Press Releases

OPEN RESTAURANTS: AS NEW YORK CITY PREPARES FOR PHASE 2 OF REOPENING, MAYOR DE BLASIO ANNOUNCES OUTDOOR DINING GUIDANCE FOR RESTAURANTS

Qualifying restaurants can use sidewalk, roadways and other outdoor space to allow for social distance among customers; Mayoral Executive Order creates a new and streamlined application process to allow restaurants to expand capacity outdoors

NEW YORK—Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced guidance for the City’s Open Restaurants program, which allows qualifying restaurants and bars to expand outdoor seating on sidewalks, curb lanes, backyards, patios, plazas, and Open Streets as New York City begins Phase 2 of reopening. The City has established an expedited approval processes by allowing restaurants and bars to self-certify their eligibility for curb lane and sidewalk seating using a new, streamlined application process at NYC.Gov, which will be available starting Friday, June 19^th. The mayor codified the guidance by signing Executive Order 126.

“Restaurants are the backbone of New York City’s neighborhood culture, and they’ve done their part in slowing the spread of COVID-19. It’s our City’s turn to help them reopen safely and responsibly,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “These commonsense guidelines will help local businesses get back on their feet – and let New Yorkers safely enjoy the meal they’ve earned.”

"Cautious step by cautious step, New York City restaurants will come back and thrive again," said Council Member Ben Kallos. "The City allowing for restaurant seating on sidewalks, patios, plazas, and open streets is a smart move that will help our small businesses recover faster and push our local economy in the right direction. While ultimately the responsibility is on individuals to socially distance, get tested, wear masks, and wash our hands often, this plan will give mom and pop shops a fighting chance to come back. Thank you to Mayor de Blasio and Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg for listening to suggestions and making this plan a reality in the coming days."

As we face unprecedented times and a budget that must-see painful cuts, we should look for possible waste and opportunities for revenues and savings. I have proposed $15.24 billion in potential savings and revenue for our city’s budget in order to invest $827 million in spending on programs that support children, families, seniors, and our planet that will reduce costs and generate revenues. 

New York City Rent Guidelines Board (RGB)

Public Hearing and Comment on Proposed Rules

June 10, 2020

I am Council Member Ben Kallos, representing the Upper East Side, Midtown East, Roosevelt Island and East Harlem.

Good afternoon to the Rent Guidelines Board Chair David Reiss, Public Members Joza, Schwartz, Gonzalez-Rivera, and DeRose, Owner Members Stone and Walsh, and Tenant Members Garcia and Goodridge.

To New Yorkers following online today, and especially tenants, thank you for participating in this hearing. I am proud to stand with you today.

This year, I am calling on the Rent Guidelines Board to vote for a rent rollback or -2% for one-year leases and -1% for two-year leases. If the Board does not support a rent rollback, I urge you to at least vote for a rent freeze.

While I understand that in your preliminary vote, you voted for a rent freeze for one-year leases, I urge you to consider voting for a rent rollback given the extended pain caused to tenants by the Covid-19 pandemic.

If there’s one thing we can learn from this crisis, it’s that we are all in this together. We cannot continue with a mentality that every person must fend for themselves.

Based on March and April 2020 numbers, New York State is currently seeing higher unemployment than at any time since the Great Depression, and job losses are most serious in New York City.

With a City unemployment rate of 14.2%, many New Yorkers simply cannot make rent. It is important to acknowledge that landlords, particularly small landlords, have also been affected by this crisis. However, while evictions have been delayed, rent has not been canceled, but jobs have, and we must adjust rents to reflect that.

Certain factors have made things easier on landlords as well. The 2019-2020 winter was the seventh-warmest on record, with an average temperature more than 4 degrees above the norm and only 4.8 inches of snowfall compared to an average of 21.3 inches. With the economic fallout from the pandemic, the price of crude oil dipped below $0 and has remained below $40 per barrel throughout the crisis. All of this is to say: it has been and will likely remain a relatively inexpensive time to keep New York City buildings heated—one of the major cost factors for landlords. Further, many landlords have also received mortgage relief during the crisis.

