News You Can Use
From: New York City Mayor’s Office
Overview:
This week, the Mayor delivered his State of the City address, where he announced two major initiatives to help seniors, veterans and other low-income families afford rent in New York City. The Mayor also announced that, for the first time, the City will fund universal access to legal services for tenants facing eviction in New York City Housing Court, and we’re creating a hub for garment manufacturing and film and television production in Sunset Park.
Mayor de Blasio and the Schools Chancellor announced City high school graduation rates hit a record high in 2016…we’re boosting M/WBE contract opportunities… the Parks Department has cut tennis permitting rates for adults in half – they’re now $100… applications are open for the 2017 Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP)…DCA, CCHR, and several agencies gathered to host #OneNewYork Day of Action to remind fellow New Yorkers, especially those hailing from Muslim communities, that the City is committed to protecting the rights of all New Yorkers…the NYC Commission on Human Rights this week assured LGBTQ communities of legal protections against discrimination under the NYC Human Rights Law…DCA is protecting airline employees’ right to Paid Sick Leave…NYC Health + Hospitals launched a new monthly e-newsletter, Patients First…DOHMH announced a historic expansion of HIV and STI services, and the renaming of STD Clinics as Sexual Health Clinics…and the sodium warning rule was upheld, so New Yorkers will continue seeing menu warnings on high-salt items at chain restaurants.
What We’re Sharing:
Meet Gershy, he wants to tell you all about the things he did in Pre-K: Meet Gershy
Watch the success story of P.S.154, one of our 86 NYC #RenewalSchools: P.S. 154: An NYC Renewal School Reborn
The Mayoral Photography Office’s stunning Pictures of the Week: February 3 – 10, 2017
Posts of the Week – Click the Image and Share:
We will fight to keep New Yorkers in their homes.
I proposed a 2.5% tax on homes costing more than $2 million to help fund affordable senior housing.
We’re building more affordable housing so more New Yorkers can stay New Yorkers.
We’re investing to create more jobs in industries that provide a good wage and a better future.
Thanks to Pre-K for All and AP for All, we plan to make our graduation rate grow as large as our student’s ambitions.
The Details:
State of the City – #MansionTax: Mayor de Blasio gathered with New Yorkers to consider the state of our city, and to propose strong solutions to improve the lives of 8.5 million of our neighbors. He announced two major initiatives to help seniors, veterans and other low-income families afford rent in New York City. The first will increase by 10,000 the number of apartments in Housing New York serving households earning less than $40,000 – 5,000 of which will be dedicated to seniors and 500 for veterans. The second is a new Elder Rent Assistance program to be funded by the City’s proposed Mansion Tax that will serve more than 25,000 seniors with monthly rental assistance of up to $1,300. We urge anyone who stands with our seniors to tweet to #MansionTax and make your views known.
State of the City – Universal Access to Legal Services for Tenants Facing Eviction: The Mayor also announced that, for the first time, the City will fund universal access to legal services for tenants facing eviction in New York City Housing Court. A $93 million allocation doubles the Administration’s existing funding for tenant legal services. Legal services have proven effective at reducing unlawful evictions and preventing displacement. Since beginning an unprecedented expansion of tenant legal aid two years ago, evictions have dropped by 24 percent.
State of the City – Made in New York: Mayor de Blasio is committing to adding 100,000 good-paying jobs within the next decade – including adding 40,000 jobs in the next four years. As part of reaching this goal, the City is investing $136 million to create 1,500 permanent jobs and 800 construction jobs in Sunset Park. Sunset Park buildings will be transformed into a hub for garment manufacturing and film and television production, and will support more than 1,500 permanent jobs. This is just the most recent investment City is making in Sunset Park, where we’ve dedicated millions of dollars to grow thousands of good industrial jobs. The build out of modern garment manufacturing space, sound stages, and other campus improvements is expected to create more than 800 construction jobs.
Highest Ever Graduation Rate: Mayor de Blasio and the Schools Chancellor announced that New York City’s four-year high school graduation rate hit a historic high in 2016 – 72.6 percent. The dropout rate fell to the lowest ever – 8.5 percent. The improvements in both graduation and dropout rates were highest for Hispanic and Black students. Every single borough saw its graduation rate increase and dropout rate decrease – with the highest increase in graduation rate in the Bronx. Our Equity and Excellence for All agenda will build on this progress, ensuring that by 2026, 80 percent of students graduate high school on time and two-thirds of graduates are college ready.
Boosting M/WBE Contract Opportunities: Mayor de Blasio and the Department of Small Business Services announced new community partnerships in each borough to increase opportunities for the City’s M/WBEs to secure a City contract. To do so, community partners will help M/WBEs get certified or re-certified as an M/WBE contractor and provide guidance on how to best serve as a City contractor. A part of this outreach will coach M/WBE firms on how to improve their NYC Business Directory profiles to highlight their services and compete for contracts as all registered M/WBEs appear in the directory for City agencies to use to select contractor. This new program is part of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s historic commitment to M/WBEs that aims to award 30 percent of City contract dollars to M/WBEs by 2021. Those interested in becoming a successful, certified M/WBE should visit www.nyc.gov/sbs or call 311.
