BRONX BOROUGH PRESIDENT VANESSA L. GIBSON'S STATEMENT ON VOTE TO MOVE JUST HOME PROJECT FORWARD

"This past Thursday, NYC Health + Hospitals (H+H) voted to move forward on the Just Home project at Jacobi Hospital. After months of hearing from local residents, it is clear that the community does not want this project to proceed. We have heard numerous concerns about how this will affect the safety and well-being of people living in the neighborhood, and, while H+H and the Fortune Society have made efforts to mitigate these concerns, it is clear not enough has been done for the community to feel comfortable with this project. 

Unfortunately, I have seen some of the opposition to this project devolve into rude and threatening behavior, thinly veiled racism, and unacceptable vitriol. I was particularly concerned to see serious inappropriate behavior and rhetoric at the Bronx Community Board 11 meeting to discuss this project that was not reflective of our borough and must not be how we express our support or opposition to city proposals. 

Over the two years I have been Borough President, I am proud to have supported the creation of hundreds of units of housing in our borough. Every community must contribute to the creation of more housing for our city to successfully combat the housing crisis. However, I believe that housing must be contextual to the neighborhood. What works in one part of the city does not necessarily work in another. I also believe that there are better uses for this land. 

The location on Jacobi’s campus is underutilized, and, instead of being used for this project, it should instead be developed in ways that benefit the community as a whole. Our team heard numerous ideas from community members for how to better utilize this space, including calls for a women’s health center with a focus on maternal health and domestic violence or for the return of a blood center in the Bronx. We have also heard calls for more community space, a youth center, or housing for seniors or veterans that would cater to their unique medical needs. I do not believe these alternatives were adequately explored before the decision to move forward with the Just Home proposal. 

The overall goal of H+H and the Fortune Society is positive, and the city must do more to find permanent housing solutions for formally incarcerated New Yorkers, particularly those who would otherwise be unhoused. However, I do not believe this project at this particular site is the correct way to move forward, and therefore, I cannot support it at this time." 

 

Former Cia Officer Joshua Adam Schulte Sentenced To 40 Years In Prison For Espionage And Child Pornography Crimes

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Matthew G. Olsen, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security; and James Smith, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today that JOSHUA ADAM SCHULTE was sentenced to 40 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman for crimes of espionage, computer hacking, contempt of Court, making false statements to the FBI, and child pornography.  SCHULTE’s theft is the largest data breach in the history of the CIA, and his transmission of that stolen information to WikiLeaks is one of the largest unauthorized disclosures of classified information in the history of the U.S.  Today’s sentencing followed SCHULTE’s convictions at trials that concluded on March 9, 2020, July 13, 2022, and September 13, 2023. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Joshua Schulte betrayed his country by committing some of the most brazen, heinous crimes of espionage in American history.  He caused untold damage to our national security in his quest for revenge against the CIA for its response to Schulte’s security breaches while employed there.  When the FBI caught him, Schulte doubled down and tried to cause even more harm to this nation by waging what he described as an ‘information war’ of publishing top secret information from behind bars.  And all the while, Schulte collected thousands upon thousands of videos and images of children being subjected to sickening abuse for his own personal gratification.  The outstanding investigative work of the FBI and the career prosecutors in this Office unmasked Schulte for the traitor and predator that he is and made sure that he will spend 40 years behind bars – right where he belongs.” 

Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen said: “Mr. Schulte severely harmed U.S. national security and directly risked the lives of CIA personnel, persisting in his efforts even after his arrest.  As today’s sentence reaffirms, the Department of Justice is committed to investigating, prosecuting, and holding accountable those who would violate their constitutional oath and betray the trust of the American people they pledged to protect.”

FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said: “Today, Joshua Schulte was rightly punished not only for his betrayal of our country, but for his substantial possession of horrific child pornographic material.  The severity of his actions is evident, and the sentence imposed reflects the magnitude of the disturbing and harmful threat posed by his criminal conduct.  The FBI will not yield in our efforts to bring to justice anyone who endangers innocent children or threatens our national security.”