The Board’s Income and Expense report, which was not able to factor in Covid-19 impacted value, found that landlords’ Net Operating Income dipped slightly from 2016–2018. Even following this dip, however, Net Operating Income remains near an all-time high, and it has not dipped back below the record threshold of $500 that was exceeded for the first time in 2014.

As a City, we face great challenges that we must address together. High rents will cause more evictions and put more New Yorkers out on the street, adding to our unconscionably high homelessness numbers. The difference this year is that with businesses closed, the virus posing a risk to anybody who lives within the five boroughs, and many New Yorkers leaving the City, if we raise rents and cause a massive wave of evictions, it will not be easy to find new tenants for those vacant apartments.

We have to remember the lesson of this pandemic: that we are all in this together. The best way to keep New York running and rent coming in is to acknowledge the extraordinary nature of our situation and accommodate the impacted economic needs of tenants to keep them in their homes.

After two straight years of historic rent freezes, the Board has now voted for low increases three years in a row. More needs to be done to balance tenants’ rent burdens with landlord’s revenues.

Year after year, as rents go up, tenants have shouldered an undue burden. Meanwhile, income cannot keep pace; average incomes only crept up by 2.3% between 2005 and 2013 in real terms. The approved rent increases each year were largely based upon the landlord’s operating costs, measured by the price index of operating cost (PIOC). This practice not only failed to consider tenants, but was also proven to be inaccurate: based upon data from the Department of Finance (DOF), the PIOC has overstated landlord costs by 11% since 2005. This miscalculation led to unfairly high rent increases in past years, which must be corrected with a rent freeze.

Over the past six years, the Board has done a lot of work to improve this process, both by adapting the way it evaluates the data, and by expanding its public hearings to reach more tenants and landlords in more parts of the City. In 2016, the Board instituted a second hearing in northern Manhattan, and has kept up that level of accessibility since then. Thank you to the members of the Board for these changes.

This year, as New York City remains in shutdown, the Board has moved to hold its hearings on Zoom. I urge you going forward to adjust your approach to virtual hearings to accommodate more New Yorkers who want to participate. You can do this by providing interpretation at all meetings, keeping the comments section on YouTube turned on so viewers can chime in, and expand your outreach efforts to inform communities of hearing dates and how they can access them.

In establishing rent adjustments this year, we must acknowledge that, even after the freezes and low increases of the past six years, Rent Guidelines Board increases have far outpaced inflation and the consumer price index. I have compared 25 years of RGB increases to the Consumer Price Index and found that, even following recent freezes and low increases, rent increases have outpaced the Consumer Price Index by over 10%. That means a $500 a month apartment in 1994 is now a minimum of $950.00 a month with an annual rent of at least $11,400. Following inflation, that same unit would be $864.77 a month and $10,377.24 a year.[i] [JT1] 

Those increases have come with consequences. A unit is considered affordable if the rent is no higher than 30% of their household income. The median rent-to-income ratio of tenants in rent-stabilized apartment is 36.4%. By this standard, a majority of rent-stabilized tenants have units that are not affordable. The stress of financial insecurity takes a toll on New Yorkers every day.

The impact of this rent squeeze is seen in our city’s dire homelessness crisis. As of this morning 56,116 New Yorkers woke up in a shelter, having nowhere else to go.

As we seek to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, New York City is at a crossroads. If we take the path of continuing the rent squeeze, we will see more New Yorkers on the streets, and we may not even see their vacant apartments filled. If we acknowledge that we are all facing challenges together, and accommodate our city’s financially burdened tenants with a small rollback, we will keep New Yorkers in their homes and their rents on the rolls.

The time is now for a rent rollback, for the 29,000 rent-stabilized units in my district[ii] and for tenants across New York City.

As a final note, I would like to acknowledge that so much of the data, analysis, and expertise that many of us who participate in this process have relied on over the years came from Tom Waters, who died in April from what was presumed to be Covid-19. Mr. Waters was a board member and former director of Tenants & Neighbors, and the long-time housing analyst at the Community Service Society. For so many Mr. Waters provided the data that underwrote the housing movement, and in his analysis, he thought big about how to provide housing for all New Yorkers. I count myself among the many who owe a debt of gratitude to Tom Waters. Unsurprisingly, his research is cited in this testimony.

