Since her election as City Council Speaker, Christine C. Quinn has established herself as a champion for working families, fighting for policies and services that are critical to the lives of real New Yorkers.  She has worked to make the Council more responsive to the needs of all New Yorkers, and dramatically increased transparency and accountability.  Quinn has developed a reputation for finding innovative solutions, and furthering policies that are both creative and fiscally responsible.

More about the Speaker and the role of the Council.

In her four years as Speaker, she has taken on a wide range of issues in such areas as public safety, environmental protection, early childhood education, hunger and nutrition and affordable housing.

To email Speaker Quinn , please click on the tab to the left "Contact Speaker Quinn".

For assistance in the District , please email or contact the District office, at left.

For assistance with legislative items, or in response to citywide issues, please email or contact her Legislative Office, at left.

Members of the press may contact the press office at 212-788-7116 or visit the Press Room to see the latest releases and statements.

Current Term Expires: 12/31/2013

Neighborhoods in District: West Village, SoHo, NoHo, Flatiron, Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen/Clinton, Murray Hill (portions)

Committees: Rules, Privileges & Elections

Testimony, January 25, 2010
2011 Executive Budget

Charter Meeting Address, January 1, 2009

"FoodWorks", December 7, 2009
First Ever Comprehensive Food System Plan will Create Jobs, Improve Health, and Protect Environment

Testimony/Remarks, June 10, 2009
Themes: United American Families Act

State of the City February 12, 2009
Themes: Job Growth, Small Businesses, Innovative Revenue Sources, Tax Reform, Reducing Unnecessary City Spending, Public Safety, Tenants and Housing

2006 Budget Response April 6, 2006
Themes: Budget process reform, Education / Universal pre-kindergarten classes, Hunger and nutrition, Public safety / District Attorneys, Economic development and small business tax relief

Crain's New York Keynote Address April 18, 2006
Themes: Good government, Budget process reform, Lobby reform, CouncilStat / Constituent problem tracking

Food Bank Keynote Address September 5, 2006
Themes: Hunger and nutrition, School lunch program, Food stamps, Greenmarkets, Food assistance programs and Senior nutrition

Empire State Pride Agenda Keynote Address October 5, 2006
Themes: Marraige equality, LGBT rights

Human Rights Campaign Keynote Address October 7, 2006
Themes: Marraige equality, LGBT rights

State of the City Address February 5, 2007
Themes: Housing and education reforms, health care, more livable city for the middle class

Empire State Pride Agenda, Rochester, NY May 19, 2007
Themes: Civil Rights, LGBT rights, marraige equality

For more information on the Speaker's speeches and major addresses, please contact the City Council Press Office at 212-788-7116.

Since her election as City Council Speaker, Christine C. Quinn has established herself as a champion for working families, fighting for policies and services that are critical to the lives of real New Yorkers.  She has worked to make the Council more responsive to the needs of all New Yorkers, and dramatically increased transparency and accountability.  Quinn has developed a reputation for finding innovative solutions, and furthering policies that are both creative and fiscally responsible.

In the past four years, Speaker Quinn has taken on a wide range of issues, including:

Housing – Speaker Quinn and the Council passed legislation to allow landlords to be taken to court for threatening tenants or interrupting essential services; as well as the Safe Housing Act, which will repair thousands of dangerous apartments.  Quinn has sparked the creation of new affordable housing through an updated program providing tax incentives to developers who build affordable units.  She recently announced an Affordable Housing Recovery Program that will make unsold condominiums affordable for middle income New Yorkers to buy or rent.

Education – Speaker Quinn has long advocated investment in Early Childhood Education and the Middle Grades.  She organized a Middle School Task Force, which created proposals to improve middle school success in New York City.  Quinn worked with the administration to provide five million dollars in grants to the highest need middle schools in the city, to allow them to implement these proposals.  Targeted schools have already demonstrated greater increases in test scores than the citywide average, and the Council and DOE have expanded funding to other middle schools in the city.

Seniors – In 2008, Christine Quinn led the Council effort that successfully blocked a controversial proposal to overhaul the city’s senior centers, which could have caused disastrous service changes for thousands of older New Yorkers.  Quinn is currently working with the New York Academy of Medicine and the Administration on the “Age-Friendly New York City Initiative”, one of the first attempts by any city in the country to create a comprehensive plan for meeting the needs of an aging population.

