Reshma Saujani Answers to DFNYC 2013 Candidate Questionnaire

Reshma Saujani is running for Public Advocate. www.reshmafornewyork.com

1. Money in NYC Politics. Large donors, specifically real estate developers and landlords, have a huge amount of influence in NYC politics due to their campaign contributions. While NYC’s matching funds programs is seen as one of the most innovative public funding campaigns in the country, many DFNYC members feel that big money donors still have too much influence and candidates still spend too much time fundraising. Would you support a change to full public financing of campaigns, similar to the Clean Money Clean Elections programs in Arizona, Connecticut and Maine?

Yes. I believe that keeping special interest money out of politics is the key to ensuring fairness in the Democratic process. As Deputy Public Advocate, I worked with Bill de Blasio to build the Coalition for Accountability in Corporate Spending (CAPS) to put pressure on corporations to disclose their political giving and ensure more transparency in the system. As Public Advocate, I will continue to advocate for a progressive solution to our campaign finance system that ensures New York City leads the country in fair and clean elections.

2. Tenant Protection & Cost of Housing. Do you support rent stabilization and rent control laws? What will you do to crack down on landlords that break the law? Would you call on the state legislature to repeal vacancy decontrol and more generally, the Urstadt Law, so that New York City – and not Albany – can enact its own housing laws?

Yes. By removing apartments from the rent stabilization system, vacancy decontrol has caused a consistent erosion of New York’s affordable housing stock. We have also seen that landlords will use any measure of means – legal and illegal – to remove apartments from the rent stabilization system so they can further enrich themselves at the expense of New York’s working families. I will be a strong and vocal advocate for generally returning the right of housing self-determination to New York City residents, and for specifically repealing vacancy decontrol. In addition, with increased requirements for pro-bono work by attorneys in New York, I will set up within the office of the Public Advocate a volunteer legal corps dedicated to helping tenants stand up to unscrupulous landlords. Public Advocate Bill de Blasio has done an admirable job identifying the city’s worst slumlords; I will use the Public Advocate’s office to hold them accountable.

3. Paid Sick Leave. There is currently a bill in the city council that would require companies in NYC with 5 or more employees to give 5 paid sick days per year to each employee (if they do not already). While many councilmembers support this, it has not been brought to a vote. Supporters feel this is much needed public health legislation that would only minimally raise labor costs, while opponents say that it would be an unfair financial burden to small business. Do you support the bill and will you actively work to get it passed? Sources: ~For: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/labor/news/2012/11/16/45152/myth-vs-fact-paid-sick-days/ ~Against: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/why_we_reject_sick_leave_bill_03pE50CZMFiHFhXzasDMLL

Yes, I strongly support the effort to provide New York City workers paid sick leave. Growing up, I saw my mother, who didn’t have paid sick says, be forced to go to work when she wasn’t well or fear losing her job. I fully support the paid sick leave bill that has been introduced before the Council. If you or your loved one is sick, you shouldn't have to choose between staying home or losing a day's pay. This year's influenza epidemic likely cost thousands of hard working New Yorkers multiple days worth of wages or caused sick workers with no paid leave to go to work sick, which endangers the public health. I’ve editorialized on this issue, I’ve talked to small business owners about this issue, and I created a petition to organize New Yorkers to urge Speaker Quinn to introduce the Paid Sick Time Act. I will continue fighting for enhanced protections for workers and working families, including beginning the discussion in New York City on Paid Parental leave, working to change zoning laws to accommodate day care centers, and increasing child care tax credits throughout my campaign and as Public Advocate.

4. Fair Police Practices & Occupy Wall Street. The New York City Police Department has been highly criticized for its Stop & Frisk policy, which disproportionally affects racial minorities and poor and working class New Yorkers. The NYPD has also been criticized for its treatment of activists in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Do you support ending or modifying Stop & Frisk? If running for mayor, will you keep Ray Kelly or appoint a new police commissioner? Do you think Mayor Bloomberg and the NYPD should have handled events in the OWS movement differently and what measures will you take to protect political demonstrations?

Stop and Frisk: I support ending Stop and Frisk as it is currently practiced. The NYPD’s current Stop and Frisk practice is misguided, racist and wrong. I believe it is an ongoing civil rights violation that is not only unjust, but also harms police community relations and undermines public safety. When I am Public Advocate, I will not only support comprehensive legislation to end the abuse of this practice, but will use the powers of my office to shine a light and agitate around all civil rights violations in this city. OWS: I believe that the NYPD should have handled its interactions with the OWS movement much more differently than what occurred. Protesters felt needlessly harassed for exercising their constitutional rights, and I believe the NYPD and Mayor Bloomberg should have taken a more active role in trying to partner with protestors to address community and public safety concerns. Police Commissioner: I believe that the next Mayor should appoint a new Police Commissioner that is committed to restoring trust between local communities and the NYPD.

5. Mayoral Control of Education. Mayoral Control of NYC schools is set to expire in 2016, but the state legislature can renew it. If elected to city government, you will not directly vote on mayoral control, but you will have a ‘bully pulpit’ as renewal is discussed in the next 3 years. Do you support keeping Mayoral Control as is, letting it expire, or making changes, for example to the hearing process for controversial decisions? (Examples: Co-locations of multiple schools in one building, providing district school space to charter schools, phasing out schools that have been labeled as “failing” due to high dropout rates, low test scores, or other factors.)

I conditionally support extending Mayoral Control of the NYC Public Schools, if we enhance the voice of parents and communities in critical issues that affect our schools. Mayoral Control of schools in its current form has alienated parents and teachers and resulted in a public school system overly focused on standardized test results. Teaching to the test deprives our students of the education they need for college or a career, particularly in our growing knowledge-based economy that requires creative problem-solvers. Time and again, research shows that a greater emphasis on learning and a less pronounced emphasis on test scores produces smarter, more well-rounded students. The people who understand this the most, parents, teachers and their union, have been frozen out of the process by mayoral control at best, and have been publically demonized and ridiculed at worst. I look forward to working with the City's next mayor and class of councilmembers to create a solution that empowers parents and educational experts to prepare our kids for meaningful higher education opportunities and good NYC jobs. As the founder of Girls Who Code, a non-profit organization teaching girls computer programming skills, I am already working to prepare our students for good-paying jobs in technology-related fields, and as Public Advocate I will continue to bring everyone from parents and teachers to non-profit organizations and technology companies together to better prepare our kids for jobs of the future.

6. Teacher Evaluation. A key area where the mayor has influence in public education is in the negotiation of a contract with NYC’s public school teachers. Please give your opinion on the following proposed ways to evaluate teachers for the purpose of tenure, salary and other job benefits: Improvement in student test scores, observations by other teachers, student surveys, whether the teacher has an advanced degree, a principal’s evaluation of a teacher. Should principals be allowed to do unannounced observations of teachers? Do you have any experience negotiating labor union contracts?

Test scores alone should never determine the success or failure of our students, schools or teachers. I reject a system that is overly reliant on test scores for determining teacher pay, school achievement, and resource allocation. I believe that teacher evaluation should be comprehensively measured, including observations from fellow teachers and education experts; student growth as measured in by a combination of test scores and other assessments; and peer review. I question the value of unannounced observations, as teachers face enough challenges in their classrooms without worrying about surprise inspections, and the distraction caused by such a situation would undermine the validity of the observation. I also believe our teacher evaluation system should be targeted toward meaningfully improving teacher performance, not penalizing teachers who often work under extraordinary circumstances in New York City public schools.

