Attorney General James Secures New Protections, Security Safeguards for All Zoom Users

Agreement Will Enhance Data Security and User Controls  

Students and Schools Will Have Access to Additional Security Measures

  New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced an agreement with Zoom Video Communications that will provide security protections for more than 300 million meeting participants on the platform. New security measures are being put in place to support and protect consumers, students, schools, governments, religious institutions, and private companies using the application for work, education, prayer, and socializing. After the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), cities and states across the nation began quarantine and social distancing procedures that forced businesses and schools, as well as many social interactions to be moved online. Zoom had a sudden surge in both the volume and sensitivity of data being passed through its network, but the exponential increase in users also exposed security flaws and vulnerabilities in Zoom’s platform and software, and a lack of privacy protections. Additionally, a number of people reported that their Zoom conferences had been “Zoombombed,” or interrupted by uninvited participants seeking to disrupt the conference. Attorney General James opened up an investigation into Zoom’s privacy and security practices in March culminating in today’s agreement.

“Our lives have inexorably changed over the past two months, and while Zoom has provided an invaluable service, it unacceptably did so without critical security protections,” said Attorney General James. “This agreement puts protections in place so that Zoom users have control over their privacy and security, and so that workplaces, schools, religious institutions, and consumers don’t have to worry while participating in a video call. As the coronavirus continues to spread across New York State and this nation and we come more accustomed to our new normal, my office will continue to do everything in its power to help our state’s residents and give them every tool to continue living their lives.”

In March, after the widespread increase of COVID-19 infections across the country, cities and states began to shutter and institute social distancing policies to limit contagion. With schools, businesses, religious institutions, and so many other industries forced to shut down, Americans had no choice but to move their day-to-day activities online. As a result, Zoom experienced a massive surge in demand for its free services, as teachers began using the platform to conduct classes remotely with students, workplaces used Zoom to conduct business online, and consumers began using it to socialize remotely with loved ones. By late April, Zoom was hosting approximately 300 million meeting participants per day on its platform, compared to the approximately 10 million meeting participants per day in January 2020 — an increase of nearly 3,000 percent in less than four months.

As consumers, businesses, and students were increasingly using Zoom’s platform to communicate and share information, a number of newly reported issues emerged. Numerous users reported that their Zoom conferences had been interrupted by uninvited participants seeking to disrupt the conference — dubbed “Zoombombing.” Additionally, a number of privacy and data security issues were also reported, including Zoom’s lack of end-to-end encryption — as it had previously publicly represented — and the leakage of users’ personal information to other users without consent. Finally, Zoom was sharing users’ personal information with Facebook, including for those users who were not using the Facebook login feature and even those without Facebook accounts. 

Attorney General James immediately opened an investigation into Zoom’s administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect consumers’ personal data and to handle the increased traffic on the platform, as well as to investigate whether Zoom was complying with numerous New York State and federal laws. In the subsequent five weeks, the Office of the Attorney General and Zoom have worked cooperatively and quickly to implement more stringent and robust protections for consumers, schools, and businesses.

Today’s agreement will protect New Yorkers and users nationwide by ensuring Zoom’s compliance with New York State and federal laws; and will ensure Zoom provides services that are more secure, that provide users with enhanced privacy controls, and that protect users from abuse.

Zoom Agrees to Be More Secure

Zoom has agreed to implement and maintain a comprehensive data security program to protect all users that will be designed and run by the company’s Head of Security. Zoom will also conduct risk assessment and software code reviews to ensure that the company’s software does not have vulnerabilities that would allow hackers to exploit users’ information. The company has agreed to take steps to protect consumers from attacks where hackers attempt to access accounts using old credentials. Additionally, Zoom has agreed to enhance its encryption protocols by encrypting users’ information, both in transit and as stored online on their cloud servers. Finally, Zoom will operate a software vulnerability management program and will perform the most thorough form of penetration testing each year.

Zoom Agrees to Enhanced Privacy Controls

Zoom has agreed to enhanced privacy controls for free accounts, as well as kindergarten through 12^th grade education accounts. Hosts — even those with free accounts — will, by default, be able to control access to their video conferences by requiring a password or the placement of users in a digital waiting room before a meeting can be accessed. Hosts will also be able to control access to private messages in a Zoom chat, control access to email domains in a Zoom directory, control which — if any — participants can share screens, limit participants of a meeting to specific email domains, and place other limits on participants with accounts, to the extent applicable.