Comparison Chart of Rent Guidelines Board Orders[iii] and Consumer Price Index[iv]

14% Difference between RGB One Year Increases and Annual CPI Average

Upper East Side, NY - Five new active neighborhood leaders join Community Boards serving the Upper East Side after being nominated by Council Member Ben Kallos and appointed by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. Manhattan’s 12 community boards are local organizations each composed of 50 volunteer members serving staggered two-year terms. Community boards are tasked with being the independent and representative voices of their communities — the most grass-roots form of local government. The boards are pivotal in shaping their communities and work to enhance and preserve the character of the city’s many unique neighborhoods.

 Resources Will Help Local Teens Navigate the New Challenges of COVID-19, Including Info About Mental Health & Medical Services, Substance Misuse Treatment, Educational Support, Activities to Do at Home & More

 NEW YORK, NY – As part of a larger effort to support New York City families during this challenging time, the NYC Administration for Children’s Service (ACS) today announced a new one-stop-shop website, called “Teens Take on COVID,” aimed at connecting young people to citywide resources and support in order to better navigate the unique challenges of COVID-19.

 Specifically, the “Teens Take On COVID” mobile friendly website offers information about: medical and mental health services, LGBTQIA health and mental health resources, substance misuse prevention and treatment, family or relationship violence, suicide prevention, child trafficking, bullying, family planning options, teen parent support, education support, housing support and fun activities to do at home. To view the “Teens Take On COVID” resource page, click here.

Brooklyn, NY – Today, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams joined City Council Member Ben Kallos and doctors of color to unveil new legislation that would strengthen nutritional guidelines on meals funded by the City, including grab-and-gomeals. The announcement came as New Yorkers throughout the five boroughs have expressed concern about the quality and nutritional standards of the food distributed through the GetFoodNYC initiative, launched in response to the growing number of New Yorkers who have lost jobs or income due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Borough President Adams and Council Member Kallos have been vocal in recent weeks about the need to provide healthier meal options to New Yorkers.

“Our City cannot be literally feeding our public health crisis by serving foods that have no nutritional value. Numerous residents throughout Brooklyn have raised concerns to me about the quality of the food they are getting through grab-and-go sites, food pantries, and other operations subsidized by the City. The leading co-morbidities associated with COVID-19 are diet-related, like obesity and hypertension. We must change the paradigm in the way we feed residents to prioritize health and wellness, rather than just caloric intake,” said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams.

“COVID-19 is no excuse to feed our most vulnerable New Yorkers junk food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner,” said Council Member Kallos. “Nutritional value must be a priority when our City acquires food to give to hungry residents. This legislation works to improve the quality of the food the City will give out going forward. Thank you to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams for calling attention to this issue citywide and working with me to fix it.”

As the weather gets warmer, New Yorkers will want to go outside more and they should be able to do so safely. East End Avenue in my district is a perfect street to open exclusively to pedestrians. Making East End from 83rd to 89th Street one continuous pedestrian plaza will expand our open space to make it much easier for residents to get fresh air without risking infection. Once the street is open to pedestrians, this will relieve the pressure off our local parks and give everyone the space they need to practice social distancing outdoors correctly. Thank you to Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Johnson for working to make the street closures happen. Looking forward to the expansion across the City and in my district.

Wildcat Workers Join Council Member Ben Kallos in Delivering Meals to Seniors at Isaacs and Holmes NYCHA Towers

Wildcat Services Works with Chronically Unemployed Persons and those with Criminal Convictions as part of their Efforts to Help Individuals to Achieve Economic Wellbeing

Upper East Side, NY- Today Council Member Ben Kallos in partnership with the Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center was joined by volunteers from Wildcat services in delivering 200 meals to seniors living at the Holmes Towers and Isaac’s Houses as well as older adults residing in other public housing facilities in the surrounding neighborhoods. During to the COVID-19 pandemic, food provided to seniors and individuals in need must be delivered directly to the recipient’s door to avoid the risks posed by pick-ups. As a result, the Stanley Isaacs Center has had to work and rely on energetic community volunteers to help deliver the food and there has been a consistent need for more volunteers.