7. Co-location of charter schools. City officials do not decide how many charter schools can exist, or grant requests to be a charter school. However, the Department of Education - currently controlled by the Mayor - may decide to provide charter schools with space, usually by "co-location" with district public schools. While more than half of NYC schools (not just charters) are co-located, it is a controversial topic when a charter school is involved. Critics argue that cash-strapped district schools should not be forced to share resources with charter schools and that co-location creates a morale problem when students and parents see the contrast. Co-location advocates argue that charter schools are public schools and should have an equal right to publicly owned resources such as buildings, charter schools do not receive funding for space and therefore operate at a severe financial disadvantage if they have to find private space, and that differences between co-located schools result from decisions the principals make about how to spend their per-pupil funding. Do you support the DOE giving public school space to charter schools?

Sources:  Against – Click here for funding and space arguments.  In Favor: Click here for Funding   Click here for Space (pdf)

I support a moratorium on co-locations in the New York City public school system. Many of our schools are overcrowded as it is, and we need greater community and parent input before we consider any further co-location decisions. In general, I am open to public charter schools having public space, but only with appropriate community and parent input and not at the expense of existing public schools.

8. The City Wage Tax. New York City’s budget depends in large part on the city wage tax, which is only paid by residents, not everyone who works in NYC. Would you call on the state legislature to allow NYC to collect the tax from people from the suburbs who work in NYC and benefit from our services (police, fire, etc.)? Would you support efforts to collect the tax from people who actually live in New York City but use a second home (a loophole not available to middle class New Yorkers with just one home) to avoid the city wage tax? If these efforts work, would you be willing to reduce the city wage tax so that workers would have more take home pay, and there would be less incentive for people to move to the suburbs, reducing our tax base?

Yes, I support ensuring that individuals who make considerable use of New York City services – from sanitation to public safety to transit – pay their fair share to the City. I believe in reinstating the commuter tax and cracking down on individuals who currently seek to avoid paying their fair – and legally required – share of city taxes. Finally, I look forward to working on efforts to reduce the tax burden on low and middle-income New Yorkers while ensuring that we are continuing to provide necessary services to the neediest in our City and making the investments in education we need for a strong economic future.

9. Other Taxes. Do you support progressive taxation? Do you support Governor Cuomo’s approach to the marginal tax rate on high incomes? What is your opinion on the current property tax in NYC? Would you support a federal financial transaction tax to either raise revenue, reduce the practice of high frequency trading, or both?

Yes, I support a surcharge on the income tax for the wealthiest New Yorkers; elimination of tax loopholes for banks and other large financial institutions; and clawbacks from companies that get economic development subsidies but fail to create jobs.

10. Poverty & the Social Safety Net. According to a 2012 report by the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, many struggling New Yorkers are eligible for welfare, but have not been able to obtain it due to onerous application requirements, and the excessive and arbitrary use of “sanctions” by the City’s Human Resources Administration (HRA). These obstacles have caused very little increase in welfare cases during the recent recession, as contrasted with large increases in Food Stamps and Medicaid. Would you change HRA to make it easier for eligible families to obtain cash assistance, connect them to jobs or meaningful job training, and reform the improper use of sanctions? How would you manage New York City's social safety net programs to ensure that people get the help they need, while at the same time preventing fraud? Report: http:/www.fpwa.org/cgi-bin/iowa/policy/article/218.html

Yes, I believe we should eliminate unnecessary red tape that hurts the neediest of our neighbors. We need to make HRA services as transparent as possible and to redouble our outreach efforts in low-income communities. City agencies should not be in the business of creating solutions for which no problems exist, and sanctions should not be applied as a blanket, first resort for the mere appearance of potential concerns.

11. Homelessness. When Mayor Bloomberg first ran, he promised to introduce policies to drastically reduce the numbers of people who are homeless in our city. But during the twelve years of his administration, the numbers of homeless have increased dramatically each year. This is in addition to the approximately 50,000 people sleeping in shelters on an average night, according to a recent report by the Coalition for the Homeless. What would you do to deal with this sad situation? Sources: http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/state-of-the-homeless-2013 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/nyregion/20homeless.html

The historic rise in our city’s homeless population is unconscionable, and City leadership has not done nearly enough to address this growing problem. Instead, both State and City leaders have engaged in political posturing that does not point toward a meaningful solution for our homeless families. We need a comprehensive effort to reduce homelessness, including reforming our city shelter admission process, improving the pathways for homeless families to permanent housing solutions, and tailoring our interventions for specific groups experiencing homelessness, including LGBT youth, families with children and veterans. As Public Advocate, I look forward to convening stakeholders to determine not only where government must do more, but also how we can harness our civic infrastructure to provide job training, income and housing support to individuals experiencing homelessness.

12. Hurricane Sandy & Environmental Protection. The devastating impact that Hurricane Sandy had on New York City poses short term and long term challenges: immediate support for those who lost their homes and businesses, and climate change, respectively. What measures do you support for helping Sandy recovery efforts, as well as energy conservation and reducing the carbon footprint of New York City? What is your position on hydraulic fracturing and the Spectra pipeline?

Sandy Recovery: The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy continues to place undue burdens on too many of our families, businesses and communities. In the days following Hurricane Sandy, I organized a volunteer effort bringing hundreds of volunteers to Far Rockaway to serve hot meals, clean houses, and distribute desperately needed supplies. I also launched a coalition called StartUp New York to provide small businesses affected by Sandy with access to information on recovery resources and marketing opportunities to help recoup lost revenue. Without a doubt, more needs to be done. I will work to ensure that the voices of community members are heard not only in City Hall, but also in Albany and Washington. I will also help bring new partners into the rebuilding conversation to ensure that we are rebuilding in a smarter and more innovative way. A central part of the smarter rebuilding effort must be addressing both New York’s role in global climate change and the effects global climate change will have on New York. We should explore the innovative projects being implemented across the world, and not just enter into a contracting process that repeats more short-term thinking. Fracking: I support a continued moratorium on fracking and am open to a permanent ban. Protecting the quality of our drinking water is not just an economic issue, it’s a public health and safety issue. While the prospect of more jobs seems appealing, the energy industry has a proven track record of leaving behind environmental havoc whenever and wherever it suited their bottom line. We would be better off creating jobs in non-polluting industries that do not threaten our safety or public health.

13. Gun Control. While DFNYC members have long supported gun control, the December 14th shooting in Newtown, Connecticut seems to have changed the debate on the national level. Do you support the proposals President Obama made to (a) renew and fix the assault weapons ban, (b) ban high capacity magazines (limit the number of bullets that can be shot before reloading), and (c) improve the background check system? Please indicate any other methods you would support to reduce gun violence, including how you would implement them, for example: gun buy-back programs, training programs for gun owners, improved access to mental health care, and involving the business community in gun safety.

Yes. I support President Obama’s comprehensive plan to reduce gun violence, including a renewed assault weapon ban, banning high capacity magazines, and filling in the gaps of the inadequate background check system. I also believe we need to explore new innovative approaches to reducing violence, including BBP Ruben Diaz Jr.’s idea to create an online registry of gun offenders.

