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Scott Stringer

Scott Stringer

  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Comptroller Scott Stringer

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    Comptroller Stringer (photo: @NYCComptroller)


    November 20, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Comptroller Scott Stringer

    City Comptroller Scott Stringer returned to the show to discuss various aspects of the work his office has been doing and various issues facing the city, touching on affordable housing, child care, NYCHA, and much more. The comptroller repeatedly criticized Mayor Bill de Blasio's management of city government and previewed his pitch for his 2021 mayoral campaign.

    Listen to the conversation and

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  • Where Top City Officials Who Appointed the 2019 Charter Revision Commission Stand on Its Proposals

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    (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photo Office)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio and other top city officials have remained mostly quiet about their positions on a set of proposed changes to city government and elections, which are set to go before voters when early voting begins on Saturday. The five “yes” or “no” ballot questions include 19 distinct proposals from the 2019 Charter Revision Commission, whose members were appointed by the mayor, comptroller, public advocate, City Council speaker, and five borough

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  • As City Council Vote Nears, Leading Mayoral Contenders Clarify Positions on Jails Plan They May Have to Implement

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    De Blasio, Johnson, Ayala & others at Rikers announcement (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    The plan to close the Rikers Island jails and replace them with four borough-based facilities has sped through the city’s land use process and is awaiting approval from the New York City Council, prompting both support and rebukes from criminal justice reform activists and those who prefer to keep most city detainees on the island. If it passes at the scheduled October 17 vote, full implementation of the plan will fall in the hands of a future mayor, perhaps two,

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  • Helping Our Small Businesses, Saving Our Retail Corridors, Improving Our Neighborhoods

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)


    Ask any New Yorker and they will tell you how neighborhood streets that once bustled with small, mom-and-pop businesses now have a Duane Reade on one corner and a large bank on the other, with a row of empty stores in between. When I was growing up in Washington Heights, like a lot of New Yorkers, I could walk down the street to the local corner store where they knew my name and could even guess what I wanted before I started talking. That’s what made growing up in the city so special – the local institutions embedded

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  • State Senator Brian Benjamin Explores Run for City Comptroller

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    State Senator Brian Benjamin, left, with Comptroller Scott Stringer (photo: @NYSenBenjamin)


    The 2021 primary for New York City Comptroller may be 21 months away, but there are already three declared Democratic candidates in the race, and another has now indicated he’s exploring a run. State Senator Brian Benjamin, who represents Upper Manhattan, announced on Thursday that he is testing the waters for a potential bid for comptroller and said he would explore over the next year, including a 2020 Senate reelection campaign, to see if his candidacy is

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  • 'It's What I Was Elected To Do': State and City Leaders Take Different Approaches to Pension Fund Divestment from Fossil Fuel Companies

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    Mayor de Blasio & Comptroller Stringer (photo: Benjamin Kanter/Mayor's Office)


    Amid the larger discussion about addressing climate change before it’s too late, debate is raging in New York over whether government-run and -affiliated pension funds worth hundreds of billions of dollars and responsible for payments that support hundreds of thousands of retirees should divest from fossil fuel company stock.

    Advocates, elected officials, and others have been pushing at the city and state levels for full divestment so that the pension funds

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  • New York City Comptroller Wants to Start Country’s Largest Teacher Residency; Here’s 3 Ways to Make it Successful

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    (Photo: Edward Reed/Mayor's Office)


    Late last month, New York City Comptroller (and likely 2021 mayoral candidate) Scott Stringer proposed allocating $40 million a year to run the nation’s largest teacher residency program in New York City. According to an ...

  • As Census Moves Online, City Comptroller Warns of Digital Divide and Recommends Steps to Bridge It

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    Comptroller Stringer (photo: @NYCComptroller)


    The first Census to be conducted primarily online may undercount nearly 2.2 million New Yorkers — mostly communities of color, seniors, and those living around or below the poverty line — putting as much as $5.8 billion in federal funds at stake, according to a ...

  • Corey Johnson's Big Small-Dollar Bet

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    Council Speaker Corey Johnson (photo: Emil Cohen/City Council)


    City Council Speaker Corey Johnson’s expected mayoral campaign is based in part on a big small-dollar gamble.