Environment – Quinn and the Council passed first of its kind legislation requiring manufacturers to collect and recycle electronic waste: televisions, computers, printers, and other equipment that contains toxic substances.  They passed a bill requiring large stores and retail chains to accept and recycle plastic shopping bags.  Earlier this year, Quinn introduced legislation to improve energy efficiency in large commercial buildings – a move that will reduce the city's carbon footprint by an amount equal to the total carbon emissions generated by Oakland, California. 

Small Business - Speaker Quinn has been a leader in the fight to eliminate unfair taxes on the business community, particularly the double taxation of freelancers and sole proprietors.  Quinn and the Council recently passed a bill to create a penalty forgiveness period this fall, during which the city will waive late fees and penalties for businesses with outstanding violations.  They also passed legislation creating a Regulatory Review Panel to find and help eliminate outdated rules that interfere with business operations.

Equality and Civil Rights – As the first openly gay Speaker of the City Council, Quinn has worked extensively on issues of justice and equality.  She has emerged as a leading voice in the fight for marriage equality in New York State, meeting with lawmakers and organizing grassroots efforts.  Quinn has frequently organized elected officials, clergy, and community leaders in opposition to hate crimes.

Health – Speaker Quinn and the Council recently passed the Clinic Access Bill, which provides women with protections against harassment and intimidation at reproductive health clinics across the city.  She coordinated a public/private partnership to expand free rapid HIV testing for tens of thousands of patients at public hospitals.

Food and Nutrition - Quinn has worked with the Council on the Environment of New York City to allow New Yorkers to use food stamps to buy fresh produce at Greenmarkets around the city.  She coordinated a Food Stamp Data Match, which has helped enroll thousands of New Yorkers who qualify for food stamps but had not been receiving them.  Quinn and the Council also passed legislation creating 1,000 new permits for green carts that exclusively sell fresh fruits and vegetables in neighborhoods that lack access to nutritious foods.

Since 1999, Quinn has served as the representative for the 3rd Council District of Manhattan.  She and her partner, Kim Catullo, live in Chelsea.

Speaker Quinn has worked very closely with the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to help create and maintain many different programs that help create affordable housing. Check out the links below for more information. If you can not find what you are looking for on this site, visit the HPD web site.

Affordable Rental and Home Ownership Units  

Affordable Homeownership Developments

Mitchell-Lama’s

Apartments Now Renting

Affordable Home Ownership

Future Developments

Public Housing

Senior Housing

Supportive Housing

Safety:

New York City Protective Services for Adults (PSA)
212.630.1853

Elderly Crime Victims Resource Center
212.442.3103

Safe Horizon
800.621.4673

Finances & Savings:

MTA Reduced Fare Line
718.243.4999

Senior Employment Services
212.442.1353

Legal Assistance Programs:

Legal Services of NY
212.431.7200

Legal Aid Society
212.577.3300

Enhanced School Tax Relief Program (STAR)
718.935.9500

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
800-772-1213

Food Stamp Program
877.472.8411

Verizon Life Line
800.799.6874

Senior Citizens Homeowner Exemption (SCHE)
212.504.4080

Health:

Alzheimer’s and Long Term Care
212.442.3086

Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage (EPIC)
800.332.3742

Home Life:

Meals on Wheels
212.442.1000

Management and Home Care Services
212.442.1000

Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE)
212.442.9366

Red Cross Temporary Housing
877.733.2767

Weatherization Referral and Packaging Program (WRAP)
212.442.3055

Captioned Media Program
(materials for the hearing impaired)
800.237.6213

Lighthouse International
(materials for the vision impaired)
800.334.5497

District 3 Schools

With over 30 schools throughout the district, there are plenty of programs local students can choose from as they go through their academic career. To find out more about the schools in District 3, you can download a list of schools (excel spreadsheet) or visit the Department of Education online.

The needed forms:
Organization Qualification Form  (OQF)

• The OQF must be notarized and signed by an officer or employee of the Organization.
• The Organization must attach a copy of its most recent and up-to-date CHAR 500.  [Just the top 3 pages or so that include the signatures.] If exempt, the Organization must complete a Certification of Exemption From Requirement to Register with the NYS Charities Bureau form (included in the OQF).
• The OQF is a public document and will be available to the public.
• All requests for funding must be legible, organized, complete and accurate. 
• Keep a copy of the completed application for your records before it is submitted. 
• All sections of the application are mandatory unless otherwise noted.
• Please deliver the completed Organization Qualification Form (and all attachments) to Kate Seely-Kirk or Melanie La Rocca in the Speaker’s District Office at 224 West 30^th Street, Suite 1206, New York, NY 10001 by 6:00 PM on March 10, 2010.  The office is located between 7^th and 8^th Avenues and is open between 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM.  

