Candidate Answers to JOLDC: Maya Wiley for NYC Mayor

Candidate Name: Maya Wiley

Office Seeking Election for: NYC Mayor

Explain, based on life experiences and accomplishments, why you believe you are best qualified to represent your district

I am running for Mayor because I am a change making leader who can bring New Yorkers together to recover from the COVID-19 crisis in a way that reimagines New York City so that it can be a city where we all can thrive. My philosophy is shaped both by my parents’ civil rights and economic justice organizing, living in a gentrifying Black community and attending a segregated school. These experiences taught me how government and policy inscribed structural inequities and that people impacted must be authors of new ones that dismantle what’s unjust and co-create what will support dignity and justice.

I went to law school to do that work. As a civil rights attorney, advocate and nonprofit organization leader, I havespent three decades confronting injustice and working in partnerships to create solutions to systemic problems from inadequate public school funding, access to health care, criminal justice reform and digital divide issues, among many others. I am the only candidate in this race that has formulated and built change making with communities outside of government and has also served as a member of the senior leadership team in City Hall where I had to help make real change and became thoroughly familiar with the inner workings of the mayor's office.

There, I delivered for New Yorkers on civil and human rights, women and minority-owned businesses, universal broadband, and much more. And I did it by pulling people together inside and outside of government - from helping breakthrough the log jam on the first Sanctuary City legislation to getting every single unit in Queensbridge Houses free city broadband. After City Hall I was able to get the case against Daniel Pantaleo to the NYPD and retain civilian protection of that trial, which eventually got him off the force.

I am uniquely positioned to be a transformative leader because I know marshal all of the government’s resources to serve our people and know who has not been served well by the government and how to change that. I will make history, not deals. From a place of principles, I will transcend business-as-usual tinkering and set this City on the path to transformation so that we develop without displacement, a job with a future, an education system that sees all of our children as exceptional and puts the public back in public safety and more. Justice and dignity require it.

This is within our reach, but it requires bold leadership that fearlessly confronts the realities New Yorkers face in partnership with our communities. I have spent three decades doing just that as a civil rights attorney, racial justice advocate, non-profit leader, and as a member of the senior leadership team in City Hall responsible for civil and human rights, women and minority-owned businesses, universal broadband, and much more. I left city government and became the Senior Vice President for Social Justice and joined the faculty at the New School, and stayed engagedin change-making outside of government employment. I served as the Chair of the NYC Civilian Complaint Review Board and also Co-Chaired the School Diversity Advisory Group convened by the Chancellor of the Department of Education.

I will fight for New Yorkers of all races, religions, classes, and sexualities. My vision is a New York that rises fromthe ashes of twin pandemics — coronavirus and systemic racism -- that deny investment for people of color. New Yorkers cannot afford the politics of least resistance and deserve leadership that will beat a path to shared prosperity — to become one city, rising together, out of the ashes and into a future we build and live together.

Please identify any openly LGBTQ candidate for public office you have previously or presently endorsed?

I have no history of endorsing candidates because I am not a politician and this is my first time running for public office.

If applicable, what legislation directly affecting the LGBTQ community have you introduced or co-sponsored? (indicate accordingly)

I am a first time candidate.

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

As a law student at Columbia Law School I participated in it’s AIDS discrimination law clinic representing a clientwho was HIV positive and being threatened with termination and eviction as a result. When Columbia decided toshut the clinic down, I was a student leader that organized a 200 student sit-in to prevent it’s closing.

When I was in City Hall, the Commission on Human Rights was one of the agencies in my portfolio and we issued an executive order requiring gender neutral bathrooms that people be able to use based on their gender identity.

Then I had a child who has since grade school made clear that their gender identity was in process and not fixed and that, ultimately they were explicit, by second or third grade, that they are a a lesbian. Having a child navigating public school and challenging homophobia created a deeper and more personal level of commitment for me.

Do you consider yourself a member of the LGBTQ community?

Have you marched in Pride? Which marches and for approximately how many years?

Yes. Over the years I have marched in solidarity twice. It is all of our responsibility to hold the people andinstitutions accountable that deny the civil liberties of the LGBTQ community.

Have you employed openly LGBTQ individuals previously? Do you employ any currently?

Yes. My staff is currently over 25% LGBTQ.

What press conferences, demonstrations, rallies and protests in support of LGBT issues, pro-choice legislation, criminal justice issues and the Resist Trump Movement have you attended?

I was in the streets this summer marching for justice after the murder of George Floyd and breaking the curfew that I believed was unnecessary and ill-advised. I also watched in horror as the NYPD executed a six-hour siege around the home of a Black Lives Matter activist for using a bullhorn at a protest. We saw unconstitutional use of force in videos. We saw some police officers who did not violate their training and the law, but we saw that leadership defended whatwas unconstitutional and just plain wrong. First and foremost, I will replace the Police Commissioner with one who is accountable to me. Then, I will set clear rules that the department must follow when it comes to protests and all policing for that matter. If the leadership of the department or members of the department do not follow those rules, I will take swift action to hold them accountable.

After the Orlando nightclub shooting, I participated in the rally outside of Stonewall. This massacre was a direct attack on the LGTBQ community and the deadliest incident in history of violence against LGTBQ people in the United States. We all saw the horrors of gun violence, discrimination, and hate against the LGBTQ community that night. Showing up to the demonstration outside of historic Stonewall was my immediate course of action, to show support for and heal with the LGBTQ community in New York and around the country.