Additionally, Zoom has taken steps to stop sharing user data with Facebook and has disabled its LinkedIn Navigator feature, which shared profiles with users even where the user wanted to stay anonymous. Finally, Zoom has agreed to provide a copy of its annual data security assessment report to the Office of the Attorney General for the term of the agreement.  

Zoom Will Protect Users from Abuse

Zoom has further agreed to continue to maintain reasonable procedures to enable users to report violations of Zoom’s Acceptable Use Policy, including allowing meeting hosts to report a user for engaging in abusive conduct. Zoom will also update its Acceptable Use Policy to include abusive conduct based on race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation. Finally, Zoom has agreed to investigate reported misconduct in a timely fashion and to take appropriate corrective action based on its investigations, including banning users who violate the policy.

Today’s agreement will protect New Yorkers and users nationwide by ensuring Zoom’s compliance with a number of New York State and federal laws, including New York Executive Law § 63(12) and GBL §§ 349 and 350, New York Education Law 2-d, and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.  

Yesterday, the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) reached its own agreement with Zoom, which will enhance protections for city schools, students, and educators after the NYC DOE halted the use of Zoom across the city’s digital classrooms in April. The Office of the Attorney General worked with the NYC DOE and Zoom over the last month to address gaps in data security and privacy practices. Attorney General James wishes to thank the NYC DOE and Chancellor Richard Carranza for their cooperation. Today’s agreement with the Office of the Attorney General follows up on that announcement by offering Zoom users a more comprehensive resolution that will protect all New Yorkers and users nationwide.

MAYOR DE BLASIO on COVID-19 May 7, 2020

  Mayor Bill de Blasio: This morning, I want to talk about something that really is quintessentially New York. Something that really is the spirit of this place and who we are, and I can summarize it with a simple sentence – New Yorkers do not lack for confidence. We are a people who believe in ourselves. We believe in our city. We have a certain energy in a certain spirit that is renowned all over this world and we need that now more than ever. That essence of who we are is what's going to see us through this fight. I'll tell you something, even a pandemic, even the worst health care crisis in a century, even an economic crisis that only rivals the great depression. Even with these things happening at the same time, I have not seen New Yorkers lose their confidence. 

Now, this virus, understandably, this whole crisis we've gone through, it's not surprising if it gnaws at that confidence. If it's sows doubt, that's normal, that's human. A disease that we all wonder about in terms of our own personal lives. Even though we're confident by nature as New Yorkers, there's uncertainty pervading this whole experience, and the most essential question we all ask is have I gotten this disease already or am I going to get this disease. If I have gotten it or if I do get it, do I put my family in danger? The people I love in danger? The uncertainty is directly related to the lack of testing, that's been the reality from day one, and this has been the central problem in this crisis. The lesson we have to take from this as not only New Yorkers, but as Americans, our nation wasn't in position in terms of testing, and we can never let that happen again. 

Now, there's two kinds of tests. The diagnostic test known as the PCR test. That's been the main part of the discussion from the very beginning of this crisis, and we still need to do a lot of that. And then there's the antibody testing. Remember, there's a clear difference. The PCR test, the diagnostic test answers the simple question, do I have this disease right now? It does not answer what happened in your past. It does not answer what happens in your future, but it does answer clearly, and consistently do you have the disease right now. It allows us to take the actions right now we need to take in a test and trace approach. The antibody test is, really refers to the past. It asks the question, did I get exposed to this disease in the past? And it therefore helps you understand the obvious answer of your own experience. If you did get exposed in the past, were you able to beat it? Well, you know it's, it's a good sign when you know your body's been exposed to this virus and you obviously came through it, it's a good sign. Does it tell you everything? No, and we'll always put that disclaimer on it. There are different kinds of antibody tests, some more accurate than others, some more specific than others. And even the best antibody test does not guarantee that you can't get the disease again. Seems that it's unusual for someone to get the disease again, that's what we've seen so far in our actual experience, but it is not a guarantee. That's a positive development that we want to support more and more, and more and more testing for antibodies does that, helps that along, and it's also part of answering the bigger questions about this disease. The more people test, the more our doctors and scientists have a body of information to help us really understand the disease better and beat it back. So, we are going to proceed energetically with antibody testing in this city as we also build up the PCR testing capacity at the same exact time.

Now, I talk to you before about the effort focused on our first responders, and our health care workers. That is a joint effort with the federal government, with the US Department of Health and Human Services and the centers for disease control. It will reach 140,000 health care workers and first responders, everyone making their own choice. If they want to participate, they will get individual results, but it'll also help us with the larger research we need to do. 140,000 New Yorkers will be tested. It will start next week at hospitals, firehouses police precincts, correctional facilities, and we're going to move that rapidly over the next few weeks ahead.

