THE RECOVERY BUDGET: MAYOR DE BLASIO RELEASES THE EXECUTIVE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022

 

The Recovery Budget is a radical investment in working families to drive economic growth in every neighborhood

 “A recovery for all of us starts by investing in working families across New York City. The pandemic hit us hard but together we will fight back and drive a recovery in every neighborhood. We are meeting the moment with direct investments in education, small businesses, open space and public health, and we are building up reserves to continue our strong fiscal foundation for the future. With the Recovery Budget, New York City will emerge from this challenge stronger, fairer, cleaner, greener and safer than ever.” – Mayor Bill de Blasio  

Today, Mayor Bill de Blasio presented the Recovery Budget, New York City’s $98.6 billion Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22). The Recovery Budget is an historic stimulus-driven investment in our comeback that will drive economic growth, lift up working families and small businesses, promote academic and social resilience and ensure a clean and safe city for all.

 

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE RECOVERY BUDGET

 

The Recovery Budget is a radical investment in working families to drive economic growth in every neighborhood. This budget:

 

• Adds unprecedented equity investments in students and schools
• Redefines summer school with Summer Rising
• Expands early childhood special education 
• Funds New Deal-style job creation with City Cleanup Corps
• Invests to stop gun violence through partnerships with communities
• Redefines citywide responses to mental health crises
• Fully funds universal free 3-K for All and expands capacity for early childhood special education 
• Reimagines public space with Open Streets, Open Restaurants, new bike lanes and the Manhattan Greenway

 

GAME CHANGERS: STIMULUS AND VACCINATIONS

 

Federal stimulus and the City’s robust vaccination campaign are propelling New York City to recovery. New York City experienced a growth of 100,000 jobs from December 2020 to March 2021, and expects to gain 400,000 more to reach a total of 4.5 million jobs by the end of 2021.

 

The City’s tax revenue forecast exceeded expectations, with an increase of $1.37 billion in Fiscal Year 21 and $164 million in FY22, for a total of $1.5 billion. 

 

In addition to the federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act enacted on December 27th, 2020, on March 10, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden signed The American Rescue Plan, providing robust federal funding to New York City and other localities that have been on the front lines of COVID-19. The Plan recognizes $5.9 billion in direct local aid and $7.0 billion in federal education funding from the two federal stimulus bills. This is on top of an additional $1.3 billion in FEMA assistance to cover COVID-19 related costs like vaccinations, testing, emergency food programs, medical staffing and more.

 

The injection of federal stimulus will provide the momentum needed to recover from the financial impact of the pandemic, and will supercharge the city’s economic growth over time.

 

In addition, New York State’s Fiscal Year 2022 Budget restored nearly all cuts and cost shifts imposed on the City in January. This included long overdue Campaign for Fiscal Equity funding, which ramps up to $1.1 billion annually in Fiscal Year 2024 and will bring educational resources and equity to our school children for years to come.

 

BUDGETING FOR OUR FUTURE 

 

The Recovery Budget adds $1.8 billion to the City’s budget reserves, including $1.6 billion to the Retiree Health Benefits Trust in FY21 and $200 million to the General Reserve. This brings total reserves in Fiscal Year 2022 to $4.59 billion, including $3.8 billion in the Retiree Health Benefits Trust, $493 million in the Rainy Day Fund, and $300 million in the General Reserve.

 

This Administration has remained focused on savings, even when revenues were strong. The Fiscal Year 2022 Executive Budget reflects almost $3.9 billion in savings over Fiscal Years 2021 and 2022, with $603 million achieved across the two years in this Plan alone.