Slashing Costs of Tennis Permitting Rates: The Parks Department announced that it has cut tennis permitting rates for adults in half – they’re now $100 and you can register online: https://www.nycgovparks.org/permits/tennis-permits
Applications Now Open for Summer Youth Employment Program: Applications are open for the 2017 Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) from Monday, February 6 through Friday, March 17, 2017. SYEP is the nation’s largest summer youth employment initiative, and since 1963 has provided New York City young people between the ages of 14 and 24 with up to six weeks of entry-level experience at worksites in all five boroughs. Participants are selected by lottery for the program, which runs from July 5 through August 19. City residents ages 14-24 can apply for summer job lottery at www.nyc.gov/dycd through Friday, March 17.
#OneNewYork Day of Action: On February 8, DCA, MOIA, CCHR and CAU hosted their #OneNewYork Day of Action: Protecting Our Muslim Communities to remind fellow New Yorkers, especially those hailing from Muslim communities, that the City is committed to protecting the rights of all New Yorkers where they live, work and shop, and also offers a variety of services to those in need, regardless of immigration status or ethnicity. Teams from the City, as well elected officials and volunteers from the Arab American Association of New York, Council on American-Islamic Relations – New York, Muslim Community Network, Council of Peoples Organization, Make The Road New York, New York Immigration Coalition, and other community partners, visited 12 subway stations. More than 90 volunteers distributed tens of thousands of pieces of literature in multiple languages during the morning commute.
Protecting NYC’s vulnerable communities from discrimination: The NYC Commission on Human Rights joined thousands of LGBT New Yorkers and allies this week to inform them that the Commission is here to protect them from discrimination. Additionally, the Commission and FLONYC weighed in on #DressLikeAWoman on social media, emphasizing the fact that dress codes imposing different requirements based on sex or gender may be in violation of the NYC Human Rights Law.
Protecting Airline Employees’ Right to Paid Sick Leave: DCA has filed charges against Delta Air Lines for violations of the City’s Paid Sick Leave Law. The charges include denying flight attendants the right to accrue or use sick leave during their first year of employment, maintaining and enforcing a progressive disciplinary system that penalizes flight attendants for using protected sick leave, and failing to provide flight attendants with the required notice of employee rights under the law. DCA also has open investigations into three other airlines and a subcontracting company for the industry.
Raising Public Health Awareness with Patients First e-Newsletter: In an effort to better educate the public on health issues and promote available health services, NYC Health + Hospitals recently launched a new monthly e-newsletter, Patients First. Each month, Patients First will focus on different health issues and include healthy living tips, patient testimonials, and videos. The January edition includes a story on a mother’s labor and delivery experience, a retired teacher who emerged from a coma, and information on NYC Health + Hospitals/At Home services. To subscribe for free, go to http://www.nychealthandhospitals.org/enewsletter, and scroll to the “We Always Put Patients First” box, where you can enter your email address.
STD Clinic Renaming and New Services: Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett announced the historic expansion of HIV and STI services, and the renaming of STD Clinics as Sexual Health Clinics. The expansion is part of the City’s Ending the Epidemic (ETE) plan, which includes $23 million in fiscal year 2017 and aims to reduce the number of new HIV infections in New York City to no more than 600 cases per year by 2020. With additional staff and expanded hours, the clinics will now break new ground by offering a revolutionary approach to medical treatment for New Yorkers at risk or newly diagnosed with HIV, as well as additional services to test and treat STIs. Among the new services is the JumpstART program, which, for the first time, provides anti-retroviral treatment and connection to care to patients newly diagnosed with HIV. Anti-retroviral medication controls the virus, helping people with HIV live healthier and longer lives and reducing the risk of transmitting HIV to others. The program is available at the Riverside, Fort Greene and Jamaica clinics and will soon be offered at all eight clinics. JumpstART receives $500,000 in funding from the MAC AIDS fund, through the Fund for Public Health, a charitable organization connected to the Health Department. To ensure New Yorkers are aware of these new HIV and STI services, the Health Department is launching an ad campaign on Valentine’s Day, also known as National Condom Day. The new “We’ve Got You Covered” campaign sends a light-hearted, positive and non-judgmental message about maintaining sexual health by seeking prevention and treatment services. The ads will be placed citywide, especially in neighborhoods served by Sexual Health Clinics: Harlem, Morningside Heights, Morrisania, Crown Heights, Fort Greene, Corona, and Jamaica.
Court Upholds Sodium Rule: The New York State Appellate Division upheld the sodium warning rule. This means New Yorkers will have continued access to information about menu items at chain restaurants containing more than the recommended daily sodium limit. The sodium warning icon must appear on chain restaurant menus and menu boards next to any menu item with 2,300 mg of sodium or more. There are approximately 3,300 chain restaurants subject to the rule in New York City. The rule affects all New York City chain restaurants with 15 or more locations nationwide.
How You Can Help:
- As always, share these links on Twitter and Facebook, and make sure you forward these updates to friends, family, and colleagues interested in staying on top of the week’s big news.
- Give us feedback on what additional information you need to keep your community informed and aggressive in its advocacy.
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| Amoy Barnes | |||
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212-788-9778 tel
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