New York City Hall
What to watch for this week in New York politics:
Tuesday is New York's second election day of 2016. In April, it was the presidential primaries; now, the congressional primaries. All of New York's 27 seats in the House of Representatives are up for election this year, though not all have competitive primaries since many incumbents are not being challenged from within their party. There are several long-time incumbents being challenged, though, and a few open seats with competitive primaries. In New York City, most of the focus is on the race in the thirteenth congressional district, where a long list of Democrats is attempting to replace retiring Rep. Charles Rangel. In a crowded field, anything can happen, but the two frontrunners are seen as being state Sen. Adriano Espaillat, who lost primary challenges to Rangel in 2012 and 2014, and Assemblymember Keith Wright, who has been endorsed by Rangel. Clyde Williams, a former aide to President Bill Clinton, received the endorsement of The New York Times. [Read more about the NY13 race and much more in our preview of Tuesday's primary day here.]
This week before the July 4 holiday weekend will also see continued efforts by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to highlight accomplishments of the recently-completed legislative session in Albany. On Monday Cuomo will lead the first of three legs of a motorcycle ride to raise awareness about the importance of breast cancer screenings - details below.
Mayor Bill de Blasio starts his week celebrating the recent Obama administration announcement of Stonewall Inn as the first LGBT national monument in the afternoon.
De Blasio spent Friday and Saturday in Indianapolis at the annual U.S. Conference of Mayors. He then participated in Sunday's Pride Parade back on the city. Cuomo also marched, and the two even spent some rare time in close proximity after presidential candidate Hillary Clinton joined the parade for a little while and all three could be seen marching near each other.
Meanwhile, it's another busy week at the City Council and there are several other events to be aware of - 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
“On Monday, June 27, 2016, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo will launch the first-ever statewide breast cancer motorcycle ride to raise awareness of the disease across New York State. The ride supports Governor Cuomo’s comprehensive “Get Screened, No Excuses” campaign – the nation’s most aggressive effort to eliminate the barriers that often prevent women from getting screened, such as difficulty scheduling mammograms or burdensome insurance hurdles. Beginning in Kings Park on Long Island, Governor Cuomo, Sandra Lee, and hundreds of participants will ride motorcycles across the state to raise awareness about breast cancer and support families fighting against the disease. Legendary musician Billy Joel will also join the first leg of the ride on June 27. The second and third legs of the ride will take place on Friday, July 8 and Wednesday, July 13.”
At 11 a.m. Monday at City Hall, "Dozens of housing advocates and tenants will join with elected officials to announce a scathing new report that exposes statistical evidence of Airbnb’s negative impact on affordable housing in NYC." This, according to an advisory from the "Share Better" coalition. Public Advocate Letitia James is among those who will speak.
At noon on Monday at the Stonewall Inn, "Mayor de Blasio will join Senior Advisor to the President Valerie Jarrett, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, and other elected leaders, advocates and New Yorkers in designating Stonewall Inn the first LGBT national monument."
Also at noon Monday at CUNY’s Graduate School of Journalism, Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) Commissioner Julie Menin and J-School Dean Sarah Bartlett will hold a press event to announce a $1 million grant from MOME to the CUNY J-School.
At 12:30 p.m. Monday, City Council Members Carlos Menchaca, Stephen Levin, and Julissa Ferreras-Copeland, and others will hold a press conference on the steps of City Hall in response to the Supreme Court’s decision on President Obama’s immigration plan and rising anti-immigrant sentiment. The press conference is scheduled immediately before a hearing of the Committee on Immigration, which will focus on two resolutions that call for federal action for Syrian refugees and Ecuadorian earthquake survivors.
At the City Council on Monday:
At 6 p.m. Monday, the New York State Legislature will hold a meeting of the Senate Task Force on Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases “to continue to focus on improved prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of these diseases to better protect the health of New York residents.”
At 6 p.m. Monday, Public Advocate Letitia James will host another in her screenings of of "Making a Killing: Guns, Greed and the NRA," this one at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
On Monday at 6:30 p.m., the Rent Guidelines Board will hold a public meeting to finalize and vote on proposed rent guidelines effective October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2017. The decision will determine rent changes, if any, for rent-stabilized tenants across New York City for one- and two-year leases. Last year, there was a first-ever “rent freeze” for one-year leases, with a small increase on two-year leases.