According to court documents and evidence at trial:

From 2012 to 2016, SCHULTE was employed as a software developer in the Center for Cyber Intelligence (“CCI”), which conducts offensive cyber operations: cyber espionage relating to terrorist organizations and foreign governments.  SCHULTE and other CCI developers worked on tools that were used in, among other things, human-enabled operations: cyber operations that involved a person with access to the computer network being targeted by the cyber tool.  In addition to being a developer, SCHULTE was also temporarily one of the administrators of one of the servers and suite of development programs used to build cyber tools.

In March 2016, SCHULTE was moved within branches of CCI as a result of personnel disputes between SCHULTE and another developer.  Following that transfer, in April 2016, SCHULTE abused his administrator powers to grant himself administrator privileges over a development project from which he had been removed as a result of the branch change.  SCHULTE’s abuse of administrator privileges was detected, and CCI leadership directed that administrator privileges would immediately be transferred from developers, including SCHULTE, to another division.  SCHULTE was also given a warning about self-granting administrator privileges that had previously been revoked. 

SCHULTE had, however, secretly opened an administrator session on one of the servers before his privileges were removed.  On April 20, 2016, after other developers had left the CCI office, SCHULTE used his secret server administrator session to execute a series of cyber-maneuvers on the CIA network to restore his revoked privileges, break in to the backups, steal copies of the entire CCI tool development archives (the “Stolen CIA Files”), revert the network back to its prior state, and delete hundreds of log files in an attempt to cover his tracks.  SCHULTE’s theft of the Stolen CIA Files is the largest data breach in CIA history.

From his home computer, SCHULTE then transmitted the Stolen CIA Files to WikiLeaks, using anonymizing tools recommended by WikiLeaks to potential leakers, such as the Tails operating system and the Tor browser.  On May 5, 2016, having transmitted the Stolen CIA Files to WikiLeaks, SCHULTE wiped and reformatted his home computer’s internal hard drives.

On March 7, 2017, WikiLeaks began publishing classified data from the Stolen CIA Files.  Between March and November 2017, there were a total of 26 disclosures of classified data from the Stolen CIA Files that WikiLeaks denominated as Vault 7 and Vault 8 (the “WikiLeaks Disclosures”).  The WikiLeaks Disclosures were one of the largest unauthorized disclosures of classified information in the history of the U.S., and SCHULTE’s theft and disclosure immediately and profoundly damaged the CIA’s ability to collect foreign intelligence against America’s adversaries; placed CIA personnel, programs, and assets directly at risk; and cost the CIA hundreds of millions of dollars.  The effect was described at trial by the former CIA Deputy Director of Digital Innovation as a “digital Pearl Harbor,” and the disclosure caused exceptionally grave harm to the national security of the U.S.   

Following the WikiLeaks Disclosures, SCHULTE was voluntarily interviewed on multiple occasions by the FBI in March 2017.  During those interviews, SCHULTE repeatedly lied, including denying being responsible for the theft of the Stolen CIA Files or for the WikiLeaks Disclosures and spinning fake narratives about ways the Stolen CIA Files could have been obtained from CIA computers, in the hope of deflecting suspicion away from SCHULTE and diverting law enforcement resources to false leads. 

In March 2017, the FBI searched SCHULTE’s apartment in New York pursuant to a search warrant and recovered, among other things, multiple computers, servers, and other electronic storage devices, including SCHULTE’s personal desktop computer (the “Desktop Computer”), which SCHULTE built while living in Virginia and then transported to New York in November 2016.  On the Desktop Computer, FBI agents found layers of encryption hiding tens of thousands of videos and images of child sexual abuse materials, including approximately 3,400 images and videos of disturbing and horrific child pornography and the rape and sexual abuse of children as young as two years old, as well as images of bestiality and sadomasochism.  SCHULTE collected some of these files during his employment with the CIA and continued to stockpile child pornography from the dark web and Russian websites after moving to New York.

