Identity card program will include many benefits for New Yorkers<\/p>\n
Brooklyn, NY \u2013 City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Immigration Committee Chair Carlos Menchaca and Council Member Daniel Dromm along with Council Member Laurie Cumbo, Council Member Alan Maisel, Council Member Chaim Deutch, Council Member Brad Lander, Council Member Rafael Espinal and Council Member Robert Cornegy today applied for the IDNYC card at the Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza. Joining the Speaker and Council Members were Linda E. Johnson, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Public Library, and affected members of the public. The IDNYC program was created by the Council through legislation sponsored by Council Members Daniel Dromm and Carlos Menchaca. The IDNYC card offers a secure and formal identification card to anyone living within the five borough. Card holders will be eligible for a wide variety of benefits including discounted movie theater tickets, free admission to the city\u2019s cultural institutions and prescription drug discounts through Big Apple Rx. IDNYC will also serve as a valid form of ID for 10 financial institutions. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m extremely excited to join my Council colleagues in applying for the IDNYC card. Time and again, New York City has shown that we are not afraid to lead and I\u2019m proud of New York City\u2019s work to launch the nation\u2019s largest municipal identification program,\u201d said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. \u201cWhether by offering free admission to dozens of cultural institutions or discounted prescription medications, IDNYC is a gateway to all our City has to offer. I thank my colleagues Immigration Committee Chair Carlos Menchaca and Council Member Daniel Dromm for their support in this process and thank the Administration for its partnership in making IDNYC a reality for all New Yorkers and encourage all New Yorkers to sign up for this card.\u201d<\/p>\n
“IDNYC identifies you as a card carrying New Yorker,\u201d said Council Member Daniel Dromm, the card\u2019s main sponsor. \u201cThis is an exciting day because today we are saying that all New Yorkers regardless of gender identity, immigration status, homelessness or other identifiers are an important part of our city. I am so proud to have worked with Mayor de Blasio, Speaker Mark Viverito, Commissioner Agarwal and Council Member Menchaca to create what I have called the \u201cmust have accessory for all New Yorkers in 2015. Congratulations all!\u201d<\/p>\n
“IDNYC represents–for thousands of New Yorkers–the missing link that attaches their individual realities, to the collective fabric of our City,\u201d said Immigration Chair Carlos Menchaca. It’s not every day that government is offered the opportunity to innovate in this way, and I am proud that this Council, and this Administration seized this opportunity to help change the lives of so many. I really believe that IDNYC can be a transformative tool for every person. I am looking forward to making sure that the program is a success, and that the spirit of its mission continues to be heard”.
\n \u201cIDNYC is an initiative that will ensure New York City becomes more inclusive, particularly of our vulnerable populations who could not overcome the setbacks caused by the lack of government-issued photo identification. IDNYC is a new opportunity for thousands of New Yorkers to surpass these challenges and become full participants of their city. Survivors of domestic violence, in particular, can opt to retrieve their card at an enrollment center to open a bank account and apply for housing as they rebuild their lives. The discretionary measures implemented throughout the application process demonstrate our city\u2019s commitment to improving public access to government resources regardless of one\u2019s housing or immigration status. As Chair of the Women’s Issues Committee, I was proud to support IDNYC as a new gateway for all New Yorkers to gain access to vital City programs and services,\u201d said Council Member Laurie A. Cumbo.
\n\u201cBrooklyn Public Library\u2019s 60 branches are centers of learning and opportunity for more than one million patrons and visitors,\u201d said Brooklyn Public Library President & CEO Linda E. Johnson. \u201cLike our libraries, IDNYC is available to all New Yorkers, and we look forward to helping IDNYC cardholders participate in our programs, access our collections, and become more engaged in the life of their city.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy family and I are excited to join Speaker Mark-Viverito and thousands across the five boroughs to become card-carrying New Yorkers,\u201d said Council Member Brad Lander. \u201cMeg and I are excited about more access to libraries, museums, and cultural institutions. Our son, like many 15-year olds, is mostly looking forward to the discounted movie tickets. And our daughter is jealous that you can’t get a card at age 11. IDNYC is a tangible step forward towards creating a more inclusive city for all.\u201d<\/p>\n
“Municipal ID’s have proven more popular than any of us could have anticipated,\u201d said Council Member David Greenfield. \u201cI have already received calls from constituents complaining that there is no enrollment center in my district. Of course, we will work with them to host a “pop-up” event soon. Especially with the free admission to so many of New York’s great cultural institutions, there’s no reason why all New Yorkers shouldn’t sign up.”<\/p>\n
\u201cI am proud to announce the beginning of the municipal ID card program to the residents of my district,” said Council Member Espinal. “In addition to IDNYC being a recognized as a means of identification, it will help unite our communities and foster growth in our neighborhoods by giving all New Yorkers free and discounted access to the best cultural experiences the City has to offer. Also among the many benefits is banking access for individuals without proper identification to open an account, such as the diverse immigrant population. This will further reinforce community and economic development and ultimately improve their quality of life. I applaud the efforts of Mayor Bill de Blasio, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Member Daniel Dromm, Council Member Carlos Menchaca, and the entire IDNY team for making this incredible project a reality.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNew York City is a \u2018melting pot\u2019, a home to people of hundreds of different races and backgrounds,\u201d said Council Member Chaim Deutsch. \u201cThis municipal ID card will unite the many diverse residents of our great city with the one thing we have in common \u2013 we are all New Yorkers. I commend Mayor Bill de Blasio and Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito for their leadership and initiative in unrolling this unique program.\u201d<\/p>\n
IDNYC card will not only be the official identification card of New York City but it will also provide cardholders with access to the city\u2019s three major library systems and provide a myriad of discounts and benefits.<\/p>\n
In the coming weeks, the City Council will host IDNYC own halls throughout the City which will provide the community more information about the card and assistance on how to obtain one.<\/p>\n
UPCOMING IDNYC TOWN HALLS<\/p>\n
MANHATTAN BRONX QUEENS
\nEl Museo Del Barrio
\n1230 5th Avenue, NY, NY 10029
\nTuesday, January 20, 2015
\n6:00 \u2013 8:00 PM
\n Bronx Library Center – New York Public Library
\n310 East Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10458
\nThursday, January 29th, 2015
\n6:00 \u2013 8:00 PM
\n LaGuardia Community College, Little Theater
\n31-10 Thomson Avenue, Long Island City, NY 11101
\nWednesday, February 4th, 2015
\n6:00 \u2013 8: 00 PM<\/p>\n
For more information on IDNYC and how to apply, visit www.council.nyc.gov<\/p>\n
###<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Identity card program will include many benefits for New Yorkers<\/p>\n
Brooklyn, NY \u2013 City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Immigration Committee Chair Carlos Menchaca and Council Member Daniel Dromm along with Council Member Laurie Cumbo, Council Member Alan Maisel, Council Member Chaim Deutch, Council Member Brad Lander, Council Member Rafael Espinal and Council Member Robert Cornegy today applied for the IDNYC card at the Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza.<\/p>\n
…<\/p>\n