Press Room

NEW YORK: The New York City Council today passed New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams’ legislation designed to incentivize the building of green projects throughout New York City. The Green Building Project Bill– co-sponsored by Council Member Sandy Nurse– will continue the work of increasing efficiency, decreasing emissions, and building a greener New York City.

“The climate crisis is here and it’s affecting communities across New York City in profound ways– especially in low-income communities and communities of more color,” said Public Advocate Williams. “Every New Yorker deserves access to a safe and healthy home. We must invest in clean energy and actions towards environmental justice. Not only will this allow us to reach our environmental protection goals but it will also provide much needed relief to homeowners while allowing us to reach economic growth with new jobs.”

In 2019, the city enacted Local Law 97, which requires buildings over 25,000 square feet to meet new energy efficiency standards and greenhouse gas emissions limits by 2024. The law also created an advisory board and climate working group that supports the City on meeting these aggressive sustainability goals, with the goal of reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from buildings to 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050.

Intro 689-A from the Public Advocate broadens the parameters for certain green incentives established in that 2019 landmark law to include smaller buildings. By expanding the definition of a green building project to include those undertaken in one to three family homes and eliminating fees for those projects, the bill provides incentives for owners to improve green energy efficiency. The Public Advocate noted that in implementing this measure, just as with Local Law 97, it would be critical to verify that sustainability standards are truly being met to merit these incentives. Full text of the legislation can be found here.

"At a time when New Yorkers are experiencing the impacts of the climate crisis, we need to remove as many barriers as possible for the construction of sustainable green buildings that reduce energy and emissions," said Council Member Sandy Nurse, co-sponsor of the legislation. "As a long time champion for climate and environmental justice, I'm proud to be a co-sponsor on this bill with Public Advocate Jumaane Williams that incentivizes and streamlines the process for building a livable city."

“After over a decade of pushing for a holistic approach to addressing gun violence at its roots, and being met with alternating hesitancy and hostility, it’s gratifying to hear today’s announcement finally supporting those strategies. I thank the mayor for expressing a willingness to initiate a plan that begins to put the measures in place that can have a real and lasting impact, saving lives in our communities by building them up – not simply through overreliance on law enforcement.

“Intention is important, but implementation is key. In the coming weeks and months, my office will be monitoring closely and collaborating wherever possible to ensure that the investment and infrastructure are put in the places they will be most effective.

“I want to caution that this kind of approach and impact are not instantaneous. The benefits here will be lasting, but they will not be immediate – and we need to have the political courage to stay the course in an environment of short headlines and long political campaigns. We will absolutely need standards for success and accountability, but it is important for those metrics to align with the approach. If we do this right, we have an opportunity to help New Yorkers be and feel safe, lasting beyond any news cycle or any administration.”

Mayor Eric Adams traveled to the capital today to meet with legislators and Secretary Mayorkas on the challenges surrounding asylum seekers in New York City. Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, who met Wednesday with the White House Domestic Policy Council and the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness to push for federal action to support asylum seekers and housing solutions, released the following statement on the mayor’s trip:

“I am glad to see the mayor return to D.C. with a further push for federal action after my office’s trip yesterday. Our city has a moral and legal obligation to provide shelter and services to people who arrive here seeking asylum, and we cannot back away from that responsibility. The federal government must commit resources and enact policies that help our city and country welcome migrants with dignity and support.

“As I discussed with the White House yesterday, we need expanded infrastructural support in New York City and throughout the country, additional resources for the city, expedited work authorization, improved language access and expanded Temporary Protected Status including for Black migrants, and increased access to legal representation for our new and aspiring New Yorkers. I urge the mayor to reinforce our office’s calls today, and advance an approach in our city and beyond which focuses on meeting the urgent needs of the people coming to our country, rather than denying or deferring them.”

Read more about the Public Advocate’s meetings with the White House and the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.

WASHINGTON, DC: This morning, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams met with representatives from the White House Domestic Policy Council, including Director Neera Tanden and former Secretary and Senior Advisor Tom Perez, to review ways that the federal government can support people seeking asylum in New York City and provide the city resources and infrastructural aid. They discussed expediting work authorization, improving language access, expanding Temporary Protected Status, increasing access to legal representation, and more. This White House meeting follows the Public Advocate’s trip to Washington D.C. in April, where he met with a range of legislators on the issue. Read more about the office’s federal requests here.