While detained pending trial, in approximately April 2018, SCHULTE sent a copy of the affidavit in support of the warrant to search his apartment, which a protective order entered by the Court prohibiting SCHULTE from disseminating, to reporters from two different newspapers, and SCHULTE acknowledged in recorded phone calls that he knew he was prohibited from sharing protected material like the affidavit.

Despite being warned by the Court not to violate the protective order further, in the summer and fall of 2018, SCHULTE made plans to wage what he proclaimed to be an “information war” against the U.S. government.  To pursue these ends, SCHULTE obtained access to contraband cellphones while in jail that he used to create anonymous, encrypted email and social media accounts.  SCHULTE also attempted to use the contraband cellphones to transmit protected discovery materials to WikiLeaks and planned to use the anonymous email and social media accounts to publish a manifesto and various other postings containing classified information about CIA cyber techniques and cyber tools.  In a journal, SCHULTE wrote that he planned to “breakup diplomatic relationships, close embassies, [and] end U.S. occupation across the world[.]”  SCHULTE successfully sent emails containing classified information about the CCI development network and the number of employees in particular CIA cyber intelligence groups to a reporter. 

As a result of this conduct, on March 9, 2020, SCHULTE was found guilty at trial of contempt of court and making material false statements.  On July 13, 2022, SCHULTE was found guilty at trial of eight counts: illegal gathering and transmission of national defense information in connection with his theft and dissemination of the Stolen CIA Files, illegal transmission and attempted transmission of national defense information, unauthorized access to a computer to obtain classified information and information from a department or agency of the U.S. in connection with his theft of the Stolen CIA Files, and two counts of causing transmission of harmful computer commands in connection with his theft of the Stolen CIA Files.  Finally, on September 13, 2023, SCHULTE was found guilty at trial on charges of receiving, possessing, and transporting child pornography.

In addition to the prison term, SCHULTE, 35, of New York, New York, was sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding efforts of the Counterintelligence Division and the Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force of the FBI’s New York Field Office, as well as the extraordinary work of FBI computer scientists from the Cyber Action Team.  Mr. Williams also thanked the FBI Washington Field Office, the CIA Office of General Counsel, and the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section for their assistance.

Attorney General James Secures $350 Million from Publicis for its Role in the Opioid Crisis

 

Purdue’s Former Advertising Company Developed Deceptive Marketing Campaigns to Increase Opioid Prescriptions, Fueling the Opioid Epidemic

New York to Receive More Than $19 Million for Opioid Abatement, Treatment, and Prevention

New York Attorney General Letitia James today co-led a coalition of every attorney general in the nation in securing $350 million from Publicis Health, LLC (Publicis) for the company’s role in the opioid crisis in New York and throughout the United States. Publicis, part of the French media conglomerate Publicis Groupe, S.A., is one of the world’s largest healthcare advertising companies and developed predatory and deceptive marketing strategies for Purdue Pharma L.P. (Purdue Pharma) in order to increase prescriptions and sales of opioids such as OxyContin, ultimately fueling the opioid epidemic. This is the first settlement with an advertising agency for its role in the opioid crisis. New York will receive $19,176,750.60 as a result of the agreement, which will be used to fund opioid abatement, treatment, and prevention.

“For a decade, Publicis helped opioid manufacturers like Purdue Pharma convince doctors to overprescribe opioids, directly fueling the opioid crisis and causing the devastation of communities nationwide,” said Attorney General James. “No amount of money can compensate for lives lost and addiction suffered, but with this agreement, Publicis will cease their illegal behavior and pay $350 million to help our communities rebuild. Here in New York, we have delivered more than $2.7 billion to fund opioid abatement, treatment, and prevention, and we will continue fighting to deliver these critical resources to all communities ravaged by this epidemic.”

