Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Bill de Blasio

Bill de Blasio

  • A Spike in Cyclist Deaths, A Call to the Mayor, and The Slow City Adoption of ‘The Dutch Reach’

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    Image via NYC TLC training video


    Cyclist deaths plagued New York City last year; 2019 had the highest recorded number of such deaths in the last 20 years, and many street safety and cycling advocates have made an effort to raise awareness about the problem and

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  • Report Shows Poverty in New York Far Worse Than Official Measures Say

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    Wes Moore of Robin Hood Foundation (photo: Robin Hood)


    Not nearly every New Yorker has benefited from the unprecedented economic expansion that the city has experienced in the last decade since the Great Recession. While official city and federal measures show that employment is high and the poverty rate has continued to decline over the years, a new report from the Robin Hood Foundation and its partners shows that the reality is far more insidious than other numbers may indicate.

    According to the report, half of city residents observed

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  • What's The [DATA] Point? 2020 - De Blasio, Cuomo, and The Year Ahead

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    What's The [Data] Point? Episode 89 -- 2020 - De Blasio, Cuomo, & The Year Ahead, with Alyssa Katz & Laura Nahmias [You can download What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

    ak ln wtdp89Six weeks into the new year, Mayor de Blasio (now in his 7th year as mayor) and Governor Cuomo (in his 10th year as governor) have now given budget presentations and

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: De Blasio's 2020 'Save Our City' Agenda

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    February 12, 2020 - Max & Murphy Podcast: De Blasio's 2020 Agenda

    PodcastMax & Murphy discussed Mayor de Blasio's "Save Our City" State of the City theme and the outline of his agenda as it relates to his time in office so far.

    Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think -- we're on Twitter @TweetBenMaxand

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  • ‘We Put Them in the Jewish Community to Protect Our People’: City and State Add Permanent Security Cameras to Combat Rise in Anti-Semitism

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    the Mayor, the NYPD & cameras (photo: Edwin J. Torres/Mayor's Office)


    In response to an increase in reported anti-Semitic hate crimes and violent attacks, New York City and State are simultaneously implementing a permanent increase in surveillance in several predominantly Orthodox Jewish communities.

    The new surveillance technology -- including 100 new NYPD cameras and state-funded cameras and license plate readers -- comes after high-profile attacks in Jersey City and Monsey in the final weeks of 2019 and a multi-year increase in reported hate

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  • In Albany, De Blasio Enlists Legislators' Help to Fight Cuomo Budget Proposals

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio made his annual trip to Albany on Monday to testify before the state Legislature on Governor Andrew Cuomo’s executive budget proposal, which is $178 billion for the 2021 fiscal year, and urged lawmakers to help prevent what he called nearly $1.4 billion in potential funding “cuts” to the city that could result largely from a proposed overhaul of the state Medicaid program.

    Testifying before the joint fiscal committees of the State Senate and Assembly over the course of

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  • City to Codify Office of Food Policy and Require 10-Year Food Plan

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    Council Speaker Johnson at a food pantry (photo: John McCarten/CityCouncil)


    The City Council is expected to pass a package of food policy legislation on Tuesday, central components of an agenda laid out by Speaker Corey Johnson last August to strengthen relevant governance and food policy planning, while combating inequality and waste in the food supply chain.

    One bill, sponsored by Council Member Vanessa Gibson, would require the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy to develop a ten-year plan to address food access and build a sustainable

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  • In State of the City, De Blasio Outlines Agenda to 'Save Our City' from Unaffordability, Underperforming Schools, Unsafe Streets, Unlivable Climate

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio, now in his seventh year in office, unveiled his “blueprint to save our city” at his annual State of the City speech on Thursday.

