MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO AND MAYOR-ELECT ERIC ADAMS ANNOUNCE ‘STAY SAFE AND STAY OPEN’ PLAN FOR SCHOOLS

 

City doubles in-school testing. New safety measures will use at-home rapid tests, reduce unnecessary school absences

 Mayor Bill de Blasio, Mayor-Elect Eric Adams, Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter, and Incoming Schools Chancellor David Banks today announced a multi-pronged approach for safely returning to school in-person this January following winter break. The Department of Education (DOE) is strongly encouraging all eligible students to get vaccinated, and all students and staff should get tested prior to the resumption of classes on January 3. The City is adding City-run testing sites this week. The DOE will double the in-school surveillance testing program and deploy millions of at-home rapid tests to allow students to continue learning in school.

 

These measures are in addition to the multi-layered approach to health and safety that has kept positivity rates in schools low and has successfully limited the spread of COVID-19 in schools—making them some of the safest places for students and staff to be during the pandemic. Families can book an appointment at any eligible site with "$100 incentive available" listed on the nyc.gov/vaccinefinder or call 877-VAX4NYC (877-829-4692) to find a participating site.

 

“Schools are among the safest places to be throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and we’re working closely with the incoming administration to keep it that way,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “By doubling COVID-19 testing in schools, getting our students vaccinated, and sending students, teachers and staff home with at-home test kits, we can keep everyone healthy and finish out this school year strong.”

 

“The numbers speak for themselves—your kids are safer in school,” said Mayor-Elect Eric Adams. “Thanks to testing, vaccinations, and at-home testing kits we’ll keep it that way. We’re working closely with the de Blasio Administration and we’ll be ready to bring students and staff back to the classroom on January 3^rd.  This is how we move our city forward.”

 

"The safety of our students, staff members, and communities is our top priority," said Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter. "Thanks to our multi-layered, gold standard approach to health and safety, New York City's schools continue to be some of the safest places to be during this pandemic. These new measures in school testing build on our high standards for safety, protects our communities, and allows for students to continue receiving an excellent education in-person."

  

Returning to School Safely

All New York City students and staff members should and are encouraged to get tested prior to January 3^rd. In partnership with the Test+Trace Corps, families and DOE staff members can go to any City-run testing site to get tested or pick up readily available at-home rapid tests. Sites with rapid tests can be found at: nyc.gov/covidtest, text “COVID TEST” to 855-48, or call 311 to find a testing site near you. 

 

Doubling In-School Surveillance Testing

The nation’s largest in-school surveillance testing program is expanding to double the number of individuals tested in each school by including both unvaccinated students and vaccinated students, as well as staff. The random in-school surveillance program continues to provide public health experts with an accurate look at the prevalence of COVID-19 in schools. All families, regardless of whether their young person is vaccinated, should consent to in-school testing at https://www.schoolsaccount.nyc/ or return a signed consent form to their school. As part of the return to school, school leaders will continue messaging the importance of providing consent as a critical part of keeping schools open and communities safe during the winter months.   

 

Keeping Staff Safe

New State policy, which aligns with new CDC guidance and was co-written with the City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, shortens the isolation period for fully-vaccinated critical workers (including school personnel) who test positive, but are asymptomatic, to five days. Staff can return on the sixth day as long as they remain asymptomatic, have not had a fever in 72 hours, and wear an appropriate high-quality mask (such as a KN95, which will be provided to staff). Staff will continue to have access to at-home rapid tests as well as in-school testing. 

 

Immediately Identify & Respond to Positive Cases to Stay Open

Every student and adult in a classroom with a positive case will immediately receive an at-home rapid test kit and will need to take two tests in five days. Students who are asymptomatic do not need to quarantine and can continue attending school. This policy is more expansive than the CDC’s quarantine policy, which applies to only close contacts. The DOE is sourcing approximately two and a half million at-home rapid test kits, in addition to the one million test kits provided by the Governor, to have on hand before the start of school.

 

Additionally, in anticipation of a winter increase in cases, the Situation Room has doubled its staffing levels from 275 to over 500. All positive cases, including from rapid tests, will be reported directly to the Situation Room via phone or email, and the Situation Room will provide schools with support, communications to families, and monitoring for instances of widespread in-school transmission that would result in a school closure.