But now, a new announcement today. Beyond the testing that we'll do for our heroes, we're going to open up antibody testing to a much bigger group of New Yorkers. So, more and more people have the opportunity to get a test that will give them some information, some certainty as we fight ahead. So, as we do this, I want you to remember every time someone gets an antibody test, it's helping them have information. It's helping all of us to have information, so we're really killing two birds with one stone. The individual gets something they need, but the health care leadership, the scientists, they get the information they need to do the research better to answer the questions about the disease. So, real virtue in this. On top of the 140,000 for the first responders and the health care workers, we're adding another 140,000 for everyday New Yorkers. Combined 280,000 people will get antibody tests in just the next few weeks in New York City. Over a quarter million antibody tests will be given. These are numbers that really start to add up, even against the size of a city as big as ours. This initiative, the additional 140,000 that will be available in communities across this city, comes through a partnership with BioReference Labs. The first survey will involve 70,000 New Yorkers. It will start next week and continue through the month. It will be repeated again in early June. So, we'll get these 140,000 additional tests done between the remainder of May and the beginning of June.

We're going to work with five sites initially, but then we will be adding, and the goal is to focus on people in the general area of these test sites. I want to be very clear. There's so many people in the city. Any time you set up a test site, tens of thousands of people live very nearby. We want to focus on where the test sites are, not having to have people travel a long way to get to these tests, but we'll keep adding sites as we go along. So, the sites will be in the Bronx, in Morrisania, in Brooklyn and East New York, and Manhattan, upper Manhattan, Staten Island in Concorde, and Queens in Long Island City. 1000 tests per site every day. Again, 70,000 tests will be given in the space of about two weeks, and then we'll repeat that again.

Now, how does someone get this test? You get it by appointment. Again, the priority given to the surrounding communities and the hotline for making the appointments will be launched this Friday, tomorrow. Now, how does it work? You give basic information, because remember this is to benefit you as an individual, but also to get us information on what has been happening with this disease so we can fight it. So, people will be asked demographic information, employment information, very important. We want to understand how the disease has hit people in different parts of our economy, in different parts of the life of this city. It's a simple procedure. A nurse takes a blood sample, you get your individual result back in 24 to 48 hours. So, even though this is the kind of thing, this testing and the PCR testing is what would have made so much of a difference early on, and could have fundamentally changed the history of this disease in this city if we had had it early. It still helps us now to learn more and more, and obviously to give more and more New Yorkers the confidence in knowing their own situation. So, we will keep you posted as more and more details come out, but I'm looking forward to between the two kinds of testing becoming more of a norm in this city every day that people are getting to those tests and we're getting a better and better picture, and it's all going to contribute to our efforts on testing and tracing, which are going to be developing rapidly in this month.

The fourth point in that plan regarded tele-medicine and we are now going much farther with tele-medicine than we have ever gone before through our public hospitals, through Health + Hospitals and the focus again will be on the communities that have been hardest hit by this disease. So, tele-medicine had become increasingly common in private health care, but not as much in public health care— before this crisis, now Health and Hospitals will be doing it on a massive scale. So, first phone clinician, this initiative, very straightforward and it's one of two key things that we are now putting into play. We want people to get much more guidance even though more and more information is out there about the coronavirus. So, the free hotline is 844-NYC-4NYC – again, 844-NYC-4NYC, and this means that anybody, anytime you need to come pick up that phone and get answers and never leave their home, never have to go through the hassle or the challenges that come with going outside. We keep telling everyone, stay inside the maximum stand possible, therefore, tele-medicine is part of how we give people confidence they can get the help they need without ever leaving their home. Now this initiative is growing all the time, so far, in the midst of this crisis, we've had about 90,000 calls and the result is that over 90 percent of the people make that call, never need to leave their home, get the information they need, get the care they need through the tele-medicine process, and it works, we want to keep building on this. Now, our goal, all of us is to drive back this disease and not need as much help, but we know we've still got a road ahead here. So, our goal is to keep building up this apparatus, we expect to do at least 4,000 calls a day, and if the demand is there, we'll keep building more. So, in the month of May, we're ready to handle 120,000 calls, and again, if this becomes a popular tool, more and more people make the decision to pick up a phone and that is helpful to them, especially again, those who do not have a private doctor or a facility that are already working with that they can rely on. The more people use it, the more we will build it, but expect about 120,000 calls in May – that's going to make a great impact on the lives of those people and their whole families that they have access to that help.

