Comptroller Stringer Urges U.S. Department of Transportation to Make Immediate Investments in New York City Transportation Infrastructure to Jumpstart Economic Recovery

 

Comptroller called for scaling back highway infrastructure, investing in annual operating grants to transit agencies, and dedicating a federal funding stream for integrating commuter lines into urban transportation networks

 New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg urging immediate investments in New York City’s transportation infrastructure that will jumpstart local and economic national recovery. Comptroller Stringer underscored that investments in transit, pedestrian, and bicycle infrastructure are critical for a more sustainable, healthy, and equitable future. Comptroller Stringer highlighted that these various transit modes are not only central to New Yorkers’ daily life and the vitality of our city, but that a joint effort to make necessary investments in public transit and sustainable infrastructure would cause significant, positive ripple effects.

Comptroller Stringer called on the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to take swift action to:

• Scale back highways, rebuilding neighborhoods that have been divided by highway infrastructure, and convening a joint taskforce with the State and the City to develop a comprehensive plan for the five boroughs. Comptroller Stringer has proposed scaling down a section of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (Interstate-278), limiting it exclusively to truck access and building a two-mile linear park. Federal funding is needed for this type of planning citywide, particularly in neighborhoods where highway infrastructure is linked to poor air quality, high asthma rates, and related environmental and health inequities.
• Invest in annual operating grants to transit agencies. The Federal DOT should extend operating funding to agencies as large as New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and require service standards reform to improve service during off-peak times.
• Reevaluate Port Authority’s AirTrain proposal given recent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rule changes and strongly consider extending the N Train subway line to LaGuardia.
• Implement Federal DOT’s Draft Strategic Plan on Accessible Transportation as soon as possible. Creating a simple, streamlined grant program for subway station ADA retrofits would be transformative in New York City, where three-quarters of stations are inaccessible to those with long-term disabilities and injuries, as well as parents with young children.
• Dedicate a Federal DOT funding stream for integrating commuter lines into urban transportation networks, with unified fares across rail, subway, and bus systems and regular all-day service. Integrating and modernizing commuter rail is one of the quickest and most cost-effective methods for radically improving urban transit in the United States.

The full letter is available here.

Governor Cuomo Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress During COVID-19 Pandemic April 17, 2021

Hospitalizations Drop to 3,834 — Lowest Since November 30

866 Patients in the ICU; 535 Intubated

Statewide Positivity Rate is 2.78%

58 COVID-19 Deaths in New York State Yesterday 

 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

"COVID-19 has been a long and extremely difficult time in the lives of New Yorkers, and although I know COVID fatigue is setting in and people are desperate to return to normal, we're still dealing with a pandemic and we still need to practice the behaviors that keep ourselves and others safe," Governor Cuomo said. "New York continues to make progress on vaccinations, and we're expanding eligibility and opening more pop-up sites across the state to get more shots in arms. That's good news, but it doesn't mean we shouldn't keep washing our hands, wearing masks and staying socially distanced. The infection rate is a function of what we do to slow the spread, individually and in our communities, and variants of the virus should still be a concern for all of us. We're moving forward toward the light at the end of the tunnel, but we have to defeat this COVID beast together to get there."

Today's data is summarized briefly below:

• Test Results Reported - 296,240
• Total Positive - 8,235
• Percent Positive - 2.78%
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 3.03%
• Patient Hospitalization - 3,834 (-50)
• Net Change Patient Hospitalization Past Week - -407
• Patients Newly Admitted - 532
• Hospital Counties - 52
• Number ICU - 866 (-2)
• Number ICU with Intubation - 535 (-8)
• Total Discharges - 170,267 (+502)
• Deaths - 58
• Total Deaths - 41,450

 

VACCINE FOR ALL: CITY EXPANDS WALK-UP APPOINTMENTS FOR NEW YORKERS 50 AND OLDER

Beginning today, New Yorkers 50 and older can walk into any City-run vaccine site and get vaccinated without an appointment 

 Beginning today, April 17^th, New Yorkers who are 50 and older will be able to walk into City-run vaccine sites and get vaccinated without an appointment, Mayor de Blasio announced today. Previously, walk-in appointments were exclusively for New Yorkers 75 and older.  

“Our priority for the next few months is clear: we need to vaccinate as many New Yorkers as possible,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “By making it easier for New Yorkers 50 and older to get vaccinated, we are on our way to fully vaccinating five million New Yorkers by June.”

