Myrie Leads NY Senate In Passing Early Voting Legislation
New York State Senator Zellnor Myrie (D-Central Brooklyn), Chair of Elections Committee, lead the State Senate yesterday in passing an amendment to election law allowing for early voting.
Myrie, the primary sponsor of S. 1102, will amend election law to permit eligible voters in New York State to vote early in person during a designated period. The bill passed the Senate with an unofficial vote of 48-13. The measure was one of seven passed to reform and expand voting rights on Monday.
The early voting period would end on the second day prior to any election (i.e., on Sunday). Counties (and New York City) are required to establish one early voting location per 50,000 registered voters, up to seven locations, and are permitted to exceed seven polling locations. A county with fewer than 50,000 registered voters County Boards of Elections must have at least one early voting polling location.
County Boards of Elections could reduce the number of polling locations for primary or special elections if a determination is made that there would be sufficient access to early voting.
“Voting is the right that protects all other rights, yet too many New Yorkers struggle to get to the ballot box because of family and work responsibilities or other barriers. We need to give people the opportunity to vote when they have the most time, and that starts with early voting,” said Myrie.
“Our voters gave us a mandate to take bold action to improve voting rights in New York, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do,” added Myrie.
Frontus Co-Sponsors Key Voting Reform Bills In First Wave of Bi-Cameral Legislation
Assembly member Mathylde Frontus (D-Coney Island, Bensonhurst, Gravesend) co-sponsored key voting reform bills, that are set to pass both chambers of the NYS legislature this week as part of a package of progressive legislation.
The measures include: a bill to streamline NYS Primaries (A00779); a bill aimed at encouraging youth to register to vote (A00774) and a bill that provides busy New Yorkers with the option to use an absentee ballot without having to provide a reason (A00778).
In addition Frontus also co-sponsoring, bill A00780, which enacts early voting; bill A00777, which removes the 10 day notice to register to vote and bill A00775, which allows transfers of voter registration.
“I’m doing what I was sent here to do. For the first time in ten years we have a real majority in both chambers. There is no better time for all of us to rally around state legislators and to urge us to pass the progressive legislation that New York State deserves,” said Frontus.
CM Williams Kicks Off ‘Peace Week,’ Anti-Gun Violence Initiative
City Council member Jumaane Williams (D-Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), Deputy Leader, will kick off ‘Peace Week’ today, a citywide anti-gun violence initiative.
On Tuesday, Williams alongside anti-gun violence advocates, elected officials, and families of those affected by gun violence will come together to launch the citywide event which aims to create a culture of peace throughout the city for seven days with events, activities, and personal actions. This year’s event will also coincide with the 90th birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The event is slated for 10:30 a.m., today, Jan. 15, on the Steps of City Hall in Lower Manhattan.
Colton Demands Mayor Sign Council Awnings Act
Assembly member William Colton (D-Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, and Dyker Heights) is demanding Mayor Bill de Blasio sign the recently passed Awnings Act, in order to further anymore sign violations on small businesses.
In December, the New York City Council passed The Awnings Act, legislation that would give hundreds of small shop owners that were targeted and issued fines for up to $6,000 this year for signs and awnings that have been hanging for decades, a reprieve on payment. The measure, for those that have already paid the fine, would provide discounted rates on permits for installing a new awning or sign, at 25% of the cost.
Colton is also demanding that fines previously paid by small businesses should be refunded as part of the legislation.
“The city administration’s policy must support and encourage small businesses which provide so many jobs to New York City neighborhood people. A bill becomes a law once it is signed by the Mayor. It’s only then added to the New York City Charter or Administrative Code. I am calling on you, Mayor de Blasio, to immediately sign the signage bill and make it into the law, so that the small business owners will not have the threat hanging over them and be able to run their businesses in peace,” said Colton.