Council Member Kallos, who has worked with Wildcat Services since 2018 when he contracted them to help keep neighborhood streets clean, noticed that the decline in foot traffic due to businesses being closed meant that some Upper East Side streets could skip a day of cleaning. He contacted Wildcat management to inquire whether their workers would instead be willing to join him in distributing meals to the City’s most vulnerable. After coordinating and some preparation, today, a team of Wildcat service workers spent time with Council Member Kallos and facility employees going door to door ensuring residents in need received their meals. 

The 200 meals were provided by New York Common Pantry. Council Member Ben Kallos has funded New York Common Pantry with $11,000 in discretionary funding for FY 2020. This funding is used in their mission to help meet the food needs of New York City families by providing culturally-appropriate and nutritiously-balanced meals that also reduce hunger and promote dignity, health and self-sufficiency.

“Our neighborhood facilities that feed our seniors and house NYCHA residents needed help with getting meals to the community,” said Council Member Ben Kallos “I knew I could not do it all myself so I called in enforcements. My friends over at Wildcat pounced at the chance to help, today is a win for everybody involved. Thank you to the folks from Wildcat and whose help made this possible and to the other volunteers who really made a difference today.”

“Throughout our history, Isaacs Center has provided essential services to seniors, especially those who - under normal conditions - are living on fixed incomes and are forced to make hard choices every month between food, medicine, and rent. In this moment of extraordinary crisis, and in alignment with all appropriate health and safety guidelines, we are proud to maintain critical operations to provide meals to isolated, homebound, and medically fragile older adults. We applaud and thank Council Member Kallos, Common Pantry, and Wildcat for their continued partnership and support, said Gregory J. Morris, President and Executive Director, Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center.” 

“Ben Kallos has always been supportive of us here at Holmes and Isaacs.  It is very important to the seniors and the community as a whole to a have food especially at a time like this.  We are appreciative to all the volunteers that come out to deliver food, putting their own health at risk. The Stanley Isaacs Community Center is a valuable resource in our community. Food insecurities, safety, health and well-being are things that our community has struggled with for years.  We can only combat these with continued support from our elected officials,” said La Keesha Taylor, Holmes Towers resident and community stakeholder. 

“On behalf of Wildcat it is our pleasure to help with such a compassionate and necessary need for the community. We thank Council Member Ben Kallos for entrusting us, together we will get through this,” said Lortesha White Senior Supervisor at WildCat services.

"We are always proud to partner with Council member Kallos. Serving our community together allows us to ensure all residents get the healthy, nutritious food they need, especially now when so many are affected by the crisis,” said Deana Murtha Senior Director of Development and Communications New York Common Pantry.

About Wildcat: Since its founding in 1972, Wildcat has continued to add innovative services and programs centered on transitional employment, job placement and workforce development to help justice-involved individuals, the homeless, the chronically unemployed and public assistance recipients achieve economic wellbeing.

As a pioneer in transitional employment, Wildcat touches the lives of tens of thousands of justice-involved individuals and their families. We are proud that our work informs the national conversation about mass incarceration and justice reform.

STATEMENT: Council Member Ben Kallos on Governor Cuomo’s Executive Order to Send Absentee Ballot Applications to Voters due to COVID-19 Pandemic
 

“Democracy cannot be another casualty of the coronavirus pandemic. 

“The safest way to hold an election in these uncertain times would be by doing so on paper by mail. 

“New Yorkers should be able to request their absentee ballots online, there is something wrong with the fact that voters will have to go through these bureaucratic steps just to vote. The Erie County Board of Elections has already done it and every other county should follow their lead. Governor Cuomo should also implement online voter registration for everyone, even if they don’t have New York State driver’s license or issued identification.

“If Governor Cuomo cannot order absentee ballots be delivered to every voter, then sending the applications is the next best thing. Mailing every voter an absentee ballot application will be a crucial reminder that they need to actually apply to vote absentee.

“New Yorkers should get absentee ballot applications with a pre-stamped self-addressed envelope as well as instructions on how to submit by fax, email, or where possible just filling out the form online.