From 2010 through 2019, Publicis worked with Purdue Pharma to develop marketing campaigns and materials promoting opioids including OxyContin, Butrans, and Hysingla. Publicis was responsible for creating advertisements and materials, such as pamphlets and brochures, that promoted OxyContin as safe and unable to be abused, even though this claim was not true. In addition to the campaigns it created for Purdue Pharma, Publicis conspired with McKinsey & Company, Inc. (McKinsey) and Practice Fusion, Inc. (Practice Fusion) to push false and deceptive strategies to increase Purdue’s opioid sales.

Publicis implemented Purdue Pharma’s predatory “Evolve to Excellence” scheme, developed by McKinsey, which targeted the doctors who prescribed the most OxyContin and flooded them with sales calls and marketing. These doctors would receive an increasing barrage of messaging touting the “abuse-deterrent” aspects of OxyContin and the so-called benefits of increasing patients’ dosages, often unnecessarily. This and other Publicis strategies were designed to deceptively expand the usage of opioids at higher doses for longer periods of time by more patients, regardless of whether some of those patients were not medically appropriate candidates for long-term opioid therapy.

These aggressive marketing campaigns worked: they resulted in a dramatic rise in opioid prescriptions nationwide, which in turn caused a devastating rise in the prevalence of opioid abuse, addiction, and overdose deaths.

Today’s agreement secures $350 million to be paid within 60 days to address the opioid crisis and prohibits Publicis from accepting any future contracts or engagements related to the marketing or sale of opioids. Publicis is also required to release hundreds of thousands of internal documents detailing its work for Purdue and other opioid manufacturers, as well as communications with consultants like McKinsey and Practice Fusion, to be included in an online document repository for the purposes of public disclosure.

Publicis and its clients fueled and profited off of the opioid epidemic. In 2020, 4,233 New Yorkers died as a result of an opioid-involved overdose — a 294% increase from 1,074 opioid overdose deaths in 2010. As of November 2022, a New Yorker died from an opioid overdose every two hours. 

This settlement is the latest in Attorney General James’ efforts to combat the opioid crisis and heal New York. In 2019, Attorney General James filed the nation’s most extensive lawsuit against opioid distributors and manufacturers for their role in the opioid epidemic. Since then, Attorney General James has recovered more than $2.7 billion to support New York opioid abatement, treatment, and prevention efforts from companies including Teva Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson, Mallinckrodt, Allergan, Endo, McKesson, Cardinal Health, and Amerisource Bergen. Attorney General James has also led multistate coalitions in reaching settlements for billions of dollars with CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart for their role in failing to properly regulate opioid prescriptions. Additionally, Attorney General James, co-led a coalition of nearly every attorney general in the nation in delivering more than $573 million — more than $32 million of which was earmarked for New York state — toward opioid treatment and abatement in an agreement and consent judgment with McKinsey & Company.

Negotiations in this matter were led by Attorney General James and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser. Joining them on the Executive Committee were the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Idaho, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont. 

Governor Hochul Launches First Open Gangway Train Into Service and Announces 1,000 Subway Cars Now Have Cameras

R211T Features Security Cameras Throughout the Train, Wider Doors, Digital Screens in Every Car, and Additional Accessibility Features

First Train to Feature Open Gangway Cars to Operate in the United States in Modern Era Will Run on the C Line 

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the rollout of R211T open gangway subway cars on the C line, running between Washington Heights and East New York, and marked significant progress towards increasing cameras throughout the system, with 1,000 subway cars now equipped with cameras. The unveiling was followed by an inaugural ride with Governor Hochul, Metropolitan Transportation Authority leadership, and elected officials, starting at the 168 St AC1 station in Washington Heights, which serves as the C line’s terminal.

“The subway is the lifeblood of New York City and we’re making record investment so it’s safe, efficient and successful,” Governor Hochul said. “New train cars, additional security cameras and more reliable service will make the subway system even better for decades to come.”

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said, “Our subways are New York City’s backbone — and thanks to our partnership with Governor Hochul and the MTA, our backbone is stronger than ever. More New Yorkers are riding our subways, and we’re back to pre-pandemic ridership peaks. Make no mistake: we have more work to do. But these new trains — and the 1,000 subway cars we’ve already installed cameras in — are a great next step towards creating a safer, smoother subway experience for all New Yorkers.”

