Few Blacks, Hispanics At Elite City Schools (NY Times)

Public Housing Residents Still Wait For Sandy Repairs (Daily News)

City Needs $50 Billion For Infrastructure Overhaul: Study (NY Post)

Advocates Push Mayor On Shelter Population Rise (NY Times)

City's Largest Labor Group To Meet Mayor's Chief Negotiator (DNAinfo)

Commissioner Calls Pot Legalization ‘Terrible Mistake’ (Politicker)

De Blasio Taps Team To Push 'Progressive' Criminal Justice (DNAinfo)

Feds: State Medicaid Payments 'Excessive' (Associated Press)

Public Advocate Wants Universal Free Lunch (Daily News)

One New Regent Member Chosen By Lawmakers (Associated Press)

Comptroller Worries Over City Union Contracts, Structural Deficits (Capital)

Council May Review Moskowitz Charters In Case Of Corruption (NY Post)

Mayor Bill de Blasio altered his position on pre-K yesterday, saying he's open to state funding - as long as a verifiable source is found to provide his plan's full amount of $530 million annually over five years. The switch, revealed on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program, came as the Assembly announced it would include his tax plan in their preliminary budget. On the show, the mayor also acknowledged that he could have done better work in terms of public relations on the charter school front. His first deputy mayor, Anthony Shorris, reiterated the statement afterwards, calling the mistakes "bumps" in communication with the public. But then he went on to link charter schools with support of privatization of the school system. Later in the day, the mayor met privately with a group of supportive charter school executives, who left heartened by the discussion. At about the same time, Gov. Andrew Cuomo appeared on a WNYC radio program to defend charter schools as a more relevant part of the education discussion than pre-K.

Other Stories We're Following

State Reports Steep Rise In Housing Costs (NY Times)

Final Word On Sandy's Economic Impact (Crain's)

Schumer: City 'Taking Sweet Time' Dispersing Sandy Aid (DNAinfo)

De Blasio: City To Become Defendant In NYPD Profiling Suit (NY Post)

Common Core Panel Releases Familiar Recommendations (Capital)

Lawmakers To Vote On Regents Members (Associated Press)

Metro-North Train Kills Track Worker In Manhattan (Wall Street Journal)

NY Health Exchange Enrolls Nearly 600,000 So Far (Daily News)

Liberals Hit Cuomo's Plan To Cut Bank Tax (Crain's)

Breakaway Senate Dems Support Espaillat Against Rangel (Daily News)

Why Police Unions Really Waffle On Stop-And-Frisk (The Atlantic Cities)

Consumed by what appears to be a losing battle over his universal pre-kindergarten strategy, Mayor Bill de Blasio seems to be moving one of his signature issues to the backburner. De Blasio had called on Albany to allow New York City to set its own minimum wage because of the difference in the cost of living between the city and the rest of the state. Gov. Andrew Cuomo quickly opposed the idea and the leadership in the Senate appears to be uninterested. When de Blasio traveled to Albany last week he failed to mention the minimum wage measure and focused on pre-k. Sen. Jeffrey Klein, who has allied with de Blasio on other issues, told the New York Times in an interview that he did not plan to press for the minimum wage increase. Lawmakers appear to be unwilling to revisit the staggered wage increase they implemented last year. 

Other Stories We're Following

College Behind Bars: Cuomo Proposal Sparks Debate (Gotham Gazette)

De Blasio Pressures Cuomo Through Minority Voters (Capital)

De Blasio Faces Hard Road in Rent Plan For Charters (NY Times)

Renters Hope For First Freeze as De Blasio Prepares to Fill Guidelines Boad (NY Times)

National Progressives Question Cuomo’s Commitment to Campaign Public Financing (Daily News)

Assembly Dems Will Try to Block Cuomo From Taking MTA Funds (Daily News)

Council Speakers’ Inauguration Paid For by Real Estate Developers, Unions (Daily News)

De Blasio and Pre-K Supporters Make Push at City Churches (Daily News)

Parents at Success Academy Harlem to File Lawsuit Against DOE (NY1)

DREAM Act Could Advance Via Espaillat (Gotham Gazette)

Lawmakers : Budget Could Hinge on DREAM Act (Gotham Gazette)

Cuomo to Define Opponent With $10 Million ad Campaign (NY Post)

Rikers Island Guards Charged in Inmate Beating, Coverup (Wall Street Journal)

Senate Introduces Ethics Proposals in Possible Political Gambit (Albany Times Union)

De Blasio Names Meera Joshi to Lead TLC (Politicker)

De Blasio Spent Nearly $2 Million on Inauguration and Transition(Politicker)

Mayor’s Ally Being Paid to Fight Him (Crain's)

Park Advocates Urge Mayor to Block Union Square Restaurant (DNAinfo)

Polls Show Cuomo More Popular Than De Blasio in NYC (DNAinfo)