Now already during this crisis, there's been 60,000 tele-visits initiated by Health and Hospitals clinics, this is going to deepen, this is going to be a big part of the strategy going forward. So, the goal is to ramp this up to at least a 16,000 per week starting in June. We believe that at least 80 percent of people who need through our clinics for now can do it through tele-visits. So, it'd be aggressive program by the clinics to reach their patients, check in with them, make sure they get whatever appointments they need. Of course, if someone needs to be seen in person, they still can be, but the goal is to the maximum extent possible, lean on tele-visits reach a lot more people a lot more quickly and always give people the option of getting health care without having to leave their home. People live on the streets, those 3 or 4,000 people at any given day who are permanently homeless.  You know, last night was only the second night in which subways were closed down in those very late night hours for cleaning and therefore all passengers had to leave the subway system and that meant that our Department of Homeless Services and our outreach workers and specially trained NYPD officers could be there in places where there were a number of homeless folks to help them out and offer them a helping hand and offer them a place to come in and get the support they need.  Well, the results on the second night were even better than the first night, which is very encouraging. Last night, our outreach teams engaged 361 homeless New Yorkers coming out of the subways when they shut down 218 of them well over half accepted help. Again, this is the entire core principle of doing this outreach work to constantly open that door. For those who are homeless to realize there's something else that could be done to make their life better, there's a different way that could pursue, 218 out of 361 accepted help, that meant 196 went to a safe haven or a shelter, 22 went to a hospital. When these kinds of numbers mean that that many human beings who had lost their way now get a chance to live a better life, that's an extraordinary story. So again, thank you to all those extraordinary outreach workers out there night after night, no matter what's going on, they're there. The NYPD officers who got trained to do this work, who are devoted to this work, thank you. 

Now, in this crisis, we've seen much domestic violence, too much gender-based violence. We can't accept that. We need people to stay home for everyone's safety, but we also have to find a way to disrupt this problem because it's unacceptable – unacceptable that anyone would be in danger in their own home. We do not allow that in New York City. So, there's always help available literally on a moment's notice. If anyone's in danger, not only will the NYPD come to help and they've put immense resources into fighting domestic violence, but anyone who needs shelter will get it instantly - no questions asked – 24/7 anyone who's in danger, we will help immediately get a roof over their heads and be protected. Anyone who feels endangered, there's a particular hotline for people who are facing this threat - it's 800-621-4673 – 800-621-4673. You know the person on the other end of the line will understand your circumstance and will act immediately to get you help. But responding to the crisis is not enough, we have to prevent domestic violence from happening to begin with. The NYPD and so many community organizations, so many providers, advocates have done extraordinary work finding new ways to fight back against domestic violence and gender-based violence. We need to find even more preventative strategies in this crisis and even more ways to protect those in danger. I'm announcing a COVID-19 response taskforce on domestic and gender-based violence, taking some of the leading minds and some of the people who do the most important work in this city to fight this scourge, bringing them together, working with our Mayor's Office to End Domestic and Gender Based Violence. We'll bring together about 20 of the leaders in this field, convening them right away to figure out what else we can do and what's working any place else in the country of the world that we can bring here. But the bottom line is, we're just not going to allow this to happen. No one should be suffering because they're at home; no one should suffer in silence. 

So, a couple more things and, and when we talk about new solutions, I want to talk about the challenge that this city faces. In fact, cities all over the country, all over the world are facing as we fight back this disease, as we restart and recover and then work together to find a better path for the future.This disease has pointed out disparities and has also pointed out the danger of not being prepared for the bigger challenges ahead. So, we have to figure out all of us, all the cities of the world have to work together particularly to address profound dangers to health and safety when it comes to our climate. 

Okay, now time for the daily indicators and again, I'm looking forward to us working together, continuing that strong disciplined approach you've all engaged in to get these numbers to go down together steadily. Today we have progress, it's not perfect progress, but it's damn close. So, this is a good day. I want to see even better days and I want us to string them together cause that's our pathway to opening up, reducing restrictions, and taking the steps towards the restart. So, let's go over to the indicators. Number one, daily number of people admitted to hospitals for suspected COVID-19 - that is down from 109 to 79. Isn't that good to hear? Only 79 people, now for those 79 people they are dealing with real challenges. I never want to belittle, even if a single person has to go into the hospital for COVID-19, but thank God compared to where we were only 79 people as of the latest measure. The daily number of people in ICUs across our public hospital system for some suspected COVID-19 that has gone down as well – from 599 to 567. Again, still 567, that's a lot of people, but it has gone down noticeably and that's great. Now, one thing went in the wrong direction, but I will say thankfully only by one percent, so you know, it's still a good day. Percentage of people tested positive COVID-19 citywide – up 15 percent to 16 percent. Overall, right direction – let's dig in and go farther.