    Echoing a similar message from his State of the City speech last year, the mayor sought to highlight the anxiety and uncertainty among New Yorkers who feel the unending pressures of living here, whether it be the cost of doing business, providing a good life for children, worrying about the effects of climate change, or just simply paying the

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  • First Major Task for City's New Civic Engagement Commission at Risk

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    Mayor de Blasio & First Lady McCray participate in participatory budgeting (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)


    The New York City Civic Engagement Commission, established through a charter amendment approved by voters in 2018, is tasked with crafting a new citywide participatory budgeting program modeled after the City Council’s efforts to engage New Yorkers in funding local projects. A plan is required to be in place by July 1, the start of the next city fiscal year.

    But Mayor Bill de Blasio’s $95.3 billion preliminary budget proposal for next fiscal

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  • The Mayor’s Savings Mirage

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    Mayor de Blasio presents a budget (photo: Ed Reed/Mayor's Office)


    On January 20, Mayor de Blasio presented his $95.3 billion preliminary budget for the 2021 fiscal year that begins on July 1 as well as updated data on the budget for the current fiscal year. He noted that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and city agencies had found enough cost savings to completely offset the “new needs” spending included in the preliminary plan. The

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  • Commission Releases Long-Awaited Recommendations for Fairer City Property Tax System

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    A long-awaited report from the city’s Advisory Commission on Property Tax Reform was released Thursday, outlining recommendations for potentially drastic changes to the way residential properties are taxed across the five boroughs.

    The report, which contains ten recommendations to update and add equity to New York’s vast property tax system, comes after months of delay and almost a year after the commission, created by Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, completed its mandated public

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  • No Matter Trump’s Agenda, Refugees Remain Welcome in New York City

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    (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Our nation has long been a beacon of hope for those fleeing their home country due to violence and persecution based on their race, nationality, religion, political beliefs, or membership in a social group. With resettlement as a refugee’s last option for safety, we have welcomed them and supported their successful integration in the United States for nearly 40 years with the establishment of the Refugee Resettlement Program.

    Under the Trump administration, however, this country’s proud tradition of

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  • Stringer Calls for 'Universal Affordable Housing' and Overhaul of City Subsidy Use

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    Comptroller Scott Stringer (photo: @NYCComptroller)


    New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer on Wednesday again took aim at perhaps the most pressing issue facing New Yorkers: housing affordability, and while repeatedly criticizing Mayor Bill de Blasio’s approach, unveiled a new plan headlined by a “universal affordable housing” proposal to require income-targeted units in every new development across the five boroughs.

    Stringer, a fellow Democrat who hopes to succeed the term-limited de Blasio by winning next year’s mayoral election, is also

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  • City's New Office of Hate Crime Prevention Takes on Rise in Anti-Semitic Acts

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    Mayor de Blasio, Deborah Lauter, & others (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)


    The past few years have seen a rise in hate crimes nationwide, and the trend has been the same in New York State and New York City, where the NYPD just reported a 20% increase in hate crimes, most of them anti-Semitic, in 2019 compared to 2018.

    There were 428 reported hate crimes in New York City in 2019, 234 of them anti-Semitic, with the vast majority of those incidents of graffiti, including drawn swastikas, according to NYPD data. But

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  • Council to Examine Persistent and Growing Violence Plaguing City Jails

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    Mayor de Blasio on Rikers Island (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)


    In the wake of a series of damning reports showing a rise of violence and use of force in city jails -- even as the inmate population has plummeted and city government has significantly increased its spending on the Department of Correction -- lawmakers are looking at ways to address the problem, beginning with court-mandated reforms, which seem to have fallen by the wayside.

    The City Council’s Committee on Criminal Justice will be holding an oversight

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  • No Sign of De Blasio Legal Defense Fund as $300K Debt from Ethics Investigations Remains

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    (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)


    It’s been nearly a year since the New York City Council passed a law allowing elected officials to create ‘legal defense trusts’ to raise money to pay off legal fees arising from potential criminal or civil investigations. The law was shepherded through at breakneck speed, going from introduction to passage within just six weeks, and its intended immediate beneficiary was Mayor Bill de Blasio, who had accumulated more than $3 million in legal fees from dual investigations into his administration and fundraising

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: How the City is Addressing a Rise in Hate Crimes

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    (photo: Mayor's office)