14. Choice & Marriage Equality. _Please briefly state your position on the following three issues: marriage equality for gays & lesbians, a woman's right to choose, and access to birth control. (25 words or less)

I support full marriage equality for same sex couples, a woman's right to choose, and reproductive freedom for women including access to birth control.

 

John Liu Answers to DFNYC 2013 Candidate Questionnaire

 

John Liu is running for mayor of New York City. www.JohnLiu2013.com

1. Money in NYC Politics. Large donors, specifically real estate developers and landlords, have a huge amount of influence in NYC politics due to their campaign contributions. While NYC’s matching funds programs is seen as one of the most innovative public funding campaigns in the country, many DFNYC members feel that big money donors still have too much influence and candidates still spend too much time fundraising. Would you support a change to full public financing of campaigns, similar to the Clean Money Clean Elections programs in Arizona, Connecticut and Maine?

I would support full public financing of campaigns to negate the influence of large donors in an election and I practice what I preach. My campaign has intentionally focused on smaller donations and I have imposed stricter limits on my fundraising than those required by law, including not accepting contributions from any entities doing business with the City. The average donation to my campaign is the lowest of the main democratic candidates and I have received the fewest $4,950 contributions (I have 11, while the other democratic candidates have anywhere from 221 to 440.)

2. Tenant Protection & Cost of Housing. Do you support rent stabilization and rent control laws? What will you do to crack down on landlords that break the law? Would you call on the state legislature to repeal vacancy decontrol and more generally, the Urstadt Law, so that New York City – and not Albany – can enact its own housing laws?

I do support rent stabilization and rent control laws because they are necessary to stabilize our middle class. I have traveled many times to Albany to lobby for the continuation of these laws. While a council member, I was a sponsor of a resolution calling for the repeal of the Urstadt Law and I will continue to fight for the City’s right to enact its own housing laws.

3. Paid Sick Leave. There is currently a bill in the city council that would require companies in NYC with 5 or more employees to give 5 paid sick days per year to each employee (if they do not already). While many councilmembers support this, it has not been brought to a vote. Supporters feel this is much needed public health legislation that would only minimally raise labor costs, while opponents say that it would be an unfair financial burden to small business. Do you support the bill and will you actively work to get it passed? Sources: ~For: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/labor/news/2012/11/16/45152/myth-vs-fact-paid-sick-days/ ~Against: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/why_we_reject_sick_leave_bill_03pE50CZMFiHFhXzasDMLL

I fully support paid sick leave for all NYC workers and have been advocating on its behalf. Forcing workers to choose between going to work sick or getting laid off is inhumane. Sick workers are less productive and forcing them to the workplace only increases the chances that their sickness will spread to their co-workers. Studies have shown that in San Francisco, their paid sick leave laws did not have an adverse effect on the economy or the small businesses. While I prefer the original legislation that would have covered all employers with five or more employees, the pending legislation is a step forward. In addition to paid sick leave I have been advocating for other measures to support workers in NYC, including the following: An increase of minimum wage to $11.50 an hour, phased in over five years, and pegged to the Consumer Price Index. An enrichment of existing Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI). This benefit allows a worker to draw cash benefits should they become unable to work beyond their allotment paid leave. This is a smart benefit, but the maximum cash benefit of $170 a week is not enough, an amount that has not increased since 1989. Employers and employees should both contribute to premiums that will allow a family to survive a temporary sickness to a breadwinner. Additionally, TDI benefits should be extended so that a worker can draw on its benefits to care for a loved one.

4. Fair Police Practices & Occupy Wall Street. The New York City Police Department has been highly criticized for its Stop & Frisk policy, which disproportionally affects racial minorities and poor and working class New Yorkers. The NYPD has also been criticized for its treatment of activists in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Do you support ending or modifying Stop & Frisk? If running for mayor, will you keep Ray Kelly or appoint a new police commissioner? Do you think Mayor Bloomberg and the NYPD should have handled events in the OWS movement differently and what measures will you take to protect political demonstrations?

I have been very vocal about calling for the abolishment of Stop and Frisk. Stop-and-frisk continues to deepen the chasm between communities and police, a relationship that is vital to maintaining a safe and secure city for all New Yorkers. Stop and Frisk offers an illusion of safety and erodes the public trust with police. Also, being stopped and frisked is not a minor inconvenience; it is deeply humiliating and absolutely offensive when based on skin color. More than 86% of people stopped are black or hispanic and 88% were innocent of any crime. There’s simply no place for racial profiling, by the police or anyone. It’s not what New York City is about. The administration should abolish stop-and-frisk, and stop it now. Don't mend it, just end it.

5. Mayoral Control of Education. Mayoral Control of NYC schools is set to expire in 2016, but the state legislature can renew it. If elected to city government, you will not directly vote on mayoral control, but you will have a ‘bully pulpit’ as renewal is discussed in the next 3 years. Do you support keeping Mayoral Control as is, letting it expire, or making changes, for example to the hearing process for controversial decisions? (Examples: Co-locations of multiple schools in one building, providing district school space to charter schools, phasing out schools that have been labeled as “failing” due to high dropout rates, low test scores, or other factors.)

Earlier this year my office published a report related to school governance - “No More Rubber Stamp – Reforming New York's Panel For Education Policy”. In the report I offer recommendations that would create a more collaborative structure, and one that is more responsive to the community. The mayor and the chancellor would retain a large degree of authority and decision-making power in this system, but there would be important new components in place by which the public will be able to participate, be heard, and have influence. While the outward appearance of the Panel for Education Policy would be the same, the manner in which they are selected would allow for more input from the public at large. The Mayoral appointees would be selected from a PEP Nominating Committee that would be made up of elected officials, community, labor and education leaders. This would result in a PEP that represents the community and is not simply a mayoral rubber stamp.

6. Teacher Evaluation. A key area where the mayor has influence in public education is in the negotiation of a contract with NYC’s public school teachers. Please give your opinion on the following proposed ways to evaluate teachers for the purpose of tenure, salary and other job benefits: Improvement in student test scores, observations by other teachers, student surveys, whether the teacher has an advanced degree, a principal’s evaluation of a teacher. Should principals be allowed to do unannounced observations of teachers? Do you have any experience negotiating labor union contracts?

The current Mayor has placed too much emphasis on student test results to evaluate teachers. A more balanced approach, including observations by peers, student surveys, a teacher’s educational background, and supervisory evaluations would give a better picture of a teacher’s competency. I have not had the opportunity to negotiate a labor union contract, but as Comptroller, I oversee an agency of over 700 employees, many of whom are unionized.

7. Co-location of charter schools. City officials do not decide how many charter schools can exist, or grant requests to be a charter school. However, the Department of Education - currently controlled by the Mayor - may decide to provide charter schools with space, usually by "co-location" with district public schools. While more than half of NYC schools (not just charters) are co-located, it is a controversial topic when a charter school is involved. Critics argue that cash-strapped district schools should not be forced to share resources with charter schools and that co-location creates a morale problem when students and parents see the contrast. Co-location advocates argue that charter schools are public schools and should have an equal right to publicly owned resources such as buildings, charter schools do not receive funding for space and therefore operate at a severe financial disadvantage if they have to find private space, and that differences between co-located schools result from decisions the principals make about how to spend their per-pupil funding. Do you support the DOE giving public school space to charter schools?