I have always been an advocate for reproductive rights and justice, and as I continue to build my healthcare platform, I will ensure that access to reproductive health services are available to everyone, regardless of immigration status orinsurance. Additionally, As a lawyer at the NAACP LDF, I worked with the Black Women’s Health Project on reproductive justice, including strategies to reverse the Hyde Amendment. As Counsel to the Mayor, I met with NYCPlanned Parenthood and facilitated a meeting with the NYPD on greater clinic protections in order to reduce clientharassment by anti-choice protesters. I also joined a NARAL conference as a panelist to discuss the importance ofRoe v. Wade.

Have you ever been arrested? If so please explain why and outcome of arrest.

No. I have never been arrested.

Do you commit to visiting constituents who are incarcerated in state prisons and city jails?

Yes. I took my staff to Rikers when I was working at City Hall. It’s one thing to read about it. It’s another thing to see it. I believe it is always necessary to remind ourselves of the real, tangible effects on the lives of individuals when we make policy, and that our choices as leaders and lawmakers do not remain just on sheets of paper. It is very important to me that not only I visited Rikers, but my staff did as well. Iwill make this same commitment as mayor.

Will you affirmatively seek to hire formerly incarcerated individuals?

Absolutely. Job security for formerly incarcerated individuals is a key part of the reparations we owe to the Black and Brown communities that have been historically over-policed and targeted for years. We know the facts and the realities; Black people continue to be over-policed, arrested, and convicted at higher rates than white communities, especially for marijuana possession. We also know that interaction with the criminal justice system creates systemicbarriers to employment, voting in elections, and owning/renting property. Therefore, it is my responsibility to begin to reverse these systems of oppression in as many ways as I can. I believe building a diverse team that develops equitable policies is successful when the people developing those policies are closest to the communities they serve.

Describe your legislative and policy vision for combating systemic racism

Racial justice means building a society premised on equity of outcomes - where no matter what you look like or your zip code, you have the necessities of life and where disparities are identified and being eradicated. Everyone is seen and treated as a valued member with all the rights and responsibilities that entails and all of the voice andagency that membership demands.

Given our history and perpetuation of structural racism, racial justice is ensuring that communities of color arecentered in our recovery, in our spaces, and in all of our policymaking. Racial justice cannot happen without listening to the voices that have historically been ignored and supporting the change those voices demand. Racial justice is dignity.

The pandemic, like the murder of George Floyd made plain to some Americans what has been painfully obvious - racism, sgregation, disinvestment and oppression are a present day reality. People of color, in particular people of color working in service sector industries, have borne the brunt of this crisis in all aspects- from housing, to employment, to their very lives. Yet communities of color have kept this city running. As we work toward recovery, we need to movetoward a just and equitable New York. The old normal, the status quo, was not and is not good enough, nor did it ever serve the most vulnerable and most marginalized residents of our city. I have spent the entirety of my career fighting for racial justice, from founding the Center for Social Inclusion to my work at the mayor’s office fighting for broadband access for communities of color.

All of my policy proposals focus on and call for racial equity. The cornerstone of my economic recovery agenda is New Deal New York, an ambitious WPA model capital investment program that centers both job growth and needed infrastructure investments and repairs in communities of color that have been left behind on both fronts. I will implement an enforceable targeted hire strategy to ensure that the most impacted New Yorkers get jobs in their neighborhoods- a goal that past administrations have failed to achieve. The plan also includes an expansion of MWBE contracts to local small businesses, including those in the city’s manufacturing sector, which provides good paying jobs to men of color, and should be expanded and invested in.

Communities of color will be invested in, rather than extracted from, and centered as drivers of economic growth.

I will also invest in the care economy through my Universal Community Care plan- women of color make up themajority of care workers in New York and have borne the brunt of job loss, yet there is a rising need for care workersin the city. For example, 62% of Black immigrant domestic workers reported job loss. I will ensure worker protections and community wealth building by expanding on the successful model of Cooperative Home CareAssociates, the

largest worker co-op in the nation, located in the South Bronx. I am committed to learning from the mistakes that our city made after past crises- a simple focus on expanding the tax base, rather than investing in its people.

Will you not seek, and refuse, the endorsement of Bill de Blasio?

Yes. I am not seeking the endorsement of Bill de Blasio. If he endorses, I will refuse it.

In view of the fact that Ed Koch has been documented to have caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people with AIDS, and was blatantly racist, would you support and sponsor a bill to rename the formerQueensboro Bridge?

Yes. If a bill reaches my desk, I will sign it.

What is your position on removing the Christopher Columbus statue in Columbus Circle and if so, what should replace it?

I stand in solidarity with Indigenous communities who carry the trauma and genocide associated with Christopher Columbus. I will work with community members and various social justice coalitions to figure out what the right approach is for addressing public monuments that represent some of our Country’s darkest moments.

Will you refuse contributions from real estate developers and all law enforcement unions or associations?

Yes.

Do you support reducing the budget of the NYPD and if so, by how much?

We need to put the Public back in Public Safety. This means a top to bottom restructuring of the NYPD, beginning with strong civilian oversight at the front end of policing -- policies that make clear what policing is and is not, what conduct will not be tolerated, as well as the priorities of policing, which I describe as problem-oriented, rather thanpunitive. When I am Mayor, I will do the following:

1. Freeze the incoming NYPD and DOCCs cadet classes for two years, reducing the NYPD headcount by 2,500officers, and use the savings to fund a Universal Community Care income, which would give our city’s lowest income families a $5,000 annual caregiving income.

2. Run a full audit of the NYPD’s budget -- including the out of budget expenses such as settlements -- to assess the facts and make necessary cuts, including to the number of uniformed officers.

3.Move mental health calls, routine traffic violations, and school safety out of the NYPD.

4. Assert civilian oversight of all policies and priorities of the NYPD on the front end. We cannot only assert civilian oversight to engage in discipline. We must prevent the nefarious acts from happening at the outset.

