Mayor To Deliver State Of the City Address
Mayor Bill de Blasio will deliver his sixth State of the City address today in Manhattan.
For his annual address the Mayor will highlight the achievements of the past year and announce his agenda for the city moving forward.
The event is slated for 11 a.m., today, Jan. 10, at the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Symphony Space in Manhattan.
This speech will be live-streamed online on here.
CM Williams Paid Vacation Bill Gets Mayoral Support
City Council member Jumaane D. Williams (D-Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), Deputy Leader, applauded Mayor Bill de Blasio for his support in advancing legislation mandating for paid vacation time.
On Wednesday, de Blasio proposed making New York City the first in the nation to mandate paid personal time for workers. Currently more than 500,000 full- and part-time employees in New York City currently have no paid time off.
The Mayor is aiming to pursue local legislation that would require private employers with five or more employees to offer 10 annual days of Paid Personal Time, allowing employees to take paid time off for any purpose, including vacation, religious observances, bereavement and time with family. The legislation would guarantee this time for approximately 3.4 million New Yorkers.
“I thank the Mayor for his support of this essential workers’ right, and for agreeing to work with me and my colleagues on the Council- with a Speaker willing to work to move forward the dialogue, to advance the legislative solutions that I proposed in 2014, and to build off of and expand upon them,” said Williams.
“New York City should lead the way on workers’ rights, especially amid a national environment that treats those workers less like people and more like a commodity or a talking point. I look forward to working with the business community to ensure that their concerns are address and that in New York, time off for workers is treated not as a luxury, but as a necessity,” added Williams.
Colton To Sponsor Public Advocate Forum
Assembly member William Colton (D-Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, Dyker Heights) will sponsor an upcoming Public Advocate candidate forum.
The role of the Public Advocate is primarily to watch and ensure that all New Yorkers receive the City services they deserve. Additionally, the citywide position is tasked with reviewing the performance of City agencies, developing proposals and improving essential services that many New Yorkers depend on.
Currently the race for the open seat include City Councilman Rafael Espinal (D-Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brownsville, Bushwick, Crown Heights, Cypress Hills, and East New York), Assemblyman Michael Blake (D-Bronx), Theo Chino, Daniel Christmann, David Eisenbach, Tony Herbert, Ifeoma Ike, Assemblyman Ron Kim (D- Whitestone, Flushing, College Point, and Murray Hill), Nomiki Konst, former Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-Bronx), Dawn Smalls, Ydanis Rodriguez, Assemblywoman Latrice Walker (D-Brownsville), Councilman Jumaane Williams (D- East Flatbush, Flatbush, Midwood) and Benjamin Yee and lawyer Dawn Smalls.
“The Public Advocate is the office which was intended to be the voice to protect people and the neighborhood. The Public Advocate role is to hold our elected leaders accountable to the needs of the people by enforcing the laws to keep our neighborhoods clean, by fighting to protect small neighborhood businesses from harassment with unjust and unfair fines for their storefront signs, and by fighting for affordable and safe public transit and the quality of life that being raised with the city government,” Colton said.
“Many have urged me to run for the Public Advocate position but with the short campaign available, I believe it is more important for me to help promote knowledge of what the announced candidates have on these important issues so that people can make a knowledgeable choice in electing the best candidate in February,” added Colton.
The event is slated for 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb 13, at 29 Bay 25th Street in Bath Beach.
The special election for Public Advocate is Feb. 26.
Levin Introduces Bill Allowing For Legal Defense Trusts
City Council members Stephen Levin (D-Williamsburg, Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, DUMBO, and parts of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Clinton Hill, Greenpoint, Downtown Brooklyn, Gowanus, Park Slope) and Andrew Cohen (D-Bronx) introduced legislation yesterday that would allow for the creation of a distinct legal defense trust (LDTs) for public officials.
Intro. 1325 is legislation that would allow for a responsible and distinct system to be created so public officials can accept donations and pay legal fees related to governmental, administrative, criminal or civil investigations having to do with a political campaign, issue advocacy, or the holding of a civil office or political party position.
The legislation creates strict requirements around the creation of an LDT. No campaign funds or public funds would go into the trust, and there would be no co-mingling of assets. This ensures finance limits are respected, campaign funds are allocated only to campaigns, and LDT funds cannot be used as a loophole to circumvent campaign contribution limits. Each trust would also be set up and overseen by an independent trustee for maximum accountability.
The bill imposes strict limits on who can donate, how much, and where. The following would be prohibited under the legislation:
- Lobbyists, anyone doing business with the city, corporations and LLCs would not be allowed to donate to an LDT. All donations would have to be reported to the conflicts of interest board and posted online.
- Contributions are limited to $5,000 per donor.
- The trust is managed by a trustee(s) who is responsible for overseeing each LDT and who cannot be an elected official or beneficiary themselves.
- Penalties are specified in the legislation for any rule violations.
“Every public official would hope to never have to set one of these up, but if they were to, it’s important that they have the tools for a fair defense, and that it is done in a way that is regulated, accountable, and not tangled up in campaign finance,” said Levin.
“In effect, the legal defense trust would serve as a regulated ‘lockbox’ that allows public officials to cover potential needed fees, prevents campaign funds from being improperly used, and honors the public’s trust in the responsible use of their tax dollars,” added Levin.
Ortiz To Hold Community Policy Forum
Assembly member Felix Ortiz (D-Sunset Park, Red Hook) will hold his first monthly “Second Saturdays” community policy forum in his district office this week.
The event will give constituents an opportunity to discuss policy priorities in the current legislative session and any other issues facing the district. This will be a community roundtable discussion.
The event is slated for 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 12, at Ortiz’s District Office, at 5004 4th Avenue in Sunset Park.
Monthly policy discussions will be held on the second Saturday each month.