Sources:  Against – Click here for funding and space arguments.  In Favor: Click here for Funding   Click here for Space (pdf)

Co-located charter schools should pay rent. Overcrowding has gotten worse under the current administration because of its emphasis on allowing charter schools to take space in public schools. I would immediately stop this practice and begin collecting rent from charter schools that are co-located. I will work to ensure the success of existing public schools by giving them adequate resources, rather than inhibit them by reducing their available space.

8. The City Wage Tax. New York City’s budget depends in large part on the city wage tax, which is only paid by residents, not everyone who works in NYC. Would you call on the state legislature to allow NYC to collect the tax from people from the suburbs who work in NYC and benefit from our services (police, fire, etc.)? Would you support efforts to collect the tax from people who actually live in New York City but use a second home (a loophole not available to middle class New Yorkers with just one home) to avoid the city wage tax? If these efforts work, would you be willing to reduce the city wage tax so that workers would have more take home pay, and there would be less incentive for people to move to the suburbs, reducing our tax base?

I have always felt that the repeal of the commuter tax was a mistake and I support reenacting it. This tax should apply to anyone who benefits substantially from City services, including those with second homes elsewhere. I would consider reducing the city wage tax if our economic condition improves enough to allow it.

9. Other Taxes. Do you support progressive taxation? Do you support Governor Cuomo’s approach to the marginal tax rate on high incomes? What is your opinion on the current property tax in NYC? Would you support a federal financial transaction tax to either raise revenue, reduce the practice of high frequency trading, or both?

I have called for a more progressive taxation system and support taxing those with the highest incomes at a higher rate. My office wrote a report on income inequality last year that found that the top 1% of New York City income tax filers receive one third of all City personal income, a share that is twice the national average. It makes no sense that a family with an income of $50,000 pays nearly the same tax rate as a family that makes $1,000,000. Our tax system must be reformed so that the highest earners pay their fair share. My My progressive tax proposal would lower taxes for 99% of New Yorkers and may be found at http://www.comptroller.nyc.gov/bureaus/opm/reports/2012/NYC_PIT_FactSheet_v13.pdf. New York City’s property tax rates are low compared to neighboring counties and to encourage home ownership, I think we should only raise property taxes as a last resort. I would support a federal financial tax to raise revenue and reduce high frequency trading.

10. Poverty & the Social Safety Net. According to a 2012 report by the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, many struggling New Yorkers are eligible for welfare, but have not been able to obtain it due to onerous application requirements, and the excessive and arbitrary use of “sanctions” by the City’s Human Resources Administration (HRA). These obstacles have caused very little increase in welfare cases during the recent recession, as contrasted with large increases in Food Stamps and Medicaid. Would you change HRA to make it easier for eligible families to obtain cash assistance, connect them to jobs or meaningful job training, and reform the improper use of sanctions? How would you manage New York City's social safety net programs to ensure that people get the help they need, while at the same time preventing fraud? Report: http:/www.fpwa.org/cgi-bin/iowa/policy/article/218.html

New Yorkers who need assistance should not face unnecessary obstacles to getting the help that they need, including cash assistance. One of the first bills that I introduced and helped pass into law requires certain social services agencies, including HRA, to provide interpretation and translation services, to remove obstacles for some New Yorkers seeking help. I think we can help prevent fraud by vigorously prosecuting those who commit fraud and recouping illegal payments and benefits.

11. Homelessness. When Mayor Bloomberg first ran, he promised to introduce policies to drastically reduce the numbers of people who are homeless in our city. But during the twelve years of his administration, the numbers of homeless have increased dramatically each year. This is in addition to the approximately 50,000 people sleeping in shelters on an average night, according to a recent report by the Coalition for the Homeless. What would you do to deal with this sad situation? Sources: http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/state-of-the-homeless-2013 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/nyregion/20homeless.html

The major cause of homelessness is lack of affordable housing. I would work to increase the amount of low income housing and fight to increase the minimum wage, so that the working poor can afford a place to live.

12. Hurricane Sandy & Environmental Protection. The devastating impact that Hurricane Sandy had on New York City poses short term and long term challenges: immediate support for those who lost their homes and businesses, and climate change, respectively. What measures do you support for helping Sandy recovery efforts, as well as energy conservation and reducing the carbon footprint of New York City? What is your position on hydraulic fracturing and the Spectra pipeline?

Sandy showed us that the City has to have a better plan to address similar future storms. It is unbelieveable that many of those affected by Sandy still cannot move back to their homes or have another place to live. We have to develop a plan to address the threat of Sandy-like storms in any rebuilding efforts. Since most of our energy usage and greenhouse gases are produced from heating and cooling our buildings, I think the City has to strongly incentivize property owners to replace inefficient, polluting equipment. I oppose fracking and the Spectra pipeline.

13. Gun Control. While DFNYC members have long supported gun control, the December 14th shooting in Newtown, Connecticut seems to have changed the debate on the national level. Do you support the proposals President Obama made to (a) renew and fix the assault weapons ban, (b) ban high capacity magazines (limit the number of bullets that can be shot before reloading), and (c) improve the background check system? Please indicate any other methods you would support to reduce gun violence, including how you would implement them, for example: gun buy-back programs, training programs for gun owners, improved access to mental health care, and involving the business community in gun safety.

I support efforts to ban assault rifles and high capacity magazines, and to reduce the number of guns on the street. I also support programs to ensure that those with guns are responsible owners. I think the business community would be interested in helping to improve gun safety because guns are generally bad for most businesses, except for gun stores.

14. Choice & Marriage Equality. _Please briefly state your position on the following three issues: marriage equality for gays & lesbians, a woman's right to choose, and access to birth control. (25 words or less)

I have been a strong and vocal supporter of these three important issues.

~ John Liu, candidate for mayor of New York City. www.JohnLiu2013.com

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Ben Kallos Answers to DFNYC 2013 Candidate Questionnaire

Ben Kallos is running for City Council in District 5, serving the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island. KallosforCouncil.com

1. Money in NYC Politics. Large donors, specifically real estate developers and landlords, have a huge amount of influence in NYC politics due to their campaign contributions. While NYC’s matching funds programs is seen as one of the most innovative public funding campaigns in the country, many DFNYC members feel that big money donors still have too much influence and candidates still spend too much time fundraising. Would you support a change to full public financing of campaigns, similar to the Clean Money Clean Elections programs in Arizona, Connecticut and Maine?

In our campaign we have already called for full public financing of elections, including using the Clean Money Clean Elections model. Support from more than 700 individual contributions meant we actually turned away money from special interests, relying instead on small contributions of $175 or less for 90% of our contributions, with the most common amount just $10. Unfortunately, our opponents have gone with big donors from special interests despite participating in the public matching system. This demonstrates that public matching can support a grassroots campaign like ours but still cannot prevent special interests from buying in. As Executive Director of the New Roosevelt Initiative, I have spent the past three years helping to fight for Money Out Voters In nationally, and FAIR Elections for New York. We need DFNYC’s support so that we can continue the fight from the inside.

2. Tenant Protection & Cost of Housing. Do you support rent stabilization and rent control laws? What will you do to crack down on landlords that break the law? Would you call on the state legislature to repeal vacancy decontrol and more generally, the Urstadt Law, so that New York City – and not Albany – can enact its own housing laws?

