
Gov. Cuomo (photo: Governor's Office via flickr)
Governor Andrew Cuomo concluded his three-day, six-stop State of the State tour in Albany Wednesday, though not at the State Capitol, where he and previous governors have typically held a single event. In contrast to previous addresses, most state legislators were not in attendance to hear the governor lay out his agenda for the year.
Throughout the week, Cuomo released 35 proposals, many of them aimed at lifting the middle class, including tuition-free city and state college for students under a $125,000 income threshold, jobs and infrastructure investment, and an expanded child care tax credit. The governor outlined voting reforms to encourage more New Yorkers to cast ballots, and, as he toured the state, made a wide variety of region and city-specific proposals.
The governor culminated his junket with the capital region speech, at SUNY Albany, during which he outlined his 2017 government ethics agenda. An ambitious ten-point plan that comes in response to “a series of breaches of the trust” in Albany, Cuomo said. “It has happened in the legislature, both houses, it’s happened in the state comptroller’s office, it’s happened in my own office,” the governor acknowledged. He said the measures, if enacted, would “restore the public trust.”
Last year saw the two former legislative majority leaders convicted on public corruption charges, followed by the arrest of eight people -- aides of and donors to Cuomo -- in an alleged corruption scheme of bribery, kickbacks, and bid-rigging.
Cuomo spent the first three-quarters of his Albany address rehashing themes from his previous speeches, such as the need to address “middle class anger” and his focus on correcting inequities between Upstate and New York City through major government investment. He also outlined capital region-related proposals like an expanded nature trail, legalizing ride-hailing apps, and water infrastructure investment.
The governor then explained the need for a more ethical and trustworthy government by saying, “We have been doing historic work at the state level – the government is doing more than ever before – but imagine what we could do if we had the complete confidence of the people. If we had that confidence, there is nothing we couldn’t do – and I am not going to stop until I get there.”
After noting that there have been ethics measures passed four years in a row and acknowledging their insufficiency, Cuomo repeated many of his proposed reforms from 2016, including closing the LLC loophole, enacting term limits, and instituting restrictions on outside income for state lawmakers -- all of which have been bucked by the Legislature, especially Senate Republicans. Cuomo proposals for term limits, outside income restrictions, and making the job of state legislator full-time would require state constitutional amendments.
The governor and state legislators start the year on bad terms after a commission to enact pay raises for legislators fell apart when the governor’s appointees refused to back raises without corresponding reforms like outside-income limits.
On Wednesday, Cuomo also proposed adding the Legislature to Freedom of Information Law transparency, increased oversight of the state's procurement process, requiring local elected officials to file financial disclosures, and expanding the State Inspector General's authority to SUNY and CUNY not-for-profits, and creating new Inspectors General for the Port Authority and the State Education Department.
“As public servants, we earn the trust of the people we serve, and we can only do as much as that trust allows us to do. Unfortunately, in Albany there has been a series of breaches in the trust,” he said. “We have to say to the people of this state, we get it, people will do bad things — that is the nature of humanity — but we are going to have as many precautions as possible.”
Government reform advocates, some legislators, and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman have been focused on changes to help prevent corruption, not just punish it or add disclosure, as a number recently passed ethics reforms have done. Cuomo’s ten-point plan hits many notes that reform groups and reform-minded elected officials have been calling for. Whether there is a path to enactment is unclear.
"It's nice to see the governor articulate his continued commitment to ethics reform, but he has to change his approach if he really wants to get this done," said Dick Dadey, executive director of government reform organization Citizens Union. "We've grown weary of his words and need to see more forceful action in trying new strategies to get this done," Dadey added. "If he really wants to clean up Albany, then he needs to do something else like hold up the budget or play hardball in a way he hasn't before."
Blair Horner of NYPIRG, another reform leader, has been calling on Cuomo to take his ethics message to the people, like Cuomo did in travelling the state and holding rallies to promote a minimum wage increase that passed last year. The governor’s office did not respond when Gotham Gazette asked what Cuomo planned to do to ensure his reform proposals are passed.