 

Starting today, the City-run sites offering walk-up appointments to New Yorkers 50 and older are:

 

BRONX

1. Bronx Co-Op City Dreiser Community Center
2. Northeast Bronx YMCA (Edenwald)
3. South Bronx Educational Campus
4. West Bronx Gymnasium 
5. Lehman College - Apex Center
6. Bathgate Contract Postal Station

 

BROOKLYN

7. Coney Island YMCA
8. Teachers Prep High School
9. Starrett City
10. Flatbush YMCA
11. Bushwick Educational Campus
12. Event Space at City Point 
13. Brooklyn Army Terminal

 

MANHATTAN

14. Ford Foundation
15. NFL Experience Times Square
16. Yeshiva University
17. City College 
18. Essex Crossing
19. Abyssinian Baptist Church
20. Fulton Senior Community Center / Hudson Guild

 

QUEENS

21. Modell's - Queens Center Mall
22. Korean Community Services
23. Beach Channel Educational Campus
24. Long Island City Vaccine Site (Plaxall)
25. Queens Public Library - Flushing Library

26. Queens Public Library - Ozone 

27. CitiField

 

STATEN ISLAND

28. Former Babies R Us - Staten Island Mall
29. Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex
30. Empire Outlets
31. St. Thomas St. Joseph's School

 

New Yorkers can schedule appointments and locate their nearest vaccine site by visiting nyc.gov/vaccinefinder or calling 1-877-VAX-4-NYC. The City will be sharing this opportunity widely through local partners and CBOs, as well as through social media, website promotion, and robocalls. 

 

“With more than 5 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered, we’re making incredible progress vaccinating New York City, but the job is not finished — we know we still have more New Yorkers to reach with this life-saving resource,” said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Melanie Hartzog. “Expanding walk-up appointments to New Yorkers 50 and older is yet another way we’re working to make the vaccine as accessible as possible — and an example of how we will continue to adapt our strategies and expand our efforts to take our progress further.”

 

“We aim to open as many doors as possible to vaccination,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Dave A. Chokshi. “We’re glad that getting the vaccine is now as easy as a walk in the park. Our staff are standing by to serve New Yorkers.”

 

“As we race against COVID-19, we must do everything in our power to help all New Yorkers get vaccinated as quickly as possible,” said Dr. Ted Long, Executive Director of the NYC Test & Trace Corps and Senior Vice President of Ambulatory Care and Population Health at NYC Health + Hospitals. “The expansion of walk-up access for New Yorkers age 50 and older brings us one important step closer to the goal of vaccine for all.” 

 

Councilman Mark Gjonaj's NYC Moving Forward Week in Review - 4/16/2021

 

Dear Friends, I hope you and your families are doing well as we are trying to get back to normalcy, more people are getting the Covid-19 vaccine and getting tested, more businesses reopening and school children going back to in-person classes. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and we are glad to join forces with the NYPD 45th Precinct Domestic Violence Unit to raise awareness about sexual assault and violence. While libraries are important cornerstones of a healthy community and reading to children is an important tool to stimulate their imagination and expand their understanding of the world, I was glad to read “ Maybe Something Beautiful” to families and children in our District, as part of the New York Public Libraries Online Family Storytime. We are also grateful to continue the Book Box Program with the Morris Park Library. In an effort to forge relationships between the police and the community this week we also kickstarted “Let’s Clean Up NYC Together” with the NYPD 49th Precinct, Pelham Parkway Neighborhood Association and Wildcats, removing graffiti on Lydig Avenue. Our Adopt-A-Trash Can Program from the commercial corridors throughout District 13 has rolled out today in an effort for cleaner neighborhoods in partnership with Wildcats. We are also looking forward to our Earth Day related events next week as we raise awareness for a cleaner environment, to change our behaviors, to live more sustainably, to act more compassionately toward nature and the earth. Constituents in District 13 can still take advantage of our Free Tax Preparation in partnership with Urban Upbound as the IRS has postponed the Tax Deadline to May 17th. We are proud of serving you and being with you throughout this pandemic. Please do not hesitate to contact my office with any issues or concerns at 718-931-1721 or email at MGjonaj@council.nyc.gov. Sincerely, NYC Councilman Mark Gjonaj District 13, Bronx

Morris Park Community Association Meeting Team Gjonaj attended the Morris Park Community Association  meeting where we updated them with our District Office services,  as we heard their issues and concerns. Allerton International Merchants Association Meeting Team Gjonaj attended the Allerton International Merchants Association monthly meeting, while we gave an update on what our office is doing, we also heard concerns and issues from the community.

NYS Office of the Comptroller DiNapoli: 2020-21 Tax Revenues $3 Billion Over Projections

 

Tax collections for State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2020-21 totaled $82.4 billion - $3 billion higher than forecast by the state Division of the Budget (DOB) in the Amended Executive Budget Financial Plan in February (latest projections), and $6.8 billion higher than forecast in May 2020 (initial projections), according to the March State Cash Report released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Total tax collections for SFY 2020-21 were $513.3 million lower than the previous year.

“The state’s year-end financial position was significantly better than anticipated,” DiNapoli said. “We face a long road to recovery, and the state’s economy still faces serious challenges, both in the short-term and long-term. Better-than-anticipated tax collections, federal resources and new revenues in the recently adopted budget allow for important investments in critical programs and services, but state policymakers must ensure that spending commitments are in line with recurring revenue sources.”

Personal income tax (PIT) collections totaled $55 billion, exceeding prior year collections by $1.3 billion or 2.4 percent. PIT collections exceeded the latest projections by $1.9 billion and initial projections by $5.9 billion, even with $437 million more in refunds being paid in the last quarter than previously anticipated.