As former Chief of Staff for the Mitchell-Lama Subcommittee Chair, Assemblyman Jonathan L. Bing, I know the current issues facing affordable housing. I had the opportunity to work on the next generation of progressive legislation that would scale certain rent regulations to the consumer price index, so that new laws are always current and housing remains affordable for generations to come. I also drafted an Anti-Tenants Black List that would make it illegal to use a Housing Court lawsuit as a consideration to deny housing and allow for an administrative complaint through the New York State Division of Human Rights for enforcement without cost to tenants. As a City Council Member I would fight the Urstadt law, reintroduce the Anti-Tenants Black List under the purview of the New York City Human Rights, and provide funding for housing inspectors as well as empowering other City agencies to provide more protection to tenants.

3. Paid Sick Leave. There is currently a bill in the city council that would require companies in NYC with 5 or more employees to give 5 paid sick days per year to each employee (if they do not already). While many councilmembers support this, it has not been brought to a vote. Supporters feel this is much needed public health legislation that would only minimally raise labor costs, while opponents say that it would be an unfair financial burden to small business. Do you support the bill and will you actively work to get it passed? Sources: ~For: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/labor/news/2012/11/16/45152/myth-vs-fact-paid-sick-days/ ~Against: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/why_we_reject_sick_leave_bill_03pE50CZMFiHFhXzasDMLL

We are the only City Council Candidate in the 5th Council District to sign-on in support of Paid Sick Leave with the Working Families Party. We also support the recently-passed Paid Sick Leave Act, despite the two years we must wait to see it take effect. We look forward to working in the City Council to expand coverage to businesses with fewer than 20 employees, ensure enforcement of the Act, and remove the stipulation for shift-workers, who must choose between taking a sick day and adding a shift. Regarding this “shift swap” exemption, we are concerned that employers may pressure workers to add shifts rather than take paid sick days. Despite the delay in voting on paid sick leave, and despite its shortcomings, it represents a true victory for our working families.

4. Fair Police Practices & Occupy Wall Street. The New York City Police Department has been highly criticized for its Stop & Frisk policy, which disproportionally affects racial minorities and poor and working class New Yorkers. The NYPD has also been criticized for its treatment of activists in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Do you support ending or modifying Stop & Frisk? If running for mayor, will you keep Ray Kelly or appoint a new police commissioner? Do you think Mayor Bloomberg and the NYPD should have handled events in the OWS movement differently and what measures will you take to protect political demonstrations?

We are the only City Council candidate in our district to oppose Stop and Frisk and speak out when it was reported that officers in the local precinct performed 5,250 stop-and-frisks in 2011, targeting minorities 76 percent of the time, despite people of color making up less than one fifth of the neighborhood's population, according to recent NYPD statistics. As an attorney, I am an unwavering supporter of the First Amendment. As an advocate for free speech I served as Amicus Curiae (“friend of the court”) Counsel for Google’s YouTube when they were sued by Verizon in the now historic Verizon v. YouTube decision in the 2nd Circuit. I support free speech and condemn the City’s actions during Occupy Wall Street and during the Republican National Convention before it. As a Council Member and attorney, I will call attention to all infringements on the right to free speech and peaceful assembly working with victims to secure the legal resources they need. Having led or participated in many rallies, demonstrations, protests, and picket lines, I will continue to support public demonstrations and free discourse.

5. Mayoral Control of Education. Mayoral Control of NYC schools is set to expire in 2016, but the state legislature can renew it. If elected to city government, you will not directly vote on mayoral control, but you will have a ‘bully pulpit’ as renewal is discussed in the next 3 years. Do you support keeping Mayoral Control as is, letting it expire, or making changes, for example to the hearing process for controversial decisions? (Examples: Co-locations of multiple schools in one building, providing district school space to charter schools, phasing out schools that have been labeled as “failing” due to high dropout rates, low test scores, or other factors.)

Our campaign seeks to empower the City and is so committed to doing so that we have an open and transparent platform with more than 125 solutions for vote, comment or improvement. Along those lines, we don’t support the concentration of power in any one person when it belongs in the hands of constituents. We will advocate making substantial changes to Mayoral control while avoiding empowering the bureaucracy of the Board of Education it replaced by using improved transparency including more public hearings that are televised, streamed online and accept physical and electronic testimony to empower teachers, parents, students and the community.

6. Teacher Evaluation. A key area where the mayor has influence in public education is in the negotiation of a contract with NYC’s public school teachers. Please give your opinion on the following proposed ways to evaluate teachers for the purpose of tenure, salary and other job benefits: Improvement in student test scores, observations by other teachers, student surveys, whether the teacher has an advanced degree, a principal’s evaluation of a teacher. Should principals be allowed to do unannounced observations of teachers? Do you have any experience negotiating labor union contracts?

I am the only union-side labor attorney running for City Council in New York City with experience supporting labor unions during contract negotiations, elections, and on picket lines. We are also the only candidate for City Council in District 5 to stand with the AFT and UFT when Mayor Bloomberg compared them to the National Rifle Association, and oppose continued efforts to base teachers’ livelihoods solely on test scores. We must recognize that our teachers are the heroes of our communities, and not only during tragedies like Newton. While any supervisor should be allowed to observe an employee unannounced the goal should not be finding grounds for termination but the improvement of teaching skills and education for our students. Any evaluation system must find a common ground for teachers, administrators, parents and students without losing focus on improving the quality of education while protecting the academic freedom the empowers excellent teachers.

7. Co-location of charter schools. City officials do not decide how many charter schools can exist, or grant requests to be a charter school. However, the Department of Education - currently controlled by the Mayor - may decide to provide charter schools with space, usually by "co-location" with district public schools. While more than half of NYC schools (not just charters) are co-located, it is a controversial topic when a charter school is involved. Critics argue that cash-strapped district schools should not be forced to share resources with charter schools and that co-location creates a morale problem when students and parents see the contrast. Co-location advocates argue that charter schools are public schools and should have an equal right to publicly owned resources such as buildings, charter schools do not receive funding for space and therefore operate at a severe financial disadvantage if they have to find private space, and that differences between co-located schools result from decisions the principals make about how to spend their per-pupil funding. Do you support the DOE giving public school space to charter schools?

Sources: Against - funding and space arguments.  In favor: Funding   Space

Our campaign is engaging the creativity and talent of New York City to find solutions for a better City giving rise to an entire education platform at http://kallosforcouncil.com/solutions/Education where we have proposed alternatives to co-location including Central Business where the City would use vacant sub-market priced office spaces on a short term lease to serve student populations depending on need. Until we can implement solutions like those we are proposing co-location remains a key component of our City’s educational system, whether it is multiple public schools or includes charters, the underlying problems must be addressed. If elected, I hope to serve on the Education Committee where the City Council can use hearings and legislation equal sharing of building resources and investment in building improvements with joint management between all schools in the building including administrators, teachers, parents and students.

8. The City Wage Tax. New York City’s budget depends in large part on the city wage tax, which is only paid by residents, not everyone who works in NYC. Would you call on the state legislature to allow NYC to collect the tax from people from the suburbs who work in NYC and benefit from our services (police, fire, etc.)? Would you support efforts to collect the tax from people who actually live in New York City but use a second home (a loophole not available to middle class New Yorkers with just one home) to avoid the city wage tax? If these efforts work, would you be willing to reduce the city wage tax so that workers would have more take home pay, and there would be less incentive for people to move to the suburbs, reducing our tax base?