5. Hire a police commissioner that has not just moved up the ranks of the NYPD rank and file. We need a newmodel of leadership to work as a partner with the people to transform policing.

6. Create a shift from “containment and control” policing that produces strategies like unconstitutional “stop and frisks” and make “community and problem-oriented policing” the model, which requires collaboration and partnership with other agencies and communities. This approach focuses on underlying conditions identified and understood with communities and drawing in and working with other governmental partners to solve them. Eric Garner lost his life because he allegedly sold an untaxed cigarette. A community and problem-oriented approachwould have worked with store owners, who were complaining, and also other agencies to address that poverty meant people were selling untaxed goods and how to find solutions that did not require an arrest for being poor. Too often the NYPD responds to problems of poverty, not of crime. We need to ensure that if the NYPD receives a call about a poverty problem, the right city agencies are involved and cycling people through prison is not the solution.

7. End the criminalization of poverty and close Rikers while creating more alternatives to incarceration and reentry programs.

8. Invest in what keeps our communities safe like youth programs, job and workforce creation and other community-sourced safety initiatives. The Gun Violence Prevention Plan that I released in November is an example of this approach. This plan is entirely focused on investing in the programs that actually keep our communities safe, including the creation of an $18 million Participatory Justice program that will give communities the resources they need to decide what and how they want to invest in their neighborhoods.

How would you have voted on the FY21 City Budget?

I would have voted no on the FY21 City Budget. The budget did not reflect a progressive fiscal and policy commitment to transforming policing and addressing the systemic racism of the criminal justice system, especially with regards to policing in schools. It was just moving the deck chairs around. We have to stop tinkering and start transforming public safety. And that starts with reallocating $1B from the NYPD back into communities.

Are you in favor of removing police from any of the following? a) Schools; b) Mental health response calls; c)Homeless outreach and social services; or d) Traffic enforcement.

Yes. When I am Mayor, I will run a full audit of the NYPD’s budget -- including the out of budget expenses such as settlements -- to assess the facts and make necessary cuts to the department. I strongly believe that we must rightsize the NYPD and, yes, that means reducing the number of uniformed officers in the force. First, I have already announced that I will cut future cadet classes by 2250 cadets in order to fund my Universal Community Care plan. In addition, I will move mental health calls, routine traffic stops and school safety out of the department as well as get rid of the Vice Squad. For years the NYPD has made unsupported statements to defend their budget. This has inpart lead to a bureaucracy that is top heavy, with a senior leadership that is bloated and redundant, where too many resources go to funding administrative positions that don’t impact the department’s ability to respond to and investigate serious crime, illegal guns, and threats of terrorism.

Should the NYPD Vice Squad be eliminated?

Yes and I am committed to disbanding the Vice Squad immediately when I am mayor, as part of my plan to rightsize the NYPD.

Should Dermot Shea be fired immediately?

Yes. I first called for Dermot Shea to be fired in July of 2020. When I am Mayor, I will replace the Police Commissioner with one who is accountable to me and did not rise through the ranks of the NYPD. Then, I will set clear rules that the department must follow when it comes to protests and all policing for that matter. If the leadership of the department or members of the department do not follow those rules, I will take swift action to hold them accountable.

Should the NYPD Commissioner require confirmation by the City Council?

I think it is important that our elected officials are given a platform to share their thoughts on some of the NYPD Commissioner candidates. At this time, I commit to hiring a police commissioner that has demonstrated a sincere commitment to transforming the institution of policing. Candidates for the position will include civilian police reform experts and reformers who may have also moved up the ranks of the NYPD. As I choose the best Commissioner for the job, I will make sure that I meet with all relevant policy experts, policing experts and professionals, and communities directly impacted by policing in order to make an informed and equitable decision.

How would you recommend police officers be penalized for refusing to wear masks in public while on duty, in defiance of city and state rules?

I believe we must do everything in our power to enforce the guidelines laid out by the CDC. The CDC guidelines continue to slow the spread of covid-19 and therefore must be followed until we have more information on the virus’transmission. As Mayor, the Police commissioner and entire department answer to me, and i will use my authority to update the patrol guide and enforce all public health rules and regulations, including the mask mandate.

What reforms would you make to the Civilian Complaint Review Board? Would you support state legislation to make CCRB disciplinary determinations binding?

As a former co-chair of the CCRB, I know first hand how important it is that we empower the CCRB and that we remove disciplinary authority from the Police Commissioner and put it into Civilian hands.

What is your position on the plan to close Rikers and create four borough-based jails?

Closing Rikers Island is a moral imperative. Rikers Island has long been a disgrace to New York City and closing it needs to happen as soon as possible. I support the Close Rikers plan and the recently passed Renewable Rikers bill.

To decarcerate NYC, I will ensure that the NYPD polices crime, not poverty. We need to ensure that if the NYPD receives a call about a poverty problem, the right city agencies are involved and the NYPD is not. This will significantly cut down on incarceration, as will expanded alternatives to incarceration and re-entry programs.

As Mayor, rather than investing in prisons, I will invest in what keeps our communities safe like youth programs, joband workforce creation and other community-sourced safety initiatives. The Gun Violence Prevention Plan that I released in November is an example of this approach. This plan is entirely focused on investing in the programs that actually keep our communities safe,

including the creation of an $18million Participatory Justice program that will give communities the resources they need to decide what and how they want to invest in their neighborhoods.

Will you advocate for the Governor to review sentences of incarcerated individuals over the age 55 who have served in excess of 15 years to determine if they warrant release?

Yes. The criminal justice system needs to be reformed at all levels, including judicial and gubernatorial discretion. Gubernatorial and judicial discretion are barriers to restorative sentencing. I plan to transform the criminal justice system into an institution that gives incarcerated individuals that were over-policed and from historically under-invested communities a second chance. Decreasing the number of incarcerated New Yorkers overtime requires the consistent review of sentences in order to direct those that were previously detained to social and rehabilitative services and programs.