BP DIAZ, BX TOURISM COUNCIL & BRONXNET CELEBRATE 'THE BEST OF THE BRONX' IN PLACE OF 'BRONX WEEK'

  Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., in collaboration with The Bronx Tourism Council and BronxNet, will launch the start “The Best of Bronx Week” broadcast.

Due to restrictions caused by COVID-19, the 11-day celebration of the “Best of The Bronx” has been cancelled for the first time in 47 years. The annual initiative honors the history and culture of the borough, paying tribute to entities and individuals from within government, business, and civic communities through a series of events. Bronx Week culminates each year with a black-tie gala, Bronx Walk of Fame Inductions and the Grand Finale Celebration, which features a festival, concert, and parade down Mosholu Parkway.

Though Bronx Week was originally slated to take place from May 7 through May 17, the Borough President’s Office, along with Bronx Tourism Council and BronxNet, will instead acknowledge the contributions individuals and organizations have made throughout the years through an eight-day multi-platform broadcast of footage from past Bronx Week activities.

Coverage begins May 8, 2020 and will air on BronxNet TV (channel 67 on Optimum / channel 33 on Verizon Fios) and streaming on BronxNet.TV.

"While we are disappointed to have made such a difficult decision, we felt it best to cancel Bronx Week 2020 in order to do our part in flattening the curve and protect our borough from the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. "With that said, I want to thank The Bronx Tourism Council and BronxNet for finding a way where we can still come together as a borough and honor those seniors, veterans, businesses, community leaders, and elected officials who have helped make our borough great. We are saddened to have canceled Bronx Week, but this will not keep us down. We will rebound, stronger than ever, as a borough and look forward to having a bigger celebration in 2021."

"It hurts me that we cannot be together, physically, however, we can continue to still celebrate together, virtually," said Olga Luz Tirado, Executive Director of The Bronx Tourism Council. "We continue to commemorate the best that we are to remind ourselves that we are ‘New York Tough’ and ‘Bronx Strong,’ even during the worst of times."

"In addition to broadcasting vital updates to the public, BronxNet is helping audiences reconnect with arts and culture during this time," said Michael Max Knobbe, Executive Director BronxNet TV. "BronxNet is enormously proud of our longstanding partnership with the Bronx Borough President, The Bronx Tourism Council and The Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation, and pleased to broadcast vibrant presentations of dynamic Bronx Week highlights over the years via the BronxNet TV channels, social media and BronxNet.TV."

The Bronx Tourism Council was established in 1991, as a division of the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation (BOEDC), creating a cohesive and symbiotic relationship between arts and culture and economic development. The role of the Bronx Tourism Council is to promote the borough’s rich history, its institutions, and cultural diversity on a local, national, and international level.

BronxNet provides local television by the people of The Bronx, for the people of the Bronx, keeping borough residents in touch with the issues, neighborhoods and activities that make The Bronx what it is today. Their channels feature in-house produced shows created by community access producers as well as provide a training ground for local residents in television production, providing hands-on internships and career preparation. High school and college students can prepare for media careers behind and in front of the camera through BronxNet’s Training Program for Future Media Professionals.

MAYOR DE BLASIO LAUNCHES CITYWIDE ANTIBODY SURVEY

Appointment-only antibody testing will be offered in Morrisania, East New York, Upper Manhattan, Concord, and Long Island City beginning next week 

  Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced expanded antibody testing for New Yorkers. Through a partnership with BioReference labs, the City will conduct its own antibody survey at community testing sites in the five boroughs to better understand the spread of COVID-19. The survey will test approximately 70,000 New Yorkers over an initial two-week period, with the capacity to administer up to 5,000 tests per day. 

"So many New Yorkers are wondering whether they've had the virus, or if they've exposed their own families," said Mayor Bill de Blasio "While antibody tests are not a fix-all solution, they will give our communities the knowledge they need to help us defeat this virus together."

BioReference is supporting the city in its epidemiology studies of the presence of COVID-19 throughout large segments of the New York City population,” said Jon R. Cohen, M.D., Executive Chairman of BioReference Laboratories. “For New York, a city that has been seriously impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, this type of information will be of great value in helping healthcare professionals to analyze the presence and progression of the disease in order to identify at risk populations for possible early intervention.”