Malliotakis Denounces House Foreign Affairs Chairman’s Trump Probe
Assembly member Nicole Malliotakis (R,C,I,Ref – Brooklyn/Staten Island) denounced House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel this week for announcing plans to investigate President Donald Trump’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Over the weekend, Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) announced plans to dissolve the panel’s terrorism subcommittee and instead create a panel to focus on investigating matters related to President Donald Trump, according to Fox News. Engel, who just took over as committee chairman, first floated the idea in December, eyeing an investigative subcommittee to replace the terrorism panel that was launched after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
As of this week, the panel will hold hearings on the controversial relationship, according to initial reports. The announcement of the hearings follows a Washington Post report that Trump tried to conceal details from his conversations with Putin from administration officials.
“House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel’s plan to dissolve its subcommittee on terrorism and replace it with a subcommittee to investigate President Trump is both disturbing and wrong. New York City was victim to the worst terror attack the world has ever seen and the subcommittee was created in the wake of the September 11th tragedy to protect our nation from future attacks,” said Malliotakis.
“Chairman Engel’s plan is a slap in the face to the victims of terror, their families and to all those in our military, intelligence agencies and law enforcement who protect us from terrorism on a daily basis. He should put aside his personal political agenda and preserve a subcommittee that promotes the most basic purpose of any government; the protection of its citizens,” added Malliotakis.
“I am pleased that the council has acted promptly and the bill was voted on to stop future fines, but it will not take effect until the Mayor signs it into law. It simply means that the Department of Buildings will continue harassing and imposing on the small business owners throughout the city with the unjust fines for the antiquated sign regulations until it becomes a law,” Colton stated.
BP Adams To Announce MTA Pilot Program Using First-of its-Kind “Smart Cane” Technology
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams today will join representatives from WeWALK — developers of a “smart cane” for the visually impaired — to demonstrate the first-of-its-kind technology to Brooklyn and to announce the launch of a pilot program with employees of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
The technology, which was developed in Turkey through the non-governmental organization (NGO) Young Guru Academy (YGA) and its strategic partner Vestel, in Europe’s largest industrial complex, Vestel City, facilitates the world’s “smartest cane,” which features obstacle detection, security LED lighting, as well as third-party integration capabilities with mobile apps such as Google Maps, Uber, and voice assistance in the future.
Adams will demonstrate the new technology alongside WeWALK Project Lead Kursat Ceylan and WeWALK Growth Lead Eren Erdogan, as well as representatives from Helen Keller Services, Lighthouse Guild, and MTA, while emphasizing the importance of government partnering with private sector innovators to uplift the lives of the more than 13 million blind and visually impaired people across the United States.
The Borough President will also discuss his administration’s ongoing emphasis on improving accessibility for New Yorkers living with disabilities; including last month’s launch of “Barrier-Free BK” initiative, which focuses on policy reforms to assist young people living with physical disabilities.
The event is slated for 2 p.m., today, Jan. 15, at Brooklyn Borough Hall, at 209 Joralemon Street in Downtown Brooklyn.
Reynoso, CM Williams’s Mitchell-Lama Legislation Gets Public Hearing
City Council members Antonio Reynoso (D-Williamsburg,Bushwick) and Jumaane Williams’s (D-flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood) legislation aimed increasing transparency for affordable Mitchell-Lama housing received a hearing this week.
On Monday, the Committee on Housing and Buildings held a hearing on their legislation, Intro 716, which would require that the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) report annually on certain information regarding the waiting lists of Mitchell-Lama housing developments.
Currently, Mitchell-Lama apartments are sold or rented through waiting lists kept by each development. In order for an individual to get on a waiting list for the unit, a Mitchell-Lama development need to have an open waiting list. Individuals are then chosen through a lottery for the available housing units.
“The housing lottery is a lifeline for many New Yorkers in search of the ever-decreasing and elusive affordable home. The Mitchell-Lama program in particular has served as a vital component of New York City’s affordable housing stock for decades. Unfortunately, uncertainty stemming from a lack of transparency on the waiting list has led to complaints and suspicions from many New Yorkers in dire need of affordable housing. Our legislation which was heard today is aimed at correcting that.
Clarity, transparency, and a willingness to work to correct any systemic issues is essential to instilling confidence in the system and improving the process by which people obtain affordable housing in a city that desperately needs much more of it. This may be a lottery, but that doesn’t have to mean ‘you never know,'” read a joint statement.