Tuesday
Congressional primary elections will take place Tuesday in New York. All seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are up for election this year, as are some U.S. Senate seats. To vote, you must be registered in a party holding a primary. Use the Board of Elections’ locator to find your poll site.
On Tuesday, Mayor de Blasio will appear live on 1010 WINS at 7:30 a.m. and WCBS Newsradio 880 at 7:50 a.m. to discuss the Rent Guidelines Board vote.
Later, at 12:30 p.m., "the Mayor will participate in a tele-town hall with seniors to discuss the Rent Guidelines Board vote."
After, at 2 p.m., "the Mayor will hold public hearings for and sign six pieces of legislation – Intro. 871-A, in relation to ensuring equal access to single-occupant bathrooms for transgender and gender non-conforming New Yorkers; Intro. 1149-A, in relation to requiring ticket sellers to be licensed by the Department of Consumer Affairs; Intro. 868-A, in relation to issuing an annual report on the implementation of Next Generation 911; Intro. 851-B, in relation to protecting against the harassment of tenants who lease space for a commercial rather than residential nature; Intro. 775-A, in relation to creating timeframes for the landmark designation process; and Intro. 1223, in relation to reducing the use of carryout bags. The Mayor also will hold public hearings for Intros. 1122-A, 1123-A and 1128-A, in relation to increasing access to feminine hygiene products."
At the City Council on Tuesday:
At 11 a.m. Tuesday, the New York State Commission on Legislative, Judicial and Executive Compensation will hold a public meeting to “determine procedure for considering legislative and executive compensation.” At the New York City Bar, midtown.
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, City & State NY will host a reception to launch the “Manhattan: Borough Series” special issue of its print publication. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer will attend and participate in a live interview. Lucille’s Bar & Grill.
Also Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., "Public Advocate James will host a “Talk to Tish” town hall about veterans issues in New York City. The town hall will feature a panel of experts and advocates, information and resources from service providers, and questions from the audience. Public Advocate James will be joined by Loree Sutton, Commissioner of the NYC Department of Veterans’ Services; Craig Newmark, Founder of craigslist and veterans advocate; IAVA; and other veterans groups." At the Intrepid Air and Space Museum.
Wednesday
At 8 a.m. Wednesday, the New York Building Congress will hold a Construction Industry breakfast forum featuring Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan; The Metropolitan Club in Manhattan.
At the City Council on Wednesday:
At 3 p.m. Wednesday, the New York City Bar Association will host a panel discussion on “The Role of Foreign Policy in the 2016 Presidential Election.” Several speakers will participate, including Ed Cox, chair of the New York State Republican Committee, and David E. Sanger, Chief Washington Correspondent at The New York Times.
“The next public meeting of the New York City Voter Assistance Advisory Committee (VAAC) will be held at 5:30 PM on Wednesday, June 29, at the offices of the Campaign Finance Board.”
At 6 p.m., the Panel for Education Policy will meet in Long Island City.
Thursday
At 2 p.m. Thursday, the Department of Consumer Affairs will host an Open House Training series on the city’s Commuter Benefits Law. The training will ensure employers understand their responsibilities under the new Law, which took effect on January 1, 2016.
Friday and the weeked
It's July 4th weekend, have a good and safe weekend. We won't be publishing a "Week Ahead" for the week of July 4, but we'll be back with one on Sunday evening July 10 for the week of July 11.
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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 Amanda Sherwin and Ben Max
@GothamGazette
Gov. Cuomo & his budget director, Robert Mujica (photo: The Governor's Office)
Gov. Andrew Cuomo appears to have given up on the state Legislature taking action to close the notorious LLC loophole, which allows wealthy donors to subvert campaign finance laws by creating multiple limited liability corporations that can each give more than $60,000 to a candidate’s campaign.
According to The New York Times, Cuomo said this weekend that it would be up to the public to close the loophole through a constitutional convention.
In January, the governor made closing the LLC loophole a key plank of his government ethics reform package. He and his representatives have said repeatedly that Cuomo wants the loophole closed. In late May, after months without mentioning the loophole unless prompted by reporters, the governor unveiled “a menu” of eight bills that would partially close the loophole for various combinations of campaigns for elected positions -- all of the bills would have impacted gubernatorial candidates, including the incumbent governor, who has been the biggest beneficiary of LLC giving.