We support taxes like the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Mobility Tax (MCTMT) and others like it that require City wage earners to contribute to essential City services used by all commuters. New York State currently audits residents who claim tax-residence in Florida where there is no income tax and we support similar audits within the State. Lastly, we support progressive tax reform and lowering taxes including income taxes on our City’s working families in need.

9. Other Taxes. Do you support progressive taxation? Do you support Governor Cuomo’s approach to the marginal tax rate on high incomes? What is your opinion on the current property tax in NYC? Would you support a federal financial transaction tax to either raise revenue, reduce the practice of high frequency trading, or both?

I support progressive tax reform and have already delivered concrete results on a State level. As Executive Director of Bill Samuels’ New Roosevelt, we were among the first to call on Governor Andrew Cuomo to restore the Millionaire’s tax when it was expiring and install a more progressive tax system so that everyone paid their fair share. This call that made national headlines as syndicated in the Associated Press and featured in the Wall Street Journal, ultimately forcing Governor Cuomo to extend the millionaires tax and add new tiers for a more progressive income tax system. Our nation’s future and even the global economy now rests in the stock markets, with most of our City, State and private retirement invested in one way or another, making it an issue of paramount importance. Following the Flash Crash and Knight Capital Group Crash our campaign has begun working with alumni of high frequency trading firms and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to create a framework to minimize risk of future crashes. We also request that DFNYC consider adopting a part of our progressive tax reform platform that was originally proposed by the Drum Major Institute, where New York City would repeal income taxes on households that do not owe Federal or State Income tax or earn less than $40,000 a year, you can learn more about the policy at http://kallosforcouncil.com/solution/tax-reform/stop-taxing-our-poorest-new-yorkers-repealing-income-taxes-low-and-moderate-inco

10. Poverty & the Social Safety Net. According to a 2012 report by the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, many struggling New Yorkers are eligible for welfare, but have not been able to obtain it due to onerous application requirements, and the excessive and arbitrary use of “sanctions” by the City’s Human Resources Administration (HRA). These obstacles have caused very little increase in welfare cases during the recent recession, as contrasted with large increases in Food Stamps and Medicaid. Would you change HRA to make it easier for eligible families to obtain cash assistance, connect them to jobs or meaningful job training, and reform the improper use of sanctions? How would you manage New York City's social safety net programs to ensure that people get the help they need, while at the same time preventing fraud? Report: http:/www.fpwa.org/cgi-bin/iowa/policy/article/218.html

As a care taker for my mother who is disabled with Parkinson’s disease I have worked closely with social service agencies to secure as many government benefits as possible in order to maintain my mother’s quality of life. With personal experience working with the City’s Human Resources Administration, you could not hope for a stronger advocate. As a Nationwide Voter Protection Advocate, I face the “voter fraud” argument used as an excuse for voter identification laws which I believe to be the poll tax of our generation. We must not treat voters or social service applicants as criminals, but should instead prosecute cases when they arise. We support adding an online submission for all forms, translation into any language. Lastly we would also like to bring other common sense solutions to the application process. If we already provide all of our household financial information on a City tax return, why not make that an automatic qualification and application for social services. What could be better than a tax refund that also came with a food stamp card, and Medicaid card?

11. Homelessness. When Mayor Bloomberg first ran, he promised to introduce policies to drastically reduce the numbers of people who are homeless in our city. But during the twelve years of his administration, the numbers of homeless have increased dramatically each year. This is in addition to the approximately 50,000 people sleeping in shelters on an average night, according to a recent report by the Coalition for the Homeless. What would you do to deal with this sad situation? Sources: http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/state-of-the-homeless-2013 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/nyregion/20homeless.html

New York’s homeless have the right to shelter under Article XVII of the New York State Constitution. Mayor Bloomberg, unwilling to acknowledge his failure to support homeless services during the deepest economic recession since the Great Depression, has instead blamed rising numbers of homeless men, women, and children on the “generosity” of the law, seeking to undermine it. But our homeless are not arriving in private jets or driving to shelters in limousines as the Mayor suggests, but instead face real struggles that require proven solutions. I support increasing access to social services including mental health, drug rehabilitation, job training and supportive housing. We also support the "housing first" approach proposed by the Coalition for the Homeless. Studies demonstrate that once in housing, formerly homeless men and women are more likely to recover from mental illness and addiction, and far more likely to find and keep employment. Supporting community organizations like Pathways to Housing is critical. As former Chief of Staff for Mitchell-Lama Subcommittee Chair, Assemblyman Jonathan L. Bing, I know the current issues facing affordable housing. We’ve got an entire affordable housing platform where you and your members can go online, comment on solutions, vote on them, and even suggest their own. Here are just a handful of the solutions you can find at http://kallosforcouncil.com/solutions/affordable-housing:

• Create an online affordable housing list with a simple unified application.

• Develop new affordable housing by improving the 421-a tax benefit.

• Empower communities through local neighborhood planning.

• Leverage public-private partnerships through an Employer-Assisted Housing (EAH) program to make more affordable housing available.

• Prohibit tenant blacklists through the New York City Commission on Human Rights by adding a protected class to New York City Human Rights Law.

• Protect tenant health by passing the "New York City Asthma-Free Housing Act."

• Protect tenants in rentals facing foreclosure by transforming properties into community assets.

• Provide homeowners with a new source of income by allowing them to offer affordable housing through a new building code for an "accessory dwelling unit." • Reduce homelessness by expanding supportive housing

12. Hurricane Sandy & Environmental Protection. The devastating impact that Hurricane Sandy had on New York City poses short term and long term challenges: immediate support for those who lost their homes and businesses, and climate change, respectively. What measures do you support for helping Sandy recovery efforts, as well as energy conservation and reducing the carbon footprint of New York City? What is your position on hydraulic fracturing and the Spectra pipeline?

Our City’s workers did an incredible job preparing our city for Hurricane Sandy and getting services up and running after, contributions our campaign recognized in the enclosed Huffington Post article entitled “New York City Union Workers Respond to Hurricane Sandy: Preparing, Protecting and Rebuilding.” We volunteered in hurricane relief shelters filled with volunteers that also demonstrated exceptional dedication and efficiency. We also support Governor Cuomo’s proposed infrastructure changes. As a Chief of Staff in the Assembly, we focused on emergency responses. Legislation I helped draft included a tax-free week to buy hurricane supplies and raise awareness for “Go Bags.” Go Bags are full of essential supplies, including documents and medication, which can be quickly grabbed in case of emergency. In order to support Go Bags for people that are dependent on medication, we support amendments to New York State law, providing Medicare and Medicaid funding and allowing doctors to provide prescriptions specifically for Go Bags. We also supported our local Community Emergency Response Teams, including them in all of our emergency preparedness events and actively assisting in recruiting new members to supplement first responders with strong CERT teams. Lastly, as the tech candidate, we are members of the New York Tech Meetup community, and support the robust set of technological tools and “apps” they built for Sandy, and would see the developed into fully mature products to support the city in times of emergency.

13. Gun Control. While DFNYC members have long supported gun control, the December 14th shooting in Newtown, Connecticut seems to have changed the debate on the national level. Do you support the proposals President Obama made to (a) renew and fix the assault weapons ban, (b) ban high capacity magazines (limit the number of bullets that can be shot before reloading), and (c) improve the background check system? Please indicate any other methods you would support to reduce gun violence, including how you would implement them, for example: gun buy-back programs, training programs for gun owners, improved access to mental health care, and involving the business community in gun safety.