 

Continuation of Gold Standard Health & Safety Protocols

The DOE closely adheres to CDC guidance: making vaccination easily accessible and available for all, a vaccine mandate for all in-school staff members, universal indoor masking, physical distancing, routine screening testing, fully functioning ventilation systems backed up by two air purifiers in every classroom, and oversight by the Situation Room.  

  

For the 2021-22 school year, to determine the effectiveness of COVID-19 prevention practices in New York City public schools, public health experts assessed how many students, teachers, or staff members of a New York City public school developed COVID-19 after being exposed in school, an epidemiologic measure called “secondary attack rate.” They found that only 1 in 120 contacts developed COVID-19, or a secondary attack rate of 0.83%.

  

This is far below the secondary attack rate that would be expected in a household where 1 in every 7 close contacts become infected, or a secondary attack rate of 15%. Additionally, it is comparable to the secondary attack rate during 2020-21 school year when only 40 percent of students were learning in-person, indicating that prevention measures continued to be highly effective at reducing in-school COVID-19 transmission from October – November 2021.  

 

Disruptive Passenger On Airline Facing Federal Charges

 

  A criminal complaint unsealed today, charges a Lebanon, Tennessee woman with interfering with a flight crew following an incident on board a Spirit Airlines flight flying to Nashville on November 27, 2021, announced U.S. Attorney Mark H. Wildasin for the Middle District of Tennessee.

Amanda Renee Henry, 43, surrendered to FBI agents in Nashville this morning and will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later today. 

“In accordance with the Attorney General’s directive, the prosecution of those who endanger the safety of airline passengers, flight crews, and flight attendants is a priority of this office,” said U.S. Attorney Wildasin.  Those whose behavior disrupts or otherwise endangers the safety of persons on aircrafts should expect to face federal charges.”

According to the criminal complaint, Henry was a passenger on a flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and became disruptive and appeared to be intoxicated.  Passengers seated next to Henry requested to be moved to other seats due to Henry’s disruptive behavior.  Since Henry was seated next to an emergency exit, flight attendants decided for the safety of everyone on board to move Henry to another seat.  When they requested that Henry move, she refused and grabbed her carry-on bag and ran toward the front of the aircraft screaming, “I’m getting off this plane.”  Another flight attendant blocked Henry from getting to the main cabin door and began to restrain her, at which time Henry began to kick and hit the flight attendant.  Henry also assaulted the other flight attendant who assisted in trying to restrain her. 

Once the flight attendants were able to restrain Henry, a passenger who was an off-duty firefighter assisted the crew by sitting with Henry and keeping her calm for the duration of the flight.  When the plane landed at Nashville International Airport, Henry was arrested by the Nashville Airport Department of Public Safety and charged with public intoxication.

If convicted of the federal offense, Henry faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Kurtzman.

A criminal complaint is merely an accusation.  The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 

5 Days and Counting

 

With five days left they love me. New York City schools will stay open comes Monday January 3rd, right Governor David Patterson, I mean Kathy Hochul. Don't you agree Kathy that our public schools are the safest place for children to be. That's exactly what I say Kathy, and the state will pay for additional testing of school children. There will be double the testing than before, and children will be given home tests for COVID, Isn't that right Mayor Adams? 

Like I have been doing elsewhere before, I am setting policy for years to come, and Mayr Adams will have to change it if he doesn't like it. Charlene do we have everything packed? Did you take everything we brought into Gracie Mansion, and everything we were given while I was Mayor, and then everything else that wasn't nailed down. We can sell whatever we don't want to keep on Ebay.

Governor Hochul Joins Mayor de Blasio and Mayor-Elect Adams for a Media Availability

 

Governor Hochul: "Collective New Year’s resolution – let's beat this together. Get vaxxed, get boosted, wear a mask, get tested, and we will get through this together, New Yorkers." 

