The Responsible Banking Act will bring together banks, communities and government to evaluate the banking needs of New Yorkers and their communities. <\/p>\n
Council will also vote to override Mayoral veto of prevailing wage legislation and a resolution in support of raising the state\u2019s minimum wage.<\/p>\n
New York, NY- Today, the Council will vote on the Responsible Banking Act. This piece of legislation will help to ensure that banks are meeting the needs of city residents and communities by identifying financial services that are most needed and where. <\/p>\n
The Council will also vote to override the Mayor\u2019s veto of the prevailing wage bill \u2013 legislation to establish a prevailing wage requirement for building service employees in certain City leased or financially assisted facilities. Additionally, the Council will also consider a resolution calling on the State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation raising the state\u2019s minimum wage.<\/p>\n
To end confusion over whether muni-meter time purchased at one location may be used at another, the Council will also consider a bill to clarify muni-meter time transferability.<\/p>\n
Finally, the Council will vote on a resolution calling on Village Voice Media to prohibit adult services advertisements on its online classified site, Backpage.com. The site has become a platform used to traffic minors and adult victims for sex.<\/p>\n
Responsible Banking Act<\/p>\n
The Responsible Banking Act will evaluate the city\u2019s financial landscape \u2013 borough by borough \u2013 down to the neighborhood level. This legislation will detail the banking needs of the city\u2019s communities for the first time. To this end, the bill will establish an advisory board that will evaluate how well banks are meeting the needs of the city\u2019s neighborhoods based on several factors. This information will be made public by the Department of Finance. <\/p>\n
Members of the Board will include the Mayor, Comptroller, Council Speaker (or their designees), Department of Finance Commissioner, Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner, banking industry representatives, community development or consumer protection groups, as well as small business owners. The Board will collect information, hold public hearings in each borough and publish an assessment of banking needs in communities citywide.<\/p>\n
The assessment will focus on criteria including small business lending, homeowner mortgage payments, preventing the disrepair of foreclosed properties, and financing for affordable housing and economic development projects services in low- and moderate-income communities. The Board may set recommended benchmarks for meeting needs at the community level.<\/p>\n
\u201cBringing together stakeholders to gauge how well banks are serving New Yorkers is a groundbreaking, collaborative approach,\u201d said Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. \u201cShedding light on any practice is the best disinfectant, and by illuminating the needs of the communities they serve, banks will be better able to meet those needs. The goal of the bill is not to punish banks or to point fingers. Rather, the legislation seeks to encourage banks to reinvest in the communities they serve.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNew York City needs and deserves a strong commitment from its banks to reinvest in communities,\u201d said Council Member Al Vann. \u201cThe foreclosure crisis is still a serious problem, the demand for affordable housing remains overwhelming and small businesses continue to need access to credit in this difficult economic environment. This bill will help increase transparency regarding bank reinvestment, encourage responsible banking behavior and bring stakeholders together to help address the needs of New York City\u2019s neighborhoods.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThis bill is designed to make banking reinvestment activity transparent, fair and constructive for our working-class communities. I\u2019m proud to stand alongside Speaker Quinn and Councilman Al Vann to pass a smart piece of legislation that will work for our residents and our small business owners. Reinvestments, like mortgage lending and small business loans, are necessary for our communities to thrive. Without a robust reinvestment process, it is difficult for neighborhoods to develop a stable and secure environment that caters to starting a business or raising a family. It hinders any and all growth,\u201d said Finance Committee Chair Domenic M. Recchia Jr.<\/p>\n
Prevailing Wage Override<\/p>\n
It is the responsibility of government to find ways to get \u2013 and keep \u2013 New Yorkers working.