“Governor Andrew Cuomo is doing the right thing and proving that there is no reason to prohibit voting by mail. If New York can have everyone vote by mail during a pandemic, this is one part of the ‘new normal’ that should remain."

BACKGROUND:

Governor Cuomo today stated in a press conference that he had ordered the Board of Election to mail all registered voters absentee ballot applications. Mailing ballots to all New Yorkers was one of the key steps Council Member Kallos in an op-ed in the Gotham Gazette on how to “Ensure Voter Access Amid Coronavirus.” New York is in the minority of states without vote by mail as 28 other states allow for no-fault absentee voting, including Florida, Michigan, Ohio and California.
 

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“Just Cause” Legislation Would Provide Protections for Essential Workers During the Pandemic

New York, NY—Today, New York City Council Members Ben Kallos, Brad Lander, and Speaker Corey Johnson introduced legislation to protect essential workers from termination without “Just Cause.” Essential workers include healthcare workers, first responders, utility workers, and those on the frontline including those at supermarkets, making deliveries, and anyone working at an essential business as defined by Executive Order. Heroic health care and warehouse workers have faced retaliation for speaking out against unsafe conditions where they work. Essential businesses would be required to provide progressive discipline and a “just cause” within a week of termination subject to arbitration, a private right of action, with essential employees able to recover back pay and employers subject to fines of up to $2,500 per violation.

“No one should lose their job simply for asking for protective equipment during a pandemic. Our city’s essential workers are heroes and deserve to be treated that way complete with job protections for putting their lives on the line,” said Council Member Ben Kallos. “Thank you to Speaker Corey Johnson, Council Member Brad Lander, and our brothers and sisters in labor for joining us in our fight to protect essential workers.”

“At a time when the very lives of our hospital and health care workers are on the line, it is unconscionable that they would be fired for ringing the alarm bell about health and safety issues,” said Council Member Brad Lander. “It is imperative that we stand up for these doctors, nurses, and health care workers, listen to and lift up their concerns, and ensure that they cannot be unjustly fired for telling the truth about the conditions they face.”

Over the last month, private hospitals have issued guidance to their workers about what public communications is deemed acceptable. Some of the guidance threatened workers with termination if the communication is not first approved by executive-level staff. New York City’s 11 public hospitals have not issued such warnings and the Council Members urge the private hospital network and all healthcare institutions to follow the lead of New York City’s Health + Hospitals and allow their frontline workers to speak out without fear of an unfair firing. 

Spring Has Sprung with New Planters Adorning
Second Avenue Bike Islands in East Nineties Thanks to
Public-Private Partnership Funded by Council Member Kallos

New York, NY – Previously empty bike islands in the east nineties along Second Avenue have just got a little greener to match bike islands with a tree following a public-private partnership between Horticultural Society of New York and the office of Council Member Ben Kallos. New planters have been installed on traffic islands that will be maintained through the season.

Council Member Kallos provided $50,000 in discretionary funding through the Greener NYC initiative for Fiscal Year ending in 2020 to fund this partnership which was approved by the Department of Transportation for new planters on previously empty bike islands on Second Avenue at:

• 95th Street
• 93rd Street
• 92nd Street
• 91st Street

Hundreds of Children to Participate in Virtual Ben Kallos Chess Challenge Tournament

NEW YORK, NY — On Saturday, March 28, over 200 New York City students are expected to participate in the Council Member Ben Kallos Chess Challenge. This annual Chess-in-the-Schools event will be held online for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on daily activity in New York City.

 In an effort to provide those young people with at-home learning and extracurricular activities, Chess in the Schools, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering intellectual and social development among low-income young people through chess education, will hold the virtual chess tournament originally scheduled to take place at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in the Upper East Side. 