 

INVESTING IN NEW YORKERS

 

The Recovery Budget makes major investments to help working families across the five boroughs, including:

 

Investments in Education

• 100% Fair Student Funding for schools: $600M in FY22
• Universal Free 3-K For All to make 3K available for every family by September 2023: $377M in FY22
• Intensive Academic Recovery for Every Student to establish baselines with assessment data, core ELA & Math instruction, tutoring, and teacher planning time: $500M in FY22
• Increase Information Technology Support, including digital tools that support technology literacy for every student: $155M in FY22
• Hold Schools Harmless for Mid-Year Adjustments: $130M in FY21
• Expansion of Restorative Justice for Social Emotional Learning at Middle and High Schools: $12M in FY22
• Community Schools in Every District by expanding from 266 to 406 community schools citywide: $10M in FY22
• Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL) expansion to increase access to sports programming across the city for high school students, focusing on schools with greatest need: $6M in FY22 
• Strengthening Special Education Services including counseling, physical and speech therapy: $236M in FY22  
• Expanding Early Childhood Special Education: $22M in FY22

 

Support for Young New Yorkers

• Summer Rising for up to 190,000 young people this summer: $200M in FY22
• Add 5,000 CUNY Summer Youth Employment slots to bring the total to 75,000 slots: $13M for a total investment of $167M in FY22

 

Public Health Capital of the World

• Launch NYC Public Health Corps: $50M in FY22
• Launch New Family Home Visits, health Services to first-time parents in Task Force Neighborhoods and for NYCHA residents: $23M in FY22
• Expand LifeSci NYC Initiative beyond Life Science Avenue (Manhattan’s East Side) to include the Bronx, Brooklyn and Manhattan’s West Side and increase lab space across NYC: $300M in capital
• Better prepare for next health emergency with focus on health inequities with the Pandemic Response Institute: $20M in capital

 

Mental Health Recovery

• Bring Mental Health Crisis Response Citywide, including EMS and social worker teams for urgent non-violent mental health needs: $112M in FY22
• Expand Mobile Treatment Teams by adding 25 new teams to bring critical mental health services directly to New Yorkers: $23M in FY22
• Thrive Neighborhood Support Network, adding crisis prevention support by peers and community organizations: $2.5M in FY22
• Launch Communities Thrive to connect underserved New Yorkers with tele-mental health services: $2M in FY22
• Create the Behavioral Health Academy to train and support community mental health providers in areas hardest by the pandemic: $1M in FY22

 

Caring for Seniors

• Launch Community Care Plan to support seniors living at home and in their communities and open 25 more senior centers in underserved communities of color: $39.4M in FY22
• Invest more in existing senior centers: $10M FY22

 

Non-Profit Support

• Provide financial stability for human services providers by increasing indirect rates: $120M in FY 21-22
• Expand emergency food distribution programs including delivery of fresh produce and shelf-stable goods to pantries and community-based organizations: $32M FY22

 

Bring Back Small Businesses

• Small Businesses Rental Assistance and Grants for Low/Moderate Income Neighborhoods: $100M in FY22
• Low-Interest Loans for Small Businesses Hit by Pandemic: $30M in FY21 to leverage $70M private investment
• Commercial Lease Legal assistance in underserved neighborhoods: $5.2M in FY22

 

Bring Tourists Back

• Launch Largest Tourism Campaign in History with NYC&Co: $25M in FY22

 

A Clean and Green City 

• City Clean Up Corps to directly hire 10,000 New Yorkers to make the city cleaner and greener: $234M FY22
• Resume organics collection and expand recycling programs: $33M in FY22
• Restore litter basket collection service: $9M in FY22

 

Reimagine our Streets

• Funding for operations and maintenance of 360 speed cameras in FY21 and 600 speed cameras in FY22, bringing total to 2,220 cameras citywide: $46M in FY22
• Investing to streamline process for Open Restaurants: $8.5M in FY22
• Community Support for Open Streets: $4M FY22
• Bike Boulevards, Brooklyn Bridge bike lane: $2M between FY21-22
• Queensboro Bridge bike lane: $5M in capital
• Complete the Manhattan Greenway: $723M in capital

 