It’s common knowledge that New York City’s 311 system is not adequately responsive to the public’sconcerns. How would you alter the 311 system to combat these problems?

Our 311 system is woefully underfunded and inefficient despite delivering a vital service to New Yorkers. I would support 311 by reallocating funds for expansion and ensuring that the department’s inefficiencies are eliminated. Additionally, I would ensure that we have diverse language options so that this service can truly be available to allNew Yorkers.

Do you support decriminalizing sex work? Will you pledge to oppose the Nordic model?

I strongly support decriminalizing sex workers but do not support decriminalizing buyers. I have deep concerns about the unintended consequences on trafficking. I do not however intend to engage in this fight in Albany, as this is a state legislative issue. As Mayor I commit to listening and partnering to ensure that we are making real and meaningful change for trans sex workers.

That will include ending the VICE unit, funding and supporting community-driven solutions, including health, safety, justice and support services.

Do you oppose school screening, which exacerbates segregation? Which screens in your school district(s) will you advocate to abolish?

Yes. I oppose all discriminatory school screenings because they are tools to segregate students by race and socio-economic status, and therefore deny educational opportunity equitably across our City. I will advocate to abolish the SHSAT at the specialized high schools not listed in the Albany legislation.I will also remove all middle and high school screens. I plan to transform gifted and talented programming in order to serve all children, not just those who can pass a standardized test at the age of 4. I believe the only assessments schools should implement are those that seek to identify students in need of individualized and specialized instruction and/or supplemental services. The proper identification and distribution of resources for students with disabilities, ELL learners, etc is a federally protected right and must be prioritized.

Describe what reforms you would make to the control of the NYC public school system.

I released my plan for a Just and Vibrant School System last week. It includes a commitment to decreasing class sizes, hiring 1000 more classroom teachers, providing daily arts education for all students as well as a commitment to restructure and reform mayoral control to ensure more collaboration and community leadership between theDepartment of Education, Mayor’s Office, and other State agencies and organizations. One way I will do this is by appointing a Chief Integration and Equity Officer to oversee the integration process, ensure tight, achievabletimeframes, and coordinate between agencies to reduce mutually reinforcing patterns of residential and school segregation.

Do you support public funding of abortion?

Yes, I support an individual’s right to obtain a safe, legal abortion, covered by all insurance including New YorkState Medicaid. I also support the right of individuals to access the abortion method they and their physician deem safest for their health and needs. I also support New York youth’s ability to confidentially access sexual and reproductive health services, including safe, legal abortion.

Do you support the creation of safe consumption sites? Would you support the use of NYC DOHMH authority to establish SCSs without NYSDOH authorization?

I support exploring the potential creation of a comprehensive rehabilitation system that provides a multitude of services ranging from safe consumption to mental health services to employment opportunities. It is important we take a holistic approach to understanding drug use and use all of our social services at our disposal to support individuals where they are at. As we build restorative centers, we must be conscious of where we place them in order to truly serve communities equitably and fairly.

Do you smoke or otherwise consume weed?

No, I do not smoke or otherwise consume weed. However, I do support the full legalization of marijuana and will work to ensure that the communities who have been hit hardest by over-enforcement are the ones to benefit from the economic boon that will come from legalization.

We will use legalization as an opportunity to bring ownership of the marijuana industry to the Black and Brown communities that were disproportionately criminalized for marijuana possession. This will help rebuild communities of color whose neighborhoods and local economies suffered as a result of mass-incarceration. We will do this bygiving priority access to licensing for local minority owned businesses and potentially distribute specific licenses forBlack communities or New Yorkers that were formerly incarcerated for low-level marijuana possession. As Mayor, I will prevent the vertical integration of major corporations allowed to grow with a single license in order to leave space for small businesses to receive the real economic benefits of legalization and complete ownership of this industry. As Mayor, I will expunge all records related to low level arrests for possession of marijuana. I will support the enforcement of fair chance policies, including a ban on employers asking about criminal history of job applicants related to marijuana. These two policies will ensure that formerly incarcerated individuals retain their right to vote, pursue employment, and receive all of the socio-political and economic benefits systemically reserved for people who’ve had no interaction with the criminal justice system.

Have you ever supported any of the members of the IDC? If so, who? What did you do to help defeat the IDC in 2018?

No, I did not support any of the members of the IDC.

What will you do to support nightlife in NYC?

The nightlife industry is a significant part of New York City’s economy, supporting 299,000 jobs and generating $35.1B in economic output. The City must do everything we can to get nightlife employees back to work. I will work closely with the nightlife mayor to support the nightlife industry. I will tackle the issue of commercial rents and venue closures once the pandemic has ended. While we await a safe reopening of our city’s cultural institutions, I will alsosupport open streets and find appropriate outdoor and safe venues to provide opportunities for performers, artists, and musicians. Additionally, I will be releasing my Arts & Culture Policy platform shortly, which will further highlight these goals.

Do you commit to speak with restaurant and nightlife industry representatives before taking a position on any policies that affect their businesses?

Yes. The City of New York has historically lacked a dedicated plan to address the needs of restaurants and its workers. Restaurants need a dedicated advocate within the City government working to address their unique needs –especially now with the restaurant industry and workers

-- who are predominantly minorities and immigrants -- being disproportionately hit by the COVID crisis.

Will you work to place restaurant, bar, and club owners on community boards? Will you commit to not appointing or reappointing community board members who are hostile to food and beverage establishments?

Yes, I believe we must encourage a new generation of New Yorkers to join community boards and I will partner with the City Council and Borough Presidents to encourage new participants who understand the importance of helping responsible restaurants and nightlife thrive in our City.

