Candidate Answers to JOLDC: Mark Levine for NYC Comptroller

Candidate Name: Mark Levine

Office Seeking Election for: NYC Comptroller

Campaign Website: https://www.votemarklevine.com/

1. Based upon your life experiences and accomplishments, why do you believe you are best qualified to represent your district?

I have fought for our communities my entire career. I was the founder of Neighborhood Trust, a federal credit union that showed the power of wise investments in our communities. As a Council Member, I took on the landlord lobby for years to win the nation’s first Right to Counsel, ensuring tenants have a right to an attorney in eviction cases—transforming housing court in the process. As Chair of the Health Committee, I fought far-right extremists who wanted to strip frontline workers and healthcare workers of PPE, overturn vaccine mandates, and put our children at risk.

As Borough President, I have fought to create the affordable housing we desperately need. I have pushed for more public bathrooms, better indoor air quality, and affordable housing in every neighborhood. I have led the fight to rebuild our mental health system, pushing back against cuts to inpatient mental health beds, disinvestment in life-saving programs, and fought against funding cuts to our schools, principals and staff. As Comptroller, I’ll fight for workers and be a champion for CSA, and I hope to earn your support.

I’m running for Comptroller because we are facing dual crises of affordability and confidence that government is on the side of New Yorkers. We need leaders who will be independent of City Hall and who will hold the Mayor accountable while also fighting back against Donald Trump in the White House. We need to ensure that local government is addressing the everyday issues New Yorkers and workers are facing, from housing affordability, to protecting LGBTQ+ New Yorkers, access to quality public schools, public safety, access to affordable healthcare, and more.

I have the experience and background we need to hold City agencies accountable, ensure that contracts are fairly paying and protecting workers, invest our pension dollars to keep our pension funds strong while simultaneously investing in our communities, and more. I’m a parent of two Latino boys who attended public schools and am a fluent speaker of English, Spanish, and Hebrew. I bring pragmatism, experience, and common sense to government, using

data-driven, policy-focused advocacy to deliver real results.

2. What LGBTQ organizations have you been involved with, either on a volunteer basis or professionally? What LGBTQ candidates have you endorsed?

I have endorsed Council Member Erik Bottcher, Council Member Crystal Hudson, Council Member Lynn Schulman, Senator Brad Hoylman, Assembly Member Tony Simone, former Council Member Danny Dromm, former Assembly Member Danny O’Donnell, and others. I have worked in partnership with with important LGBTQ+ organizations including Jim Owles Democratic Club, Stonewall Democrats, LGBTQ Museum, SAGE, Ali Forney, Bailey House, Aunties and Friends Movement, Trans formative Schools and many more.

3. If you receive our endorsement, do you agree to identify the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club on all literature and electronic materials?

Yes

4. What press conferences, demonstrations, rallies and protests in support of LGBT issues, pro-choice legislation, racial justice, criminal justice have you attended, including rallies specifically against Donald Trump?

Throughout my career, I’ve fought to be an ally and advocate for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community and New Yorkers. As a Council Member, I fought in the budget process, allocating my own funds as well as citywide funds to supporting initiatives and priorities that align with the needs of the LGBTQ+ community. That has included supporting organizations such as the Ali Forney Center, SAGE, the LGBTQ Museum, and Bailey House. As Borough President, I brought my public health focus – ﬁghting to ensure New Yorkers were getting access to MPox vaccines, care, data, and unstigmatized or biased information and education. I’ve been an active and vocal supporter of the LGBTQ+ Museum, and I’ve fought against the far right agenda that has taken hold of our community education councils, where the ﬁght continues to protect trans-youth who are being attacked daily, and who feel so vulnerable, scared and unsupported in our schools. I’ve attended countless rallies, sent letters, introduced and helped pass legislation, allocated funding to protect pro-choice rights of New Yorkers, improve our justice system, and make our city a more just place. This has included ﬁghting to close Rikers Island, pushing to improve funding for social workers and social service providers to conduct outreach to New Yorkers in need rather than NYPD, improve access to supportive and affordable housing, including for the formerly incarcerated, combat the rise in hate crimes that is putting Jewish, LGBTQ+, Black, Asian, Muslim and Sikh New Yorkers in dangers, and more.

And I’ve fought Trump every day he has been in o?ce – and drawn the ire of the far right while doing so. I’ve marched, held press conferences, introduced legislation and made policy recommendations intended and designed to protect the very people Trump is

hell-bent on attacking.