Public Safety and Criminal Justice

• CCRB expansion including enhancements launch of CCRB biased-based investigation capacity: $4.1M in FY22
• Community-Based Hate Crime Prevention for community based organizations to lead neighborhood patrols, do bystander intervention training and provide victim services: $3M in FY22
• Cure Violence - double workforce then triple workforce, add two new sites,  and increase Anti-Violence Youth Employment: $27M in FY22 
• Advance Peace to connect mentors with at-risk youth: $6M in FY22
• Saturday Night Lights will expand to 100 Locations: $7M in FY22
• Joint Force to End Gun Violence: $1.3M in FY22

 

 

Join Fellow Progressives for our April General Virtual Meeting!

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86226708692

Meeting ID: 862 2670 8692

Greetings Bronx Progressives Members!

Hope you're having an awesome April and this message finds you all in great health.   

The trees are blooming, weather is getting warmer, days are getting longer, and a feeling in the air that things are get back to normal. 

We want to thank those that were able to make it last Saturday to our Public Power Launch Rally organized by DSA. The day was perfect for a rally. Great turnout. And boy did we make our presence felt. Our calls for Public Power were loud and clear in front of the Con Edison building at 1775 Grand Concourse.

Morever, it's that time again Bronx Progressives! Join us on Wednesday, April 28 at 7pm to our April general meeting.

We will be joined by Andrea Shapiro with Met Council on Housing, who will join us to report what happened in the recent passing of the New York State budget, and what tenants won with rent relief. 

There is over $2.4 billion in rent relief that will be allocated to tenants in desperate need of assistance. Come learn how these funds need to be distributed, and how we continue to fight for housing justice. 

Agenda:

• Greetings and Welcomes (2 Mins.)

• Quick review of the agenda (3 Mins.)

• House Rules (3 Mins.)

• Introducing Andrea Shapiro (3 Mins) 

• Andrea Shapiro gives presentation (20 Mins.)

• Q&A (10 Mins.)

1. Working Group Report on Monthly Activities  (10 Mins.)

• DSA Public Power Launch Rally (5 Mins)
• In-person Community Canvassing (5 Mins)
• New York Health Act Phone Banks (5 Mins. Gene Binder) 
• Increasing membership (5 Mins.)

      2. New Business/Announcements (20 Mins.)      

• BylawsReminder
• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dupzQcNBbEhBbSAZBe5GF24vAIeMMBEdYHLcTwvE_gA/edit?usp=sharing

Adjourn

Bronx Progressives is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Bronx Progressives April Virtual General Meeting 

Time: Apr 28, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86226708692

Meeting ID: 862 2670 8692

U.S. Government Seizes Oil Tanker Used To Violate U.S. And U.N. Sanctions Against North Korea

 

Singaporean National Kwek Kee Seng Charged with Federal Crimes Related to Alleged Leadership Role in Scheme to use the M/T Courageous to Violate Sanctions

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John C. Demers, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the filing of a criminal complaint charging KWEK KEE SENG with conspiring to evade economic sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (“DPRK” or “North Korea”) and money laundering conspiracy.  In addition to these criminal charges, a civil forfeiture complaint was filed against M/T Courageous, an oil products tanker purchased and operated by KWEK to make illicit deliveries of petroleum products through ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean vessels and direct shipments to the North Korean port of Nampo. 

The M/T Courageous

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:  “As alleged, Kwek Kee Seng conspired to violate international sanctions by arranging illicit deliveries of petroleum products to North Korea, and used front companies and false documentation to send money through the U.S. financial system in furtherance of his support for that pariah state.  As a result of his illegal activities, not only does Kwek face criminal charges, but his sanctions-evading ship, the Courageous, has been seized and will no longer enable North Korea’s pattern of evading the global community’s prohibitions on support for that regime.  Thanks to the extraordinary cooperation between U.S. and Cambodian law enforcement authorities, the Courageous is out of service.  This Office has pioneered the deployment of the full array of criminal and civil enforcement tools to curb North Korea’s deceptive and illicit activities, and today’s actions send a message that anyone who supports the DPRK’s sanctions-busting efforts stands to lose both their liberty and their property.”

Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers said:  “The seizure of the Courageous is another step in sinking North Korea’s efforts to circumvent sanctions on the high seas.  The United States will continue to enforce sanctions on North Korea through civil forfeiture actions and criminal prosecutions to ensure that the North Korean government – and the private entities that enable this regime by prioritizing personal profit over global security – are held accountable.”

FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. said:  “In case our message wasn't clear when we seized M/V Wise Honest in May 2019, our seizure of M/T Courageous should serve as another signal of our intentions: the FBI will not allow adversaries to evade sanctions designed to protect our nation. Kwek is now a fugitive on our radar, and his ship is now ours. We are grateful to our international partners who have worked with us to ensure the safety of the citizens we serve."

According to the criminal and civil documents filed today in Manhattan federal court:[1]

Pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (NKSPEA), the DPRK and individuals or entities that the Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has determined are involved in the facilitation of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction are prohibited from engaging in transactions with U.S. persons or using the U.S. financial system. The United Nations Security Council has similarly imposed economic sanctions on North Korea, prohibiting among other things the conduct of ship-to-ship transfers with DPRK-flagged vessels and the provision of petroleum products to the DPRK.

For a four-month period between August and December 2019, M/T Courageous illicitly stopped transmitting location information, during which time satellite imagery shows that M/T Courageous engaged in a ship-to-ship transfer of more than $1.5 million worth of oil to a North Korean ship, the Saebyol, which had been designated by OFAC, and traveled to the North Korean port of Nampo. Seng and his co-conspirators took additional steps to hide the scheme by (1) operating a series of shell companies, (2) lying to international shipping authorities about M/T Courageous’ dealings with North Korea, and (3) falsely identifying M/T Courageous as another ship in order to evade detection.

In furtherance of the scheme, Seng and his co-conspirators arranged for a variety of payments, denominated in U.S. dollars, that were processed through U.S.-based correspondent accounts to purchase oil – including more than $1.5 million to purchase the oil that was transferred to the Saebyol, over $500,000 to buy M/T Courageous, and thousands more dollars to procure necessary services for M/T Courageous and another vessel, including registration fees, ship materials and salary payments for crewmembers. Seng and his co-conspirators overseas sought to conceal these sanctions-evading transactions by, among other things, using front companies to disguise the nature of the transactions; disguising location information for vessels carrying illicit shipments; and conducting ship-to-ship fuel transfers on the open sea in an attempt to hide their counterparties, such as the Saebyol. 

Cambodian authorities seized M/T Courageous in March of 2020, and have been holding the vessel pursuant to a U.S. seizure warrant, which was issued under seal on April 2, 2020. 

KWEK, 61, of Singapore, is charged with conspiring to violate the IEEPA and to commit money laundering.  Each count carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

KWEK KEE SENG remains at large.  The United States looks forward to working with our foreign partners to bring KWEK to justice.

Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and its New York Field Office, Counterintelligence Division.  Ms. Strauss also thanked the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia; the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section’s Program Operations Unit, and Office of International Affairs; the United States Coast Guard; the Cambodian Ministry of Justice; and the Cambodian National Police, for their assistance.

The charges in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.             

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation against Kwek.

