Maximum New York: Legislative Brief

NYC Legislative Brief #2

Daniel Golliher — Sun, 04 Jun 2023 02:37:13 GMT

Contents & notes

See the Twitter thread of this post here.
17 new city laws were enacted last month (May 2023)
14 were adopted via charter rule, and 3 were adopted via mayoral signature
3 laws (indicated with ✂️) cut outdated, unconstitutional, and redundant laws
Local Law 54 illegalized selling guinea pigs in pet shops (and if you look at the portion of the administrative code that this changes, you’ll find that rabbits were already illegal in the same manner!)
Legislative forecast for June: about 18 laws will be enacted, most of them via charter rule adoption. 18 bills were approved by the City Council in May, and most bills passed by the Council sit on the Mayor’s desk, unsigned, for 30 days, at which point they automatically become law.

Review legislative terms and process

New local laws in May 2023 (17)

Local Law 53 (Int 0273-2022), Enacted via Mayoral Signature 👮‍♂️🧩
by Mercedes Narcisse with 26 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring police officers to receive training related to recognizing and interacting with individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
Summary: The bill will require that NYPD to provide officers with training related to recognizing and interacting with individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Such training would include: (i) enhancing awareness and a practical understanding of autism spectrum disorder; (ii) development of the interpersonal skills to safely respond to emergencies involving someone with autism spectrum disorder; and (iii) instruction on interview and investigative techniques to utilize in cases involving individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
Local Law 54 (Int 0004-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 🐭👎
by Diana I. Ayala with 36 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting the sale of guinea pigs in pet shops.
Summary: This bill would prohibit pet shops from selling guinea pigs.
Local Law 55 (Int 0008-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 🎟
by Justin L. Brannan with 17 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the disclosure of total ticket costs in advertisements.
Summary: This bill would require the operator of a place of entertainment; an agent, licensee or other ticket reseller of such operator; or a platform that facilitates the sale or resale of tickets to disclose the full price of a ticket whenever they display a ticket price on advertisements. The advertised price would be required to include fees such as taxes and service fees to increase transparency. By requiring early disclosure, this bill would allow consumers to make more informed decisions before beginning a transaction. Those who violate this bill would be subject to civil penalties from zero dollars for the first violation up to $500.
Local Law 56 (Int 0128-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 👶🧷🌳
by Rafael Salamanca, Jr. with 17 sponsors, Committee on Parks and Recreation
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to diaper changing accommodations in parks and redesignating section 18-148.
Summary: This bill would require that every bathroom under the jurisdiction of the Parks Department have a safe, sanitary and convenient diaper changing station, deck, table or similar amenity, with half of all bathrooms being equipped by December 31, 2025, three-quarters of bathrooms by December 31, 2026 and all remaining bathrooms by December 31, 2027. If the Parks commissioner determines that a restroom does not have sufficient space for the installation of a diaper changing station, or that the installation would negatively impact public safety, the commissioner must notify the speaker of the council and the local council member within 10 days of that determination being made.
Local Law 57 (Int 0239-2022), Charter Rule Adopted ☀️
by James F. Gennaro with 27 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to education and outreach regarding solar and green roof systems.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Buildings to conduct targeted outreach to educate building owners about the benefits of installing solar and green roof systems. Educational materials shall be made available in plain English and all of the designated citywide languages and on the department’s website.
Local Law 58 (Int 0606-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 🚛💨
by Alexa Avilés with 39 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to motor vehicles idling adjacent to and within certain parks.
Summary: This bill would amend the idling law to restrict idling to one minute when adjacent to or within parks that have a designated name and are identified as a park on the Department of Parks and Recreation’s website. This bill would also create an affirmative defense that the park was not easily identifiable as a park by signage or otherwise at the time a violation occurred.
Local Law 59 (Int 0675-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 🩺💻
by Crystal Hudson with 34 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the creation of a telemedicine accessibility plan.
Summary: This bill would require the creation of a telemedicine accessibility plan to improve the availability and accessibility of portable monitoring devices and telehealth devices for populations that could be better served by telemedicine services.
Local Law 60 (Int 0891-2023) Enacted via Mayoral Signature 🎰
by Rafael Salamanca, Jr. with 5 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to allowing charitable organizations to conduct games of chance at professional sporting venues, and to repeal subdivision 8 of section 20-435 of such code, which defines the term “Prize.”
Summary: This bill would allow sports venues throughout New York City to conduct raffles for charitable purposes during professional or collegiate sporting competitions by providing certain exemptions regarding advertising, the value of prizes, the sale of alcohol on the premises, the cost of admission to the premises, the number of raffles that may occur within one calendar year, and the length of a license period. Raffles may be conducted from two hours before the beginning of play until the end of play.
Local Law 61 (Int 0209-2022), Enacted via Mayoral Signature 🔖
by Shaun Abreu with 35 sponsors, Committee on Civil and Human Rights
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of a person’s height or weight in employment, housing, and public accommodations.
Summary: This bill would prohibit discrimination on the basis of a person’s height or weight in employment, housing, and public accommodations. This bill would also create an exemption for employers needing to consider height or weight in employment decisions only where required by federal, state, or local laws or regulations or where the Commission on Human Rights permits such considerations because height or weight may prevent a person from performing essential requirements of a job and no alternative is available or this criteria is reasonably necessary for the normal operation of the business. This bill would similarly permit consideration of height or weight by operators or providers of public accommodations. Covered entities under this law would have an affirmative defense that their actions based on a person’s height or weight were reasonably necessary for normal operations.