We fully support all the President proposals for gun control. One method that we support to reduce gun violence in addition the president's proposals is to fund a citywide gun mircostamping program. The mircostamping program will require that all newly made guns to mark the shell casing with a unique code each time a semi automatic pistol is fired, which will allow law enforcement to trace guns to the original purchaser of the weapon. Publicizing the mircostamping program can also prevent gun crime by deterring "straw purchaser", who buys guns only to sell them to people who cannot pass a background check. with this tool, the NYPD can also better trace guns to buyers and criminals.

14. Choice & Marriage Equality. Please briefly state your position on the following three issues: marriage equality for gays & lesbians, a woman's right to choose, and access to birth control. (25 words or less)

As an attorney I have long fought for civil rights. I support marriage equality as a fundamental civil right. Civil rights including the right to choose and access to birth control are essential and must be supported as part of supporting the sexual health of our City including availability of sexual health products as well as free screenings and treatment to stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Costa Constantinides Answers to DFNYC 2013 Candidate Questionnaire

Costa Constantinides is running for NYC Council in District 22 in northwest Queens.   www.votecosta.com 

For more about the district, including neighborhoods, list of candidates, etc., click here. 

1. Money in NYC Politics. Large donors, specifically real estate developers and landlords, have a huge amount of influence in NYC politics due to their campaign contributions. While NYC’s matching funds programs is seen as one of the most innovative public funding campaigns in the country, many DFNYC members feel that big money donors still have too much influence and candidates still spend too much time fundraising. Would you support a change to full public financing of campaigns, similar to the Clean Money Clean Elections programs in Arizona, Connecticut and Maine?

Yes. As we have seen this week with the arrests of Dan Halloran, Malcolm Smith, and Eric Stevenson, the pervasive influence of big money in our political system brings the potential for corruption at every level. I have been part of the Clean Money, Clean elections programming that DFNYC and Citizen Action has done in the past and will continue to work towards reducing the influence of big money in elections.

2. Tenant Protection & Cost of Housing. Do you support rent stabilization and rent control laws? What will you do to crack down on landlords that break the law? Would you call on the state legislature to repeal vacancy decontrol and more generally, the Urstadt Law, so that New York City – and not Albany – can enact its own housing laws?

I strongly support rent stabilization and rent control laws. I have always believed it important for NYC to reclaim control of its housing laws and will fight for it in the council. We need to fund our city agencies to better control renegade landlords and hold them accountable to the laws of our city. 

3. Paid Sick Leave. There is currently a bill in the city council that would require companies in NYC with 5 or more employees to give 5 paid sick days per year to each employee (if they do not already). While many councilmembers support this, it has not been brought to a vote. Supporters feel this is much needed public health legislation that would only minimally raise labor costs, while opponents say that it would be an unfair financial burden to small business. Do you support the bill and will you actively work to get it passed? Sources: ~For: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/labor/news/2012/11/16/45152/myth-vs-fact-paid-sick-days/ ~Against: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/why_we_reject_sick_leave_bill_03pE50CZMFiHFhXzasDMLL

I have signed a letter in support of paid sick leave and look to strengthen the bill when elected. No one should have to make a choice between their health or the health of a loved one and their job. I am glad that the NYC Council is moving forward on paid sick leave but we still have a lot to do to improve the lives of the middle and working class here in NYC.

4. Fair Police Practices & Occupy Wall Street. The New York City Police Department has been highly criticized for its Stop & Frisk policy, which disproportionally affects racial minorities and poor and working class New Yorkers. The NYPD has also been criticized for its treatment of activists in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Do you support ending or modifying Stop & Frisk? If running for mayor, will you keep Ray Kelly or appoint a new police commissioner? Do you think Mayor Bloomberg and the NYPD should have handled events in the OWS movement differently and what measures will you take to protect political demonstrations?

I do not support Stop and Frisk. Public safety is important and that’s why we need to enact policies that treat all members of our community as partners in our fight for a safer New York. But being anti-stop and frisk does not make you anti-police. Our police put their lives on the lines everyday and I am grateful for their hard work for NYC. We need to hire more cops. We need to strengthen national gun laws to get illegal guns off the street. We need to pay our police better and work with all communities to improve public safety. Our S&F numbers have increased as our police force numbers have decreased. Its time to have a real commitment to public safety in this city that is respectful of all New Yorkers. On the issue of OWS, I do not believe the police presence there and the response to peaceful protest was correct. This administration has continuously shown a displeasure for those that criticize or disagree with them. Mayor Bloomberg should not pit the police against protesters in the manner he has. The right to protest is a fundamental part of free speech. I will always working to make sure all voices are heard and that we stand with free speech.

5. Mayoral Control of Education. Mayoral Control of NYC schools is set to expire in 2016, but the state legislature can renew it. If elected to city government, you will not directly vote on mayoral control, but you will have a ‘bully pulpit’ as renewal is discussed in the next 3 years. Do you support keeping Mayoral Control as is, letting it expire, or making changes, for example to the hearing process for controversial decisions? (Examples: Co-locations of multiple schools in one building, providing district school space to charter schools, phasing out schools that have been labeled as “failing” due to high dropout rates, low test scores, or other factors.) 

I do not support mayoral control as it is currently constituted. It has locked out parents, community members, faculty and elected officials from working with our schools. In my community, this Mayor has attempted to close our two High Schools, phase out a G&T program that is a model for the city and ranked nationally and is making noises about bringing two new charter schools into our community, all of which I have strongly spoke out against. Our chancellor gives lip-service to parental involvement but on all of these issues the DOE has blown off our community even when they speak in one voice. I cannot support the dictatorship of any one voice when it comes to education. The stakes are too high. We need to fight to ensure that every student gets a world class public school education and not that they can only pass a standardized test.

6. Teacher Evaluation. A key area where the mayor has influence in public education is in the negotiation of a contract with NYC’s public school teachers. Please give your opinion on the following proposed ways to evaluate teachers for the purpose of tenure, salary and other job benefits: Improvement in student test scores, observations by other teachers, student surveys, whether the teacher has an advanced degree, a principal’s evaluation of a teacher. Should principals be allowed to do unannounced observations of teachers? Do you have any experience negotiating labor union contracts?

The Bloomberg Administration’s hostility to unions is nothing short of despicable. The era of the most broad-based prosperity in this country’s history was built in part by a robust labor movement, and I will fight to make sure that the next administration respects that heritage and comes to the bargaining table in good faith with our unions rather than treating them like thugs. While there’s no reason that any of the listed evaluation criteria should not be used, I do not agree with those who argue that scores on a standardized test should be the primary evaluation tool. Firstly, tying test scores to a teacher’s performance review will only further exacerbate the problems of “teaching to the test” that we’re seeing. Additionally, as was recently seen in the Atlanta School District scandal, it only creates incentives for teachers and principals to cheat to boost their numbers. Any acceptable teacher evaluation plan must be primarily based on collaborative efforts by other teachers and education professionals who can evaluate the work the students have done using their own critical reasoning, rather than some rigid testing algorithm.