The inaugural ride marks the first time an open gangway train has operated in the modern history of subways in the United States. The Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT), one of three operating authorities that were precursors to the amalgamated New York City Transit, ran three-car open gangway segments from 1925 to 1965.

The open gangway R211T pilot cars are part of a larger order of R211A conventional 60-foot cars, funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), which includes funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill.

R211 subway cars are a critical part of the MTA's ongoing modernization efforts systemwide. The cars include pre-installed security cameras in each car adding to the 1,000 subway cars that already have in-car cameras throughout the system. The rest of the NYC Transit fleet is scheduled to have in-car camera installations completed by January 2025. The in-car installations add on to the already expansive camera network in the subway system. In addition to 1,000 subway car cameras, the MTA has approximately 15,000 cameras across all 472 stations.

The R211 cars feature 58-inch-wide door openings that are eight inches wider than standard door openings on the existing car fleet, which are designed to speed up boarding and reduce the amount of time trains sit in stations. In addition to wider doors, these cars provide additional accessible seating, digital displays that will provide more detailed station-specific information, and brighter lighting and signage, among other features that improve the customer experience.

In October 2023 the Authority announced R211S cars will be rolled out on the Staten Island Railway (SIR) starting this year. NYC Transit received 20 open gangway cars as part of a much larger order of R211A cars.

NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE CALLS FOR MUNICIPAL, NOT SOLELY MAYORAL, CONTROL OF SCHOOLS

 

As Chancellor David Banks testifies about New York City’s educational needs in Albany today, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams has submitted his own testimony to the legislature on the need to move away from the current model of mayoral control and toward a ‘municipal control’ approach. This follows a public hearing held by the Public Advocate on Monday to hear from stakeholders including parents, educators, and students, as well as several years of ongoing advocacy from the Public Advocate on the issues.

“Our children’s education should not be dependent on one person—the mayor—especially during a time where we need heightened collaboration,” argued Public Advocate Williams. “It does not make sense to have one singular person at the helm of such an extensive education system when we can have a larger body share these responsibilities. Under mayoral control, mayors—past and present—continue to get away with decisions that harm NYC youth, parents, and communities because parents, youth, and community members don't have control over their schools.”

He further emphasized that “The problems with mayoral control are not about any one mayor. Simply put, one person controlling NYC public schools does not allow for students, parents, and community members to have a true say in decisions related to our schools,” and proposed, “Minimally, the City Council should have advice and consent on matters pertaining to NYC Public Schools. Optimally, the entire school community should have a say in their own governance, as they know their needs best.”

While acknowledging that “a transition to Community School Governance will not happen overnight,” Public Advocate Williams made several recommendations for actions the legislature could take in the short term, including:

• Convene and fund an independent and community-led School Governance Commission that includes students, parents/caregivers, educators, and other education stakeholders to articulate a transition plan for a fully elected school board for NYCPS by 2026.
• Start Building Community Power Now.
  • Reduce mayoral appointees by five and replace them with five elected parent positions.
• Give student panel members a vote, plan to increase voting membership to five by 2026.
• Provide public education resources to educate and inform the public about New York City school governance.

This week, the Public Advocate’s office held its own hearing on mayoral control, which allowed students, parents, educators, and other stakeholders to virtually testify and express their views on the current issues and future opportunities related to jurisdiction over New York City schools. Their testimony, delivered to the Public Advocate, First Deputy Public Advocate, Deputy Public Advocate for Education and Opportunity, and Chair of the City Council Committee on Education, Rita Joseph, was then provided to the state legislature as well.

Read a transcript of the hearing here, and see the Public Advocate’s full comments to the legislature below.   

STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS
TO COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION AND PRESIDENT OF SUNY DR. BETTY ROSA AND CHANCELLOR LESTER YOUNG

JANUARY 29, 2024

Good evening,

My name is Jumaane D. Williams, and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. I would like to thank Commissioner and President Dr. Rosa and Chancellor Young. As someone whose entire educational background occurred within the New York City public school system, this is a very important and personal issue to me.