Now that the cabaret law was repealed do you support amending the zoning resolution to allow patrons to dance at more venues and eliminate the restrictions against dancing?

Yes, I support amending the zoning resolution to allow patrons to dance at more venues. Restrictions against dancing are harmful to New Yorkers on a personal and collective level. I believe recreational dancing is a form of expression and deserves to be invested in. Eliminating regulatory barriers will help our economic recovery by supporting the opening of venues, help us heal from the pandemic through cultural and community gathering, and reinvigorate our tourism industry by investing in arts and culture.

Did you oppose the de Blasio/Cuomo proposal (and giveaways) for bringing Amazon’s HQ2 to Long Island City?

I wasn’t in government during the Amazon fight but I watched closely from the sidelines. It represented a paralysis of leadership. Government should not be in the business of providing unaccountable tax breaks to bad corporateactors. If I had been Mayor at the time, I would have ensured that no tax breaks were offered until all of the project’s benefits were recouped. I also would have led with those benefits and laid out what the community and the City would gain with the $13B+ of revenue that would have come to us. Additionally, I would have ensured that the voices of impacted residents, such as the Queensbridge Houses residents, were centered, and their needs, ideas, and opinions were uplifted. I would have engaged the community and stakeholders earlier in the process to ensure that City and Amazon could both hear and respond to the valid concerns that others had raised throughout.

What role do you believe the local member should play in the approval of development proposals before the Council?

It's time to rethink our City’s approach to land use writ large, and ensure a fair distribution of resources and development that takes into account community needs and corrects for historic disinvestment, displacement and exclusion. Rezonings and land use changes are one of the most powerful tools we have for undoing legacies of racial inequity within our housing system and addressing the affordability crisis, while building climate resilience.

I support comprehensive planning that starts with establishing fair, transparent principles including: Providing truly affordable housing without displacement; Creating good jobs with accountability; Equitable transit and community infrastructure; and Zoning affordable housing in areas with low flood risk. We must ensure fair distribution of resources across the city.

Do you support legislation to prohibit discrimination against formerly incarcerated people in housing?

Yes.

Do you oppose the removal of the nearly 300 homeless individuals from the Lucerne hotel due to pressure from some local residents?

Yes, and I was one of the first advocates to stand with the men at the Lucerne.

Through the time I have spent with the men at the Lucerne hotel, especially my friend and activist Shams Dabaron, I have learned that all New Yorkers are housing ready. The question is merely, is there somewhere safe and affordable for them to live? And for those with other needs, can they access the services they need to help foster stability? I will also work to reduce homelessness by ensuring that people can stay in their homes. I released a plan to fight evictionsand provide rental assistance and legal support to those at risk of losing their homes because of the pandemic. We also need to find ways to immediately house people. Approximately 4,000 people are sleeping on the streets on any given night. At the same time, around 100 hotels will likely go bankrupt due to the pandemic. In addition to increasing support and outreach to homeless individuals, I would explore ways for the city to acquire these properties to convert them into permanently supportive housing. We also need to ensure housing for low income and extremely low income people is built but in safe, accessible locations. All housing that is built with City resources should be subject to City oversight. I commit to City oversight of city funded housing and monitoring based on a set of metrics developed with the engagement of tenants and community based organizations.

What proposals will you advocate for to protect immigrants and further New York as a Sanctuary City?

ICE has no place in our City. I was deeply involved with early efforts to keep ICE out of Rikers and would continue this work to get ICE, and it's unconscionable practices, out of public buildings for good. It is critical that all people be able to safely access public services, courthouses and other public facilities without fear of being terrorized.

As Counsel the Mayor, I took a leadership role in ensuring the passage of the City’s first Sanctuary City legislation. When it looked like internal disagreements may stand in the way of passing Sanctuary City legislation, I broke through the bureaucratic impasse within city government to force all relevant agencies to come together and work through their disagreements and challenges to get to a bill that could pass. One of my top priorities as Mayor, will be hiring a police commissioner that has not just moved up the ranks of the NYPD rank and file. We need a new model of leadership to work as a partner with the people to transform policing. I will make sure that the commissioner I hire respects the contribution undocumented immigrants make to New York City and prevents the department from collaborating with ICE. I will also direct City agencies to do everything legally in their power to avoid cooperating with ICE in any way.

Do you support a single-payer universal health care system? Please elaborate on what policy and legislative steps the City can take to expand access and affordability.

Yes. Health care is a human right. Every New Yorker should have access to quality, affordable healthcare that includes a full range of reproductive services regardless of income level or immigration status.We must also acknowledge that our healthcare workers and caregivers have been taking care of us for far too long without us returning the obligation. I am looking forward to partnering with the 250,000 members of SEIU 1199 and other healthcare workers to create comprehensive strategies to support our healthcare workers.

As Mayor I will expand on the City’s efforts through NYC Well, improving on the patchwork of programs that currently exist to serve City residents. I am also working with experts to explore strategies that would create affordable health insurance options for New Yorkers not covered by existing programs, including undocumented immigrants. My campaign will be releasing a proposal for a new City-supported health insurance plan that will be available to people

ineligible for regular Medicaid, employer health insurance, or Obamacare coverage. It will include access for undocumented immigrants, dependents of workers whose employer insurance does not adequately cover them, and others who have no opportunity to enroll in an affordable plan. Such a plan would be affordable and cover reproductive services, even in a time of challenges to the City budget. Combining the resources currently spent by the government to support care for the uninsured, premium payments, using existing City-sponsored health services,leveraging affordable prices from private providers, and careful management will make such a plan possible. In addition to establishing new programs, we also must invest in our public hospitals, clinics, and healthcare facilities that provide critical care to Black, brown, immigrant and low-income communities decimated by COVID.