7. Co-location of charter schools. City officials do not decide how many charter schools can exist, or grant requests to be a charter school. However, the Department of Education - currently controlled by the Mayor - may decide to provide charter schools with space, usually by "co-location" with district public schools. While more than half of NYC schools (not just charters) are co-located, it is a controversial topic when a charter school is involved. Critics argue that cash-strapped district schools should not be forced to share resources with charter schools and that co-location creates a morale problem when students and parents see the contrast. Co-location advocates argue that charter schools are public schools and should have an equal right to publicly owned resources such as buildings, charter schools do not receive funding for space and therefore operate at a severe financial disadvantage if they have to find private space, and that differences between co-located schools result from decisions the principals make about how to spend their per-pupil funding. Do you support the DOE giving public school space to charter schools?

Sources: Against - funding and space arguments.  In favor: Funding   Space 

I do not support co-location of schools. There once was a time when a decent education for our children was non-negotiable. Now we spend all of our time trying to figure out how to put more children into smaller spaces. We are even educating children from trailers behind school buildings. Our public schools should be given the resources they need to succeed. Co-location does nothing more than divide the school, pitting parents against parents, community members vs. community members and leaves our children with an education that does not meet the standards we should be setting.

8. The City Wage Tax. New York City’s budget depends in large part on the city wage tax, which is only paid by residents, not everyone who works in NYC. Would you call on the state legislature to allow NYC to collect the tax from people from the suburbs who work in NYC and benefit from our services (police, fire, etc.)? Would you support efforts to collect the tax from people who actually live in New York City but use a second home (a loophole not available to middle class New Yorkers with just one home) to avoid the city wage tax? If these efforts work, would you be willing to reduce the city wage tax so that workers would have more take home pay, and there would be less incentive for people to move to the suburbs, reducing our tax base?

It’s quite simple - if you use services regularly, you should have the decency to contribute to their upkeep. If our residents pay city income taxes, and our visitors pay hotel occupancy taxes, there’s no reason that commuters or multiple homeowners can’t help out a little more when they benefit from the hard work of our Finest, our Bravest, our Boldest, and our Strongest. A progressive commuter tax could allow NYC to bring down more regressive tax schemes like sales taxes, which would let lower-income people keep more of their income proportionally as well as give NYC businesses a more competitive edge.

9. Other Taxes. Do you support progressive taxation? Do you support Governor Cuomo’s approach to the marginal tax rate on high incomes? What is your opinion on the current property tax in NYC? Would you support a federal financial transaction tax to either raise revenue, reduce the practice of high frequency trading, or both?

I support a progressive tax plan. I support Governor Cuomo’s plan on high income earners, though I should note that I would rather see the “millionaires tax” as it was in the 2009-2010 fiscal year. Property taxes in NYC are a mess. Homes are seemingly evaluated at random. There were countless examples of homes that were destroyed by Hurricane Sandy that actually saw an increase in their property taxes because the value of their house supposedly was higher. I do support financial transaction taxes. 

10. Poverty & the Social Safety Net. According to a 2012 report by the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, many struggling New Yorkers are eligible for welfare, but have not been able to obtain it due to onerous application requirements, and the excessive and arbitrary use of “sanctions” by the City’s Human Resources Administration (HRA). These obstacles have caused very little increase in welfare cases during the recent recession, as contrasted with large increases in Food Stamps and Medicaid. Would you change HRA to make it easier for eligible families to obtain cash assistance, connect them to jobs or meaningful job training, and reform the improper use of sanctions? How would you manage New York City's social safety net programs to ensure that people get the help they need, while at the same time preventing fraud? Report: http:/www.fpwa.org/cgi-bin/iowa/policy/article/218.html

I am a strong proponent of the programs like Medicaid and food stamps. I would work wherever possible to ensure that benefits are finding the people who need them most. As a city councilman, my primary interaction with these programs would be to vote on budgets that fund them, and I would do just that. People not claiming benefits is a much bigger problem than fraud. 

11. Homelessness. When Mayor Bloomberg first ran, he promised to introduce policies to drastically reduce the numbers of people who are homeless in our city. But during the twelve years of his administration, the numbers of homeless have increased dramatically each year. This is in addition to the approximately 50,000 people sleeping in shelters on an average night, according to a recent report by the Coalition for the Homeless. What would you do to deal with this sad situation? Sources: http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/state-of-the-homeless-2013 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/nyregion/20homeless.html

When he proposed what would become Medicare, President Kennedy said that a society’s quality can best be measured by the care it gives its senior citizens. The same is true for the care we give our fellow New Yorkers who are homeless. That the Bloomberg Administration, in a time of increasing need, would try to block those most in need from getting help was inexcusable, and I commend the City Council for suing to block that policy. We need to make sure that the next administration treats the issue seriously, and treats the homeless with respect. The most important thing we can do is ensure that the city and the state fund our homeless services. It’s shameful that, when the numbers of homeless in New York are skyrocketing, programs that can help the homeless long term are cut. Several weeks ago, the Coalition for the Homeless released a report called Homeless Again, where certain recommendations, including new rental assistance programs modeled on Section 8, are proposed. I think that their proposals contain a lot of merit and as a Councilmember, I will work to make those proposals reality. We also need to ensure that affordable housing projects are actually affordable for the people who need them. We need to ensure that our housing policy is in order by strengthening the affordable housing requirements where we can do so ourselves, and work with our state representatives to do the same thing at the state level.

12. Hurricane Sandy & Environmental Protection. The devastating impact that Hurricane Sandy had on New York City poses short term and long term challenges: immediate support for those who lost their homes and businesses, and climate change, respectively. What measures do you support for helping Sandy recovery efforts, as well as energy conservation and reducing the carbon footprint of New York City? What is your position on hydraulic fracturing and the Spectra pipeline?

It’s been an honor to work for Councilmember Gennaro, chair of the Environmental Protection Committee. Under his leadership, I have had the opportunity to work to resist the push to frack New York State. New York’s water supply is one of its treasures and protecting it from the harmful chemicals in fracking fluid needs to be a priority. Under CM Gennaro, I’ve also worked on important pieces of legislation that would help preserve our wetlands, strengthen our commitment for dealing with climate change and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions here in NYC by 30%. But there is still more for us to do. I would work with state and city agencies to purchase and preserve more wetlands so we have buffers on our shorelines. I would also work with our city and state elected officials to develop long-term plans for better responsiveness to these types of storms. I also support Governor Cuomo’s buyout proposal for those that were affected by Sandy. I do not support hydrofracking in NYS and have been activist in my community to raise awareness against it.

13. Gun Control. While DFNYC members have long supported gun control, the December 14th shooting in Newtown, Connecticut seems to have changed the debate on the national level. Do you support the proposals President Obama made to (a) renew and fix the assault weapons ban, (b) ban high capacity magazines (limit the number of bullets that can be shot before reloading), and (c) improve the background check system? Please indicate any other methods you would support to reduce gun violence, including how you would implement them, for example: gun buy-back programs, training programs for gun owners, improved access to mental health care, and involving the business community in gun safety.

I support the proposals offered by President Obama, and the examples you provided in the question. On a City level, I would be part of buy back programs and work with local law enforcement to implement whatever local law we are able to pass but also work with our Albany and federal partners to regulate firearms. Encouraging businesses and pension funds to divest from gun manufacturers is another important step. I supported Comptroller Liu’s decision to sell the stock our city’s teacher pension fund held, and I would fight to see that other city and state pension funds do the same.

14. Choice & Marriage Equality. Please briefly state your position on the following three issues: marriage equality for gays & lesbians, a woman's right to choose, and access to birth control. (25 words or less)

I am fully supportive of a woman's right to choose, marriage equality and access to birth control.