Mayor Mamdani Signs Two Emergency Executive Orders

 

Directs city agencies to develop plans to come into compliance with Board of Corrections’ Minimum Standards & city shelter laws  

  

Mayor also instructs city agencies to work with federal monitor & Nunez parties to develop plan to implement Local Law 42  banning solitary confinement  

Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed two new executive orders directing his agencies to bring the City into compliance with the Board of Corrections’ Minimum Standards and city shelter laws that were suspended during the influx of asylum seekers. The Mayor has also instructed the Law Department to work with the federal monitor and all parties in Nunez v. City of New York to develop a plan to implement City Council’s Local Law 42.  

 

“I was elected because of my values, and my promise to always be honest with New Yorkers — and now is a moment for blunt truths. The previous Administration’s refusal to meet their legal obligations on Rikers has left us with troubling conditions that will take time to resolve,” said Mayor Zohran Mamdani. “In order to fix this, I am signing a new emergency executive order instructing the relevant agencies to develop a compliance plan within 45 days. I am also directing the Law Department to work with the federal monitor and the parties in court so that we can end solitary confinement. I applaud the Public Advocate and the City Council for the passage of Local Law 42 and for always standing up for people on Rikers, despite tremendous opposition from City Hall at the time. We will work closely with the federal monitor and the parties to put the City back on track to end solitary confinement as soon as possible.” 

 

Corporation Counsel nominee Steve Banks said: “In order to stop conditions on Rikers from deteriorating any further, the Mayor is signing a new emergency executive order that instructs the Department of Correction and the Law Department to develop a plan within 45 days to come into compliance with the Board of Corrections’ Standards. The Mayor has also directed the Law Department to work with the federal court monitor and the parties in the Nunez case to develop a plan to implement the provisions of the City Council’s Local Law 42 that the City had previously asked the federal court to block.”  

 

In its first week, the Mamdani Administration is taking action to ensure the City better serves New Yorkers. Emergency Executive Order 1 instructs the Department of Corrections and the Law Department to develop a plan within 45 days to come into compliance with the Board of Corrections’ Minimum Standards. Additionally, the Mayor has directed the Law Department to work with the federal monitor and all Nunez parties to develop a plan to implement Local Law 42, which bans solitary confinement.  

 

Emergency Executive Order 2 instructs the Law Department and Department of Social Services to develop a plan within 45 days to come into compliance with city shelter law requiring cooking facilities in shelters for families with children and capacity limits on adult shelters. Effective immediately, the executive order will end the suspension of a broad range of health and safety codes, building codes, and land use rules, which the City used to open new shelters.