Who did you support for office in the following primaries or special elections: A) Mayor in 2013 B) PublicAdvocate in 2013 and 2019, C) President in 2016 and 2020 D) Governor and Attorney General in 2018?

LEAVE BLANK

Top 3 issues you aim to address locally and legislatively

Criminal Justice - We need to put the Public back in Public Safety. This means a top to bottom restructuring of the NYPD, beginning with strong civilian oversight at the front end of policing -- policies that make clear what policing is and is not, what conduct will not be tolerated, as well as the priorities of policing, which I describe as problem-oriented, rather than punitive. When I am Mayor, I will do the following:

2. Run a full audit of the NYPD’s budget -- including the out of budget expenses such as settlements -- to assess the facts and make necessary cuts, including to the number of uniformed officers.

3.Move mental health calls, routine traffic violations, and school safety out of the NYPD.

5. Hire a police commissioner that has not just moved up the ranks of the NYPD rank and file. We need a newmodel of leadership to work as a partner with the people to transform policing.

7. End the criminalization of poverty and close Rikers while creating more alternatives to incarceration and reentry programs.

Economy - We don’t just need a recovery, we need to reimagine what New York City looks like. COVID has not hit every community the same, and our plan needs to reflect that.

While some industries have partially recovered, people of color continue to suffer the worst, economically. As ofSeptember, Black and Latinx households had much higher rates of food and housing insecurity, and Asian householdswere experiencing considerable housing insecurity.

Nearly a third of households with incomes below $50,000 were food and housing insecure.

These examples make clear that while some in the city are doing okay, entire swaths of New York are struggling just to get by and are in danger of being forgotten.

This is why, as the first plank of my Economic Recovery Plan, I announced New Deal New York, a $10B capitalinvestment program to put residents back to work and invest in the future of our communities. My plan will create a 5-year centrally managed $10B capital spending program for public works projects. The program will fund much-needed development, infrastructure repairs, and enhancements. The fund would consist of committed unspent capital funds and new capital dollars financed by City debt. It will also prioritize new kinds of investments that support our recovery while addressing the structural issues that cause racial and gender inequities. New Deal New York willtarget investments based on a comprehensive analysis of capital needs across five boroughs, using metrics including racial disparities in income, unemployment, capital need and city investment over the past decade, to ensure capital dollars are utilized in the most underinvested communities first. On Day One I will appoint a New Deal Czar who will report directly to me in City Hall and be responsible for implementing the program.

I have also put forward a plan for Universal Community Care -- is an ambitious interagency plan that rebuilds economic growth in sectors dominated by women of color and ensures that these jobs are good jobs, addresses the crisis of affordable childcare and eldercare, and fights for fair wages and protections for workers in the care economy. Universal Community Care recognizes that care exists in many forms: from paid childcare and elder care to direct services provided by frontline nonprofit workers to care provided within the home by family, to neighborshelping

neighbors. This model will redirect $300 million in diverted resources from incoming NYPD and DOCCS cadet classes to give 100,000 high need informal caregivers a $5,000 annual stipend to compensate them for their labor. Using the Universal Community Care Model, I will also build community centers providing free childcare, eldercare, and other services in each neighborhood. And it will create strong, meaningful worker protections for our city’s careworkers.

Housing - At its core, homelessness is an eviction crisis and all New Yorkers are housing ready. It is incumbent uponthe government to provide affordable housing with the services and support that people need. In this current crisis, we need to ensure that people can stay in their homes. I will expand the right to counsel to provide free legal representation to tenants facing eviction.

We also need to find ways to immediately house people. Approximately 4,000 people are sleeping on the streets onany given night. At the same time, around 100 hotels will likely go bankrupt due to the pandemic. As Mayor, I will explore ways for the city to acquire these properties to convert them into permanently supportive housing. But in order to keep people in their homes and realize the humanitarian benefits and financial savings from doing so, we need to make a significant initial investment in direct rent relief. In December, Congressional Republicans finally stopped playing politics with people’s lives and a COVID-19 reliefpackage was passed. Based on initial estimates, we anticipate $251M in Emergency Rental Assistance funding for the City. Even as we prepare for more resources from Washington, we know that it will likely not come close to addressing the massive housing crisis that has been exacerbated by this pandemic. I put forward a plan to use the $251m from the December Federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program to:

1. provide long-term solutions and stability instead of continuing the destabilizing pattern of providing month-by-month aid that does nothing to ease the painful psychic burden of housing uncertainty;

2. stop New Yorkers hit by the crisis from being evicted;

3. help small and nonprofit landlords who cannot afford to absorb the loss of nonpayments;

4. address the reality that many families will still fall into homelessness and require rapid relief to remain in or return to housing.

In the long term, the best defense against homelessness is ensuring that New York’s housing stock is safe and truly affordable for all New Yorkers. We need to build on the success of the housing first model by moving homeless individuals to subsidized housing and then linking them to support services. We would save money by investing in permanent supportive housing and repurposing vacant hotels and commercial space to do so.

Mayor de Blasio has indicated his intent to call a third Charter Revision Commission, what additional reforms would you support to 1) the budget process, 2) the land use process, and 3) the powers and duties of municipal offices?

I am committed to using every tool available to help build more supportive and affordable housing in New York, including reforming zoning and land use mechanisms where appropriate. These changes require charter reform, andI will work closely with the incoming City Council to identify an appropriate process to make the changes recommended by community advocates that ensure an equitable land use process.

In addition, I support reforms to the procurement process, particularly in the case of nonprofits. We need to simplify our often byzantine procurement and payment processes and make it easier for organizations to partner with us. Organizations can't be expected to "front" funds for months while contracts slowly wind their way through our system. I am committed to working with the nonprofit sector to cut unnecessary bureaucratic red tape, achieve needed reforms, and will look to organizations as important partners in program design and service delivery to communities.