I remain unwavering in my belief that New York City and local government should have jurisdiction over NYC schools. We need to implement a system of checks and balances where the mayor and coordinating bodies are all held accountable. There are various models that give local government and the community more control over what happens in their schools; with municipal control, governmental bodies including the City Council would take on a greater role and work in tandem with the mayor in assessing the needs and constraints of the NYC education system. Minimally, the City Council should have advice and consent on matters pertaining to NYC Public Schools. Optimally, the entire school community should have a say in their own governance, as they know their needs best.

I would be remiss if I did not point out that large changes like the decision to end mayoral control, too often happen under the leadership of people of more color. That can be true at the same time as the actual need to move away from Mayoral control. We currently have a Black mayor and a Black chancellor in NYC, and I want to be clear that the problems with mayoral control existed before this administration, and will continue after it, if mayoral control is extended.

As intergovernmental collaborations and partnerships have continued to expand, the Department of Education (DOE) is still siloed entirely under the mayor. Our children’s education should not be dependent on one person—the mayor—especially during a time where we need heightened collaboration. It does not make sense to have one singular person at the helm of such an extensive education system when we can have a larger body share these responsibilities.

Under mayoral control, mayors—past and present—continue to get away with decisions that harm NYC youth parents, and communities because parents, youth, and community members don't have control over their schools. These decisions have included increasing the number of budget cuts, reversal of integration policies, reversal of CRSE mosaic, creating more charter schools, closing schools, and instituting merit pay for teachers. We have also not received a commitment for a just transition away from the heavy policing infrastructure in place for decades

while the issues they intend to solve still persist. The problems with mayoral control are not about any one mayor. Simply put, one person controlling NYC public schools does not allow for students, parents, and community members to have a true say in decisions related to our schools. Other major cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, and Oakland have moved away or are moving away from mayoral control models of school governance.

As NYC students and families continue to recover and cope with the stress, trauma, uncertainty, and upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic—and especially in light of recent cuts to school budgets—it is more important than ever to be working collaboratively to provide the academic, social-emotional, and physical and mental health services that our students need. Many Pre-K and 3-K students with disabilities are unable to find seats in special education programs. Many disabled students and students in temporary housing or foster care do not have reliable bus services to get them to school. Just this month, the DOE announced that it will be thinning the school menu, cutting student favorite food items like chicken tenders, bean and cheese burritos, grab-and-go salads, and French toast sticks. Prior to the expansion of free school meals to all students, 81 percent of NYC students qualified for free lunches. For many students, reducing the number of options—particularly student favorites—makes the difference between whether they

eat and whether they do not.

We need to implement a system of checks and balances where the mayor and coordinating bodies are all held accountable. Governmental bodies including the City Council should take on a greater role and work in tandem with the mayor in assessing the needs and constraints of the New York City education system. Various advocacy groups and organizations already look to the City Council to create change but as the law stands, there are limitations to the say these bodies have in the education system. The hiring of a DOE Chancellor should not be a unilateral decision

made by the mayor. We must make room for other voices to weigh in on education issues. The City Council provides checks on other city agencies, yet they cannot do the same for the DOE. We have a chance to change this and provide a level of consistency across the board when it comes to agency accountability.

All students deserve to have a reliable and consistent education system that puts them first. By expanding the level of responsibility-sharing among multiple bodies including the City Council, not just the mayor, we can make this possible. We need to set an example for our students and show them successful work gets done through collaboration. I also look forward to working together with my colleagues in Albany to ensure every student has a fair chance to succeed in the system.