Local Law 62 (Int 0190-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 📄⛺️
by Public Advocate Jumaane Williams with 20 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the creation and distribution of a statement of rights for persons experiencing homelessness and residing in shelter.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) to produce a statement of rights for those living in shelter, which would inform clients experiencing homelessness about the rights and services available to them. In addition, DHS would be required to make this document available on its website and to provide it to shelters and social services offices for distribution to people experiencing homelessness.
Local Law 63 (Int 0679-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 👵🚘
by Rita C. Joseph with 19 sponsors, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the installation of traffic calming devices in senior pedestrian zones.
Summary: This bill requires the Department of Transportation (DOT), in consultation with the Department for the Aging, to designate certain senior pedestrian zones in the City. DOT must annually install at least one traffic calming device in each zone, and no less than 50 devices across all zones. The Commissioner, after installing at least fifty devices across all zones, may determine to stop further installation in any zone and notify the Speaker of such determination. When any new zone is established or existing zone expanded, DOT shall evaluate the need for any new traffic calming devices in such zones. DOT must report to the Council by February 1, 2024 and annually thereafter on the locations where traffic calming devices have been installed.
Local Law 64 (Int 0704-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 💵🖥
by Shaun Abreu with 37 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the receipt of rental assistance payments.
Summary: The bill would require the Human Resources Administration to provide landlords the option to accept rental assistance payments via an electronic transfer into a bank account.
Local Law 65 (Int 0805-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 📄📄🚗
by Public Advocate Jumaane Williams with 16 sponsors, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to pedestrian safety reporting.
Summary: Under the bill, the Department of Transportation (DOT) would be required to accelerate the schedule on which the agency conducts the study of traffic crashes involving a pedestrian fatality or serious injury required by local law from every five years to every four years, and to provide such studies and plans arising from such studies to all Community Boards in addition to the Mayor and Speaker. DOT would also be required to submit reports concerning investigations undertaken by its crash investigation and analysis unit to the Speaker and to all Community Boards.
Local Law 66 (Int 0854-2022), Charter Rule Adopted ☀️🚗
by Selvena N. Brooks-Powers with 18 sponsors, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to new daylighting measures.
Summary: This bill requires that the Department of Transportation (DOT) study safety benefits of daylighting and daylighting barriers, and implement daylighting at a minimum of 100 intersections a year beginning on January 1, 2025. DOT would also be required to install daylighting barriers in intersections where daylighting has been implemented, subject to the Commissioner’s determination. The Commissioner may determine to cease implementation of daylighting at 100 intersections a year on or after January 1, 2030 if additional daylighting would not meaningfully contribute to the safety of motorists, pedestrians, or cyclists and the Commissioner notifies the Speaker of such determination. DOT must annually report on the locations at which daylighting has been implemented and discontinued.
Local Law 67 (Int 0984-2023), Charter Rule Adopted ✂️
by Gale A. Brewer with 8 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to eliminating certain outdated and unnecessary temporary programs and pilot programs, unconstitutional provisions and other outdated and unnecessary provisions…
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal 12 provisions from the Administrative Code: Temporary or pilot programs – 7 provisions - Such provisions would be repealed as each of the programs have expired. Some provisions require only the creation of a program for a specific period of time, while others also require submission of an accompanying report by a specific date. Regardless, all the program completion dates and report due dates required under such provisions have long since passed. Unconstitutional provisions – 3 provisions - These provisions of the Administrative Code have been deemed unconstitutional. Outdated provisions – 2 provisions - These two provisions are obsolete due to changed circumstances.
Local Law 68 (Int 0986-2023), Charter Rule Adopted ✂️
by Amanda Farías with 8 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to eliminating certain outdated and unnecessary advisory boards, task forces and commissions…
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal 17 provisions of the Charter and Administrative Code establishing certain advisory boards, task forces or commissions. Such provisions would be repealed for at least one of the following reasons: the body no longer convenes and has been dormant for a substantial period of time; the provision establishing the body calls for the submission of a one-time report and no further activity; the body no longer provides any useful function; the duties assigned to the body are duplicative of the functions of other City bodies; or the provision was waived by the Report and Advisory Board Review Commission.
Local Law 69 (Int 1004-2023), Charter Rule Adopted ✂️
by Nantasha M. Williams with 8 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to eliminating certain reporting requirements selected for waiver by the report and advisory board review commission and amending certain outdated and unnecessary reports and studies…
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal 27 provisions of the Charter and Administrative Code requiring certain reports and studies. Such provisions would be repealed for at least one of the following reasons: the due date for submission of the report or study has passed and no further reporting has been required; the report is duplicative of other mandated reporting; the report is no longer necessary in light of changing circumstances; or the provision was waived by the Report and Advisory Board Review Commission.