 "I love chess and I love computers, what better way to practice ‘social distancing’  than playing chess from home," said Council Member Ben Kallos. “Thank you to Debbie Eastburn, President, and CEO of Chess in the Schools, for teaching and inspiring students to play chess and for going the extra mile and teaming up chess24.com to give the children a platform to play online during these tough times. This online chess tournament will go a long way in helping keep children busy and doing something productive while they have to stay indoors. “

Kallos, a chess player and longtime advocate for chess in public school classrooms, made the tournament possible thanks to discretionary funding allocated to Chess in the Schools for fiscal year 2020. This tournament was originally scheduled to take place at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in the Upper East Side. Due to restrictions on crowd size and the need for social distancing, while our city addresses the COVID-19 pandemic; that tournament had to be indefinitely postponed. In consultation with Council Member Kallos’office, Chess in the Schools was able to develop a way to ensure that the over 200 hundred young people looking forward to the tournament would not be stopped by COVID-19.

 "We have long believed that chess is an important part of a young person's education and life, providing lessons that go far beyond the chessboard," said Debbie Eastburn, President and CEO of Chess in the Schools. "Those lessons must not stop simply because coronavirus has fundamentally disrupted our lives, and we must work hard to ensure that these essential opportunities remain for our young people. We thank Council Member Kallos for supporting this tournament and our city's young people, and we are thrilled that the Council Member Ben Kallos Chess Tournament will continue virtually."

The tournament will begin at noon on Saturday, March 28th. Interested participants can register on Chess in the Schools tournament website, where they can select their section based upon ability level and USCF rating. 

 Each online tournament takes about three hours to complete. 

About Chess in the Schools

Since 1986, Chess in the Schools has taught, inspired, and empowered more than 500,000 students in low-income New York City public schools. Through structured classroom, after-school, weekend, and summer programs, Chess in the Schools fosters the intellectual and social development of low-income youth through chess education.

For more information on Chess-in-the-Park, contact Shaun Smith at ssmith@chessintheschools.org or 646-688-0725. For more information about Chess in the Schools, contact Debbie Eastburn at deastburn@chessintheschools.org or 646-688-0726.

 About Council Member Ben Kallos

New York City Council Member Ben Kallos was praised by the New York Times for his “fresh ideas” and elected in 2013 to represent the Upper East Side, Midtown East, Roosevelt Island and East Harlem along with all 8.6 million New Yorkers in the New York City Council. During the 2014-2017 session as Chair of the Governmental Operations Committee, he sought to root out patronage, de-privatize government, eliminate billions in waste, expand elections, and to use technology to improve access to government. As Co-Chair of the Progressive Caucus he has become a leading advocate for education, affordable housing, public health, sustainable development, and transportation improvements and safety. As Chair of the Subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions, and Concessions from 2017 through 2019 he focused on preserving and building more than 7,000 affordable homes overseeing every deal made by the City to ensure New Yorkers are actually getting the affordable housing they need. Currently, as Chair of the Committee on Contracts, he brings the same scrutiny and tenacity to oversee procurement policies and procedures, government and collection agency contracts, as well as the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services and the Procurement Policy Board. His office is open and transparent, with constituents invited to decide on how to spend one million dollars on local projects in the district as well as to join him in a conversation on the First Friday of each month, or he will go to them for “Ben In Your Building.” For more, visit Benkallos.com.

Education Equity Campaign Announces 31 of the Students in its Test Prep Programs Accepted to NYC’s Elite High Schools

Black and Latino Students in EEC Test Prep were More than 400% More Likely to Gain Admission

With only seven weeks of test prep, EEC helped dozens of disadvantaged students of color secure placements at the Specialized High Schools, including 10% of the African American students entering SHS’s citywide and 20% of those entering Stuyvesant

New York, NY — Today, the Education Equity Campaign (EEC) released the results of its inaugural pilot program aimed at preparing disadvantaged students of color for the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT). Funded by philanthropist Ronald S. Lauder, a Bronx Science graduate, and businessman Richard Parsons, EEC partnered with five education groups to tutor a total of 197 students.

Citywide, 12,422 Black and Latino students sat the SHSAT last year. Of those, 470, or 3.8% were offered admission. In contrast, of the 197 students enrolled in EEC’s 7-week programs, 31 were accepted into a specialized high school, or 15.7%. That means that students of color in EEC programs were more than four times more likely to secure admission.

Of the 190 African American students in the city who were admitted to a specialized high school this year, 20 were students tutored by EEC’s educational partners, including 2 out of the 10 black students who were accepted to Stuyvesant, the most selective of the elite public schools. 