I understand a transition to Community School Governance will not happen overnight, but the legislature has the responsibility to put in place an inclusive plan for transition, informed by the public, to create a more democratic school governance. To achieve that, I am asking the legislature to:

• Convene and fund an independent and community-led, School Governance Commission that includes students, parents/caregivers, educators, and other education stakeholders to articulate a transition plan for a fully elected school board for NYCPS by 2026.
• Start Building Community Power Now positions.
  • Reduce Mayoral appointees by five and replace them with five elected parent
• Give student panel members a vote, plan to increase voting membership on the PEP to five by 2026.
• Provide public education resources to educate and inform the public about New York City school governance

Thank you.

MAYOR ADAMS UNVEILS NEW ANTI-TRASH TECHNOLOGY, LAUNCHES NEXT PHASE OF CITY’S WAR ON TRASH

 

Administration Unveils New Trash Collection Truck Four Years Ahead of Schedule,  Allowing for On-Street Containers at Large Residential Buildings 

  

Mayor Announces New Data-Driven Strategy to Identify Best Containers for Buildings of Different Sizes 

  

Manhattan Community Board 9 Will Be City’s First Fully-Containerized District Next Year 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) Commissioner Jessica Tisch today made two major announcements that will help get all of New York City’s trash off the streets and into secure, rodent-resistant containers, once and for all. The two announcements — a new, automated, side-loading garbage truck and a new data-driven containerization strategy — taken together represent the largest single turning point in the ongoing effort to make New York City the cleanest major city in the United States, and affirm a commitment in Mayor Adams’ 2024 State of the City address to set New York City on the course to store all trash put out for pickup in containers. Mayor Adams also announced that, thanks to today’s new announcements, Manhattan Community Board 9 will be the first district with 100 percent of its trash containerized and serviced next year. These announcements follow new data in the Preliminary Mayor’s Management Report showing that the city’s streets are getting cleaner. 

 

“The data is clear: Under our administration, New York City’s streets are cleaner. And as of this fall, thanks to the bold steps we have taken, a full 70 percent of New York City’s black bags will be off our streets and put into containers — but we’re not stopping there,” said Mayor Adams. “The new garbage truck we’re unveiling today — four years ahead of schedule — represents the future of New York City garbage collection. It means we’ll be able to containerize trash from our large residential buildings, something people didn’t believe would be possible in our dense city. And thanks to that truck and our commitment to turning our streets from mean to clean, residents of Manhattan’s Community Board 9 will be the first in the city to experience our streets free of every single black bag.” 

 

“Rats and black bags are heading off our streets — no room for them in a containerized New York City,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “Thanks to the hard work of DSNY, we have a smart containerization plan that meets the diverse needs of the city. New Yorkers and visitors are getting the clean, welcoming streets they deserve.” 

 

“New Yorkers have been clear: they’ve had enough of the black bags occupying our sidewalks, enough of the oozing garbage juice, and enough of being told that other global cities can have something that we can’t,” said DSNY Commissioner Tisch. “This administration rejects the cynicism that says things can’t change, and the speed at which we’ve moved to change the relationship between 8.3 million New Yorkers and 44 million daily pounds of trash cannot be overstated.” 

  

Automated Side-Loading Truck: A New Superweapon Against Trash 

 

The Adams administration today unveiled an all-new, automated, side-loading garbage truck — removing a major barrier to containerizing trash from high-density residential buildings. DSNY’s 2023 “Future of Trash” report found that this type of truck is needed to service the stationary on-street containers that high-density buildings will use to containerize their trash. But less than one year ago, industry experts estimated that development of this prototype truck would take up to five years. The truck unveiled today will also allow for substantially faster collection than manual pick-up. The rapid development of this prototype — which took place in Torino, Italy and in both Hicksville and Brooklyn, New York — will be followed by substantial testing and training. 

  

  

DSNY’s new, automated, side-loading garbage truck. 