"It's not hard to come up with good proposals, it's hard to come up with good laws," Horner told Gotham Gazette in response to the governor's speech and ethics agenda. "Whether or not there is a good ethics hinges almost entirely on what the governor does -- he has to engage the public. Good ethics deals are not the result of secret negotiations at the Capitol. What comes out of that are half measures with loopholes and it's not clear to me what the governor wants to do. He's never taken the fight into the public domain."
The relationship between Cuomo and state legislators frayed in recent weeks as talks over a special session and a potential pay raise for lawmakers fell through toward at the end of last year, when lawmakers balked at the governor’s attempt to trade the pay bump for his reform package. Some have of speculated that this falling out, along with Cuomo’s interest in running for president in 2020, are reasons Cuomo took his address on the road this year.
At his Albany speech, Cuomo said the tailored State of the State addresses were intended to speak directly “to the people” in every region of New York.
Last year, in the wake of the corruption scandals by which Sheldon Silver and Dean Skelos were found guilty of violating federal laws, Cuomo also focused part of his State of the State address on restoring the public’s trust in government, emphasizing numerous ethics reforms he hoped to pass in the coming year. His 2016 agenda included setting limits on campaign expenditures, the closure the LLC Loophole, increased funding for a state ethics regulator, JCOPE, and term and income limits for lawmakers.
The governor also vowed to convene a commission to create a blueprint for a Constitutional Convention -- an opportunity to make significant changes to the state constitution, including enacting ethics reforms -- in the event that in November of this year, New Yorkers vote in favor of holding one. It was another plan that failed to materialize as the money Cuomo proposed to fund the commission did not make it into the budget. The governor has said the only way to close the LLC loophole, which allows for virtually unlimited corporate campaign donations, appears to be through a constitutional convention.
While most of the campaign finance reforms proposed by Cuomo last year did not pass both legislative chambers, nor did he push aggressively for them, Albany lawmakers did pass a series of disclosure requirements aimed at increasing transparency for Super PACs and nonprofits. The measures, rushed through at the end of the legislative session, were criticized for doing little to address the actual sources of corruption in state government.
This year begins with Cuomo weathering a new scandal, even closer to home, as three of his former top aides and several major donors have been indicted for alleged behavior related to the governor’s economic development programs.
What Cuomo does next, if anything, to push his ethics reform plan is anybody’s guess. The governor will soon release his Executive Budget proposal and then, as the Legislature holds a series of budget hearings, he will negotiate with legislative leaders before a budget is passed. The new state fiscal year begins April 1.
For the capital region, Cuomo proposed on Wednesday to complete the Empire State Trail, a 750-mile pathway for biking and hiking that would connect the Erie Canalway and the Hudson River Valley Greenway, by 2020; a brand new airport for Plattsburgh, New York, which he suggested would transform the city into a “transportation hub,” and vowed to address the region’s failing pipes and invest $2 billion into clean water infrastructure across the state. Finally, he pledged to protect New Yorkers from out-of-controls drug costs and repeated earlier calls to enable ride-hailing services, like Uber and Lyft, in Upstate New York.
In reaction to Cuomo’s ethics agenda, Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins noted that Senate Democrats have been fruitlessly pushing for similar reforms for some time. “There have been no stauncher advocates for ethics reform than the Senate Democrats,” she said in a statement. “Clearly, ethics reforms will only take place if all Democratic Senators unite to form a functional majority. New York voters supported a Democratic Senate Majority and deserve an ethical and trustworthy state government.”
Other top Albany officials, including Attorney General Schneiderman -- who pushed last year for a wide ranging ethics reform package to address Albany corruption -- Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie withheld comment on the governor’s proposed reforms saying they are still under review. Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan's office did not respond to a request for comment. As NYPIRG's Horner pointed out about Cuomo's 2017 ethics agenda, it does not include restoring audit powers previously stripped from the Comptroller or additional corruption-investigating powers for the Attorney General, two items many have been calling for, but Cuomo continues to resist.
[Read: A Cheat Sheet to Governor Cuomo's 2017 State of the State Proposals]
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by Rachel Silberstein, State government reporter, Gotham Gazette
@RachelSilby @GothamGazette
Note: this article has been updated with comment from Blair Horner of NYPIRG.

Gov. Cuomo delivers his NYC State of the State (photo: Cuomo's office)
Invoking a populist message of economic inclusiveness and social progress that faces dire threats from a changing national reality, Governor Andrew Cuomo kicked off his 2017 State of the State tour on Monday morning in New York City.
