Results tagged “quinn”

At a protest held Tuesday morning on the Upper West Side, more community advocates, high schoolers, and local politicians, including City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, rallied against the MTA's plans to cut free student Metrocards. The event at Martin Luther King Jr. High School followed similar protests this past weekend in Harlem, and came on the heels of the passing of the MTA's "doomsday" budget, which included the phasing-out of the free Metrocard program, which will affect more than 500,000 students. more ›

Business owners did their best yesterday to scare off Council members mulling a bill that would require all employers in the city to provide up to nine paid sick days. The owners insist such a law would force small businesses to slash salaries and benefits, lay off employees, and eventually flee the city. "Pile on another expense to us, you’re gonna put people out of business. You’re gonna encourage people to move their business out of New York City. I’m a mile from New Jersey. It’s a hop over the bridge. And it’s very tempting," said Tom Scarangello of Scaran Heating & Air Conditioning. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg's proposed 5-cent fee on every plastic bag used by shoppers would help reduce waste and raise an estimated $100 million to help the city's budget crisis, but it will probably never see the light of day now that City Council Speaker Christine Quinn opposes it. Quinn is also blocking a move to reimpose the city sales tax on clothing and shoes under $110, which would raise an estimated $394 million a year, and instead she wants to increase the city's sales tax from 4% to 4.5%. more ›

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Reverend Al Sharpton, and other community leaders gathered in East Harlem yesterday to paint over a mural (pictured) showing a rat with a noose around its neck and the slogan “Stop Snitching.” The phrase has become something of a mantra in recent years in high-crime neighborhoods, where speaking to the police is seen by some as treason that should be violently punished. more ›

The four city officials who are assigned a security detail no longer have to pay the expenses on their taxpayer-funded official cars and drivers when they use them for personal excursions, according to a ruling by the Conflicts of Interest Board. The lucky protected ones are Mayor Bloomberg, Comptroller William Thompson, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. more ›

Embattled City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has decided to proceed through the ongoing city slush fund scandal with the guidance of a defense attorney. Federal and City investigators are looking into the allocation of millions of dollars of budget money to fictional organizations. That money was then funneled to private groups, who often kicked back funds in the form of campaign contributions. more ›

An effort to get more fresh fruit and vegetables into the hands of poorer and allegedly under-served communities is being fought today by bodega and supermarket owners, who feel that a proposed 1,500 new street vendor licenses will cut into their business. Backers of the new licenses include City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Mayor Bloomberg, who cooperated in introducing the "Green Cart" plan, which will issue licenses to vendors who commit to serving fresh fruit and vegetables in poorer communities. more ›

Governor Spitzer is facing opposition in his attempt to snuff out any Javits Center expansion by selling land surrounding the center to fill budget gaps. The administration still plans to renovate the convention center, but it will result in far less space than what was originally envisioned for the expansion, which would have cost between $1.8 billion and $3 billion. Senator Charles Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg and City Council speaker Christine C. Quinn oppose the land sale, which would effectively eliminate the possibility of any future expansion. more ›

A lawsuit filed Monday against the City Campaign Finance Board seeks to overturn a recently enacted funding law that opponents assert will just make the City Council richer - and whiter. The recently-enacted campaign finance restrictions reduces the contributions from companies who do business with the city by a whopping 92%. Translation: In a mayoral race, the individual limit on giving is now $400, versus $4,950; in City Council races, it's $250, down from $2,950. more ›

The Queens Library system apparently loves Mayor Bloomberg and Council Speaker Christine Quinn, because it's distributing fliers touting their praises. Quinn recently championed a Council bid to prevent members from using taxpayer funds to self-campaign, but one can't always control fans one has in the library system. From the NY Sun:

Sensitivity to the use of public funds to promote elected officials is high at City Hall, with the council approving a new set of rules last month barring members from using public funds to purchase self-promoting advertisements. The change occurred after a report from an advocacy group found council members spent $927,507 in public funding on advertisements during a five-and-a-half-year stretch between July 2001 and December 2006.