Speaker Johnson, Council Member Moya, Public Advocate Williams and State Senator Benjamin Introduce Bills Designed to Weed out Bad Cops

 

 City and state legislation would disqualify police guilty of misconduct in other departments from getting hired in New York

City Hall, NY – As part of the Council’s efforts to increase police accountability and reimagine public safety, Speaker Corey Johnson, Council Member Francisco Moya, and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams are introducing a bill that will ban the city from hiring police officers from other jurisdictions who were fired for misconduct or resigned while being investigated for misconduct. The bill requires the Department of Citywide Administrative Services – which set qualifications for civil service jobs – to add a line in the hiring code that automatically disqualifies these officers when they apply for the NYPD.   There are already several disqualifications from becoming an NYPD officers, including domestic violence misdemeanors, dishonorable discharge from the military and felony convictions. While transfers to the NYPD are not common, the goal of this legislation is to make sure that no one with a history of misconduct finds their way into the city’s police force.   State Senator Brian Benjamin will introduce a companion bill in the State Senate, barring police departments in the state from hiring cops from other jurisdictions who were fired or resigned pending a misconduct investigation.   Officers who are fired from one department only to get hired by another, known as wandering officers, are more likely to receive misconduct complaints and get fired again compared to other officers, according to a 2020 report in the Yale Law Journal. 

 “All it takes is one bad cop to make a fatal mistake, shatter a family and destroy the trust people have in all police. Sadly, we’ve seen too many police misconduct cases across the country, and many times these so-called ‘wandering officers’ land in other departments. We don’t want them in the NYPD, and we must do everything we can do to prevent them from working as officers in our city,” said Speaker Corey Johnson.   

“Every step we can take towards dismantling systemic racism is an action towards meaningful police reform. The bill I’m introducing is a step to keep the bad apples from multiplying—if an officer is let go because of disciplinary issues, regardless of jurisdiction, they will be ineligible for NYPD service. This is about protecting Black and Brown lives from police officers who have had a history of misconduct. With this bill, New York City can be an example of vigorous and positive action so Black lives are no longer in danger,” said Council Member Francisco Moya.  

“We need to restore and protect the trust between our communities and the individuals sworn to protect them. We can’t do that if we have people serving as police officers who other cities or states have determined are not fit for duty,”  said Senator Brian Benjamin. “Once we enact this bill into law on the city and state level, we can be sure that we are not empowering people who have a history of abusing their positions. This bill will increase transparency around policing and protect the public from abusive officers, increasing public safety for all.”  

251 Days and Counting

 

This may be a 'Dead End Job', but if you play your cards right you can THRIVE after leaving office.

Governor Cuomo Directs State Police Hate Crimes Task Force to Offer Assistance in Investigation of Thrown Rocks Smashing and Breaking Glass Windows and Doors in Two Bronx Synagogues

 

 "I was appalled by a report that an individual threw rocks at glass windows and doors in two Bronx synagogues, smashing and breaking them. We have no tolerance for discriminatory acts that seek to divide us rather than bring us together. I am directing the New York State Police Hate Crimes Task Force to immediately offer assistance in the investigation being conducted by the NYPD. We stand with Jewish New Yorkers — an essential part of the fabric of our state — as we do with all victims of bigotry, and I look forward to seeing this investigation resolved quickly."

 

Co-Founder Of Hedge Fund Charged With $40 Million Securities Fraud Scheme

 

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Philip R. Bartlett, Inspector-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”), announced today the arrest yesterday afternoon of ANDREW FRANZONE, the founder and former general partner of FF Fund I L.P. on charges of securities fraud and wire fraud for his role in a scheme to fraudulently induce more than 100 investors to invest approximately $40 million in his fund by, among other things, lying about the fund’s investment strategy, liquidity, and amount of assets under management.  FRANZONE was arrested yesterday afternoon in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on a criminal complaint (the “Complaint”) and will be presented before a magistrate judge in the Southern District of Florida.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:  “Andrew Franzone allegedly promised his clients access to his successful liquid trading strategy and consistent, positive trading returns.  As alleged, those promises were lies.  Franzone lied about his fund’s investments and performance, and he lied in promising clients that they had could readily access their invested capital.  While his investors lost money, Franzone enriched himself.  We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect investors from these types of deceptive practices.”