\nThe City also has an obligation to lead the way in promoting good-paying jobs, especially when paying the greater part of rent in a building or providing discretionary financial assistance. For these reasons, the Council will vote to override the Mayor\u2019s veto on the prevailing wage bill.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am proud to join with my colleagues today in reaffirming our commitment to the creation of quality jobs in our city,\u201d said Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito. \u201cThe prevailing wage legislation that I have sponsored will help raise the standard of living for building service employees who work at sites that have received large subsidies from the city. In overriding this veto, we are again sending a strong message that our city\u2019s economic development policy must aim to produce family sustaining, middle class jobs. I thank Speaker Quinn, Finance Chair Domenic Recchia and SEIU Local 32BJ for their leadership on this legislation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Minimum Wage Resolution<\/p>\n
The Council will vote on a resolution that calls upon the State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, bills that would raise the state\u2019s minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50 an hour. Unlike the current law, the rate would be increased automatically due to inflation.<\/p>\n
The failure of minimum wage to keep up with inflation over the past 30 years has played a significant role in the continuing growth of inequality in the United States. The Council is dedicated to creating jobs that pay enough for hard-working New Yorkers to thrive and positively contribute to the economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe combating income inequality is one of the biggest challenges facing our city, our state and our nation today. The gap between the richest and the poorest amongst us has never been wider in America, and New York has the ignominious honor of being dead last amongst all our states. To quote an Occupy Wall Street poster, \u2018our economic system encourages the growth of great fortunes alongside desperate poverty,\u2019\u201d said Council Member Jumaane Williams. \u201cI urge Governor Cuomo to act now on the minimum wage, because our poorest New Yorkers literally cannot afford further legislative delay. Thanks to Speaker Quinn for her leadership on this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Muni-Meter Time Transferability<\/p>\n
The Council will vote to end confusion over whether muni-meter time purchased at one location may be transferred to other locations. This bill will specify, once and for all, to allow muni-meter time to be transferred to other metered parking spaces.<\/p>\n
By tackling the recurrent problem of unfair tickets, the Council continues its goal to make New Yorkers lives a little easier, especially during these tough economic times.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople who are running errands should be able to buy time once and use that time for any spot with the same meter rate. At the end of the day, this is the driver\u2019s money we are talking about. It\u2019s that simple,\u201d said Transportation Committee Chair James Vacca.<\/p>\n
Backpage.com Resolution<\/p>\n
The Council will vote on a resolution calling on Village Voice Media to stop accepting adult services advertisements on its online classified site, Backpage.com, as it facilitates the trafficking of minors and adult victims for sex.<\/p>\n
Sex trafficking is a brutal, widespread crime: while the number of trafficking victims is unknown, the United States Department of Justice estimates that as many as 300,000 children are at risk for sexual exploitation in the U.S. each year.<\/p>\n
Village Voice Media needs to do its part to halt the horrific crime of sex trafficking, which is why the Council is calling on them to stop accepting adult advertisements on their Backpage.com website.<\/p>\n
\u201cVillage Voice Media has a responsibility to ensure that children and women are not abused in the commercial sex industry through Backpage.com,\u201d said Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito. \u201cThis resolution aligns the Council with faith leaders, community members, leaders at all levels of government, the nation\u2019s Attorneys General and an increasing number of corporate advertisers that have pulled back their support, in demonstrating that we will not accept Village Voice Media profiting from the more than 400 child sex trafficking cases identified on Backpage every month. They should follow Craigslist\u2019s lead and stop accepting Adult advertisements on their website.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cSex trafficking is a crime that attacks a person\u2019s basic dignity. The Village Voice should do the right thing and stop profiting from sex trafficking. I thank Speaker Christine Quinn, Women\u2019s Issues Committee Chair Julissa Ferreras and Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito for their leadership on this issue,\u201d said Council Member Brad Lander. <\/p>\n
###<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Responsible Banking Act will bring together banks, communities and government to evaluate the banking needs of New Yorkers and their communities. <\/p>\n
Council will also vote to override Mayoral veto of prevailing wage legislation and a resolution in support of raising the state\u2019s minimum wage.<\/p>\n
New York, NY- Today, the Council will vote on the Responsible Banking Act.<\/p>\n
…<\/p>\n