On the 64th floor of 1 World Trade Center, at the first of six planned events around the state, the governor spoke to a seated assembly of more than 100 people, including state and local elected officials and everyday New Yorkers, relaying an overall message that kept with his recent record but was also engineered as a response to the widespread “middle class anger” evident in the 2016 presidential election.
Titled “Excelsior, Ever Upward” after New York’s state motto, the governor’s State of the State was pegged largely as a stimulus for middle class economic improvement and opportunity, but had something for nearly everyone in the Greater New York City area.
Cuomo pledged a child care tax credit, tuition-free public college for about 80 percent of New York households, more jobs through investment in the private sector and public-private partnership, support for the homeless and funding for affordable housing, all while New York will be vigilant, he said, protecting and promoting the state’s progressive social bonafides. The governor spoke of criminal justice reform and improving access to voting, expanding and improving mass transit, protecting a woman’s right to choose, and defending quality healthcare.
Cuomo likened New York to a hardy ship sailing choppy waters, where economic development has been swift but the middle class feels left behind, where social progress has been significant but people’s rights now feel under attack.
“The ship of state is doing very well and is stronger than it has been in decades,” Cuomo said. “But at the same time, the troubling reality is, the sea upon which our ship of state sails is as rough and tempest-tossed as it has been in over 50 years.”
The state’s progress on women’s rights, climate change, affordable healthcare, and public education is being threatened, the governor said, in a reference to national developments since Donald Trump won the presidential election. Without mentioning President-elect Trump by name, Cuomo emphasized throughout his speech that progressive values and equitable economic growth are not mutually exclusive and that New York would continue to promote the state’s middle class while upholding its secular progressivism.
He also indicated that there was a lot to learn from the results of the election and that New York would show the way. While Cuomo was outlining his 2017 agenda -- much of which will have to be negotiated with the state Legislature -- he also further positioned himself as a national Democratic leader, perhaps with an eye on the 2020 presidential race.
“We all heard the roar on Election Day and we must respond,” he said, insisting that the state must follow two crucial paths -- acknowledging and addressing the issues faced by the middle class and preventing “misdirected anger from doing damage to our country’s core values.” In that vein, Cuomo announced the Middle Class Economic Recovery Act -- a set of proposals aimed at creating jobs and infrastructure, improving access to education, and lowering the tax burden for the middle class.
Some of Cuomo’s proposals outlined Monday were new, some had been announced in the week leading up to his three-day, six-stop State of the State tour. The previously-proposed include a doubling of a child care tax credit that will benefit about 200,000 families and free college tuition at CUNY and SUNY for families making up to $125,000. On Monday, he announced a pilot program with 22,000 slots for afterschool mentoring and tutoring.
These ideas led Cuomo to say, with clear reference to the presidential election, "I believe these measures will help alleviate the middle class anger. Properly focused, the energy generated by that anger, in a positive way, it can become a great force for reform. But misdirected anger can be destructive. It can scapegoat and it can demonize, it can spread fear of those who are different, and it can destroy the uniquely American values and progressive principles that are the foundation of this society."
Cuomo also said the state would invest $650 million in the Life Sciences industry, partnering with industry giant Johnson & Johnson to create a hub in New York City. This investment will create about 25,000 middle class jobs and between $3 billion and $4 billion in economic output for the state, according to the Partnership for New York City.
The governor’s proposals elicited varying degrees of enthusiasm from many who applauded his ideas, some with skepticism around implementation, viability in the Legislature, or funding.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, who remains on cold terms with Cuomo, said Cuomo outlined some “promising” ideas, but said he cannot give a full assessment until he sees the governor’s Executive Budget, which is due out by January 17.
At an unrelated press conference later in the day, de Blasio quickly said “No” when Gotham Gazette asked if the budget communication from Cuomo’s office has been to his liking, fitting an annual pattern. Last year, Cuomo surprised the mayor in Albany on the day of his combined State of the State and budget address with proposed cost-shifts to the city.