NYC Legislative Brief #1

Daniel Golliher — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 00:05:01 GMT

This first legislative brief is free, but future editions will be mostly behind a paywall. Become a paid subscriber if you’d like the full versions! You can review a primer on the legislative process in Legislative Brief #0.

Review legislative terms and process

Eight (8) new local laws were enacted this week.
Six (6) bills were passed in the City Council this week. Now they go to the mayor for action (one is about banning the sale of guinea pigs 🐹).
Twenty-five (25) bills were introduced into the City Council this past week. Now they begin to work their way through the internal legislative consideration process.

New local laws this past week (8)

These bills have been enacted into law by: (1) City Council passage and mayoral signature, or (2) City Council passage and mayoral inaction for 30 days, in which case the city charter auto-adopts it (“Charter Rule Adopted”). In this case, all were passed via charter rule.

Local Law 45 (intro/0124-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 📋🏘
by Rafael Salamanca, Jr. with 10 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to reporting on and training of housing specialists within the human resources administration and department of homeless services.
Summary: This bill would require the Human Resources Administration (HRA) to designate housing specialists within all temporary shelters and to submit an annual report on housing specialists. This bill would also update requirements for housing specialists in Department of Homeless Services (DHS) transitional housing facilities and would require DHS to submit an annual report on housing specialists.
Local Law 46 (intro/0210-2022), Charter Rule Adopted ⚓️
by Joann Ariola, with 28 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter, in relation to creating a marine debris disposal and vessel surrendering office.
Summary: This bill would establish an Office of Marine Debris Disposal and Vessel Surrendering, headed by a Director of Marine Debris Disposal. The Director would be responsible for collaborating with relevant federal, state and City agencies and offices of the Mayor to remove marine debris from the City’s waters and shores, developing a plan to recycle, reuse or dispose of marine debris, developing recommendations for enforcement against people who abandon marine debris, recommending programs to track and monitor vessels to prevent abandonment, developing recommendations for a program for surrendering boats to the City for disposal, and coordinating with organizations and volunteer groups who help remove marine debris from the City’s beaches and shores.
Local Law 47 (intro/0236-2022), Charter Rule Adopted ⛴💲
by Amanda Farías, with 37 sponsors, Committee on Economic Development
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to providing contracted ferry service at reduced cost to certain persons.
Summary: This bill would require the inclusion of city high school students in the NYC Ferry Discount Program and would memorialize the entire NYC Ferry Discount Program in the administrative code. It would also ensure any future contracted ferry service offered by the administration would maintain the ferry discount program if the administration should ever take over NYC Ferry from the Economic Development Corporation.
Local Law 48 (intro/0403-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 👩‍🏫🪪
by Rita C. Joseph, with 32 sponsors, Committee on Education
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the department of education to distribute IDNYC applications to all high school students
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Education (DOE) to distribute information about the IDNYC municipal identification program to every student grades 9 through 12 at the start of each school year. At a minimum, this legislation would require DOE to provide every student with an IDNYC application form, as well as information about IDNYC eligibility requirements, the application process, including but not limited to a list of documents accepted to prove IDNYC identity and residency requirements, and the relevant benefits and discounts provided to IDNYC cardholders.
Local Law 49 (intro/0431-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 🙂🏘
by Rafael Salamanca, Jr., with 10 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to customer service training for shelter personnel of the department of homeless services and its contractors.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Homeless Services to, unless provided otherwise by contract, provide biannual customer service training to all shelter personnel, including employees of a provider under contract or similar agreement with the department, who have direct contact with shelter residents. Such training would include techniques to improve professionalism, increase cultural sensitivity, implement a trauma-informed approach to interactions with shelter residents, and de-escalate conflict.
Local Law 50 (intro/0642-2022), Charter Rule Adopted 📕👧⏰
by Nantasha M. Williams, with 26 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring quarterly reporting on the amount of time children and youth spend in the children’s center and other temporary placement facilities of the administration for children’s services.
Summary: This bill would require the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) to report to the Mayor and the Speaker of the Council, and post on the ACS website, a quarterly report about the amount of time that children spend in the children’s center, youth reception centers, rapid intervention centers or other temporary placement facilities. The report would include information about the length of time spent in a facility, the type of facility, the age range of the child, and the number of children placed in a facility for the first time.
Local Law 51 (intro/0876-2022), Charter Rule Adopted♻️🏢
by Pierina Ana Sanchez, with 3 sponsors, Committee on Housing and Buildings
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to green building standards and repealing section 224.1 of the New York city charter in relation thereto.
Summary: This bill would make updates to Local Law 86 of 2005, which requires that certain city-owned and city-funded buildings be built to specific green design and performance standards, as set forth in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. This bill brings the existing law into alignment with updates that have been made since the bill’s passage, including, among other things, updating the baseline inflation year, ensuring the most recent energy standards are being used, and streamlining administrative and reporting requirements.
Local Law 52 (intro/0918-2022), Charter Rule Adopted ⚕️🍬
by Lynn C. Schulman, with 43 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the department of health and mental hygiene to develop and implement a citywide diabetes incidence and impact reduction plan.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to develop and implement a citywide diabetes incidence and impact reduction plan. DOHMH would be required to report annually on the number of adults with diabetes in NYC and on its strategies and efforts to reduce the incidence and impact of diabetes.

