NYC Mayor Adams asks NY lawmakers for funding to make streets safer
NEW YORK - It was officially Tin Cup Day in Albany.
It is a day mayors from across New York go before state lawmakers, holding out their metaphorical cups asking for more money in the state budget.
Nothing gets decided right away, the budget is not due until the beginning of April, but Mayor Eric Adams faced questions from lawmakers for more than three hours, all ranging in focus and tone.
Mayor Adams came armed with a list of key initiatives he says will help the city rebound from the pandemic and boost the economy.
But Adams testified that before business can return to normal, public safety needs to be addressed first.
"We cannot function as a city unless New Yorkers are safe and feel safe of our streets, our transit system, our workplaces and our homes," Adams said.
Adams, once again, urged lawmakers to make changes to the State’s bail reform law, in order to allow judges to consider if a person is dangerous before letting them out of jail.
Top lawmakers in recent weeks have pushed back saying this "dangerousness standard" has led to discrimination and have pointed to statistics that show around 2 percent of those released under this bail reform law have been re-arrested for violent crimes.
Although around 20% of those released under the bail reform law have been re-arrested for misdemeanors.
Assemblywoman Latrice Walker, one of the original authors of the bill, made her stance on the issue clear.
"I do challenge you to a debate with respect to bail reform," Assemblywoman Walker told Adams.
"I don’t think you should debate me," Adams interjected. "You should debate the 11-month-old baby’s mother. You should debate the two police officers that we lost. You should debate…"
"No, it is you who is making this a political issue," Walker interrupted. "You don’t have to tell me to debate a person who lost an 11-month-old child because I lost my brother at the age of 19 years old to gun violence."
Adams also again during his hearing, pushed lawmakers to tweak the Raise the Age law, another controversial proposal.
This law changed the age a child can be criminally prosecuted as an adult to 18 years old.
Adams says kids 16 and 17 years old should be tried as adults if they are carrying guns.
"Many of us are aware of what happened during the 70s and early 80s," Adams said. Drug Dealers would have the younger children carry the drugs because they knew they would be handled in family court. They are doing that now with guns."
Senator Gustavo Rivera cautioned the mayor to proceed carefully with these proposals.
"You recognize that some of these kids are exploited, yet you do not recognize that we should focus on the exploitation as opposed to just putting them through the criminal justice process," Senator Rivera said.
Adams though making his main asks to lawmakers for this coming year, more funding for mental health services to help those struggling on the streets and subways, increase the earned income tax credit and new child care initiatives to address childcare deserts.
Although a few testy exchanges were made throughout the hearing, overall a number of lawmakers praised the new Mayor, including most Republican lawmakers and Moderate Democrats.
Even the few concerns brought up by some of the more left-leaning lawmakers, were received well by the Mayor and he showed his ability to smooth over ruffled feathers, telling a few that he would meet with them one-on-one when he travels to the State Capitol next week.
A few of quotes from lawmakers: "Mr. Mayor you are amazing." "Anything you need." "A Mayor with swagger."
Proof that the honeymoon phase for the Mayor is not over just yet.