Antibody Tests

Beginning next week, antibody testing will be offered on an appointment-only basis for approximately two weeks in the Morrisania, East New York, Upper Manhattan, Concord, and Long Island City. Scheduling will open this Friday by dedicated hotline, and individual test results will be available in 24-48 hours. 

Through a partnership with the US Department of Health and Human Services and CDC, the City will also administer 140,000 antibody tests for healthcare workers and first responders across FDNY, DOC, NYPD, and hospitals citywide.  Through a separate initiative, NYC Health

+ Hospitals has now tested over 8,000 healthcare workers for antibodies across its 11 hospitals.

Phone-a-Clinician Hotline at 844-NYC-4NYC

To expand access to care for New Yorkers who have symptoms or questions about COVID-19​, NYC Health + Hospitals will continue to grow the capacity of its free Phone-a-Clinician Hotline at 844-NYC-4NYC to be able to handle 120,000 calls a month. With this expansion, Health + Hospitals will aim to provide 16,000 tele-visits to New Yorkers a week via the hotline, accounting for roughly 80 percent of the City’s ambulatory visits. NYC Health + Hospitals has also now completed 60,000 billable H+H Tele-health visits at more than 300 clinics citywide since beginning of crisis.

​

Support for Survivors of Domestic and Gender-Based Violence

The Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) will convene a COVID-19 response work group to prevent acts of domestic gender-based violence and support survivors during the pandemic.

The work group will engage a diverse group of 20 providers representing multi-disciplinary services for survivors across the City including shelter, legal services, counseling and mental health services. Providers from both small and large community-based organizations will have representation in the working group, with an emphasis on those serving diverse communities citywide.

Councilman King Gives out Masks in Coop-City

After helping unload four pallets of boxed food for the Council Towers VII on Coop-City Boulevard, Councilman Andy King went into the Bartow Shopping Center to give the people on line for the bank free face masks. Councilman King had enough for all the people waiting on line, and even one for the bank employee.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and Councilman Andy King Aid Elderly Residents of Council Towers VII in Coop-City

  Four pallets of boxes loaded with food supplies to the elderly residents of the Council Towers VII at Coop-City were provided by the Met Council of New York. The boxes of food had to be brought inside so Councilman Andy King and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. lent a helping hand to Residence Director Maryanne Pasquariello. In no time the four pallets of boxes were brought into the empty community room for the staff to distribute them to the residents of Council Towers. 

Above - The boxes from the pallets were stacked outside the building before being brought inside.

Below - The boxes are stacked next to the wall for staff to bring them to the elderly residents.

Above - A view of what was inside each box. cereal and other foods are under the bag of wraps.

Below - Bronx BP Diaz Jr. and Councilman King get to talk during a break. Both are term limited out of office as of January 1, 2022. 

MAYOR DE BLASIO APPOINTS MEMBERS TO SECTOR ADVISORY COUNCILS

Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed members to the following Sector Advisory Councils: Labor and Workforce; Large Business; Small Business; and Arts, Culture, and Entertainment. Sector Advisory Councils will inform the Administration's efforts to restart the economy and city life. The councils will serve as critical links to disseminate information about re-opening and provide guidance to shape the City’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Membership of the councils on Faith, Construction and Real Estate, Non-Profits and Social Services, Public Health and Healthcare, Education and Vocational Training, and Surface Transportation will be announced in the coming days.

“For us to have a strong restart and get to the recovery New Yorkers deserve, we have to do this the smart way. These Sector Advisory Councils will provide the insight we need to successfully open our city back up and protect our people,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Labor and Workforce Sector Advisory Council