Review: April 11 City Council Stated Meeting

This section reviews the most recent stated meeting of the City Council, where new bills are introduced, and bills are passed out of the Council to the mayor’s desk for potential enactment. Most bills that are passed by the Council become law. You can click on any bill hyperlink for more information.

Bills approved by Council, sent to mayor (6)

Intro 0004-2022 🐹
by Diana I. Ayala with 36 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting the sale of guinea pigs in pet shops.
Summary: This bill would prohibit pet shops from selling guinea pigs.
Intro 0008-2022 🎟
by Justin L. Brannan with 17 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the disclosure of total ticket costs in advertisements.
Summary: This bill would require the operator of a place of entertainment; an agent, licensee or other ticket reseller of such operator; or a platform that facilitates the sale or resale of tickets to disclose the full price of a ticket whenever they display a ticket price on advertisements. The advertised price would be required to include fees such as taxes and service fees to increase transparency. By requiring early disclosure, this bill would allow consumers to make more informed decisions before beginning a transaction. Those who violate this bill would be subject to civil penalties from zero dollars for the first violation up to $500.
Intro 0128-2022 👶🚻🌳
by Rafael Salamanca, Jr. with 17 sponsors, Committee on Parks and Recreation
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to diaper changing accommodations in parks and redesignating section 18-148.
Summary: This bill would require that every bathroom under the jurisdiction of the Parks Department have a safe, sanitary and convenient diaper changing station, deck, table or similar amenity, with half of all bathrooms being equipped by December 31, 2025, three-quarters of bathrooms by December 31, 2026 and all remaining bathrooms by December 31, 2027. If the Parks commissioner determines that a restroom does not have sufficient space for the installation of a diaper changing station, or that the installation would negatively impact public safety, the commissioner must notify the speaker of the council and the local council member within 10 days of that determination being made.
Intro 0239-2022 ☀️
by James F. Gennaro with 27 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to education and outreach regarding solar and green roof systems.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Buildings to conduct targeted outreach to educate building owners about the benefits of installing solar and green roof systems. Educational materials shall be made available in plain English and all of the designated citywide languages and on the department’s website.
Intro 0606-2022 🚗🌳
by Alexa Avilés with 40 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to motor vehicles idling adjacent to and within certain parks.
Summary: This bill would amend the idling law to restrict idling to one minute when adjacent to or within parks that have a designated name and are identified as a park on the Department of Parks and Recreation’s website. This bill would also create an affirmative defense that the park was not easily identifiable as a park by signage or otherwise at the time a violation occurred.
Intro 0675-2022 🖥💊
by Crystal Hudson with 35 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the creation of a telemedicine accessibility plan.
Summary: This bill would require the creation of a telemedicine accessibility plan to improve the availability and accessibility of portable monitoring devices and telehealth devices for populations that could be better served by telemedicine services.

Bills introduced into Council (25)

Most bills introduced into the Council aren’t passed for a variety of reasons.

