Gillibrand Introduces Bill To Protect American Elections From Interference
U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), along with 11 Senate colleagues, yesterday introduced a new bill to protect American elections from interference.
This measure comes as Florida’s governor announced that two counties in the state were hacked during the 2016 elections. The Protecting American Votes and Elections (PAVE) Act of 2019 would take measures to fix the vulnerabilities in the nation’s federal election infrastructure and help secure American elections from hackers.
This includes creating new cybersecurity standards, providing state and local governments with resources to guard against cyberattacks, and mandating paper ballots for all federal elections.
“Voting is one of the cornerstones of our democracy, and we must never allow our elections to be vulnerable to interference again,” said Gillibrand. “The PAVE Act would help ensure the validity of election results by requiring a paper receipt for every vote, providing states with the resources they desperately need to upgrade their voting machines, and creating new cybersecurity standards at the voting booth. Congress has a responsibility to secure the integrity of our elections, and I am proud to join with Senator Wyden to introduce this bill that strengthens our country’s election infrastructure.”
Stringer Calls For City to be First City in the Nation to Directly Fund Abortion Care
City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer, the National Institute of Reproductive Health (NIRH) Action Fund, and a coalition of advocates yesterday called for New York City to be the first city in the nation to directly fund abortion care.
The call to action comes In the midst of the latest wave of abortion bans across the country. Stringer and advocates urged the City to reaffirm its commitment to abortion access and include at least $250,000 in the FY2020 Budget for the New York Abortion Access Fund. This investment matches the organization’s operating budget and will help over 500 people annually in covering the cost of abortion care.
“Our city budget is a reflection of who we are as a city, what our priorities are for the future, and the values we hold most dear. As the federal government and states across the country turn back the clock on reproductive rights, New York City must lead the way forward and provide a first-in-the-nation investment to ensure access to safe, compassionate abortion care,” said Stringer. “While other parts of the country are turning our health care back centuries, New York City has the opportunity to send a clear message in this year’s budget: we believe abortion should be safe, legal and accessible – and we will put our money where our mouth is”
Nadler Leads NYC Members in Opposing Northeast Supply Enhancement Project
U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-UWS, Morningside Heights, Hell’s Kitchen, Chelsea, Greenwich Village, Soho, Wall Street, Battery Park City) led Members of the New York City Congressional delegation in a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo expressing their concern over the proposed Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project.
The project, also known as the Williams Pipeline, would transport fracked gas from Pennsylvania through New Jersey, traveling underwater in the Raritan Bay and Lower New York Bay.
In their letter, the Members wrote, “The construction of a fracked gas pipeline is a highly intrusive process that, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Environmental Impact Statement, threatens to displace unsafe levels of numerous toxic substances under the sea floor along the proposed route.The potential displacement of these substances within three miles of many shoreline communities and precious habitats represents an unacceptable risk to human and animal health.”
The letter was signed by Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Nydia Velázquez (NY-7), José Serrano (NY-15), Grace Meng (NY-6), Gregory Meeks (NY-5), Carolyn Maloney (NY-12), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Eliot Engel (NY-16), Yvette Clarke (NY-9), and Hakeem Jeffries (NY-8).
