2013 Policy Recommendations for New York City’s Next Mayor

OVERVIEW

The New York City Bar Association released a report containing a wide range of policy recommendations for New York City’s next Mayor.The report was distributed to the mayoral candidates to focus them on some of the most important legal policy issues facing New York City today, from the perspectives of lawyers who work daily on issues vital to the City’s welfare. A collaborative effort of over two dozen City Bar Committees, the report was released on Law Day to underscore the relevance and scope of the law-related issues affecting New Yorkers, which include: Education, including Mayoral control of schools and the teacher disciplinary hearing process; Infrastructure, the Environment and Emergency Preparedness, including climate change, renewable energy, post-Sandy recommendations and transportation; Public Safety and Civil Liberties, including gun control, the reforming of Stop and Frisk, and human trafficking; Access to Justice, including initiatives to reduce the number of unrepresented litigants in civil cases and maintain the independence of judicial appointments; Consumer Protection, including the promotion of fair debt collection practices; Election Law, including the establishment of in-person early voting and no-excuse absentee ballot applications; Social Welfare and Equal Participation, including access to subsistence benefits and tools to promote greater child wellness; Animal Law, including the phasing out of horse-drawn carriages; New York as an International City, including the UN development plan; and Property Tax.