Tag Archives: NYC Council

Gothamist reports: Restaurants will now be allowed to add the “COVID-19 Recovery Charge,” up to 10% of a customer’s total bill. It passed in a 46-to-2 vote on Wednesday, and as of now, it will be permitted until 90 days after full indoor dining is once again permitted. “This bill will give restaurants the freedom they need to increase revenue …

Gothamist reports: A failed attempt to secede is still well-regarded in some quarters of the South, a century-and-a-half after the Civil War. And the failed attempt to secede is apparently still well-regarded in some quarters of New York’s southern-most corner, a generation-and-a-half after the last breakaway attempt failed. So says Staten Island City Councilman Joe Borelli. “Secession is wildly popular …

Courthouse News reports: The New York City Council voted overwhelmingly today to ban the sale of flavored vape products, responding to a public health crisis where sweet-smelling mango and mint products are thought to target teen users. “New York cannot and will not wait,” said Council Speaker Corey Johnson, himself a former smoker who quit with the help of e-cigarettes. …

Gothamist reports: Earlier this year, we reported that the city council was considering a bill banning the sale of foie gras in New York City on the grounds that it’s cruel to physically pump fowl full of feed before leading them to slaughter. Today, with over one hundred animal rights activists waiting outside, the New York City Council passed the …

Courthouse News reports: As the clock ticks on a deadline for the New York City Council to vote on a controversial new borough jails plan, legislators voted Thursday to pass a proposal they say would force lawmakers to shutter the notorious Rikers Island jail complex by 2026. The council faces an Oct. 17 vote over whether to build four new …

Crain’s Business New York reports: Preacher-turned-politician Ruben Diaz Sr. might be an authority on the Book of Numbers, but the accounts of his nonprofit don’t add up. The Bronx councilman, an ex-state senator and leading candidate to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Jose Serrano, advertises himself on his government website as the former head of a sprawling network of elder care …

The New York Daily News reports: He may be a misogynist, but he’s no snitch. Bronx Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. interrupted a mandatory City Council sensitivity session on Wednesday by loudly vowing never to report sexual harassment, lest he be a “rat,” several lawmakers in attendance told the Daily News. “He just started screaming and shouting out: ‘So we’re supposed …

The New York Times reports: Most employers in New York City would no longer be able to force job applicants to take drug tests for marijuana use, under a bill overwhelmingly approved this week by the City Council. If the drug-screening law is enacted, it would put New York in relatively uncharted territory. Several drug policy and employment experts said …

Patch reports: The city councilman who recently drew fire for his inflammatory remarks about gay people says he will run for Congress to give conservatives and moderates a voice in Washington. Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. said he will run to replace U.S. Rep. Jose Serrano, who is not seeking re-election in 2020. The Bronx Democrat — who drew widespread criticism …

The New York Post reports: Council Speaker Corey Johnson said Monday that Bronx Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. should step down for making an inflammatory remark about the gay community. “I think he should resign. It’s not up to me, but I think what he said is totally unacceptable,” Johnson said during a press briefing in Albany, where he testified on …

NY 1 reports: Rubén Díaz Sr. says he faced rejection from his colleagues the moment he got to the City Council last year because “over there, everybody is controlled by the homosexual community.” “When I get to the City Council, I find that the City Council is controlled — most council members out of 51 council members — over there, …

The New York Daily News reports: The City Council voted Wednesday to stop issuing new licenses for most for-hire vehicles for a year in an effort to regulate e-hail apps like Uber, Lyft and Via, whose rapid growth has thrown the city’s taxi industry into chaos. “This is about supporting and uplifting drivers, making sure they are paid enough to …

The New York Times reports: New York City officials are moving to cap the number of vehicles driving for Uber and other ride-hailing services as part of an aggressive move to address mounting concerns that their explosive growth has led to worsening congestion and low driver wages. The legislation being considered by the City Council would make New York the …

Bloomberg reports: Last week, Airbnb Inc. was dealt one of its biggest blows in the company’s 10-year history. New York City council members voted to require the home-rental company to hand over the names and addresses of its hosts in the city. The officials have said they need the information to police Airbnb hosts that operate illegally and drive up …

The New York Daily News reports: A Brooklyn city lawmaker is sponsoring sex-segregated beach days to give his Jewish and Muslim constituents an opportunity to enjoy the seaside. City Councilman Chaim Deutsch announced the first ever “Southern Brooklyn Beach Day,” with separate dates for men and women by the sandy spot behind Kingsborough Community College. Deutsch, who is an observant …

The New York Daily News reports: Suck on this — plastic drinking straws could be banned in New York. Businesses in the city would be barred from using disposable plastic straws under a bill set to be introduced Wednesday in the City Council. Plastic coffee stirrers would be forbidden, too. Restaurants and take out spots would either have to forgo …

Courthouse News reports: Targeting one culprit in the panoply of noxious street odors, a Queens Democrat asked the New York City Council on Thursday to ban smoking while walking. “In a perfect world, every smoker would have the self-awareness to realize that smoking and walking down a crowded sidewalk subjects everyone behind you to breathing in the fumes,” City Councilman …

The New York Daily News reports: Corey Johnson was elected City Council speaker in an overwhelming vote Wednesday, capping months of maneuvering that will make him the city’s second-most-powerful elected official. Johnson — a Manhattan Democrat who is gay and HIV positive — was chosen in a 48-1 vote. Councilwoman Inez Barron, who mounted her own last-minute bid for speaker …

The New York Daily News reports: Mayor de Blasio gave his blessing Thursday to a deal that is likely to make Councilman Corey Johnson the next City Council speaker. Johnson, a Manhattan Democrat, sewed up the backing Wednesday of the Queens and Bronx county Democratic leaders, who brought with them support from enough Council members to give him the win. …

The New York Post reports: For an anti-Semite, this guy’s got tons of chutzpah. A two-bit political gadfly named Thomas Lopez-Pierre has been running for City Council on an outrageous platform that calls for stopping “greedy Jewish landlords” from committing “ethnic cleansing” against blacks. His low-rent hatemongering seemed designed to get as much negative attention as possible. And it did …