"Because the speech for the first time was not accompanied by the budget, we don’t know yet the ramifications of everything that was being talked about in the speech,” de Blasio told reporters on Monday, “which is why I’ll express my praise for some of the things I heard but until we see the details, and particularly the budgetary details, we can't pass a final judgement. It was different...than what we heard at the State of the State last year, but we just have to be very sober about the fact that budget documents are really where the rubber hits the road and we gotta see that.”
About Cuomo’s budget, de Blasio said, “I don’t know what it looks like because we haven’t been given anything.”
“It doesn’t shock me,” the mayor added. “You know, at the last moment we will be told what the budget looks like and then we’ll be able to analyze what it means and I’ll be very straightforward with the people of New York City about what it means for all of us. But we haven’t been given any inkling yet.”
On the other hand, Comptroller Scott Stringer, who was also in attendance for the speech, was full of praise for Cuomo. “Today [Governor Cuomo] made a very strong case for a vision for New York State and New York City,” Stringer said after the speech, “that I believe goes a long way to helping the struggling middle class, the poorest people among us.”
As is customary in State of the State speeches, Cuomo spent some of his Monday morning address looking back at accomplishments, touting the socio-economic progress under his leadership, including the passage of marriage equality, paid family leave, a $15 minimum wage program, and common-sense gun control. He also spoke of a second path forward, alongside the Middle Class Economic Recovery Act, that includes protections for the state’s most vulnerable populations.
Termed the “New York Promise Agenda,” the broad-based proposals include criminal justice reform, voting access, women’s rights protections, fighting homelessness, preventing faith-based discrimination, protecting the environment, and improving immigrants rights and access to education. Many of these proposals were obvious responses to the rhetoric of Donald Trump and the records of Trump’s proposed appointees.
Cuomo sought, in his speech, to reassure New Yorkers that the state would do everything in its power to protect against the possible negative consequences of national policies under a Trump administration. For instance, pledging to protect the 2.7 million New Yorkers currently insured under the Affordable Care Act should it be repealed; announcing a public-private partnership to provide legal counsel to immigrants and recommitting to passing the DREAM Act to ensure that immigrants, often the target of President-elect Trump’s ire, have access to education; stressing unqualified support for a woman’s right to choose, which could be threatened if a conservative-leaning Supreme Court overturns Roe v Wade; and creating a dedicated hate crimes task force to combat the rise in faith-based discrimination and attacks since the presidential election.
“We will not stop working until the bright light of opportunity shines on all New Yorkers,” Cuomo said, emphasizing also the need for economic equity in the educational system, racial and economic justice in the judicial system and voter empowerment in the electoral system. Some of the items in Cuomo’s Promise Agenda are reliant on the state Legislature, where Republicans who control the Senate have been unsupportive of the Dream Act, codifying Roe v. Wade into state law, raising the age of adult criminal responsibility, and more that Cuomo has proposed.
As Cuomo spoke from New York City, he mentioned the need to restore “trust in government,” but did not address government ethics, despite the facts that his administration has seen a major corruption scandal in the past year and that the state Legislature has continued to see a parade of indictments. According to a Cuomo spokesperson, the governor will outline his ethics agenda during his last State of the State speech, on Wednesday afternoon in Albany.
While many of the governor’s proposals were known before he gave his address, unveiled over the last week in news conferences and press releases, among the new announcements were a number of New York City-specific initiatives, including several aimed at boosting each of the “outer boroughs.”
The governor announced that the city would receive an unprecedented level of funding for education. He also pledged, among other borough-centric proposals, $108 million in state funding for the stalled redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx; $50 million for the Montefiore Health System; $10 million for the redevelopment of the Orchard Beach pavilion, permanently reduced Verrazano Bridge tolls for Staten Island residents; and investments in healthcare, nutrition and healthy food programs in Brooklyn. He also reiterated plans to upgrade JFK Airport in Queens and criticized Rikers Island jail complex, though he stopped short of calling for its closure.
Crucially, the governor’s initial State of the State speech came more than a week before he is due to release his Executive Budget for the next fiscal year, which throws much uncertainty into the mix as to how he proposes to pay for his ambitious proposals and whether the budget will include any surprise announcements. The State of the State, or in this case the six State of the States, set the governor’s policy and spending priorities, and the tone for negotiations with the state Legislature. A fiscal year 2017-2018 budget is due by April 1.