 Thank you, Mayor de Blasio for your partnership and your collaboration from the very beginning to fight this surge. I remember we sat together, it was an evening, we just heard about the very first case of Omicron that appeared in New York State and New York City. And that afternoon we sat together and pledged full cooperation together to let people know that we would be united in our attack on this virus and do everything we can to keep New Yorkers, as well as every New York State resident safe, and to continue that pledge of collaboration. 

I'm very pleased that we were able to literally, just a couple of days ago, send over 600,000 rapid tests to your Department of Health last week. And we now have five state-run testing sites that'll be launched tomorrow to help amplify your efforts already, and also hitting people where they go. The MTA is a great place for us to launch testing sites and we'll be opening five more soon, we have two now. So, those are all coming online and continue to ramp up as well as continuing our 37 pop-up sites and 17 more planned. So state and city working together, we're going to make sure that there's no shortage of supply, as well as making sure, in the case we need ambulances, we just sent 10 more ambulances to New York City as well.

But as you mentioned, Mayor, it is so important that we get our kids back to school as soon as this winter break is over. We all have such a strong public interest. We saw the failed experiment, despite the very best efforts of incredibly hardworking, passionate teachers who did their very best with remote teaching and the parents who were just pulling their hair out at kitchen tables, trying to make sure that it worked successfully. Everybody did their part, but we also understand, as you mentioned, schools are safe as a result of our joint mandates, and I have a statewide mask mandate for children in school to make sure they're safe. Our teachers are vaccinated. So we all have to do our part to continue though, to make sure that parents feel comfortable when they send their children back to school on January 3rd. 

So from our standpoint, what the State of New York can do to help best is to make sure that there are sufficient testing kits available to be used by the school district. And that is why I directed our Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to provide 2 million tests to New York City to allow children to stay in school. And I want to thank our Department of Homeland Security and the Port Authority and DOT and commissioners of all sorts of agencies, General Services, Thruway Canals. They are all being deployed in a statewide effort, but also sending the first 2 million test kits to show that they're available to help New York City schools because of the dense concentration of individuals in the city, the high population, and where we're seeing the rates go right now. So we are working around the clock to offer our best efforts to work with you. The many calls we've had with your departments – I love the collaboration that's going on between our departments of Health. Something that's been missing, but is now in full gear. And all the teacher unions leaders, they've been on calls with us and the parents and everyone. 

We're really working closely together to make this happen. I have a call just in a couple of hours with our statewide school superintendents, because they're such critical partners in this effort as well. And I also appreciate what the administration has been doing. The collaboration you've extended to us, but also to the incoming Mayor-elect Eric Adams. That is what the public wants to see. They don't want any battling, no turf battles here, because we have one common battle to fight and that is against this variant.  

And I also want to commend the teachers and the school leaders. They know we're all in this together. They've been asked to do so much, such extraordinary work, and we are forever grateful to them for what they've done in the past and what they're going to do now in this shortened time to make sure we can launch the next semester with a safe environment for them and the students. So we're all in this together, I thank them. 

But lastly, as you mentioned, Mayor, parents, we could avert all this if every child were vaccinated. We still have time. We literally have hundreds of thousands of kids who have been safely vaccinated already. So you're not the first. You need to join the ranks of parents who have done the right thing for their children to make sure they're protected. 

This new variant is affecting children more than the past variants. Before we always said, don't worry so much, it's not really affecting children. That was a different variant. It is affecting children more, but the ones who are getting severely sick are so far only the unvaccinated children. So that should be the message you need to know right now, that children can be exposed to this – contract it, in rare cases get sick, but only those who are unvaccinated. So that's why I so look forward to continuing to work with Mayor de Blasio, yourself, for your leadership. 

Also incoming Mayor-elect Eric Adams, we've had many conversations. We'll continue keeping our schools open, continuing our economic recovery for all New Yorkers, as well as our paramount goal of protecting public health. So I want to thank you for inviting me to participate here.  

Collective New Year’s resolution – let's beat this together. Get vaxxed, get boosted, wear a mask, get tested, and we will get through this together, New Yorkers.