The Public Advocate released the following statement after the meeting:

“Supporting migrants seeking asylum is a national issue with an acute impact on New York City, and I’m glad to have had the opportunity to lift up the voices and concerns of asylum seekers and advocates on the ground to the White House. After over a year without adequate support for the city, we desperately need federal action that meets the scope and urgency of this moment in order to uphold our moral obligation to support our newest New Yorkers. It’s important for our national leaders to understand the impact and immediacy of these issues, and to partner with local leaders to deliver resources and results.

“I’m grateful to the White House for their receptiveness to our concerns and their commitment to advancing the conversation – my office will continue to serve as a connection between the people making decisions in Washington and the people most impacted by their policies in our city.”  

This afternoon, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams met with representatives from the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness to discuss federal actions which can address the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis in New York City, particularly in light of the challenges to housing asylum seekers. Among the topics were requests to develop new Neighborhood Area Median Income metrics, fully fund public housing, improve federal procurement and appraisal policies, and implement All In, a federal plan to end homelessness in New York City.

Following the meeting, the Public Advocate released the following statement:

“Before the first bus arrived at Port Authority, there were already 50,000 New Yorkers living in shelters – the housing and homelessness crisis is as entrenched as the systems that drive it. I want to thank the Council for meeting with us to discuss federal solutions to a crisis replicated across the country and create deeply affordable, accessible, income-targeted housing. NYCHA needs more money, our systems need more equity, and we need housing policies grounded in the realities of unaffordability, rather than outdated and inaccurate AMI measures. There is a great deal we can and must do on the city and state level to help people get off the streets, out of shelters, and into permanent homes, but some efforts require federal commitment of resources and federal changes to policy. I look forward to continuing the conversation and the work with our federal partners.”

Read more about the office’s federal housing requests here. The Public Advocate also met earlier Wednesday with the White House Domestic Policy Council to discuss supporting asylum seekers in New York City- read more about that here.

Mayor Eric Adams signed legislation today from Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams to require the city to screen incarcerated individuals for dyslexia within city jails and provide appropriate interventions. The new law will help to expand educational and health services, improve programming inside city jails, and reduce recidivism upon release.

Specifically, Int. 349-A will mandate that the Department of Correction to provide dyslexia screenings for individuals under the age of 22 years old within 72 hours of intake who self-report that they do not have a high school diploma or its equivalent. This requirement will expand to include all incarcerated people by December 31, 2025. This law will then require the city to offer evidence-based intervention programs to individuals who are diagnosed with dyslexia during the screening. The legislation builds upon the federal First Step Act of 2018, which mandated dyslexia screening in federal prisons.

“A great deal of work needs to be done on Rikers, and the foundations on which the system was built were not designed to truly support the needs or well-being of people on the inside. Dyslexia is already under-discussed – and likely under-diagnosed – in our city, and evidence suggests that this problem is exponentially worse among incarcerated people. By screening and servicing affected individuals, we can help correct an educational services gap that should have been addressed long ago, providing new opportunities for people on the inside and helping to prevent them from re-entering the criminal justice system in the future," said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams. "Identifying and addressing dyslexia and illiteracy through trained educators will make time while incarcerated more positive, and employment after incarceration more accessible. If we had done a better job as a city of meeting this need early in New Yorkers' education, we may have prevented many people from contact with the system in the first place. I thank the Mayor for signing this key legislation."

The enacting of this law comes as reports have shown that incarcerated individuals often do not receive the support they need related to dyslexia, despite many individuals who are incarcerated having the learning disability. Dyslexia is a major contributing factor to illiteracy, which in turn is often correlated to contact with the criminal justice system. While studies vary, data has shown that as many as one third to half of incarcerated people in some prisons may have dyslexia. As many as 80% may have difficulty with reading comprehension.

Addressing dyslexia while incarcerated would also help New Yorkers secure employment upon their release, a cause that the Public Advocate has advanced through the Fair Chance Act and its expansion. A study found that incarcerated people who took part in education programs were 43 percent less likely to commit crimes following their time incarcerated.

More information on the bill is available here.