Last year, Cuomo attempted to shift hundreds of millions of dollars in CUNY and Medicaid costs to New York City. The move was beat back by de Blasio and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie of the Bronx. The mayor has repeatedly indicated he is eagerly awaiting budget information from the Cuomo administration and is expecting surprises like last year.
The governor on Monday also called on the state legislative leaders to sign a memorandum of understanding to release more of the $2 billion the parties set aside last year to create 100,000 units of affordable and supportive housing across the state, which would significantly benefit New York City, where de Blasio has been struggling to bring a homelessness crisis under control. Only a small portion of the money was released last year and advocates and providers have been protesting the governor calling on him to come to terms with Heastie and Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan to release the rest so that projects can move.
The governor concluded his speech with a call for unity, recalling how New Yorkers, and Americans, came together in the aftermath of the September 11 terror attacks. “When we are at our best, we don’t focus on disparity, we focus on commonality,” he said. “That’s what this is all about....It’s about pulling people together.”
The governor will have to do just that if he hopes to pass those proposals which will require approval from the Legislature where he currently has no shortage of enemies. The two legislative leaders declined to attend any of the six State of the State events, expressing their displeasure at the governor for interfering in the work of an independent commission that would have given lawmakers pay raises for the first time in years and then leveraging ethics reform to consider a special legislative session in December. The Legislature was also due in session on Monday and Tuesday, making it hardly possible that any state lawmakers could attend the first four of Cuomo’s speeches.
Legislators would need to stay in Albany an extra day to attend Cuomo’s Wednesday speech in the capital area.
Cuomo’s initial speech and his state tour have gotten mixed reviews, sometimes along party lines. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, a fellow Democrat and sometimes Cuomo rival who attended the New York City speech, gave initial positive feedback. “It was really more of a reaffirmation of the fundamental New York values that many people feel have been challenged by some of the statements of the president elect and the resumes of some of his nominees,” Schneiderman said. “This is a day for setting forth a vision. The battles over the specifics, the programs, whatever does come out of Washington await another day.”
Outside the World Trade Center, state Republican Party Chair Ed Cox held court with reporters, criticizing the governor as he had promised to do at each State of the State event. “He’s running from the Legislature,” Cox said of Cuomo’s decision to tour the state. “He can’t face criticism.”
Cox did have minor qualified praise for the governor’s presentation. “There’s some good things -- I think tuition relief is good,” he said. “I think the costs are going to be a lot larger than he thinks they are. I think it’s gonna end up as an extension of TAP [Tuition Assistance Program], but the real costs are not tuition...the real costs are for books, room, food. This is gonna be minimal relief, but I’m sure it’s going to be looked at favorably in the Legislature.”
But Cox criticized the governor for convening a speech attended by “groups selected by him, not groups that include the opposition. And that’s the problem.”
On Monday afternoon, Cuomo headed to Buffalo for the second event of his tour. There he announced the 16th plank in his State of the State agenda -- a $500 million expansion of the Buffalo Billion economic development program, which is at the center of the federal corruption charges against Cuomo aides and donors.
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by Samar Khurshid, senior reporter, Gotham Gazette
@samarkhurshid @GothamGazette

New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
This week in New York politics will be dominated by Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is giving six regional State of the State addresses. Before we turn to New York politics, though, there's also a lot to watch for in national politics this week: President Barack Obama is giving his farewell address Tuesday night and cabinet nominations by President-elect Donald Trump face confirmation hearings throughout the week.
We're also watching for continued fallout from the Friday release of an intelligence report indicating that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian interference into the U.S. presidential election, with a preference for Trump. While the report did not delve into whether Russian hacking of the Democratic National Committee and John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's campaign chair, had any direct affect on the outcome of the election, Trump has continued to insist that it did not have any affect, while also lying by saying that the intelligence community also said that. Trump is scheduled to hold his first press conference in months on Wednesday in New York City (he has announced and cancelled other press conferences so it is to be seen if he follows through on this one).
In New York, Cuomo kicks off his State of the State tour Monday morning in New York City, with Mayor Bill de Blasio among those set to attend -- see details below. Cuomo's tour is being criticized by a number of state legislators who say he should be sticking with the 90-year tradition of giving a State of the State address to the Legislature in Albany.