NEW YORK CITY’S ANTI-GUN VIOLENCE PROGRAMMING RECEIVES $20.5 MILLION FEDERAL INVESTMENT

 

U.S. Treasury’s Social Impact Partnerships to Pay for Results Act Program (SIPPRA) recognizes the City’s Crisis Management System Cure Violence providers efforts to reduce gun violence among youth

 Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced the City’s efforts to break the cycles of gun violence, specifically among young people, were recognized by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which is awarding a $20.5 million grant in support of the City’s ongoing work by Cure Violence providers in its Crisis Management System (CMS) network.

 

“New York City has demonstrated time and again that the most effective solutions to gun violence come from the grassroots,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “Investments by this administration in community-based violence prevention programs have increased public safety, stemmed violence, and saved lives. I’m grateful to the Treasury Department and the Biden-Harris administration for their recognition—this grant will allow us to further invest in these proven programs and build a safer city for all.”

 

“Gun violence is a horrific problem in this country, and it’s never more tragic than when young people are involved,” Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen. “Obviously, addressing this issue will require many different solutions, but one that Treasury is proud to support involves community efforts to intervene with at-risk youth. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to working with communities to ensure that they – and the young people who live there – are safe.”

 

“Today’s announcement highlights the many layers of success our gun violence interrupters have on the streets in our communities. On top of saving lives, our CMS partners are now seeing a reinvestment into our communities thanks to the economic impact of their work,” said Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) Director Marcos Gonzalez Soler. “These funds will help us focus directly on our continuing efforts to break the cycle of violence among one of our must vulnerable populations: our youth. My thanks to the Treasury Department’s recognition of this deeply important work.”

 

A Federal reinvestment program signed into law in early 2018, SIPPRA gives state and local governments an opportunity to be awarded for “pay-for-results” projects that can show direct and tested improvements in one of a number of social service categories.

 

Led by MOCJ Director Soler, and in partnership with the University of Chicago and John Jay College, the City’s application provided concrete analysis of the economic benefit of the City’s gun violence interruption programming. Using hospital and other data, MOCJ is able to calculate the savings CMS and its providers have on programs like Medicaid. For example, pre-pandemic evaluations show that, from 2014 to 2019, gun injuries in four selected CMS sites decreased by 50% compared to a 32% reduction in matched sites without CMS. Fewer gun injuries and hospitalizations translate into real economic savings and healthier communities.   

 

The City competed with 35 other government applicants and is the second award through the program to be announced. The awards include a project grant of $17,595,000 with an additional $2,639,250 grant to pay for the cost of an independent evaluation of the program’s effectiveness.

 

The City’s Crisis Management System has existed since 2014 and has greatly expanded during the de Blasio administration. In response to an increase of gun violence following the onset of COVID-19, the administration provided $35 million in additional funding to help expand violence interrupters. By year’s end, over 40 CMS partners plan on operating in 28 precincts with the highest rates of gun violence. Housed within MOCJ, the CMS network is one of the key programs overseen by the Office of Neighborhood Safety.

DEC LAUNCHES SECOND YEAR OF ICE FISHING CREEL SURVEYS ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN

 

Surveys Conducted January through March 2022

 New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos today announced ice fishing creel surveys will be conducted for a second year on the New York waters of Lake Champlain from January through March 2022.

“Last year’s ice fishing creel surveys provided valuable data that will help DEC continue to manage Lake Champlain as one of New York’s top fishing destinations,” said Commissioner Seggos. “Continuing that work this year will help us better understand what anglers are targeting and catching so we can evaluate and adjust our management practices as needed.”

The ice fishing survey is part of a larger, two-year effort to survey both ice and open water anglers. Data gathered during these surveys will serve as a baseline to help DEC Fisheries biologists better understand angler use and expectations, while also informing management actions on Lake Champlain.

The 2022 ice fishing survey will take place at four access points: Plattsburgh Boat Launch on Cumberland Bay; Willsboro Bay Boat Launch; Bulwagga Bay Campground; and South Bay Boat Launch. Anglers coming off the ice will be asked to participate by sharing information about their day of fishing and providing DEC creel clerks the opportunity to collect biological data on their catch. Data to be collected includes target species, number caught, and size.

