Democrats Retain Supermajorities in Albany + More Adams Cronyism
No. 298 | Monday, November 28, 2022
The NYC Thorn is a weekly roundup of local political news compiled by members of NYC-DSA.
Local News
The Adams administration hired a career 911 dispatcher into a senior-level role at NYPD that immediately quintupled her salary — the official happens to be a personal friend of Adams who rented him an apartment for four years.
The New York Judicial Commission has released a slate of seven candidates to replace Janet DiFiore, the outgoing Chief Judge on the State's Court of Appeals.
After developers doubled the number of low- and middle-income apartments in their plan, Council Member Julie Won (District 26, Western Queens) announced her support for the Innovation QNS project, which will build 12 new buildings and 3200 new units in a mostly industrial part of Astoria.
An internal audit of the NYC Administration for Children's Services revealed a pattern of racial bias against Black and brown families that the agency is tasked to serve.
Despite Mayor Adams' campaign promise to cut overtime hours for police officers, his over-policing strategy as solutions to subway safety, homelessness, and drug enforcement has led to a 67% increase in overtime hours compared to last year.
Julio Medina has resigned from the Board of Corrections, which oversees the City jails, just one year into his six-year term. Medina is also the CEO of Exodus Transitional Community, a nonprofit now facing multiple investigations from the City.
Parents with the money are making sure their kids are given the special education services public schools are legally required to provide.
Governor Hochul signed into law a moratorium on cyrptocurrency mining, a process that has been seen as disastrous for the environment.
Elections
Despite significant losses in the US Congress, New York State Democrats will retain supermajorities in both the Assembly and State Senate.
Democrats may act to prevent the inauguration of Lester Chang, a Republican who defeated Assembly Member Peter Abbate (District 49, Bensonhurst) in the general election, after reports surfaced that he may not meet residency requirements to qualify for his seat.
REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE
Listen to NYC-DSA's weekly radio show Revolutions Per Minute. Check out the show here.
Contribute to The Thorn!
We welcome submissions of in-depth articles, comics and illustrations from anyone in DSA. Whether you want to write for us or share a story we should cover, please get in touch. Email: hello[at]thethorn.nyc