Council Approves Bill to Require Council Input on Commissioner Appointments

On June 6, 2024, the New York City Council passed Int. 908, which amends the City charter to require the advice and consent of the City Council for 21 commissioner appointments. The 21 city agencies affected by this bill are: Aging; Buildings; Children’s Services; Citywide Administrative Services; Consumer and Worker Protection; Cultural Affairs; Design and Construction; Environmental Protection; Finance; Health and Mental Hygiene; Homeless Services; Housing Preservation and Development; Information Technology and Telecommunications; Parks and … <Read More>


Council Passes Bills to Address Parking Garage Safety

On May 23, 2024, the New York City Council passed a package of bills to improve parking garage safety by identifying and addressing parking garage structural deficiencies. These bills, Int. 135-A, 170-A, and 231-A, were created in response to a parking garage that collapsed at 57 Ann Street in Lower Manhattan on April 18, 2023, which killed garage manager Willis Moore and injured five others.


Council Approves Bill Requiring NYCHA PACT Program Transparency Report

On May 16, 2024, the City Council passed Int. 110-A, which requires the creation of a report about the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Program (PACT). The PACT program allows the New York City Housing Authority to change its traditional Section 9 public housing funding to project-based Section 8 funding. The change allows NYCHA to access debt to finance renovation and repairs projects and requires NYCHA to transfer the daily management of buildings to private management <Read More>


Comptroller M/WBE Report Shows City Needs to Make More Progress in Distributing Contracts

On February 14, 2024, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander released the Annual Report on M/WBE Procurement which found that the City fell short of ensuring equitable distribution of contracts with Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (M/WBEs). The report takes into consideration a review of contract registration data from the City and analyzes M/WBE contracts based on procurement method, dollar value, and industry. The report examines city agencies’ use of the M/WBE Noncompetitive Small Purchase … <Read More>