New York City Charter Amendment Sparks Criticism from City Council

The “New York City Charter Revision Commission” released its final report on the charter amendments on July 24, which will be put to a public vote during the general election in November this year. However, the proposed amendments have been viewed by the City Council as granting more power to the city government in the legislative process and limiting the council’s oversight of the mayor’s appointment of officials, leading to dissatisfaction among the City Council Speaker and some council members.

The new “New York City Charter Revision Commission,” comprised of 13 members appointed by Mayor Eric Adams in May this year, initiated the charter revision process. The charter amendments set for public voting on November 5 this year include five main topics: public safety, clean streets, fiscal responsibility, capital planning, and minority and women-owned businesses and modernizing city operations. On July 24, the “New York City Charter Revision Commission” released its final report on the charter amendments, eliminating the referendum issue on repealing the sanctuary city law.

Before the Commission’s vote on the amendments, it quietly revised the report, significantly reducing the content regarding “public safety” compared to the previous version. The public safety issue requirement: The City Council or relevant committees must establish additional procedural requirements and grant the mayor the power to hold public hearings for legislation on public safety involving the operations of the NYPD, NYC Department of Correction, and NYC Fire Department before voting. Specifically, the City Council must provide advance notice to the public, the mayor, and responsible heads of affected institutions at least 30 days prior to the vote; the mayor may hold a public hearing during this period to discuss the proposed law.

The initial version of the proposal required the City Council to wait 45 days and allowed relevant institutions to submit a “public safety impact statement,” but these requirements were ultimately eliminated in the final version. The Charter Revision Commission stated that these revisions were made based on the criticisms from the City Council.

Critics of the City Council believe that this 123-page report amending the current New York City Charter was rushed, lacked transparency and public participation, and weakened the council’s power – adding multiple barriers for council members to legislate while granting more power to the executive branch.

City Council Speaker, Adrienne Adams, strongly opposed the final report on the charter revisions. Adams stated, “No one should have such vast power. This is anti-democratic. New York should be a model for upholding democracy and representative government, not weakening and destroying it.”

Furthermore, the public vote led by the Charter Revision Commission to amend the charter will block a referendum that the City Council planned to initiate – regarding legislation strengthening oversight on the mayor’s appointment of officials.