“The people of New York are demanding change and it’s time we took action to restore the public trust by closing the LLC loophole and bringing fairness to our campaign finance system,” Cuomo said in the May 24 statement announcing his bill menu aimed at closing the loophole that has allowed tens of millions of dollars into campaign accounts. “For years, I have proposed closing the LLC loophole – one of the most egregious flaws in our campaign finance system – and every year the bill has stalled.”
According to Cuomo, Senate Republicans are unwilling to act on the loophole because they rely on corporate money. The legislative session ended with what many reform advocates see as minimal ethics reforms, highlighted by a move toward stripping pensions from officials convicted of corruption. In his first post-session remarks, the governor told The Times that there is no path to closing the LLC loophole through the Legislature and that it must be done through a constitutional convention.
“There has to be a dose of reality in the assessment,” Cuomo told The Times. “It is tantamount to political suicide for the Republican Party in this state because they believe it ends corporate money, and only union money would come into the system, which would help the Democrats.”
He added: “The people are going to have to do it,” referring, according to The Times, to a constitutional convention.
A number of reform advocates and legislators who support closing the loophole were taken aback by Cuomo’s comments and their meaning in terms of his pursuit of reform. Cuomo made little public effort to move the multi-faceted reform agenda he proposed in January and instead appeared to move the goalposts for reform toward the end of session when he announced he wanted to tackle independent expenditure campaigns, something Senate Republicans found much more appealing than restricting legislators’ outside income or closing the LLC loophole.
“It sounds like the governor is saying he can't get it done,” said Democratic Sen. Liz Krueger of Manhattan, who is party to a lawsuit brought by reform groups and current and former legislators against the State Board of Elections to close the loophole. “It sounds like the governor is saying ‘I'm incapable of reforming Albany and we have to leave it up to a constitutional convention,’ and I don't know that he is wrong.”
Dick Dadey, executive director of government reform group Citizens Union, said he is unwilling to wait for a convention to address the loophole. “His comments personify his frustration not being able close the loophole and point to a goal too far in the future to accept,” said Dadey. “We can’t rely on a convention that we don’t know will be called.”
Voters have the ability to approve a constitutional convention every 20 years. The next vote is scheduled for November 2017. If voters were to approve it, they would vote again the following November to select delegates to represent them at the convention, which would actually get underway in April 2019. Delegates would meet to debate reforms to the constitution that could focus on anything from money in politics to the state’s civil rights mandates. Voters wouldn’t get to vote on proposed changes from the convention until November 2019.
There is no guarantee that closing the LLC loophole would come up during a constitutional convention or make it to a final vote.
“The Board of Elections created this loophole and they can fix it,” said Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group, referring to the state BOE’s 1996 ruling that opened the loophole. “These LLCs have been at the center of major corruption scandals so it isn't like this is an academic problem,” said Horner. “It’s a real problem.”
Not only does Cuomo’s suggestion that a constitutional convention is the only way to close the loophole discount the lawsuit Krueger is involved in and mean that change couldn’t possibly occur until November of 2019, but it also appears to fail to factor in the possibility of Democrats winning the Senate majority from Republicans this fall. Democrats in the Senate and Assembly both claim to support closing the LLC loophole. The Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats, has voted a number of times to close the loophole while some Senate Democrats have tried to force a vote on closing the loophole in their chamber to no avail.
“I guess seeing the Senate Democrats take control of the Senate isn't a way he sees to get things done,” said Krueger. Cuomo, a Democrat, has been criticized over several years for not doing enough to help Democrats take the chamber and for being too close to Republicans. Cuomo has touted his ability to productively work across the aisle.
Mike Murphy, spokesperson for Senate Democrats, said closing the LLC loophole is at the top of their agenda. “Senate Democrats have been fighting to close this loophole for years only to be rebuffed by our Republican colleagues. When we take the majority this will be one of the first things we pass. The people of New York deserve a government that they can trust.”
John Kaehny of Reinvent Albany said at the most basic levels he sees Cuomo’s comments as the governor giving up on reform, but he also sees it as Cuomo letting Senate Republicans off the hook on an issue that could be used to help Senate Democrats win control of the chamber.
“It means the governor is not going to use the LLC loophole as a campaign issue against Senate Republicans. He could beat the Republicans over the head with the LLC loophole because the Democratic-controlled Assembly and Senate Democrats support closing the loophole, as do all of the watchdog groups and independent experts and editorial boards,” said Kaehny.
Cuomo’s office did not respond to requests for comment around whether Cuomo did indeed mean that closing the LLC loophole would require a constitutional convention and whether he was discounting the possibility of Democratic control of the Senate.