1.  Harry Nespoli, Sanitation Workers

2.  Henry Garrido, DC 37

3.  John Santos, 32BJ SEIU

4.  George Gresham, 1199 SEIU

5.  Peter Ward, Hotel Trades Council

6.  Michael Mulgrew, UFT

7.  Pat Kane, NYSNA

8.  Dr. Frank Proscia - Doctors Council President 

9.  Vinny Alvarez, NY Central Labor Council

10.  Gary LaBarbera, Building Trades Council

11.  Marc Cannizzaro, CSA

12.  Dennis Trainor, CWA

13.  Greg Floyd, Teamsters/ Local 237

14.  Darly Corniel, Director of Education &

       Programs Opts at CWE

15.  Alba Villa, Executive Director 

       Northern Manhattan Immigration Coalition

16.  Elias Husamudeen, COBA

17.  Lou Turco, Police Lieutenants Union (LBA)

18.  James “Jake” Lemonda, UFOA superior fire officers 

19.  Barbara Bowen, CUNY/Professional Staff Congress

20.  Stuart Appelbaum, RWDSU

21.  Rob Newell, UFCW 1500

22.  Magda Barbosa, Catholic Migration Services,

       Immigrant Low-Wage Worker Initiative

23.  Marrisa Senteno and Allison Julien, National Domestic 

       Workers Alliance NY chapter

24.  Rafael Espinal, Freelancers Union

25.  Angie Kamath, CUNY

26.  Jodi Sturgeon, PHI

27.  Rebecca Lurie, CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies

28.  Sandra Escamilla, Children’s Aid Society, Workforce 

       + Youth programs

29.  Joey Ortiz, Employment Training Coalition

30.  Melinda Mack, NYATEP

31.  David Ehrenberg, Brooklyn Navy Yard

32.  Eileen Reilly, CAMBA

33.  Jennifer Mitchell, The Hope Program

34.  George Miranda, President Teamsters Joint Council 16

Large Business Sector Advisory Council

1. Vincent Alvarez, Central Labor Council

2.  Ajay Banga, Mastercard

3.  Frank Bisignano, Fiserv

4.  Stacey Cunningham, NYSE

5.  Cathy Engelbert, Deloitte & WNBA

6.  William E. (Bill) Ford, General Atlantic LLC

7.   Jane Fraser, Citigroup

8.   Jeff Gennette, Macy's

9.   Horacio Gutierrez, Spotify

10.  Joey Levin, IAC

11.  Jerome McCluskey, Milbank

12.  Anish Melwani, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Inc.

13.  Charles Phillips, Infor

14.  Christiana Riley, Deutsche Bank Americas

15.  Suzanne Schank, Siebert Williams Shank

16.  Joshua Silverman, Etsy

17.  Marva Smalls, Viacom/CBS

18.  Steven Swartz, Hearst

19.  John Waldron, Goldman Sachs

20.  Kathryn Wylde, Partnership for New York City

21.  Jide Zeitlin, Tapestry

Small Business Sector Advisory Council

1.   Lourdes Zapata, SOBRO

2.   Paul Storch, Summit Appliance

3.   Israel Velez, City Tamale

4.   Anthony and Paul Ramirez, Founders and Co-Owners, Bronx Beer Hall

5.   Jeffrey Garcia, Mon Amour Coffee and Wine/President 

       NYS Latino Restaurant, Bar & Lounge Association

6.    Ramona Mejia, President and CEO, Sell-Mar Enterprise

7.    Lisa Sorin, President, Bronx Chamber of Commerce

8.    Julia Jean-Francois, Co-Director, Center for Family Life

9.    Randy Peers, Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce

10.  Karen Mitchell, True Indian Hair

11.  Quincy Ougi Theodore, Owner of Brooklyn Circus retailer

12.  Wallace Ford, Medgar Evers College

13.  Colvin Grannum, Bed Stuy Restoration

14.  Mohamed Attia, Executive Director of the Street Vendors Project

15.  Jo-Ann Yoo, Asian American Federation

16.  Jessica Walker, President and CEO, Manhattam Chamber of Commerce

17.  Limor Fried, Ada Fruit

18.  Ken Giddon, Rothmans

19.  Wellington Chen, Chinatown Partnership

20.  Charles “Charlie” Tebele, Digital Gadgets

21.  Joanne Kwong, Pearl River Mart

22.  Edward Funches, InclusionTM

23.  Melba Wilson, Melba's

24.  Tom Grech, Queens Chamber

25.  Jason Ferreira, Ferreira Foodtown

26.  John DiFazio, DiFazio Industries 

27.  Ceaser Claro, SIEDC

28.  Linda Barron, SI Chamber of Commerce

29.  Carrie White, GUM Studios

30.  Noelle Santos, The Lit Bar

31.  Aziz Hasan, Kickstarter

Arts, Culture and Tourism Sector Advisory Council

1.   Mike Burke, Statue Cruises/Hornblower

2.   John Calvelli, Wildlife Conservation Society

3.    Michael Capiraso, NYRR

4.    Calixto Chinchilla, New York Latino Film Festival

5.    Vijay Dandapani, Hotel Association

6.    Erika Elliot, Summerstage

7.   Indira Etwaroo, The Center for Arts and Culture at 

      Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation

8.    Joel Fisher, Madison Square Garden Entertainment

9.    David Garza, Henry Street Settlement

10.  Thelma Golden, The Studio Museum in Harlem

11.  Cathy Hung, Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning

12.  Kemi Ilesanmi, The Laundromat Project

13.  Leah Johnson, Lincoln Center

14.  Julia Levy, Roundabout Theater