Credit: New York City Department of Sanitation

    

A New Data-Driven Model 

 

Mayor Adams today outlined a new strategy for determining the type and size of containers that will be used for buildings of different sizes. Under this model, buildings with 31 or more residential units will be required to use stationary, on-street containers for their trash, serviced by the new automated side-loading garbage truck described above. Those on-street containers will be assigned to a specific building, solely for residents of that building. Buildings with 10 to 30 units will be able to choose between stationery on-street containers and smaller wheelie bins. Buildings with one to nine residential units will be required to put their trash in individual wheelie bins starting this fall, with the first-ever official NYC Bins available for use at that time and required by all residential units with one to nine units approximately two years later, in the summer of 2026. This model was informed by a volumetric analysis of how much trash buildings of different sizes produce, on average.   

 

A New Timeline to Containerize a Full Community District 

 

Thanks to the automated, side-loading garbage truck and new containerization strategy announced today, New York City will have its first district with 100 percent of its trash containerized and serviced next year: Manhattan Community Board 9. The district is currently home to a successful containerization pilot on 10 residential blocks and at 14 schools, during which rat sighting complaints in the pilot zone dropped by 68 percent compared to the same period the prior year. 

 

Because the automated side-loading truck had not been available, that current 10-block pilot uses wheeled containers, which sanitation workers wheel to the back of a conventional collection truck retrofitted with a tipping mechanism. Those wheeled bins will be removed and replaced with stationary on-street containers like those used in Europe, Asia, and South America.

 

As this full-district pilot will require procuring new containers and new trucks, installation will begin across the entirety of Manhattan Community Board 9 in the spring of 2025. This work is already underway, and DSNY will release an RFP to procure the containers next month. DSNY will conduct the necessary environmental review this year and will engage in substantial outreach across the district. 

 

A timeline and process for expansion beyond Manhattan Community Board 9 will be determined based upon learnings from the pilot district.

 

The “Trash Revolution” Thus Far 

 

The implementation of the transition to automated side-loading trucks for high-density buildings and a new containerization strategy will be among the final steps in the “Trash Revolution” and the war on rats. 

  

1.   In October 2022, the Adams administration kicked off the Trash Revolution by changing set-out times for both residential and commercial waste from 4:00 PM — one of the earliest set-out times in the country — to 8:00 PM in April 2023, while also allowing earlier set-out if the material is in a container. This incentivization of containerization was paired with major changes to DSNY operations, picking up well over a quarter of all trash at 12:00 AM rather than 6:00 AM, particularly in high density parts of the city, and ending a practice by which up to one fifth of trash had been purposefully left out for a full day. 
2.   Later that month, DSNY published its “Future of Trash” report, the first meaningful attempt to study containerization models in New York City, and the playbook to get it done. 
3.   Last August, containerization requirements went into effect for all food-related businesses in New York City. These businesses — restaurants, delis, bodegas, bars, grocery stores, caterers, etc. — produce an outsized amount of the type of trash that attracts rats. 
4.   That same month, installation of the initial 10-block, 14-school Manhattan Community Board 9 pilot containers began.
5.   Last September, commercial containerization requirements extended to chain businesses of any type with five or more locations in New York City. These chain businesses tend to produce a large total volume of trash.
6.   Starting March 1, 2024, container requirements will go into effect for all businesses — of every type — in New York City to get their trash off the streets and into a secure bin. 
7.   Later this fall, when container requirements go into effect for low-density residential buildings — those with one to nine units — approximately 70 percent of all trash in the city will be containerized.  
8.   In the spring of 2025, installation of stationary on-street containers will begin in Manhattan Community Board 9 for the first full-district containerization pilot, serviced by new automated side-loading trucks.  

 

“DSNY’s steadfast commitment to containerize waste is inspired,” said Director of Citywide Rodent Mitigation Kathleen Corradi. “This progress in systematically denying rats’ food access enables our city’s mitigation efforts to gain substantial traction and achieve sustainable, long-term success. The full containerization of CB9, representing one third of the Harlem Rat Mitigation Zone, will have a significant positive impact on residents and a significant negative impact on rats.”  

 

“They said that New York could not be contained — they were wrong,” said Chief Public Realm Officer Ya-Ting Liu. “We're supercharging our city's relentless drive to make New York the best pedestrian experience in the world.”