Intro 0980-2023 📄💲🚫
by Diana I. Ayala with 4 sponsors, Committee on Civil and Human Rights
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring quarterly reporting on lawful source of income discrimination in housing accommodations.
Summary: This bill would require the New York City Commission on Human Rights to issue quarterly reports regarding source of income discrimination complaints it has received, initiated, and resolved the previous quarter as well as unresolved complaints received or initiated prior to the previous quarter and the status of such complaints.
Intro 0981-2023 🚮🏪🚨
by Erik D. Bottcher with 5 sponsors, Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste Management
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to expanding the commercial citywide routing system for sidewalk cleanliness violations and technical amendments thereto, including to repeal and reenact subdivision c of section 16-118.1.
Summary: This bill would amend the Department of Sanitation’s enforcement routing program to allow for businesses to receive fines for sidewalk cleanliness violations during their hours of operation, provided that the business’s hours are posted in plain view and the business is generally open to the public. Other commercial premises will be liable to receive fines for littering between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M.
Intro 0982-2023 💰⏰
by Justin L. Brannan with 3 sponsors, Committee on Contracts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to interest to be paid on late contract payments to non-profit contractors.
Summary: This bill would require interest to be paid on late payments under city contracts with non-profit organizations. The non-profit contractor would not be eligible to receive the interest if the non-profit contractor has received a no-interest and no-service-fee loan issued or authorized by a city agency to cover its expenses in relation to the subject contract.
Intro 0983-2023 ☀️🅿️🔋
by Justin L. Brannan with 5 sponsors, Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to mandating the construction of solar canopies in certain parking lots.
Summary: This local law would mandate, with respect to all city-owned, or leased or operated parking lots receiving solar radiation, that the Department of Citywide Administrative Services install all solar canopies that would be cost-effective at each city-controlled parking lot. In addition for each city controlled parking lot a number of parking spaces equal to or greater than 50 percent of the parking spaces covered by such canopies shall be equipped with electrical raceways capable of supporting electric vehicle charging stations and shall be installed in each city controlled parking lot where a solar canopy is installed. This local law would require reporting every five years on, among other things, the value of energy produced by solar canopies on city-controlled parking lots and a summary of how such energy was used and a description of each factor that has affected the cost-effectiveness of installing solar canopies on city-controlled parking lots.
Intro 0984-2023 ✂️
by Gale A. Brewer with 3 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to amending and repealing certain outdated and unnecessary temporary or pilot programs, unconstitutional provisions and other outdated and unnecessary provisions.
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal from the Administrative Code: Temporary or Pilot Programs: Such provisions would be repealed as each of the programs have expired. Some provisions require only the creation of a program for a specific period of time, while others also require submission of an accompanying report by a specific date. Regardless, all the program completion dates and report due dates required under such provisions have long since passed; Unconstitutional Provisions: provisions of the Administrative Code that have been deemed unconstitutional; and Outdated Provisions: sections of the Administrative Code that are obsolete due to changed circumstances.
Intro 0985-2023 👵🏠
by Eric Dinowitz with 5 sponsors, Committee on Aging
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to provision of senior citizen rent increase exemption application forms pre-populated with applicable data to eligible persons living in city-supervised Mitchell-Lama housing.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to, in coordination with the Department of Finance, provide an application form for the senior citizen rent increase exemption program to eligible residents in Mitchell-Lama apartment buildings subject to city supervision with the necessary application information pre-filled on the form. The form is to be provided after eligible residents submit their income verification affidavit and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development confirms the information in the affidavit matches necessary state tax records.
Intro 0986-2023 ✂️
by Amanda Farías with 2 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to amending and repealing certain outdated and unnecessary advisory boards, task forces and commissions.
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal provisions of the Charter and Administrative Code establishing certain advisory boards, task forces or commissions. Such provisions would be repealed for at least one of the following reasons: the body no longer convenes and has been dormant for a substantial period of time; the provision establishing the body calls for the submission of a one-time report and no further activity; the body no longer provides any useful function; the duties assigned to the body are duplicative of the functions of other City bodies; or the provision was waived by the Report and Advisory Board Review Commission.
Intro 0987-2023 🚫🚗🏷
by Oswald Feliz with 15 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle with fraudulent or expired license plates.
Summary: This bill would make it unlawful to operate a motor vehicle with a fraudulent license plate, including a fraudulent temporary license plate, or an expired license plate, including an expired temporary license plate, and would set civil penalties for such violations. It would also set a 10 business day cure period for the violation of operating a motor vehicle with an expired license plate, including an expired temporary license plate.
Intro 0988-2023 🚫🥸🏷
by Oswald Feliz with 14 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting the sale or distribution of fraudulent license plates.
Summary: This bill would make it unlawful to sell or distribute a fraudulent license plate, including a fraudulent temporary license plate, and would set a civil penalty for such violation.
Intro 0989-2023 📝🌎🌍