15.  Janice Monger , Staten Island Museum

16.  Seth Pinsky, 92nd Street Y

17.  Jonelle Procope, Apollo Theater

18.  Andrew Rigie, NYC Hospitality Alliance

19.  Rosalba Rolon  Pregones, PRTT Theater

20.  Jesse Rosen, League of American Orchestras

21.  Charlotte St Martin, Broadway League

22.  Alan Steel, Javits Center

23.  Alan Suna, Silvercup Studios

24.  Ken Sunshine, Sunshine Sachs

25.  Morris  Vogel, LES Tenement Museum

26.  Dennis Walcott, Queens Public Library

27.  Peter Ward, NY Hotel and Motel Trades Council

Presidential Primary Back on in New York, and Other Races to Watch

With a federal judge reinstating the New York State Presidential Primary, here are some other races in the Bronx to watch.

There will be primaries in all four Bronx congressional districts, but the 14th and 15th districts may be the interesting ones to watch. In the 14th Congressional District while there are three challengers to first time incumbent Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, only CNBC Television Chief International Correspondent Michelle Caruso-Cabrera could have a real chance to unseat Ocasio-Cortez. the other candidates are Sam Sloan and Badrun N. Khan.

In the 15th Congressional District, there are twelve candidates trying to replace retiring Congressman Jose Serrano. They are (as they will appear on the ballot) Thomas Ramos, Samelys Lopez, Frangell Basora, Melisa Mark-Viverito, Michael A. Blake, Ruben Diaz, Mark Escoffery-Bey, Ritchie Torres, Chivona R. Newsome, Ydanis Rodriguez, Julio Pabon, and Marlene J. Tapper. 

Here it appears that current Councilman, and former State Senator Ruben Diaz has the advantage having represented most of the South Bronx congressional district. Assemblyman Michael Blake and Councilman Ritchie Torres each have only represented a small portion of the congressional district. Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez is from upper Manhattan having never represented any part of the district. Former City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito is also from Manhattan, but her district included a very small portion of the district. Thomas Ramos, Samelys Lopez, Frangell Basora, Mark Escoffery-Bey, Chivona R. Newsome, Julio Pabon, and Marlene J. Tapper (who lives in Queens) have never held any elected public office. 

The 32nd State Senate District is the next race to watch with three candidate running. They are as they will appear on the ballo,t Pamela Stewart-Martinez, and John Perez who are challengers to incumbent Luis Sepulveda. 

Councilman and former State Senator from the 32nd District Ruben Diaz renounced his endorsement of Luis Sepulveda to endorse and support John Perez who is the current 87th A.D. District Leader.

The 79th Assembly District has six candidates running to replace current Assemblyman Michael Blake who is running for congress. They are as they appear on the ballot Eric Stevenson, Elvis Santana, Cynthia L. Cox, Dion Powell, George A.Alvarez, and Chantel Jackson.

Eric Stevenson is the former assemblyman who was convicted of accepting bribes while in office, Chantel Jackson has been endorsed by Assemblyman Michael Blake, George Alvarez has been endorsed by Councilman Ruben Diaz and State Senate candidate John Perez, while Cynthia Cox has been endorsed by Councilman Ritchie Torres.

Other primary races that may be interesting are, in the 84th A. D. between incumbent Carmen Arroyo and challenger for the second time Amanda Septimo. The 80th A. D. Male District Leader race between current district leader John D. Zacarro Jr. and former District Leader Marcos Sierra. The final race to watch may be the County Committee race in the 85th E.D. of the 87th A.D. where Michael Beltzer, Tabitha Rodriguez, and Janice Ali (the incumbents) are challenged by Lisa Diaz, Karines Reyes, and Luis Sepulveda. There are three seats and six candidates. This could be a major blow to their political careers should Assemblywoman Reyes and Senator Sepulveda lose this County Committee race. Assemblywoman Reyes is a name being floated for Bronx Democratic County Leader, while Luis Sepulveda has said he wants to run for Bronx Borough President in 2021.  

EDITOR'S NOTE:

Our analysis of Bronx politics goes back to the era of the local School Board races. Over the years we have an excellent track record of not only calling winners, but we have done that in close races along with calling the winning percentage exactly or within the margin of error. Our prediction (if any this year) will come shortly before primary Day.