The overall admission numbers to the specialized high schools are a reminder that systemic change is necessary to unlock all kids’ potential, which is why EEC has continued to call on the City to implement free, citywide test prep that runs for at least 12-15 weeks, in addition to expanding the number and capacity of specialized high schools to increase opportunity for all students.

While Black and Latino students make up nearly 70% of NYC public school students, they only account for 10% of admitted students in the City’s specialized high schools; this year follows that same trend. Instead of pursuing policies that would address the root causes of the inequity, the de Blasio administration previously and misguidedly sought to eliminate the SHSAT. However, after NYC parents and students spoke out, the Mayor abandoned his plans to scrap the test.

EEC has continued to advocate for achieving systemic, long-term change in NYC’s education system in addition to creating the tutoring pilot program. The group has partnered with a coalition of state and city legislators to expand access to quality educational opportunities for more students.

Working with a coalition of state and city legislators, advocates, parents and students, EEC helped draft the following legislation, which will bring the city’s school system forward and open opportunities for an unprecedented number of students:

New York, NY – Today, a coalition of city elected officials, including Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, Council Members Robert Cornegy, Ben Kallos and Justin Brannan unveiled bold new legislation aimed at increasing racial equity at NYC’s Specialized High Schools. The legislation would require DOE to finally provide every middle school student with free test preparation. The legislation would also end DOE’s practice of making students register for the SHSAT through a confusing multistep process—and instead automatically register every 8^th grader for the SHSAT and asking each of them to take the test.  The legislation would immediately make thousands more Black and Latinx students eligible for admission to a specialized high school.

Currently, fewer than 10% of NYC’ public middle schools provide access to free test prep. The legislation introduced today would ensure test prep is systemwide. In 2019, only 35% of 8^th grade public school students sat for the SHSAT. By making the SHSAT the default option for all 8^th grade students, today’s legislation would immediately and dramatically increase the number of Black and Latinx students eligible for SHS enrollment every March.

While Black and Latinx students make up nearly 70% of NYC public school students, they recently only accounted for 10% of admitted students in the City’s five specialized high schools. The sponsors of today’s legislation are committed to reversing that trend.  The legislation proposed today would directly address this issue by requiring every student—regardless of their income, background, or demographic—be provided the opportunity to succeed.

The Education Equity Campaign led by Ronald Lauder and Richard Parsons has long called for these proposals and provided over $350,000 in free test prep funding in 2019 to prepare hundreds of students of color for the SHSAT.

Public Advocate Williams graduated from the Brooklyn Technical High School starting in 1992 when demographics included 13% Hispanic, 16% White, 32% Asian, and 38% Black, whose Black student population has been in free fall by a factor of five to only 7% as of 2016. Council Member Kallos graduated the Bronx High School of Science starting 1994 when demographics included 10% Hispanic, 12% Black, 38% White, and 40% Asian, whose Hispanic and Black student populations have more than halved to only 9% as of 2017.

Dear Mayor de Blasio:

The COVID-19 pandemic is causing Non-profit organizations, specifically human service providers, to operate under heavy financial burdens. Many are providing vital services under serious challenges, while others face mandated closures. One of the biggest challenges being faced, include not being able to meet contracted service requirements. While non-profits face these increasing challenges, they continue to have fiscal obligations such as rent, payroll, and other overhead costs that are primarily paid for by City provided funds. These funds are typically tied to unit of service requirements established in their City contracts.

Many providers are reporting that clients are not able to participate in person for safety reasons and many have started utilizing phone and video conferencing as opposed to in-person meetings. Although, these organizations are being innovative in delivering services, most are not currently equipped to do so and all have incurred increased costs creating cash flow concerns.

Providers are also communicating other issues affecting staff. Some have staff who are unable to work onsite safely due to social distancing guidelines but could work remotely. However for various reasons, including contractual language, providers cannot allow for telecommuting as an option for staff.  Still other providers have workers who cannot practically work from home, such as food servers, who they must send home without a guarantee of being able to pay these workers to stay home. The City must provide relief for these affected providers.