Please explain your vision for the present powers of the office you are seeking and how you intend to exercise them?

We have a strong mayor system in New York City. Over the past generation, with the elimination of the board of estimate, numerous charter changes, term limits, public campaign financing and mayoral control of the schools, we have concentrated power and capability in the Office of the Mayor.

And in the unprecedented post-pandemic circumstances that the next mayor will inherit, we need a mayor with the courage and capability to utilize the powers of the office—all of the powers of the office—for recovery and reimagining so that this city is for all our people.

Every candidate in this field has real experience and skill in some of these areas. The people running for mayor this year are highly-capable. I respect and appreciate each and every one of them.

But voters have to choose which one of us has the best combination of skills and experience to manage the city in this time for change.

First and foremost, a great city needs a mayor with vision—a mayor with the courage and creativity to think transformationally about government systems and social structures, a mayor who can seize the hope these challenging times uniquely creates and build on it. That defines my life and my work.

I don’t look away from big problems—and I’m offering transformative solutions in this campaign.

Solutions like my New Deal New York proposal for a ten billion dollar investment to create 100,000 new jobs and invest in the economic future of our communities.

Solutions like my Care Economy plan to address the intertwined challenges of the mental health crisis and the affordability crisis by investing in vulnerable families by providing five thousand dollar annual grants to 100,000 ofNew York’s most high-need families to use toward caregiving expenses. We need to offer hope and help because we can’t lose a generation of youth to crime, violence, lack of opportunity and the traumas they impose.

At the same time, vision without proven policy coordination capability is just another false promise.

Things don’t get done just because the mayor says so. Transformational change happens in New York when there’s a mayor who declares a priority, is unflinchingly focused on accomplishing it and uses all the levers of government and all the powers of the mayoralty to get it done. That’s the success story of safe streets, safe cities, the CornellTechnion Project, and universal pre-k.

And that’s what I accomplished during my time in City Hall when the mayor put me in charge of building out broadband infrastructure for New Yorkers abandoned on the far side of the digital divide. I showed city hall where we had the dollars. With no single agency responsible for “broadband for all” I pulled multiple agencies together and got every single unit in Queensbridge Houses free broadband. Had I stayed in city hall, we would have had more public housing with free broadband in the apartments before Covid.

City government is not a command and control organization. It is an organization of people—a set of public systems run by over 50 agencies—and successful operations are not just a technical exercise. The way I get things done—like getting women and minority business enterprise contracts up from $500m to $1.6B with a job title with no staff and no budget -- required starting with the right leaders in city government-- qualified folks in all the important positions.

Listening to them. Listening to communities and to outside experts. We pulled together everyone from MWBEsto electeds and government agencies. That’s how I get things done.

We also need a mayor who knows how to do real, effective oversight of city agencies.

Micro-managing kills initiative in city government. At the same time, inadequate oversight of the 45 mayoral agencies is an invitation to inaction or corruption.

I was privileged to serve as chair of the largest independent police oversight agency in the United States. as CCRB chair, when the Justice Department, the Mayor and the Police Commissioner had long failed to take action in the Eric Garner case, I brought that case before the board, we reviewed the evidence, including the medical examiner’s report, and the board I led voted to charge officer Daniel Panteleo with use of excessive force in the death of Eric Garner.The CCRB prosecution unit finally tried the case. And that’s why Officer Pantaleo is no longer on the payroll of the NYPD.

I’m the only candidate in this field who has practiced law. And my training will serve this city well, not just in making the right legal call, like I did in the Garner case, but in asking the right questions, gathering the right information and using the judgment I’ve been trained in. There’s a reason that so many of our great government chief executives have been lawyers, from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and Barack Obama on down to many of our best mayors.

As a lawyer, I’m trained to ask hard questions about contracts, about legislation and to manage the litigation that can often be the difference between getting something done and a project being processed to death.

As an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York, I worked on civil fraud and civil rights and defended the day-to-day actions of federal government agencies helping them clear the way to carry out their missions.

I always used my skills to fight for fairness and equity.

As a staff attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, I sued to save maternity ward and neo-natal beds in Harlem for Black and Latina women and their newborn babies. I lobbied on reforming this nation’s health care system with the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, having developed the proposals the civil rights coalition carried.

When i was a young lawyer at the ACLU, I helped develop legal strategies to get more state funding into public schools and helped to sue Pan Am airlines for discriminating against passengers who appeared to be Muslim during the first Iraq war.

So many of the vital services the city of New York provides—from foster care to homeless services to affordable housing development—are actually delivered by non-for-profit contractors. I’ve worked in some of the best nonprofits in America—the Inc. Fund, the ACLU, the Open Society Foundation. I know how to manage nonprofitsand work in partnership with them.

This is not a new fight for me. It’s my life’s work. And it’s the work we have to do to recover what we love about this city – our culture, our vibrancy and our very diversity but in a way that ensures we improve life for communities of color in new york.

The mayor has to lead the city by crafting legislation to solve problems and often by lobbying in Albany and D.C.on behalf of the people of the city. I’m no novice here either. In the 1990s, I was lobbying congress on health-care reform, seeking to end racial disparities in the delivery of health care services.

The way we do budgeting and fiscal management in our city needs to evolve in this time of change too. I’ve tried to show that in this campaign by showing exactly how I propose to pay for each policy I’ve proposed.