The two legislative majority leaders won't be attending any of Cuomo's speeches; the Legislature is in session in Albany on Monday and Tuesday, while Cuomo will give an address in Albany on Wednesday. Cuomo is also due to release his Executive Budget by January 17. It is unclear if he will give a budget presentation of any kind. Proposals made during State of the State speeches often have corresponding budgetary needs, of course, and Cuomo and legislative leaders are known for moving new policy matters through the budget procecss -- a new state budget for fiscal year 2017-2018 is due by April 1.
(Ahead of Cuomo's 11 a.m. speech, you can hear Gotham Gazette's Ben Max on WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show previewing the speech -- 93.9FM or wnyc.org)
[Read: Under Clouds, Cuomo Launches State of the State Tour with New Proposals]
Other than attending Cuomo's speech, de Blasio starts his week with an afternooon press conference on FDNY statistics (see details below) and his usual Monday appearance on NY1's Inside City Hall. Comptroller Scott Stringer is also among those slated to attend Cuomo's speech in the city.
Meanwhile, there are a number of events around the city this week, including a busy week at the City Council -- see our day-by-day rundown below.
***Do you have events or topics for us to include in an upcoming Week Ahead in New York Politics?
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The run of the week in detail:
Monday
Governor Cuomo starts his three-day, six-stop State of the State tour Monday with two stops:
Ahead of Cuomo's Buffalo speech, "advocates and leaders [will] hold a news conference to discuss how local residents are getting screwed by his nuclear bailout deal. The nuclear bailout deal is estimated to cost nearly $8 billion and will force Buffalo residents to pay higher energy bills over the next several years." The press conference will be held in Buffalo at 11 a.m.
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Monday afternoon in Albany.
The New York State Board of Regents will meet on Monday and Tuesday at 89 Washington Avenue in Albany.
At 10:30 a.m. Monday, "Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY13) will hold a press conference...at the intersection of Vermilyea Avenue and 204th Street following last week’s arrest of 32 individuals accused of running a drug marketplace on Vermilyea Avenue in Inwood. Rep. Espaillat will be joined by local and state officials, community leaders and officers from the New York Police Department – 34 Precinct." Espaillat will be joined by State Senator Marisol Alcantara, Assemblymember Carmen De La Rosa; City Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, NYPD representatives, and community activists.
At the City Council on Monday: The Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Civil Service and Labor will hold a joint meeting at 1 p.m. to discuss a proposed law on “the reporting of information on the workforce of contractors performing construction work for the city.”
After attending Gov. Cuomo's Monday morning speech, at 1:30 p.m., Mayor de Blasio "and Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro will host a press conference to make an announcement on 2016 FDNY statistics" at 75 Canal Street. Later, in the 7 and 10 p.m. hours, the mayor's latest Inside City Hall appearance will air on NY1.
Tuesday
Gov. Cuomo’s State of the State tour continues Tuesday with two stops:
The New York State Legislature will be in session on Tuesday in Albany.
At 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Empire Center will hold “Diagnosis: Disruption - HCRA, the ACA and NY's Coming Healthcare Storm.” This event will be “a forum on the future of the state’s healthcare system examining both the pending expiration of New York’s Health Care Reform Act and the looming repeal of Obamacare.” There will be two panels at this event--one on “Putting ‘Reform’ Back in the Health Care Reform Act” (moderated by Casey Seiler, the State Editor of the Times Union) and one on “Managing New York Healthcare Under President Trump” (moderated by David Sandman, the President of the NYS Health Foundation).
"Hundreds of New Yorkers will flood the halls of the Capitol on Tuesday, kicking off this year’s legislative session with a message to our state’s leaders: working families need an agenda that protects them and boosts quality of life, not one that will simply make the rich even richer. The community leaders and activists, representing dozens of issue advocacy, community, faith, and other organizations from across New York will release a new legislative platform that will both defend against Trump’s radical agenda and make progress in creating a fair and equitable community for everyone. Throughout the day, participants will meet with legislators to discuss the struggles facing working families in New York. The day of action will culminate with a rally at the Million Dollar Staircase to release the full issue platform." Participating groups include: ALIGN, Alliance for Quality Education, Citizen Action of New York, Community Voices Heard, Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, Long Island Progressive Coalition, Make the Road NY, National Institute for Reproductive Health, New York City Coalition for Educational Justice, New York Civic Engagement Table, New York Communities for Change, NYS Labor-Religion Coalition, Strong Economy for All Coalition, VOCAL-NY.