USPIS Inspector-in-Charge Philip R. Bartlett said:  “Mr. Franzone allegedly misled investors to believe his fund was liquid and he could cover their redemption requests, in a scheme to lure them in to investing in his hedge fund. This should be a reminder that greed has no boundaries and does not care about a favorable portfolio. Postal Inspectors remind all investors to thoroughly check offers, and if they sound too good to be true, keep your money in the bank.”

As alleged in the Complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal Court[1]:

FRANZONE co-founded Farrell Franzone Investments LLC in 2010.  FRANZONE described Farrell Franzone as an opportunity for investors to invest, through the purchase of limited partnership (“LP”) interests, in a hedge fund purporting to trade preferred securities and options and to maintain a highly liquid portfolio for its investors.  FRANZONE renamed the fund FF Fund I (“FF Fund”) in 2014, and served as its general partner from that time until approximately September 2019. 

In connection with marketing the FF Fund to investors, FRANZONE touted FF Fund as a “multi-strategy investment program … focus[ed] on three unique asset classes: the preferred stock market, the option market, and the private investment portfolio.”  When discussing FF Fund, FRANZONE assured investors that FF Fund was focused on trading in the preferred securities and options markets, which afforded its investors access to quarterly liquidity, and that FF Fund had a track record of consistent positive trading returns since its inception in August 2010. 

FRANZONE’s representations about FF Fund’s strategy, liquidity, and performance were largely fabricated.  Instead of engaging primarily in preferred securities and options trading that ensured the FF Fund’s liquidity, FRANZONE instead diverted more than 80% of FF Fund’s capital to high-risk, illiquid private investments, many of which were either worthless or significantly impaired.  FRANZONE also misappropriated FF Fund’s assets to fund his own personal business interests, including the purchase of an airplane hangar, and lied to investors about FF Fund’s performance and assets under management.

Through these and other fraudulent misrepresentations and omissions, FRANZONE induced over 100 investors to invest more than $40 million in FF Fund.  Despite showing investors positive trading returns as late as 2019, FF Fund was unable to fulfill redemption requests in early 2019 and is currently in the process of being liquidated.

FRANZONE, 44, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, is charged with one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison.  The maximum potential penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

Ms. Strauss praised the investigative work of the USPIS and thanked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which has separately filed a civil action against FRANZONE and FF Fund Management.

The allegations contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 [1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth below constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

Councilman Mark Gjonaj's NYC Moving Forward Week in Review - 4/23/2021

 

Dear Friends,

I hope you and your families are doing well as we are moving forward to warmer weather, businesses and schools reopening in person operations - hand in hand with getting the Covid-19 vaccine, getting tested, social distancing and wearing a mask.

This week we were proud to celebrate Earth Day in a series of events, park cleanups, graffiti removals, reusable bag giveaways, as well as voting on important legislation to reduce and re-use food waste.

In an effort to keep our neighborhoods and commercial corridors cleaner, businesses in City Island, who signed up for our Adopt a Trash Can program, received the Trash Cans. We are looking forward to a successful program as we roll it in other neighborhoods.

Team Gjonaj was proud to join forces with the NYPD 45th Precinct Domestic Violence Unit as we hosted an event in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, to further raise awareness about sexual assault and violence.

April is National Pet Month and we were glad to do a Pet Food Giveaway in City Island, in partnership with Animal Care Center of NYC and meet many of the lovely City Island furry friends and their owners.

Legislatively as part of the NYC Council Committee on Cultural Affairs, we held an oversight hearing to investigate ways to increase diversity in the arts and in our city’s cultural institutions - including, resolving the ethnic pay gap within cultural organizations and uplifting up nonprofits that are dedicated to supporting minorities in the arts.

We are proud of serving you and being with you throughout this pandemic. We are continuing to give out food boxes, offer Rapid Testing and many more services throughout our community. 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

This week, Councilman Mark Gjonaj received his second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at Jacobi Hospital. Vaccination is important because it not only protects the person who gets the vaccine, but also helps to keep diseases from spreading to others, like family members, neighbors and the community. #StopTheSpreadOfCOVID19