Fiscal management is not a technical skill alone. It’s a people process. I’m going to do people first budgeting. No more asking agencies to come in with pegs [Programs to Eliminate the Gap] of three to five percent and making arbitrary and often inefficient budget cuts. When I review those PEGs, I’m not just going to say “ok” and chop offthe top without any thinking about what a moral and efficient budget looks like. Too often municipal budget cuts protect management and sacrifice service delivery. We’ll do strategic budgeting, looking to cut low-priorities notcritical services, trimming the fat not hacking at bone.

President Kennedy taught that “to govern is to choose.” and I’ll make choices—intentional, strategic, equitable choices to target our resources on the problems we need to solve.

That brings me to the last of the mayoral tools I want to talk about today: decision-making.

In the end, the mayor is the chief executive officer who makes the key decisions for the city of New York. I will bethe kind of mayor who decides very clearly what needs to happen—and I will empower agency leaders to make change and I will stay out of their way when they’re on mission.

I will also be a mayor who will not be afraid to say “no” when “no” needs to be said. I’ll explain why I’m saying no.People respect clarity, transparency and decisiveness. And that’s the approach I’ll bring to City Hall.

I’m the kind of person who says clearly and decisively “we’re going to get this done. We’re all going to come to the table. If you’ve got real problems, I will throw my body at them to clear the way. If you’re always telling me“that’s not the way it’s done,” I’m going to challenge to to get it done, I’m going to help show you the way and I’m going to hold you accountable.

That’s how I’ve learned to do things in my career as a public interest advocate inside and outside of government.These are the life lessons and experiences I bring to this campaign and that I’ll put to work as your mayor.

Do you commit to working with Jim Owles during your campaign and while in office? What role can the club and the progressive LGBT community play in holding you accountable?

Yes. I am a proud progressive and will govern as one. As someone who has never run for office before and never intended to, I will transform what has robbed too many New Yorkers of dignity -- specifically Black, Brown, and immigrant New Yorkers -- and improve lives, making the city more fair and more just than it was before. I am, and forever will be, accountable to the people. That is why I have made People’s Assemblies a center piece of my candidate and intend to continue them into my administration.

I believe in listening, learning, and then leading in partnership. That is how I have managed in every leadership role I have ever held and would remain true as Mayor. For too long, regular New Yorkers -- particularly workers of color -- have been excluded from the rooms where policies and decisions are being made. For too long, politicians have courted the votes of our people by going to them at election time to ask “what’s your list” and coming back in Government to say “this is why I can’t do what I promised, but I have a new plan to make your life better.” For toolong, those broken promises and failed plans have eroded trust and kept our families behind.

I believe that the experiences and expertise of impacted communities is essential to making government work for its people. That is why I have made People’s Assemblies a pillar of my campaign. Through the People’s Assemblies process we are able to engage in a dialogue with New Yorkers about their needs and priorities as well as the ideas they have, and center that experience in our policy-making process. For instance, the first two policies we released were our Gun Violence Prevention Policy and our Eviction Prevention Policy came directly fromPeople’s Assembly discussions and we worked on and stressed tested by policy experts and advocates in the respective areas before being released.

If you receive the endorsement, do you agree to identify the club on all literature and electronic materials where you list endorsements?

Yes of course.

What additional information would you like Jim Owles to consider when we are making our endorsement decisions?

I am running for Mayor to transform New York City, not tinker. We must reimagine our city and take on structural inequality, racism, homophobia and transphobia to finally fix what has been broken for far too long for Black, Brown, LGBTQ+, Indigenous, Immigrant, other marginalized communities and women of all races. As Mayor, I will appoint a police commissioner that makes sure there is no tolerance for homophobia and transphobia in the department and makes stopping hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community a priority. We will have a housing plan focused on homeless youth given the devastatingly high rates for LGBTQ+ youth. It is essential that the New YorkCity public school system serves the needs of all its students. I plan to greatly increase the number of mental health professionals in our city’s public schools and I will make sure they have the capability to address the unique mental health challenges of LGBTQ+ students. I will also work to expand anti-bullying programs while making sure that all public school students have access to comprehensive, age-appropriate sex education that includes discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity.

My administration will expand funding for culturally competent mental health services for the LGBTQ+ communityand work to increase access to HIV and STI prevention medications. I will also provide funding for staff at city hospitals that will act as case managers and advocates for Transgender, non-Binary and Gender Nonconforming patients. No one should be denied access to health care because of their chosen gender expression. I will expand funding for The New York City Commission on Human Rights as well as employment programs tailored to Transgender, non-Binary and Gender non-conforming New Yorkers. I also recognize that the LGBTQ+ homeless population faces unique challenges, especially LGBTQ+ youth. Myadministration will invest in supported SROs, increase outreach through ACS to create more supportive loving foster opportunities for LGBTQ+ youth and work to construct more culturally competent affordable housing targeted to the LGBTQ+ community.

I will also commit to retaining the New York City Unity Project if elected Mayor. The New York City Unity Project has been an important vehicle for improving services for New York City’s LGBTQ+ youth. It is essential that city agencies that deliver services to a specific population coordinate and work together to deliver the highest quality services as efficiently as possible.

Currently, 16 different city agencies provide services to New York City’s LGBTQ+ youth. As Mayor, I will work to expand funding to the New York City Unity Project and focus more on analysis of program structure, effectiveness and areas of need. I will then increase funding for the City’s most effective programs, institute the reforms needed to improve those that are underperforming and either expand or create new ones to address gaps in service. One program I can commit to refunding right now is New York City Unity works, an employment program aimed at homeless LGBTQ+ youth. Although COVID has created a revenue crisis we cannot rebuild our city by cutting programs aimed at the most vulnerable New Yorkers. A smart recovery is an equitable recovery and relies on investment, not on austerity measures that tell hungry people to simply tighten their belts.

questionnaireJim Owles Liberal Democratic ClubJanuary 9, 2021nyc mayor 2021