Gotham Gazette

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Government

Cuomo Seizes on Wage Issue as Legislature Sits Paralyzed by Scandal, Partisanship


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Gov. Cuomo at a minimum wage rally (Office of the Governor - Kevin P. Coughlin)


"Do we have any members of labor in the house today? I can't hear you!" Gov. Andrew Cuomo shouted to a crowd of union members holding signs touting the "Fight for $15." Cuomo held a large rally in Manhattan's Union Square earlier this month as he announced he had instructed his labor commissioner to empanel a wage board to consider upping the minimum wage for fast food workers.

Read more: Cuomo Seizes on Wage Issue as Legislature Sits Paralyzed by Scandal, Partisanship

Three 2015 District Attorney Races Set to Begin


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Former SI DA Dan Donovan is sworn in to Congress (@dandonovan_ny)


Voters can look forward to soon having a clearer picture of the potential contenders for the district attorney races on November’s ballot.

Three of New York’s five district attorney positions will be voted on this fall — in Staten Island, Queens, and the Bronx — and signature petitioning to get on the ballot begins the first week in June. Brooklyn’s District Attorney, Ken Thompson, and Manhattan’s District Attorney, Cyrus Vance, will not face reelection until 2017.

Read more: Three 2015 District Attorney Races Set to Begin

City Council Highlights Gains in Participatory Budgeting Program


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PB voting in CD5 (photo: @BenKallos)


51,362. That's how many New Yorkers cast ballots in the recently-finished participatory budgeting cycle to determine which community projects receive funding. Implemented this year in 24 of the City Council's 51 districts, the participatory budgeting program sees council members devote $1 million or more in capital funding toward the community initiative. In a year-long process that engages district residents in local decision-making and community-building, New Yorkers not only have the opportunity to interact with each other and their local representatives, but also to learn about city government and budgeting.

Read more: City Council Highlights Gains in Participatory Budgeting Program

As He Campaigns for Top Priorities, Many Wonder Where Cuomo is on DREAM


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Gov. Cuomo on Sunday in Brooklyn (photo: Office of the Governor - Kevin P. Coughlin)


It was as if Gov. Andrew Cuomo was on the campaign trail again last week, visiting Long Island and Buffalo one day and then four churches and a Yeshiva in Brooklyn on another. Cuomo doesn't have to run for office again for another three years, of course, but his barnstorming last week was designed to promote what he's calling a top priority: passing a $150 million plan mostly aimed at giving tax credits to families whose children attend private and religious schools and to others who donate to those schools. The push is so campaign-like that Cuomo's visage is plastered across television screens in ads sponsored by supporters of the Parental Choice in Education Act.

Read more: As He Campaigns for Top Priorities, Many Wonder Where Cuomo is on DREAM

Mostly Questions and Criticism Ahead of Cuomo Email Summit


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Gov. Cuomo (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Governor's Office)


On Friday - the Friday of Memorial Day weekend - Gov. Andrew Cuomo will host a summit on email retention policy. It is a much-anticipated meeting that a large number of key stakeholders don't see a need for, and it's unclear what attendance will look like in terms of representation from the major entities in state government being called together to agree on a uniform approach to keeping and deleting official emails.

Read more: Mostly Questions and Criticism Ahead of Cuomo Email Summit

Now Law, New York to Create City Cultural Plan


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Mayor de Blasio signs the cultural plan bill into law (photo: @JimmyVanBramer) 


New York may be the considered the country's cultural capital, but the city has never had a comprehensive plan to outline its immense cultural assets, identify areas of need, and chart a path forward. A new law, passed by the City Council and signed on Monday by Mayor Bill de Blasio, will change that.

Read more: Now Law, New York to Create City Cultural Plan

SAFE Act Haunts Movement on Gun Safety Legislation


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Student activists in Albany (photo: @NYAGV1)


Earlier this month, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence brought 150 school children from the Bronx and Harlem to Albany to recite poetry, sing songs, and perform skits about the impact gun violence has on their daily lives.

They didn't get the warmest of welcomes. Kicked out of the space they had booked - the very public well of the legislative office building - they were forced into a hearing room. They were replaced in the well by a wine tasting.

Read more: SAFE Act Haunts Movement on Gun Safety Legislation

Next Steps for Two Soon-To-Be-Vacant City Council Seats


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CMs Weprin, left, & Ignizio, right, are both leaving the Council (photo: William Alatriste)


City Council member Mark Weprin, a Democrat who represents part of Queens, announced on Monday that he will step down from his seat to join Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration as Deputy Secretary of Legislative Affairs, making him a key liaison between the governor and the state Legislature, City Council, and others.

Read more: Next Steps for Two Soon-To-Be-Vacant City Council Seats

At Chaotic Time, Cuomo Hires Weprin to Assist in Deal-making


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CM Weprin, right, has accepted a position in the Cuomo Administration (William Alatriste)


A legislature plagued by scandal; two new, inexperienced house leaders; a governor facing the lowest approval ratings of his tenure; and only a few weeks to get anything done. This is the setting for Mark Weprin's return to Albany, where he'll be tasked with fostering dialogue, brokering deals, and making progress in a new role.

Read more: At Chaotic Time, Cuomo Hires Weprin to Assist in Deal-making

Resolution Calls for Constitutional Amendment Negating Citizens United


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Council Member Ben Kallos (photo: William Alatriste)


City Council Member Ben Kallos, chair of the governmental operations committee, will introduce a resolution at Thursday’s full-body Stated Meeting calling on members of the United States Congress to commit to a constitutional amendment that would limit independent expenditures in election campaigns. It is a move aimed at reducing the “dark money” spent during political campaigns and to counteract the Supreme Court’s infamous Citizens United ruling.

Read more: Resolution Calls for Constitutional Amendment Negating Citizens United



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