by Shahana K. Hanif with 7 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the department of citywide administrative services to provide civil service exams in languages other than English.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Citywide Administrative Services to identify civil service positions that do not require fluency in English and offer those exams in the designated citywide languages. It would also require the Department of Citywide Administrative Services to consult with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and community-based organizations to determine other languages in which to offer those exams based on the needs of eligible exam takers. Finally, the bill would also allow exam takers to request that such exams be administered in the language of their choice and provide an explanation if the exam is not offered in that language.
Intro 0990-2023 1️⃣😴
by Robert F. Holden with 6 sponsors, Committee on General Welfare
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to shelter sleeping areas.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Homeless Services to ensure that single adult shelter residents are provided with at least individual sleeping areas that are partitioned off from other residents that allow for individual privacy.
Intro 0991-2023 🚨1️⃣2️⃣0️⃣
by Robert F. Holden with 10 sponsors, Committee on Veterans
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to cure periods for certain violations by veterans service organizations.
Summary: This bill would create cure periods for certain violations issued by the Fire Department of the City of New York, the Department of Sanitation, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Department of Buildings for veterans service organizations. Cure periods would be 120 days in length, with a possibility of extension. A veterans service organization that cures a violation within the cure period would avoid being required to pay a fine or civil penalty. No cure period would be authorized, however, for a violation that is an immediate threat to health or safety. This bill would also require the Department of Veterans’ Services to conduct a public information and outreach campaign regarding the new cure periods.
Intro 0992-2023 👮‍♂️👧
by Crystal Hudson with 7 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the establishment of a process to divert young people to community-based organizations in lieu of arrest.
Summary: This bill would require the commissioner to provide guidance to its uniformed officers on determining whether to use criminal enforcement or divert young people to community-based organizations to receive essential services in lieu of arrest. The bill would also require reporting on the number of patrol precincts, housing police service areas, or transit districts that utilize youth diversion as well as demographic information, the potential arrest charge, and the name of the community-based organization in which a referral was made.
Intro 0993-2023 📚🎮
by Crystal Hudson with 11 sponsors, Committee on Youth Services
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to a universal after school program plan.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Youth and Community Development, in consultation with the Department of Education, to establish, subject to appropriation, a program of universal after school for all public school students in the city by September 1, 2024. This bill would also require a report on a plan to address the need for expanded after school programs for all New York City youth and steps the city will take to establish universal after school. It would also report on other issues related to after school capacity and participation rates.
Intro 0994-2023 📕🏭9️⃣7️⃣
by Linda Lee with 2 sponsors, Committee on Housing and Buildings
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to education and outreach on building emissions requirements.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Buildings to provide written notifications containing information on a building’s emissions and an explanation and range of potential penalties under Local Law 97 of 2019. These notifications would need to be provided to the owners of covered buildings every two years.
Intro 0995-2023 🥬🥸🚫
by Julie Menin with 18 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the creation of a public awareness campaign on the dangers of purchasing cannabis or cannabis products from unlicensed cannabis retailers.
Summary: This bill would require the department of health and mental hygiene (DOHMH) to collaborate with the department of consumer and worker protection (DCWP) and any other relevant agency to create and implement a public awareness campaign on the dangers of purchasing cannabis or cannabis products from unlicensed cannabis retailers. The campaign would target minors and young adults and focus on the risks of consuming cannabis products adulterated with synthetic cannabinoids and other harmful substances and the risk of purchasing such products from unlicensed cannabis retailers.
Intro 0996-2023 🫀🩸🤖
by Mercedes Narcisse with 3 sponsors, Committee on Health
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the placement of automated, self-administered blood pressure testing machines at certain public places.
Summary: This bill would require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to provide blood pressure machines in high need publicly accessible areas throughout the city. The bill would also require DOHMH to post on their website the public places where such machines are located as well as instructions on the use and operation of the blood pressure machines. Providing free, blood pressure machines for public use would enable citizens, especially un- and under-insured, at-risk individuals, to routinely monitor their blood pressures and possibly encourage them to seek medical treatment, or make life changes to lower their blood pressures in the event self-testing consistently reveals elevated levels.
Intro 0997-2023 🚓👮‍♂️🔫
by Mercedes Narcisse with 4 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the NYPD to report on use of force incidents that include an officer displaying or unholstering a weapon.
Summary: This bill would expand the definition of “use of force incidents” that must be reported by the New York City Police Department to include when an officer, while taking police action, responds to an incident or conditions and displays or unholsters a weapon.
Intro 0998-2023 📔🔋
by Sandy Nurse with 4 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to record keeping and reporting on the disposal of rechargeable batteries used for powered mobility devices.