The city Board of Correction will meet at 9 a.m. on Tuesday.
At 9 a.m. on Tuesday, the New York City Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA) will hold a Board of Directors Meeting.
“The New York City Department of Finance (DOF) will provide an update about its benefits programs during a meeting of the Queens Borough Cabinet, chaired by Borough President Katz, on Tuesday, January 10, at 9:30 am at Queens Borough Hall.”
On Tuesday at 11 a.m. in Queens, “Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer will drop off over 1,000 boxes and cans of food collected through his annual food drive to the Center of Hope International “Bread of Life” Food Pantry in Long Island City, run by Bishop Mitchell Taylor.”
At 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, the Alliance for Quality Education will have a rally in Albany to push state government to increase funding to schools. This rally will take place at The Well, Legislative Office Building. Senate Democratic Leader Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Education Chair Catherine Nolan will be among the participants.
At the City Council on Tuesday:
At 6 p.m. Tuesday at PS 13 in Brooklyn, “Council Member Espinal, CEC 19 & CB 5 Co-Host Public Hearing to Receive Community Input on Proposed New 1,000 Seat School; a Major Commitment of the East New York Neighborhood Plan.”
On Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña will attend a town hall meeting of District 10’s Community Education Council at P.S. 86 in the Bronx.
At 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, there will be a Mental Health Advisory Committee Meeting.
At 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, City Council Member Laurie Cumbo will begin her Community Exchange Series with “a panel and expo to teach you everything you need to know about Affordable Housing and Area Median Income (AMI).” This event will take place in the EOJ Auditorium at Medgar Evers College.
"Tuesday evening, Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer and the Stand for Tenant Safety Coalition will host a town hall meeting and training on “construction as harassment,” disruptive construction in residential buildings with the intention or effect of harassing and displacing tenants." 6:30 p.m. at the MBP's office at 1 Centre Street.
On Tuesday evening in Albany, City & State NY is hosting its annual State of Our State reception.
Wednesday
Governor Cuomo will conclude his State of the State tour Wednesday with the final two stops:
At the City Council on Wednesday: The Committee on Finance will meet at 11 a.m. to discuss a proposed law on “the sale of tax liens and notice to property owners when property tax bills are available online.”
At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Civilian Complaint Review Board will meet.
At 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the Brooklyn Historical Society will hold “Civic Responsibility Then and Now: A View from the Archives.” This event will look at what it means to be civically engaged in the modern age, while at the same time going into “archives to consider the varied approaches to Civil Rights tactics over the course of our nation’s history.” BHS Director of Public History Julie Golia and BHS Oral Historian Zaheer Ali will be speakers at this event.
Thursday
At the City Council on Thursday:
“The next public meeting of the New York City Campaign Finance Board will be held on Thursday, January 12, at 10:00 AM.”
Friday and the weekend
At 8:30 a.m. on Friday, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce will hold an “MCC Chairman's Breakfast Featuring a Conversation with Former U.S Attorney General, Eric H. Holder, Jr.” Holder and Manhattan Chamber of Commerce Chair Ken Biberaj “will be discussing the important issues facing the private sector from regulatory enforcement and criminal justice to cyber security and national security issues.”
On Friday at noon at Brooklyn Law School, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul will speak at the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce's annual State of the State event.
At 2 p.m. Sunday, State Senator James Sanders, Jr. will host a debate on whether the Obama Administration was fruitful or fruitless. Guest speakers will include Rev. Dr. Alfonso Wyatt and Dr. Ron Daniels. This event will take place at the Black Spectrum Theatre, which is at 177 Baisley Blvd. in Jamaica.
[Read: Under Clouds, Cuomo Launches State of the State Tour with New Proposals]
The weekend of January 13-16 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend. Our next Week Ahead will published Monday evening, January 16.
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Have events or topics for us to include in an upcoming Week Ahead in New York Politics? E-mail Gotham Gazette executive editor Ben Max any time: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (please use "For Week Ahead" as email subject).
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by Brendan Birth and Ben Max
@GothamGazette