Legislation fulfills plans outlined in Speaker Mark-Viverito’s State of the City Address

City Hall – Today the Council will vote on legislation prohibiting employers from discriminating against employees and job applicants based on credit history. Additionally, the Council will vote on a number of bills from the Council’s Climate Agenda. The council will vote on a bill to update New York City’s Air Pollution Control Code. The Council will also vote on legislation creating a Citywide rapid bus transit plan to promote the use of low-carbon transportation. The Council will also vote on legislation providing property tax relief to homeowners impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Finally, the Council will vote on legislation requiring tamper-resistant outlets in public areas of multiple dwelling buildings.

Discriminatory Use of Credit Checks

Introduction 261-A, sponsored by Council Member Brad Lander, would amend the City’s Human Rights Law to make it an unlawful discriminatory practice to request or use an applicant’s consumer credit history in making employment decisions. Employers often use consumer credit information to make hiring decisions, despite the fact that there is little evidence linking an employee’s credit score or credit worthiness to job performance or trustworthiness. Credit checks may adversely affect those who have fallen behind on student loan payments, medical bills or have taken on other forms of consumer debt. Further, the use of credit checks for employment purposes has been shown to have a discriminatory impact on low income communities and communities of color. They also have a disparate impact on women and victims of domestic violence.

The bill includes a list of very limited, but sensible, carve-outs that allow employers to use credit checks where necessary. For example, the bill would not prohibit an employer from using consumer credit history where its use is required by state or federal law. Further, the bill would allow employers to use credit checks when hiring for certain positions of public trust, such as police officers and high-level City employees who are already subject to DOI background checks and COIB financial disclosures. The bill would also permit the use of credit checks when hiring for positions that involve potential cyber security risks or fiduciary duties to the employer and the ability to enter financial agreements valued at $10,000 or more.

“All New Yorkers deserve the chance to compete for a job based on their skills and qualifications, not three digits on a financial report,” said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. Just because you’ve struggled with medical bills or student loans does not make you any less hard working, qualified, or trustworthy than anyone else. There is no place for discrimination in New York City. I want to thank all my colleagues for this Council’s commitment to fairness and equality.”

“Credit checks for employment unfairly lock New Yorkers out of jobs,” said Council Member Brad Lander. “So I’m proud that the Council is passing the strongest bill of its kind to end discriminatory employment credit checks. Just this week, we heard from a recently laid-off single mom, worried about finding a new job because of her daughter’s college loans on her credit report. She wrote that this law gives her ‘a new lease on life.’ Thank you to Speaker Mark-Viverito for consistently standing up for the most vulnerable New Yorkers, to Co-Sponsor Debi Rose and Chair Mealy, to my Council colleagues supporting this legislation, and to the de Blasio Administration for working with us to craft a strong, smart piece of legislation. Well-earned credit (and the kind you’d be happy to have anyone know about) also goes to the 70-member organizations of the NYC Coalition to Stop Credit Checks in Employment, including brave individuals who came forward to tell their stories, and who worked so hard to make this day happen.”

Property Tax Relief for Homeowners Impacted by Hurricane Sandy

Introduction 727, sponsored by Council Member Vincent Ignizio, would allow New York City to limit any increases to assessed value caused by the reconstruction of Hurricane Sandy-damaged property so that a property’s assessment would not be any higher than had the storm not happened. In short, this bill would ensure that property owners who rebuild properties severely damaged by Hurricane Sandy will not be penalized for rebuilding and that they will see the same tax bill they would have seen had the storm never occurred.

This legislation will take effect upon approval from the State government.

“When I identified a quirk in the law which would have imposed a “Sandy tax” on the very people we were trying to help recover, I pledged to work with the mayor’s office and colleagues on both sides of the aisle and in all legislative houses to fix it,” said Council Member Vincent Ignizio. “ Today is the culmination of that great partnership and will usher in sorely needed relief now and well into the future for thousands of families and businesses that have been devastated by Sandy. I want to personally think Mayor de Blasio, Governor Cuomo, Senator Lanza and Assemblyman Goldfeder for their efforts in making this happen as well.”

Air Code

Introduction 271-A, sponsored by Council Member Donovan Richards, updates the New York City Air Pollution Control Code to improve the outdoor air quality in New York City. While the Air Pollution Control Code has been amended from time to time, it has not been comprehensively updated since 1975. Air pollution is a significant environmental threat in New York city, contributing to an estimated 6% of all annual deaths. For many years the City has strived to have the cleanest air quality of any large city in the United States, and this bill is another step in that process. This bill would bring the Air Pollution Control Code into compliance with more stringent air quality laws, rules and regulations promulgated by the federal government and the State, and would give the Commissioner more flexibility to adopt the new beneficial technologies through rulemaking. This law will result in boilers operating more efficiently, engines and generators operating more cleanly, less fuel consumption citywide and the reduction of thousands of tons of particulate matter per year.