    January 22, 2020 - Max & Murphy Podcast: How the City is Addressing a Rise in Hate Crimes

    deborahDeborah Lauter, executive director of the city's new Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, joined the show to discuss the rise of hate crimes, especially anti-Semitic hate crimes, what the city is doing about it, and what her new office plans to do long-term to address the

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: The Bushwick Rezoning Hits an Impasse

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    Council Member Reynoso (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    January 15, 2020 - Max & Murphy Podcast: The Bushwick Rezoning Hits an Impasse

    antonio rey wbai150City Council Member Antonio Reynoso joined the show to discuss the controversy over the possible rezoning of part of Bushwick, plans for which have hit an impasse, with Reynoso and others backing one plan and the de Blasio administration in

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  • Warning of State Threats, De Blasio Presents $95.3 Billion Preliminary Budget for 2021 Fiscal Year

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    (photo: Edwin J. Torres/ Mayoral Photo Office)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday released a $95.3 billion preliminary budget proposal for the 2021 fiscal year, which begins July 1, increasing planned spending by about $2.5 billion or 2.7% over the city budget that was adopted last year.

    The growth in spending is lower than previous budget increases the mayor has proposed and an uptick from the $94.3 billion that the city projects to spend by the end of the current fiscal year, according to budget modification documents released in November. The city budget

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  • Three Democratic Leaders in Albany, Three Different Positions on Altering Bail Reforms

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    Gov. Cuomo and other state leaders (photo: Darren McGee, Governor's Office)


    In the opening days of the 2020 state legislative session, debate continues to rage over whether to revisit major changes to the bail system made last year and key Albany policy-makers have been staking out initial positions in a reignited conversation that could lead to revising the reforms.

    The three top decision-makers -- Governor Andrew Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, all Democrats -- have each taken a

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  • Many Major Challenges, Decisions for De Blasio in 2020

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    (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photo Office)


    As Mayor Bill de Blasio enters his seventh year in office, on the heels of a failed presidential bid and at a time when his political clout appears at its nadir, he faces many major challenges and big decisions ahead.

    2020, the next-to-last year of his second and final term, begins with a focus on public safety, including recent spikes in anti-Semitic hate crimes, murders, and byciclist fatalities, as well as how the city is adjusting to new state-mandated bail reforms that the mayor has

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  • Taking Stock of Significant Progress in New York City Schools

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    The students in the New York City public schools are doing better -- so much so that the improvements offer Mayor Bill de Blasio a real opportunity for a legacy. The mayor still has two more years to go and two more budgets to invest in kids.

    Mayor de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza announced in November

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: 2020 Vision - Previewing the Year Ahead in New York Politics

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    (photo: William Alatriste/City Council)


    January 1, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: 2020 Vision - Previewing the Year Ahead in New York Politics

    PodcastJeff Mays of the New York Times, Dana Rubinstein of Politico New York, and Brendan Lyons of the Albany Times Union joined the show to preview 2020 in New York politics, with the first segment focused on New York City politics, Mayor de Blasio, and more, and the second segment

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  • 50 Questions for New York Politics in 2020

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    (photo: Mayoral Photography Office)


    1. Will Donald Trump be removed from office? Will he win a second term as president? What will be the results of any known or unknown investigations into Trump world, from Congress to New York Attorney General Letitia James to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York or elsewhere?

    2. How will Mike Bloomberg fare in the 2020 presidential race? What impact will he have on the race (even if he isn’t the Democratic nominee)?

    3. Who will key New York Democratic

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  • 6 Years of De Blasio Dodging and Delaying Property Tax Reform

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    Mayor de Blasio (photo: Demetrius Freeman/Mayor's Office)


    Reforming New York’s property tax system has for decades confounded mayors, legislatures, and governors who have struggled with (or avoided) the technical and political consequences of changing a long-standing system commonly described as outdated and irrational. When Mayor Bill de Blasio finishes his second term at the end of 2021, there is a chance he will be leaving office in the same boat.

    With the ...