Summary: This bill creates record keeping and reporting requirements for entities that purchase or accept second-use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that power devices such as e-bikes and electric scooters. The entities would be required to maintain and submit records to the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), on information pertaining to the number and type of rechargeable batteries purchased or accepted and how such rechargeable batteries were disposed of. Additionally, all records would be made available to the Department of Sanitation and Fire Department upon request; and DCWP would be required to submit an annual report summarizing information gathered pursuant to this law.
Intro 0999-2023 🏦
by Keith Powers with 9 sponsors, Committee on Finance
Title: A Local Law in relation to the establishment of a task force to study options and make recommendations for a plan to implement a municipal public bank.
Summary: This bill would create a task force to study the potential for a public bank sponsored by the city, recommend a draft plan of governance and charter requirements proposed under New York Senate Bill S.1754 for the year 2023, and issue a report on their findings. The task force shall consist of three members appointed by the mayor, one of whom shall be the commissioner of finance or their designee, one of whom shall be the commissioner of consumer and worker protection or their designee, and one of whom shall be a representative of a labor organization; three members appointed by the comptroller, one of whom must have community banking experience; and three members appointed by the speaker of the council, one of whom must be a representative of a small business association and one of whom must be a member of a community-based organization responsible for community development, economic development, and/or consumer protection. The chair of the task force shall be named from the speaker’s appointees. The task force final report shall be due no later than one year from its first meeting and disband 180 days after submission of the report.
Intro 1000-2023 🚨🚲📦
by Lynn C. Schulman with 3 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring food delivery companies to be responsible for the safe operation of electric food delivery bicycles.
Summary: This bill would require third-party food delivery services to be responsible for ensuring that food delivery workers using electric food delivery bicycles to make deliveries on their behalf, operate such bicycles in accordance with sections 19-176 and 19-195.1, which concern the operation of bicycles on sidewalks and at intersections. This bill would require third-party food delivery services to accept financial liability for civil penalties resulting from a food delivery worker’s violation of section 19-176 or 19-195.1, while engaged in the pick-up and delivery of food and/or beverage items. This bill also requires food delivery workers to notify the third-party food delivery service for whom they were working at the time of the violation within 10 days from the issuance of any fine and provides an affirmative defense to any civil penalty for third-party food delivery services who were not properly notified of a violation by a food delivery worker.
Intro 1001-2023 🚫🥸🥬
by Lynn C. Schulman with 8 sponsors, Committee on Public Safety
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to prohibiting owners of commercial premises from knowingly leasing commercial premises to unlicensed cannabis sellers and requiring the sheriff to produce a monthly report on enforcement relating to unlicensed cannabis sellers.
Summary: This bill would prohibit knowingly leasing commercial premises to a tenant who uses the premises for distribution or sale of cannabis or cannabis products without a license. The first time that an unlicensed cannabis seller is found to be operating in leased commercial premises, the Sheriff, Police Department, or any other relevant agency would issue a warning to the owner of the premises. If an unlicensed cannabis seller is later found to be operating in the same commercial premises, the owner would be liable for civil penalties. This bill would also require the Sheriff, in collaboration with the police department and any other relevant agency, to submit to the Mayor and the Council a monthly report on enforcement relating to unlicensed cannabis sellers.
Intro 1002-2023 💵⏰🏠
by Marjorie Velázquez as lone sponsor, Committee on Housing and Buildings
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to establishing timelines for cooperative corporations to approve or deny the sale of cooperative apartments.
Summary: This bill would set timelines for decisions regarding the sale of co-op apartments. It would generally require the co-op to acknowledge receipt of application materials within 10 days, and provide notice of whether it has consented to the sale within 45 days after the application is complete, with extensions possible in some circumstances. A co-op’s failure to communicate whether or not it consents to a sale within the required period, and 10 business days after receiving notice from the prospective purchaser, would mean the co-op is deemed to consent to the sale.
Intro 1003-2023 🚫🍽
by Marjorie Velázquez with 10 sponsors, Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
Title: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring reusable eating utensils and eating containers at food service establishments and returnable food packaging at fast casual food establishments.
Summary: This bill would prohibit food service establishments, with capacity for dishwashing, from providing dine-in customers non-reusable eating utensils or eating containers unless requested. The bill would also require all fast casual food establishments in the city to provide customers with the option to request returnable food packaging and establish a return system for such food packaging. Violations of this legislation will result in civil penalties.
Intro 1004-2023 ✂️
by Nantasha M. Williams with 3 sponsors, Committee on Governmental Operations
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to removing certain reporting requirements selected for waiver by the report and advisory board review commission and amending and repealing certain outdated and unnecessary reports and studies.
Summary: The proposed legislation would repeal 24 provisions of the Charter and Administrative Code requiring certain reports and studies. Such provisions would be repealed for at least one of the following reasons: the due date for submission of the report or study has passed and no further reporting has been required; the report is duplicative of other mandated reporting; the report is no longer necessary in light of changing circumstances; or the provision was waived by the Report and Advisory Board Review Commission.