    When Johnson announced in January that he was exploring a bid for mayor – he hasn’t made it official yet – he set a $250 limit on all campaign contributions, far below the maximum possible limit of $5,100. And though the latest campaign finance disclosures show him outpacing his three likely Democratic primary opponents in the number of donations he

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  • Everyone Agrees City Buses are in Crisis. What's Being Done?

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    Mayor de Blasio rides the bus (photo: Edwin J. Torres/Mayor's Office)


    Elected officials, advocates, and especially riders agree: the city’s bus system is broken.

    That consensus was reached in recent years as bus speeds slowed to a crawl and the system hemorrhaged ridership. Various advocacy groups and elected officials have put forth studies and plans, and the entities with actual control -- the state-run Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) and the New York City Mayor’s Office -- have taken steps toward improving the situation, though

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  • Scott Stringer Has a Plan for That

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    Comptroller Scott Stringer (photo: Edwin J. Torres/Mayor's Office)


    New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer has made no secret of his plans to run for mayor in 2021, when both he and Mayor Bill de Blasio will be term-limited out of their current positions. And the outline of his mayoral policy platform is already hiding in plain sight.

    After briefly entering the 2013 mayoral campaign before shifting to a first successful run for comptroller, Stringer has spent a long

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  • Council Passes Campaign Finance Bill Roiling Early Mayoral Race

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    Council Members Kallos, left, & Rodriguez, right, with Speaker Johnson (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    The City Council passed a much-anticipated, controversial campaign finance bill Thursday, raising the cap on how much public funding a campaign can receive and altering other dynamics of the city’s matching system. The bill -- the source of significant consternation over the past several days, particularly among likely 2021 mayoral candidates - passed by a vote of 41-6, with one abstention, and three absences.

    The legislation, which Mayor

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  • Amid Controversy, City Council Moves Ahead with Campaign Finance Bill Extending Public Match

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    Council Members Yeger, left, and Cabrera, right (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    Significantly more public funding of political campaigns appears on the way given legislation that the City Council Committee on Governmental Operations passed on Tuesday.

    The bill, sponsored by Ben Kallos, a Manhattan Democrat, aims to prevent corruption and increase engagement with local communities by adjusting the public matching funds system to allow candidates to raise only relatively small donations and receive enough public money to reach the spending limit in

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  • Does New York City Need a Chief Diversity Officer?

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Many days throughout the year there are people gathered on the steps of City Hall calling on city government to make policy. On March 14, a rally of women and people of color who own businesses, organized by city Comptroller Scott Stringer, focused on a change that could significantly alter the direction of city government and opportunities for those business owners and others in similar positions.

    Those in attendance were backing Stringer’s push to have the 2019 New York

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  • City’s Flawed Capital Project Process the Subject of Renewed Scrutiny, and Some Reform

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


    Many New Yorkers know the city has trouble completing construction projects on time and under budget. Projects like school renovations and the build-out of park facilities are capital projects, the subject of increasing scrutiny and some reform, with more promised, as frustrations persist and residents, watchdogs, lawmakers, and other city leaders seek answers.

    Top officials from the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio to City Council Speaker Corey Johnson to Comptroller Scott Stringer have taken a fresh

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  • Charter Revision Commission Hears Expert Testimony on Conflicts of Interest and Chief Diversity Officer

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    (photo: Sofie Hecht/Gotham Gazette)


    On Thursday evening, the 2019 Charter Revision Commission heard from experts in city government and activist circles to discuss possible charter amendments that could enhance precautionary measures against conflicts of interest in city government, and the potential mandated addition of a chief diversity officer in the mayor’s office, at mayoral agencies, and elsewhere. The push for adding chief diversity officers is being led by city Comptroller Scott Stringer, who created such a position in his office and has made the effort one of his top

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  • Calling for More Savings, Stringer Releases Analysis of De Blasio Budget Plan

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    Comptroller Stringer


    New York Comptroller Scott Stringer released on Friday his analysis of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s preliminary budget for fiscal year 2020, which begins July 1 of this year. De Blasio had presented a $92.2 billion budget plan on Feb. 7, 2019, the first step of many that will lead to a budget deal between de Blasio and the City Council. As comptroller, Stringer is tasked with budget oversight and monitoring the city’s fiscal health.