Some specific changes to the air code include:

Simplifying compliance by expanding the number of boilers that can be filed through the less-cumbersome registration process.
Streamlining the permitting process by allowing on-line permitting.
Limiting emissions from currently uncontrolled sources, including commercial char broilers, fireplaces, cook stoves, outdoor wood boilers, mobile vending units and wood burning heaters.
Requiring the most stringent EPA certified emissions standards for newly registered non-emergency stationary engines (generators) after 2018.
Requiring that pre-2007 Type A and Type B buses used for student transfer be retired by 2020.
Codifies the phase out of No. 6 heating oil by 2020, and No. 4 heating oil by 2030.

“It has been 35 years since New York City took a critical look at the quality of the air we breathe,” said Council Member Donovan Richards. “Air pollution has contributed to deaths, high rates of asthma and hospitalizations for respiratory related illnesses. Clearly something needed to be done to address this growing public health issue as our city continued to fail national Ambient Air Quality Standards set by the EPA. After a number of revisions we were able to address high profile sources of pollution such as; fireplaces, diesel engines, generators and char broilers to set measurable and attainable goals, phase out dirty technology and increase regulation. Today, I am proud of the extensive work done on Int. 271- A through the committee, mayoral administration, various agencies and advocates. I look forward to this historic piece of legislation setting the new air quality standard of our city for generations to come. ”

Bus Rapid Transit Plan

Bus rapid transit (BRT) is a system that is designed to make bus service faster, more reliable and efficient through features such as off-board fare payment and dedicated bus lanes. The New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) collaborate on a version of BRT called Select Bus Service (SBS), with eight lines implemented since June 2008.

Under Introduction 211-A, sponsored by Council Member Brad Lander, DOT would work with the MTA and gather input from the public to develop a citywide BRT plan, which would be due to the Council no later than September 1, 2017. The plan would consider areas of the City in need of additional rapid transit options, strategies for serving growing neighborhoods, potential intra-borough and inter-borough BRT corridors DOT plans to establish by 2027, strategies for integrating BRT with other transit routes, and the anticipated operating costs of additional BRT lines. Additionally, DOT would be required to update the Council on the implementation of the plan every two years, through 2027.

“New Yorkers across the city – especially in transit-starved, outer-borough neighborhoods – need more mass-transit options. Moving toward a robust, citywide Bus Rapid Transit network will significantly improve public transportation access in the parts of NYC that need it most, at a cost we can afford, and help insure a more sustainable future” said Council Member Brad Lander. “Low-income New Yorkers and communities of color have disproportionally long commute times. Meanwhile, jobs are growing in the outer boroughs, in parts of our city least equipped with the transportation infrastructure to sustain that growth. Adding new subway lines would take decades and cost billions. Fortunately, a citywide BRT network – with more of the features like protected lanes, center medians, and stations that characterize the best BRT – is something we can afford and implement. Thanks to Speaker Mark-Viverito and Chair Rodriguez for their work on this legislation, and to Mayor de Blasio and NYC Department of Transportation for their work on this legislation and their strong support for BRT for NYC.”

Tamper-resistant Outlets

Introduction 433-A, sponsored by Council Member Andrew Cohen, would require that all outlets in public parts of new multiple dwellings and all outlets replaced in existing multiple dwellings be tamper-resistant. Additionally, the bill would require that owners of existing dwellings install protective caps or other obstruction devices over outlets in public parts of multiple dwelling buildings if the existing outlet is not tamper-resistant. Failure to install a protective cap or tamper-resistant cap may result in a class A violation.

This legislation would take effect 120 days after enactment.

“Playing on their hands and knees, a child’s curiosity will draw them to outlets that are on their level, in which they will insert whatever – keys pins, paperclips or their own fingers. An electric shock upon a child’s body can result in severe burns, injuries or even death. While most parents take steps to ‘baby-proof’ their own homes, the common areas of their buildings are often left unprotected,” said Council Member Andrew Cohen. “Intro 433 will require tamper-resistant receptacles to be installed in any new construction and caps covering outlets in existing buildings. This legislation balances all concerns, weighing the risk of just one curious child being electrocuted, with the severity a single shock can cause upon their small bodies, against the relatively low burden of installing these easy and inexpensive devices. It’s a cheap fix to a gap in our current laws, which left apartment’s common areas exposed and children’s safety at risk.”

City Fleet Reduction

New York City owns and operates almost 27,000 vehicles as part of its municipal fleet, costing an estimated $700 million annually. While much of the fleet consists of customized, working vehicles—such as street sweepers, fire engines, and police cars—thousands are classified as light duty, non-emergency vehicles, which are primarily used to transport City employees. Introduction 597-A, sponsored by Council Member Ritchie Torres would require the City to establish a car sharing program to reduce the size of the light duty, non-emergency fleet by at least nine percent between 2016 and 2020 through strategies such as car sharing. The City would be required to submit annual reports to the Council on the program and reduction in the City fleet. Additionally, the final report due in 2021 would be required to include an evaluation of the size of the City fleet and recommendations for future reductions.

“I am proud to sponsor forward-thinking legislation that will encourage the City to reduce its carbon footprint while realizing considerable savings,” said Council Member Ritchie Torres. “This legislation requires the City to transition nine percent of its fleet of passenger vehicles to shared vehicles over a period of five years- the most ambitious target to date. Under a previous pilot program the City was able save $500,000 dollars, and taken to scale- these savings could translate to millions of dollars.”

###