5. In light of the upcoming Trump Administration’s war on women, the LGBTQ+ community, racial minorities and immigrants, what are your plans to organize and combat the Trump agenda?

Donald Trump’s agenda is a direct threat to the rights, safety, and dignity of New Yorkers—especially women, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and communities of color. I will use the full powers of the Comptroller’s office to audit and expose any city agencies that fail to protect these communities, while leveraging our $280 billion pension fund to hold corporations accountable for anti-equality practices. I will also ensure our budget is fortified against federal cuts by growing our reserves and investing in programs that directly support vulnerable populations. Just as we’ve resisted Trump’s attacks before, we’ll do it again—with strength, transparency, and relentless local action.

6. Will you seek or accept endorsements of individuals who oppose LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights, such as Ruben Diaz Sr., Fernando Cabrera or Erick Salgado? Will you pledge to denounce their homophobia and anti-choice positions in the event you receive an endorsement from such individuals?

Yes.

7. In light of the upcoming Trump Administration’s war on women, the LGBTQ+ community, racial minorities and immigrants, what are your plans to organize and combat the Trump agenda?

8. Do you support the unrestricted right to reproductive care and abortion?

Yes.

9. Have you hosted, funded or otherwise supported Drag Story Hours in your community?

Yes.

10. What proposals will do you support to increase the protection of immigrants and cement New York City’s status as a Sanctuary City?

Immigrant New Yorkers make our city more diverse, our economy more vibrant, and our communities more resilient. We must do everything in our power to welcome and protect them. As Manhattan Borough President, I’ve run donation drives, hosted Know-Your-Rights trainings, fought for funding for trusted community-based organizations, fought to protect our newest New Yorkers in public schools and in housing.

As Comptroller, I’m committed to continuing to ensure that City Hall and city agencies are adequately providing for and protecting New Yorkers. This must include ensuring that trusted non-profits are being paid on time, ensuring we are properly budgeting for the needs of our newest neighbors, and auditing city agencies to ensure they are properly protecting New Yorkers and fighting against Trump’s agenda of chaos, fear and pain.

11. How will you represent the most vulnerable, including individuals experiencing homelessness and asylum seekers? Have you ever opposed any shelter in your district?

I am a strong advocate for housing New Yorkers, and have been among the fiercest fighters for housing in New York City. We are in the worst housing crisis in our city’s history, and we need all the housing – shelter, supportive, deeply affordable, affordable and middle class housing – to address it.

12. If incumbent, are you a co-sponsor of Resolution 2970, introduced by Council Member Shahana Hanif? If not yet elected, will you promise to co-sponsor the resolution? The text urges the NYS Legislature to pass the New York for All Act, which would ensure state and local resources are not used to facilitate federal immigration enforcement. If not, please explain.

Yes. NYPD should not do civil immigration enforcement.

13. If incumbent, are you a co-sponsor of Resolution 2917, introduced by Council Member Crystal Hudson? If not yet elected, will you promise to co-sponsor the resolution? The text endorses the Access to Representation Act, which would establish a “universal right to counsel” for indigent New Yorkers who are subject to removal proceedings under federal immigration law. If not, please explain.

Yes.

14. Will you join our efforts to pass legislation mandating the review of sentences of incarcerated individuals over the age of 55 who have served in excess of 15 years to determine if they warrant release? The legislation is commonly known as the New York Elder Parole Bill.

Yes.

15. Do you oppose the death penalty?

Yes.

16. Do you support outlawing solitary confinement?

Yes.

17. Do you commit to visit constituents who are incarcerated? Will you work to secure the release of individuals who have demonstrated sincere remorse, worked toward rehabilitation and are not deemed a threat to society?

Yes.

18. Do you commit to working to change our penal system toward a restorative rather than a retributive model of justice?

I believe that our justice system requires significant reform. The most expensive thing our city can do is incarcerate a person. We need to do more to address the factors – such as inadequate mental health care, poverty, lack of housing, education, economic opportunity, wage inequality, and more – that are leading people to have interactions with the justice system, and find ways to better support them after that involvement so they never commit a crime again.

19. Do you commit to make applications for clemencies available to your constituency including a link to an application in a constituent newsletter? Will you submit it to our club?

Yes, I will ensure constituents have access to clemency applications.