    During his presentation at his Manhattan office, Stringer expressed concern over de Blasio’s

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  • Citing Causes for Concern & Promising Cuts, De Blasio Presents Still-Growing Budget Plan of $92.2 Billion

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    Mayor de Blasio presents his budget (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)


    When Mayor Bill de Blasio presented his preliminary budget proposal last year, he issued solemn warnings about the threats posed by cuts in the state budget and from federal maneuvers that could mean fewer resources for the city. On Thursday, de Blasio repeated that message, but in more dire terms, as he unveiled a $92.2

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  • Despite Need, Gaining More State Support for Affordable Housing Remains Major Challenge for De Blasio

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    (photo: the governor's office)


    Right now, New York City’s government should be taking advantage of the Democratic majority in both houses of the New York State Legislature to make progress addressing the affordable housing and homelessness crisis affecting city residents. But success requires a skillful effort since the political challenge is daunting, despite overwhelming public concern.

    Why now? We have a new Democratic majority in the state Senate elected in 2018. The state Assembly, controlled by Democrats since 1975, has been a liberal body

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Comptroller Scott Stringer

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    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    December 19, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Comptroller Scott Stringer

    wbai 12 19 scott stringerCity Comptroller Scott Stringer joined the show to discuss his new affordable housing plan, the work he did on a state compensation commission, the deal to bring Amazon to New York City, and more.

    Listen to the

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  • Agenda 2019: City & State Budgets on Mostly Solid Ground, with Major Questions Looming

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    Gov. Cuomo (photo: The Governor's Office)


    This is part of AGENDA 2019, a joint Gotham Gazette-City Limits project
    Find the rest of the series here

    New York’s economy has seen several rosy years in the decade since the Great Recession, with a run of steady growth, increasing

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  • Secretive Amazon Deal Should Have Us Rethinking Subsidy Programs and More

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    Comptroller Stringer, the author, at a press conference (photo: NYCHA)


    What if I told you that moving your business to New York City could land you $3 billion in subsidies? Even better, what if getting those billions didn’t even require publicly disclosing key information required to qualify for the money in the first place?

    If that sounds like a great deal to you, you’re in good company because Amazon is taking advantage of secrecy and subsidies baked into our outdated system of tax incentives. We all know the Amazon deal to

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  • Criticizing De Blasio's Approach, Stringer Releases Alternative Affordable Housing Plan

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    Comptroller Stringer (photo: @NYCComptroller)


    City Comptroller Scott Stringer unveiled an ambitious plan on Thursday to address New York’s affordable housing crisis, criticizing Mayor Bill de Blasio for not doing enough and calling for investment of hundreds of millions of dollars in additional funds, increasing the share of affordable housing units for homeless and very low income people, and funding it by shifting tax burdens towards the wealthiest New York homeowners.

    The plan, entitled “...

  • De Blasio Pushes 'Yes' Vote on 3 Ballot Proposals

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    32BJ's Hector Figueroa, with Mayor de Blasio and others (photo: @32BJSEIU)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday continued his eleventh-hour push for the ballot proposals put forth by his Charter Revision Commission, with a rally at the headquarters of labor union 32BJ SEIU, where he was joined by other unions, elected officials, and advocates in favor of the three reforms that will appear on New York City voters’ ballots on Election Day.

    De Blasio, who announced the commission in his 2018 State of the City address to examine and propose revisions to the

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  • Prominent Elected Officials Oppose De Blasio Charter Revision Proposals

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    Mayor de Blasio (photo: Benjamin Kanter/Mayor's Office)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio is seeking to make a lasting impact on city governance through a charter revision commission that would transform the city’s campaign finance system, promote greater civic involvement in city affairs, and inject new blood into local community boards. But prominent elected officials, most of whom are Democrats like de Blasio, don’t agree with the proposals the mayor’s commission has put on the November 6 ballot and are urging New Yorkers to reject them.

    The mayor’s commission put ...