Consumption and use taxes, which include sales tax receipts, totaled $16.1 billion, falling short of prior year totals by $1.9 billion or 10.6 percent. Collections were $116.4 million higher than the latest projections and $643.4 higher than initial projections. 

Business tax collections totaled $8.8 billion, which was $203.4 million lower than the previous year. Collections exceeded the latest projections by $614.4 million and were below initial projections by $164.6 million.

State Operating Funds spending totaled $104.2 billion, which was $2 billion, or 2 percent, higher than last year. The General Fund ended the fiscal year with a balance of $9.161 billion, an increase of $216.6 million from opening balance. DOB took the following actions at the end of the year:

• $3.1 billion was paid in debt service prepayments and debt defeasance, which was $1.5 billion higher than the most recent forecast;
• $918 million in payments were made to eliminate all remaining pension amortization costs;
• $692.8 million from the General Fund was used to support education aid to offset lower than anticipated receipts from Video Lottery Terminals, $448.8 million higher than the most recent forecast;
• $513 million in previously collected monetary settlements from financial and other institutions was transferred from the General Fund to the Dedicated Infrastructure Investment Fund, $617 million lower than the most recent forecast; and,
• $3.4 billion in debt service on short-term notes issued earlier in the year was paid as planned.

March Cash Report

260 Days and Counting

 

Things are really crazy up in the Bronx. I thought the Bronx Democratic Party Leader had some influence, but that must have been County Leaders like Jose Rivera, Carl Heastie, and even Marcos Crespo, but now I understand why Crespo bailed for a high paying job with Montefiore Hospital. 

Jamaal Bailey you are abandoning your district leaders, and they are abandoning their assembly members such as in the 80th A.D. Your undeclared Bronx Borough President candidate winds up at the bottom of the list, and your declared candidate for City Comptroller also is at the bottom of the ballot for that position, where former Bronx Assembly candidate Dion Powell (of all people) gets the number one spot for City Comptroller. Go Dion Powell, 'Powell for the People'.

Bronx Democratic Party - Join Team Benjamin and Senator Jamaal T. Bailey for a voter contact session

 

Dear friends, This Tuesday, April 20 at 6 pm, please join us and Senator Jamaal T. Bailey to talk to Bronxites about Brian Benjamin's campaign for New York City Comptroller. We will be calling and texting our neighbors using Hustle to get out the vote for Brian. He is running to be our next NYC Comptroller to bring transparency, accountability, and leadership to New York City. Brian is an experienced financial manager with the background and vision to lead the city through the Covid-19 recovery and beyond. Learn more about Brian at benjamin2021.com. Don't worry if you're new to this or if it's your first time using systems like Hustle, we'll provide you with training to set you up for successful conversations. Training begins at 5:30 pm for those who would like to learn more. Click here to sign up and help us share Brian Benjamin's plans for New York. We look forward to having you join us!

RSVP

Sincerely, The Bronx Dems

Governor Cuomo Announces More Than 40% of New Yorkers Have Received at Least One Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine

 

233,973 Doses Administered in the Last 24 Hours

Nearly 1.5 Million Doses Administered Over Past Seven Days  

Vaccine Dashboard Updated Daily on the State's Vaccine Program; Go to ny.gov/vaccinetracker

 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that more than 40 percent of New Yorkers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. 233,973 doses have been administered across the state's vast distribution network in the last 24 hours, and nearly 1.5 million doses have been administered over the past seven days.       

"We remain locked in a footrace between the rate of infection and the vaccination rate, and we are continuing to work around the clock to get shots in arms as quickly and fairly as possible," Governor Cuomo said. "Our vaccination efforts are going very well - we have opened hundreds of vaccination distribution sites across the state, we've expanded to universal eligibility and we are investing in public awareness and education to make sure every New Yorker knows the vaccine is safe and effective. However, we are still largely dependent on the supply from the Federal Government, and until we have reached herd immunity all New Yorkers must continue with the safe practices we know work to stop the spread."

New York's vast distribution network and large population of eligible individuals still far exceed the supply coming from the federal government. Due to limited supply, New Yorkers are encouraged to remain patient and are advised not to show up at vaccination sites without an appointment.                                                

The 'Am I Eligible' screening tool has been updated for individuals with comorbidities and underlying conditions with new appointments released on a rolling basis over the next weeks. New Yorkers can use the following to show they are eligible:

• Doctor's letter, or
• Medical information evidencing comorbidity, or
• Signed certification                

Vaccination program numbers below are for doses distributed and delivered to New York for the state's vaccination program, and do not include those reserved for the federal government's Long Term Care Facility program. A breakdown of the data based on numbers reported to New York State as of 11 AM today is as follows.                                              

STATEWIDE BREAKDOWN

Total doses administered - 12,872,765

Total doses administered over past 24 hours - 233,973

Total doses administered over past 7 days - 1,485,899

Percent of New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 40.2%

Percent of New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 27.0%