20. Who did you support for mayor in the 2021 Democratic primary election?

I endorsed Scott Stringer and then rescinded my endorsement. I did not endorse another candidate.

21. Which 2025 Democratic candidates have you removed from your consideration? Have you endorsed anyone? If so, who?

I believe the Comptroller must be independent. Therefore I will not be making an endorsement for Mayor.

22. Do you support the renaming of the Ed Koch bridge and will you work towards the renaming including sponsoring such legislation?

Yes.

23. What are your plans to address rent affordability in NYC? Did you vote for “City of Yes”? If not, please explain.

Yes. Addressing our housing crisis has been my biggest priority as Council Member and Manhattan Borough President. In the City Council, I passed the ﬁrst in the nation

Right-to-Counsel, which guarantees tenants facing eviction with access to representation in housing court. As Borough President, I released “Housing Manhattanites,” a plan that identiﬁed 171 unique sites and neighborhood rezones that together could create over 70,000 new residential units, over half of which would be affordable. I published and advocated for key legislative victories in Albany to allow for new housing creation, and I was a champion for City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,

which will pave the way for badly needed new affordable housing. Meanwhile, my team and I have worked hard to ensure that our NYCHA residents have the support they need to maintain, and improve their homes. We have worked hard to provide access to funding and pushed NYCHA to better maintain our public housing stock. More needs to be done.

As Comptroller, I will ﬁght hard to ensure our city continues to take on our housing crisis, by ensuring HPD ﬁnances affordable units, that NYCHA is run transparently and e?ciently, and investing in the housing we desperately need. I have already released a plan to use uninvested ETI funds to ﬁnance badly needed affordable housing – I believe my plan could help create or preserve 75,000 units of affordable housing over a decade, all while meeting the ﬁduciary responsibility to the pensioners.

24. What are your plans regarding short-term housing?

Assuming you mean AirBNB - I believe that we must continue to restrict short term rentals in New York City. Apps like AirBNB restrict the availability of housing for New Yorkers.

25. Do you support fully divesting city pension funds from Tesla?

Yes.

26. Based upon your life experiences and accomplishments, why should we believe you would be a dynamic and progressive voice in elected office?

I’m running for comptroller because we are facing crises of affordability and quality of life, and New Yorkers simply do not have the conﬁdence that government can deliver for New Yorkers. We need a leader who will hold agencies accountable, invest in working people, and ensure every dollar is spent effectively to improve lives. I am the pragmatic, experienced, common sense and consensus building leader we need to bring New York City back stronger from this crisis.

I’ve been preparing for this job my entire career. First, as a bilingual math and science teacher in the South Bronx, then as the founder of Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union, where we provided badly needed loans and invested in our community. Today, Neighborhood Trust has provided over $200 million in low-interest loans. And 99% of those loans were paid back, on time.

As Council Member I passed Right to Counsel, the ﬁrst-in-the-nation law guaranteeing tenants a lawyer in housing court. 84% of tenants in housing court stayed in their homes because of it, showing that the best way to ﬁght homelessness is keeping people in their homes in the ﬁrst place. As Borough President, I made affordability and improving life in the city my greatest priority. I championed new affordable housing, identifying

sites for 70,000 new units in Manhattan. I have been ﬁghting to ﬁx our broken mental health system, so that New Yorkers with severe mental illness aren’t cycling between the emergency department, the justice system and our streets. I’ve pushed to tear down excessive scaffolding that is impacting public safety, open more public bathrooms, and plant a million trees to make this city livable again. I’ve also been a champion for organized labor and workers across the city, ﬁghting to ensure that workers are paid fairly, have access to a pension that ensures they can retire with dignity, and access to healthcare so that they can take care of themselves and their families.

As Comptroller, I will audit city agencies to eliminate waste, invest our pension funds to ensure that they provide strong returns for pensioners, and ensure public contracts go to responsible, union-friendly employers who treat workers fairly. I’ll use every power of the o?ce, from investment to investigation, to address the everyday issues facing New Yorkers like the cost of rent and childcare and the quality of life issues that are making our communities less liveable.

27. What additional information would you like the Jim Owles club to consider when we are making our endorsement decision?

The work that Jim Owles Democratic Club does to protect, support, and strengthen our community is astounding. I would be honored to earn your support.

28. Are you a potential candidate for City Council speaker in the upcoming term? If so, what is your platform?

N/a

questionnaireJim Owles Liberal Democratic ClubApril 27, 2025nyc compt 2025