Many believe Cuomo prefers governing, as his father did, with a Democratic Assembly and Republican Senate, allowing him to pass more conservative fiscal measures when necessary.
Dadey agreed that Cuomo’s comments appear to ignore the possibility of change in the Legislature. “The Governor’s position does not take into account Senate control,” said Dadey. “This lets the Legislature off the hook.”
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by David King, Albany editor, Gotham Gazette
@DavidHowardKing @GothamGazette
Note: Gotham Gazette is an independent publication of Citizens Union Foundation, sister organization of Citizens Union.
Gov. Cuomo (photo: The Governor's Office)
It has been two months since Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that Bart Schwartz would conduct an “independent review” of the state’s signature Buffalo Billion economic development program and yet Schwartz’s contract with the state remains either unfinished or under wraps. On April 29, following the news that U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara had subpoenaed some of Cuomo’s closest allies in conjunction with an investigation into bid-rigging and other possible improprieties, Cuomo and Schwartz released a joint statement announcing that the former U.S. attorney was being hired.
Cuomo administration officials have repeatedly failed to respond to Gotham Gazette inquiries about the status of Schwartz’s contract since he was appointed. On May 24, Cuomo told reporters that the contract had yet been finalized, but that he would make it public when it was. Without seeing Schwartz’s contract it is impossible to know exactly what he has been tasked to review; the terms of his investigation; who he reports to; and how much Schwartz’s services are costing taxpayers.
Schwartz’s contract must legally be made public if it involves the use of taxpayer money.
“The contract should be made public,” said Dick Dadey, executive director of Citizens Union, a government reform group. “There hasn't been any kind of information on his retention and that is disappointing and inexplicable. The longer this drags out the more we have to question the arrangement.”
Watchdog groups note that Schwartz’s role could have been filled by numerous other existing state entities that investigate corruption, including Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, whose office oversees state finances and contracting. On Tuesday evening, The Times Union reported that Cuomo has empowered Schwartz under the Moreland Act, giving him "the power to issue civil subpoenas," which the Cuomo administration confirmed, though it still declined to make any documentation public. A Cuomo spokesperson told The Times Union that Schwartz's contract was still being finalized and that when it is done, it will be submitted to DiNapoli and made public.
In a statement to The Times Union, a Cuomo spokesperson said of Schwartz's review of the state economic development programs and development of new guidelines for fund disbersement, "Both processes are ongoing and, as the guidelines are being drafted, Mr. Schwartz has closely examined and signed off on payments before they were released. This is important work and we thank him for promptly commencing his review. It is also a complex and unique assignment and we expect the contract to be finalized and sent to the (state) comptroller shortly."
Anonymous Cuomo administration officials have been referenced in various publications saying that Schwartz is reviewing and approving all contracts and cash flow related to the Buffalo Billion and other economic development projects. For the second time this year, payments to the SolarCity project were recently made late and led to talk of possible layoffs and disruption of the project. An anonymous Cuomo administration official told The Buffalo News that Schwartz approved the cash for the project and that it was delayed during a review by DiNapoli. The comptroller’s office later denied it had anything to do with the delay.
The firm handling Bart Schwartz’s public relations declined to comment on the status of his contract, but pointed to Schwartz’s statement from April. “The state has reason to believe that in certain programs and regulatory approvals they may have been defrauded by improper bidding and failures to disclose potential conflicts of interest by lobbyists and former state employees,” Schwartz wrote, in apparent reference to Cuomo associates Joseph Percoco and Todd Howe.
“As the state needs to continue operating these important programs, they have asked me to commence an immediate review of all grants and approvals – past, current and future – in certain programs and operations including the Buffalo Billion/Nano Economic Development Program,” Schwartz wrote.
When asked on May 24 if Schwartz’s findings would be made public, Cuomo said that decision would be up to Schwartz, but Cuomo’s press office later clarified the report would be made public as long as the U.S. attorney’s office approved.
“Is he working as a volunteer or getting paid without a contract? Will the public ever know?” asked John Kaehny, executive director of Reinvent Albany, a watchdog group that tracks the Buffalo Billion. “What exactly does [Schwartz] do for the governor?”
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by David King, Albany editor, Gotham Gazette
@DavidHowardKing @GothamGazette
Note: this article has been updated with new information as reported by The Times Union.
Note: Gotham Gazette is an independent publication of Citizens Union Foundation, sister organization of Citizens Union.