BP Adams Applauds Funding Victories For Brooklyn In FY 20 City Budget
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams yesterday applauded the funding victories for Brooklyn included in the recently adopted and passed New York City Fiscal Year 2020 budget.
Earlier this week, the City Council adopted the budget after Mayor Bill de Blasio and Speaker Corey Johnson last Friday came to a gentleman’s agreement on a $92.8 billion for the city.
The newly adopted budget includes several funding priorities for Brooklyn, according to Adams, including $45 million in capital funding for projects, $350,000 in programmatic support four senior centers and $150,000 in operating funds for the mobile shower bus initiative. Additionally, the FY20 budget expands the Extended Use Hardship Waiver Pilot Program.
The budget also includes the designation of the Weeksville Heritage Center as a Cultural Institutions Group (CIG). Other highlights include placing more additional social workers in DOE schools, expansion of criminal justice related diversion programs, mayoral funding for 2020 Census outreach staff and public awareness campaigns, among other funding pushes.
“As the size of our City budget passes $90 billion and concerns are raised about a future economic downturn, I urge our agencies to prioritize top-to-bottom assessments of how our bureaucracy can be more efficient and make sure New Yorkers get their money’s worth from government,” said Adams.
Treyger To Host Street Co-Naming Ceremony To Honor Folk Singer & Activist
City Councilmember Mark Treyger (D-Coney Island, Bensonhurst, Gravesend) will be joined by Nora Guthrie and Arlo Guthrie, the children of Woody Guthrie this Saturday to honor the prolific songwriter, folk singer, activist and American icon, Woody Guthrie, with a street co-naming ceremony in Coney Island.
Woody Guthrie inspired generations of musicians and social justice advocates throughout the United States, and was a seminal figure in the American folk music renaissance of the 20th century, writing canonical songs like “This Land is Your Land,” and “Bound for Glory”. Coney Island was his beloved home and inspiration for many years, with its vibrant diversity reflected in many of his works. Guthrie and his family lived on Mermaid Avenue, where he taught icons of American folk music like Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and wrote extensively. Guthrie’s ashes were scattered along the Coney Island shore just blocks away.
The street co-naming, on the block where he and his family lived, pays tribute to his many contributions which fundamentally shaped American musical history and culture.
Woody Guthrie is one of the most iconic, influential, and important singer/songwriters in American history, exemplifying the spirit and power of art and music as an agent of change. Woody’s son Arlo Guthrie and daughter Nora Guthrie are serving as the King and Queen of this year’s Coney Island Mermaid Parade, taking place after the street co-naming ceremony. Many other members of the Guthrie family will join to pay tribute to the legendary impact of Woody Guthrie, and the Guthrie family will perform several of Woody’s classic songs.
The event is slated for 10 a.m., Saturday, June 22, at the corner of West 35th Street & Mermaid Avenue in Coney Island.
Rose Proposal To Increase Law Enforcement Mental Health Funding Passes House
Congressman Max Rose (D-South Brooklyn, Staten Island) announced that his proposal to increase funding for training, peer mentoring, and mental health programs for law enforcement officers by $2 million passed the House of Representatives yesterday and will be included in a broader funding package that will be voted on next week.
The funding follows recent tragedies of New York Police Department (NYPD) officers dying by suicide within a recent 10-day span. Three NYPD officers have died by suicide in a recent 10-day span, including one on Staten Island last week.
Rose, who serves on the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, is also supporting an effort to increase funding by $5 million for the Veterans Health Administration to hire more mental health professionals, the most-needed occupation according to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) Inspector General, which is expected to be voted on in the coming days as part of the broad funding package.
The freshman congressman and Army combat veteran, has made addressing the public health crisis of veteran suicide a top priority and has passed bipartisan legislation out of the House of Representatives to address the rising trend of veterans dying by suicide on VA campuses.
“The importance of mental health and seeking treatment has tragically hit very close to home,” Rose said. “Cops, firefighters, veterans and first responders—these are selfless heroes who are committed to serving and protecting everyone. All too often though, our leaders fail to make sure we’re serving them too. I refuse to sit back and do nothing. This is one step of many we as a government and society must take to help those who risk everything for us,” said Rose.
Myrie Applauds NYS Senate Passage of Automatic Voter Registration
State Senator Zellnor Myrie (D-Central Brooklyn) yesterday applauded the New York Senate approval of S6457, the NY Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2019, commonly referred to as AVR.
Automatic Voter Registration changes the voting process from an opt-in to an opt-out system. There are two major approaches to Automatic Voter Registration. In front-end systems, people are offered the opportunity to opt-out during their interaction with government agencies. In back-end systems, eligible people who interact with certain government agencies are registered by default, then get the opportunity to opt-out afterward, typically by mail.
The bill, S6457, would enact a front-end system, so that during the process of interacting with government agencies, individuals are given an explicit opportunity to opt-out of registration. The bill also requires agencies to explicitly warn non-citizens to decline the opportunity to share their information with the Board of Elections (BOE).
On the first day of this year’s legislative session, Senator Myrie sponsored S1102, a bill to allow Early Voting which was later signed into law by the Governor and then funded in the Enacted State Budget. In February, Senator Myrie sponsored legislation to allow electronic poll books and helped to negotiate funding for the measure in the budget. In March, he led a hearing on Public Financing of elections, and in May, he led a hearing on AVR.
“This vote marks another voting rights victory in what has already been a historic year for democracy in New York. As voting rights are under assault at the federal level and in states across the country, New York is removing barriers between voters and the ballot box by making it easier for people to make their voices heard,” said Myrie.
Ortiz Applauds Passage of Bill Protecting New Yorkers From Workplace Harassment
Assembly member Felix Ortiz (D-Sunset Park, Red Hook) yesterday applauded the State Assembly passage of legislation aimed at increasing protections against discriminatory harassment in the workplace (A. 8421).
Earlier this year, the legislature held hearings with testimony from victims, advocates and experts regarding sexual harassment in the workplace, which was used to craft the legislation.
The bill would amend New York’s Human Rights Law to cover all employers in the state. Current law excludes employers with fewer than four employees, leaving small business workers without the protections they need. The measure would make it an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer, licensing agency, employment agency or labor organization to subject any individual to harassment because of their membership in one or more protected classes, or because they have opposed any practices prohibited under the Human Rights Law.
The bill would also eliminate part of the Faragher/Ellerth defense, which allows employers to avoid liability for harassment because an employee failed to file a formal complaint or follow a particular reporting procedure. This change will protect workers who are unable to make complaints without facing the risk of retaliation.
“We have responded to the requests of so many victims who have told their stories. Our workers must be protected and our new legislation provides solutions to combat workplace harassment, said Ortiz.