Member Item Request Contact Spreadsheet

• In ‘Row 2’ please enter your Organization’s information that corresponds to the prompts in each column.  This allows staff to easily enter your group’s information into a comprehensive spreadsheet of requests.
• Be sure to fill in every column (A-W).   The only column you can leave blank is ‘Contracting Agency’, if you do not have a preference.
• Please write 3-5 sentences for the “Description of Purpose of Funds”.  It can be a summary of what is written in your OQF.
• Please email the Member Item Request Contact Spreadsheet to MLarocca@council.nyc.gov by 6:00 PM on March 10^th.

Additionally, any group that seeks funding over $10,000 total from the City Council must also apply for prequalification with the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services (MOCS).  The on-line Prequalification Application form is available on the DYCD website.

• Organizations that applied and were approved for prequalification in Fiscal Year 2010 do NOT need to re-apply. 
• Speaker Quinn’s District Office does NOT need a copy of the prequalification paperwork.

If you are a cultural group, you MUST apply to the Department of Cultural Affairs for a program funding grant, or already be receiving one. The Speaker’s District Office does NOT need a copy of this paperwork.

The following are some commonly asked questions specific to the expense request process and the corresponding answers.  Please feel free to call for clarification.

My organization has a Citywide focus, and does not do work specific to Council District 3.  Is there another way to apply for expense funding from the Speaker?

This page is specific to funding available from the Speaker in her capacity as local Councilmember of Council District 3 (CD3).  If your organization is active in CD3 then please feel free to request funding.  It is advisable to explain how your request is related to CD3; please note if your organization is based in district, and/or what services your organization (currently/ would hope to) provide in district.

You may also apply for funding to the Speaker in her citywide capacity should your organization have a scope of work beyond serving CD3. The application and FAQs are available on the Council’s website.  (Cultural organizations cannot apply for Speaker citywide funding).

What is the minimum/ maximum request I can make?

The minimum allowable request is $3,500 for grants administered through the Department for the Aging or the Department for Youth and Community Development (DYCD).  The minimum for grants administered through other agencies is $3,000.  The average request is around $5,000.  If you request a sum over the capacity of the District Office to be able to fund, your request may be passed to the NYCC Finance Division, to be considered by the Speaker in her citywide capacity. 

My group is not a registered non-profit 501c3, can I still apply for funding?

Yes if you have a 501c3 that can operate as a fiscal conduit for your organization you can still apply.  Both your organization AND the fiscal conduit need to fill out and submit all the required paperwork. 

Can school groups apply for funding for a public school?

Yes, school groups may ask for funding for a NYC Public School.  We require that the Principal approve of the request.  It is easiest if a Principal makes the funding request as it may be allocated through the Dept. of Education directly.  A PTA can apply for funding but it would be allocated through DYCD and there is much more paperwork.

Who do I contact with questions relating to the budget process?

Please feel free to reach out to Melanie La Rocca or Kate Seely-Kirk in the Speaker’s District Office with your questions. The district main phone number is 212-564-7757.

Speaker Quinn's District Office handles all issues for constituents living in New York's 3rd Council District.

District Office Chief Of Staff
Kate Seely-Kirk

Deputy Chief of Staff
Melanie La Rocca

Legislative Assistant, CB2
Noah Isaacs

Legislative Assistant, CB4
Amanda Younger

Legislative Assistant, CB5
Yareni Sanchez

Legislative Assistant, Tenant/ Housing
Jose Conde

Community Board 2
3 Washington Sq Vlg Ste 1A
New York, NY 10012
Phone: 212.979.2272
Fax: 212.254.5102
info@cb2manhattan.org

Community Board 4
330 West 42nd Street
26th Floor
New York, NY 10036
Phone: 212-736-4536
Fax: 212.947.9512
info@manhattancb4.org

Community Board 5
450 Seventh Avenue
Suite 2109
New York, NY 10123
Phone: 212.465.0907
Fax: 212.465.1628
office@cb5.org