Participation in the program is voluntary but encouraged, as the data collected will help DEC develop Lake Champlain management practices that benefit anglers and the fishery. As an incentive to participate, anglers will be entered into a drawing for several ice fishing gear prizes, including a jet sled, jigging rod, rechargeable aerator, and an insulated bait bucket.

A copy of the Lake Champlain Ice Fishing Creel Survey plan can be found on DEC’s website. A summary of 2021 survey results will be available in early 2022.

MAYOR DE BLASIO CELEBRATES ROLE OF ‘DESIGN-BUILD’ INNOVATION IN SPEEDING AND STREAMLINING CAPITAL PROJECTS

 

 Mayor de Blasio today celebrated New York City’s progress in speeding the design and construction of capital projects by using the design-build process. “Design-Build Program 2021: Progress Report to the New York State Legislature,” a new report released today, describes the City’s successful pivot to design-build after decades of stalled progress under the antiquated, costly design-bid-build approach. The City expects design-build to save anywhere from one to three years for large City capital projects currently in the pipeline.

 

Following several years of City advocacy, the State legislature passed the New York City Public Works Investment Act (PWIA) in December 2019. Since then, agencies have moved quickly to establish their design-build programs, with agencies designating 44 new projects for design-build valued at nearly $8 billion.

 

“Not every New Yorker is a contracting expert – but when their city pledges to build something, every New Yorker wants it done quickly and efficiently. That’s what design-build has allowed this administration to do, and I’m enormously proud of that progress,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

 

“The report shows that design-build offers a better approach to delivering the City’s multi-billion-dollar annual capital program. For the first time, designers and contractors are able to work together as a team with common business interests right from the beginning of a project,” said Department of Design and Construction (DDC) Acting Commissioner Tom Foley. “It reduces conflict and avoidable delays, and removes us from a one-size-fits-all low-bid system. The early results are in and the time savings are real.”

 

“Design Build helps the DOT tap into the innovation of the private sector with better control over budgets and schedules. With new federal infrastructure funding available, Design Build will allow us to get projects done faster and at lower costs,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Hank Gutman. “I’d like to thank Mayor de Blasio for championing this method and for our partners in Albany – Senator Leroy Comrie and Assemblyman Ed Braunstein – for passing Design Build legislation.”

 

Procurement for design-build projects authorized by the PWIA takes place through a two-step process in which interested design-build teams respond to a Request for Qualifications. Responses are reviewed to create a shortlist of firms for each design-build project, who are then asked to respond to a future Request for Proposal for the work. Unlike design-bid-build, design build teams are evaluated not only their price proposal, but also on their actual qualifications to deliver a project.

 

Today, DDC is well on its way to completing its first design-build project – a parking garage and community space in Queens – by mid-2022, only three years after it started. A similar project would have taken more than seven years under the City’s standard process. The City will begin construction on four additional design build projects in January, shaving at least a year from the project-start-to-construction-start phase of the project. Each project will be completed a full three years before a typical design-bid-build project.

 

Last month, Mayor de Blasio announced that the new $141 million Shirley Chisholm Recreation Center will be completed two full years faster using design-build than it would have been under prior contracting methods.

 

Today’s report updates progress on design-build projects in Fiscal Year 2021, which began on July 1, 2020, as well as in the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), which received special State permission to use design-build in 2018. The report also includes the City’s recommendations for improvements to the PWIA, which expires at the end of 2022.

 

The report encourages language that will increase flexibility, including the authorization of “Progressive Design-Build,” an approach that that can further reduce risk to City taxpayers by allowing the City and a selected design-build team to carefully plan and scope a project before agreeing to a “guaranteed maximum price” to be completed by the design-build team.

 

Statement from Governor Kathy Hochul on CDC Isolation Guidance

 "As we battle this winter surge, we will keep following the data and science-based public health policies to protect New Yorkers.

"That's why on Friday I announced guidance to shorten the isolation window for our critical workforce from 10 to 5 days, and I want to thank the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for now updating its guidance to shorten the recommended time for isolation from 10 to 5 days for everyone who is asymptomatic, as long as they wear a well-fitting mask.

"This is a critical step to support our small businesses, critical industries, and essential services as we get through this new variant."