We need every bed we can find to care for those who may come down with coronavirus. These 350 beds at Coler public hospital can really help provide the critical care that our family, friends, and neighbors may need to recover. I am proud to represent so many hospitals, including public hospitals like Coler, that can play a pivotal role in treating our most vulnerable.

Once we are through this crisis, we must reverse the damage done by the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century in 2006 that recommended closure of 9 facilities, affected 57 hospitals and 81 acute care and long-term care facilities removing as many as 4,200 inpatient beds from our healthcare system. We must rebuild a resilient medical system that can run at a fraction of built capacity, ready to take on the next major medical emergency or pandemic.

Many parents have expressed concern that New York City public schools have so far remained open during this COVID-19 outbreak. As a parent myself, I too share those same concerns regarding the safety of our children.

The decision to close schools rests with Mayor de Blasio and the Department of Education. I have personally communicated your concerns to City Hall and have joined Speaker Corey Johnson and UFT President Michael Mulgrew in urging the Mayor to take aggressive actions such as an official policy allowing students the option to learn from home or even full school closure, in order to keep our teachers and children safe.

Moving towards temporarily online instruction will be difficult without Universal Broadband. In the past, we've worked with Charter Communications to help bridge the digital divide with Internet Assist for students on free and reduced lunch or seniors receiving supplemental social security. 

After I worked with Silicon Harlem to recommend free broadband during this outbreak, Charter announced free broadband and Wi-Fi for every student K-12 to college who does not already have broadband for the next 60 days starting this Monday.

Free and low-cost broadband for all students is the key element we needed to allow our children to continue their learning in the safety and security of their homes.

My office and I remain in close communication with state officials and the Mayor's office as this situation develops.

Statement from Council Member Ben Kallos:

Technology is going to be a major tool in fighting the spread of novel coronavirus, but only for those who aren't trapped on the wrong side of the digital divide.

We've worked with Charter to bridge the digital divide with Internet Assist for students on free and reduced lunch or seniors receiving supplemental social security. Today, Charter announced free broadband and Wi-Fi for every student K-12 to college who does not already have broadband for the next 60 days.

Free and low-cost broadband for all students is the key element we needed to allow our children to continue their learning in the safety and security of their homes.

Thank you to Silicon Harlem for their leadership and partnership. Thank you to Charter for leading by example and I call on every other phone and cable internet provider to take similar steps to save us all.

Statement from Clayton Banks Co-Founder and CEO of Silicon Harlem:

The 2020 pandemic sheds light on the need for connectivity, devices, and digital literacy for our workforce, students, and underserved communities. I stand with Ben Kallos, and commend the effort of Charter to be a part of the solution.

Upper East Side, NY- Today the New York City Department of Education and Council Member Ben Kallos announced the creation of two French dual language classes to the Pre-K center located at 355 East 76^th Street. Council Member Kallos worked with the Francophone community including immigrants from Canada, Africa, and even France itself to gather more than two hundred families that pledged to send their children to a French dual language program in Manhattan. The classes will open in September 2020 with Pre-K applications for the French dual language classes are now open through March 16, 2020.

The Department of Education will run these classes using a side-by-side instructional model where it will have one Early Childhood certified teacher who is fluent in French, and who has or will have a Bilingual Extension alongside a second Early Childhood certified teacher. Currently the Department of Education is seeking more dual language certified teachers who can apply online and email prekduallanguage@schools.nyc.gov for information.

“We are pleased to continue expanding our Pre-K Dual Language programs to serve as many children in New York City as possible, and thank Council Member Kallos for his ongoing partnership on early education,” said Josh Wallack Deputy Chancellor, Early Childhood and Student Enrollment

“I hear so many languages spoken in my district from every corner of the world and now we are working with the Francophone community to address a need in the neighborhood as we hope to increase the overall diversity of our schools,” said Council Member Ben Kallos. “Thank you to Deputy Chancellor Josh Wallack for his ongoing partnership in expanding early education opportunities, the French Consulate for supporting the Francophone community, and especially to Stephane Lautner and Catherine Remy who worked closely with my office to put meetings together and organize hundreds of other parents.”