NYC Legislative Brief #0

Daniel Golliher — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 00:04:22 GMT

This post will be updated regularly as people ask more questions about the legislative process and NYC government/politics. You can jump to legislative brief #1 here.

Explainers: legislative process, law, history, other parts of the government like the mayor, the administrative agencies (think Dept. of Sanitation, etc), and more.
Legislator profiles
Rules adopted (rules are laws that city admin agencies adopt)
Other actions items from the City Council (land use call-ups, land use applications, state legislation resolutions (SLRs), and more)
State legislation impacting the city (I’ll focus on this more as demand dictates)

What is this for (goals)?

The legislative brief provides a skimmable overview of developments in city law, and provides jumping off points for you to go further as your interest dictates.

Ask yourself: do you know what your government is doing? Do you have a grip on what laws they make? Do you even know how many laws they make, and on what schedule?

If you’re most people, it’s “no” across the board.

I’ll give you this basic context, which is a key prerequisite to engaging with politics in a pleasant way; you can be pulled in by natural interest based on which legislation you see, not moral hectoring by people who you hope know what they’re talking about (just give them $5 more, just hold up one more protest sign, just…).

But the brief is a starting point, not an end. The City Council does not make inherent sense when you’re first approaching it—more context is required.

❓And so: I want you to ask questions.❓The point of this brief is that I will be responsive in the comments and via email, and include Q&A in future briefs.

Unless you’ve taken The Foundations of New York or otherwise bootstrapped your own understanding of NYC government and law, most of the legislative process will be a morass, misery, and mystery. Ask about what you want to know! This brief is meant to bring out those questions. I promise, everyone else has them too. Relatively no one knows how the government works, and this needs to change.

If you read this brief regularly, you’ll also develop an intuition for what kinds of laws are being considered, their magnitude, their focus, their nature, and which members of the Council do what. As present, most citizens have no idea what goes on in their city’s legal realm.

Who is it for?

The legislative brief is for abundance-minded New Yorkers who want to know what’s going on. Before you ask how to change the system, you need to know what it is! It is probably both worse and far better than you think.

More generally, the brief is for citizens who understand that self-governing societies only work if we actually self-govern—that means you. It is imperative that more of us apprehend our government.

Legislative technical overview

Here are some key terms and points of information to know when reading this brief going forward.

Please make a prettier version of this and send it to me

Stated meetings: The whole City Council meets at least twice a month to principally (1) introduce new legislation and (2) vote on legislation to pass to the mayor for potential enactment. These are called stated meetings.1 This means big legislative updates from the Council only come about every two weeks, rather than on a constantly rolling basis (good news!).
- New bills immediately get referred to a relevant committee and start their journey to become a law; most will not make it.
- Most bills that are approved by the Council will be enacted into law.
How a bill becomes a law (usually):
- It is introduced into the City Council at a stated meeting. Most bills are introduced by City Council Members, but the 5 Borough Presidents and the Public Advocate can also introduce bills.
- It is referred to its subject-matter-relevant committee(s). For example, a bike lane bill would go to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
- The committee (might) hold a hearing for the bill, where it will be discussed and potentially amended. Maybe there will be more hearings.
- The committee will next vote on whether to send the bill to the full Council for consideration.
- If a majority of the committee votes in favor of the bill, it’s voted out of committee and onward toward the full Council at a stated meeting.
- If a bill is passed at a stated meeting by a majority of the Council, it proceeds to the mayor’s desk for potential enactment.
Enacting local laws: once a bill has been approved by the City Council, it goes to the mayor. The mayor has three options2:
- Sign the bill, in which case it becomes law. (“Signed”)
- Veto the bill, in which case it goes back to the Council. The Council may override a veto with a 2/3 vote, rather than the standard majority required for most legislation to get out of the chamber. (“Vetoed”)
- Do nothing, in which case the bill becomes law after 30 days, per §37 of the city charter. (“Charter Rule Adopted”)
Reading bill names: Bills are referred to like “Intro ###.” This is short for “Introduction,” as in “introduction of a local law into the City Council.” If you see a bill written out like this: “Intro 0004-2022,” that means “it was the forth bill introduced in that legislative session, and it was introduced in 2022.” Legislative sessions are the periods of time between City Council elections, and span multiple years.

Now check out Legislative Brief #1

New York City Charter, Chapter 2: “Council”, §42: “Meetings.”
(American Legal Publishing).
This is also reaffirmed in the City Council’s parliamentary manual:
The Rules of the Council, Chapter I: “Meetings of the Council”, §1.00: “Stated, Special”
(as adopted and uploaded from March 3, 2023).

New York City Charter, Chapter 2: “Council”, §37: “Local laws; action by mayor.”
(American Legal Publishing).