Public Advocate's Corner

Re: Bloomberg & Term Limits

I cannot support extending term limits by anything other than a public vote. It's up to the people of New York to decide how long they want their elected officials in office, and they've already told us twice. It's an insult to the democratic process and a slap in the face to New Yorkers to now render those votes meaningless.

What matters here is what New Yorkers think and say on this issue, not what one powerful cosmetics heir has to say. The rules cannot and should not be changed late in the game. That's not the way our democracy works.

This is a decision for the people- not for incumbents, not for editorial boards and not for a few wealthy and powerful individuals.

Increasing Food Stamp Benefits

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow, new federal provisions to the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 will go into effect. These new provisions will, among other things, increase the minimum amount of food stamp benefits and remove the cap on the dependent care deduction, which means that the true costs of caring for children, the elderly or other dependents will now be considered in the calculations for food stamps. This means some working families who pay high child care costs could on average receive almost $500 a year in additional benefits according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Betsy Gotbaum stood yesterday at the West Side Campaign Against Hunger with advocates (including the New York City Coalition Against Hunger, the Urban Justice Center, and the Food Bank for New York City) to raise awareness about improvements in the food stamp program and encourage New Yorkers, particularly immigrants with children, to apply. More.

Check out the Urban Justice Center 2008 Report on food stamp access in immigrant communities (pdf) for more information.

 

Happy Rosh Hashanah

L’Shana Tova – a happy and healthy New Year to all who are observing Rosh Hashanah.  

Gotbaum's Views on Mayoral Control

Earlier this month, Betsy Gotbaum's Commission on School Governance released their findings and recommendations on mayoral control. Published today in the Daily News is Gotbaum's opinion on how the school governance law should be reauthorized. Betsy Gotbaum was also featured today as a guest blogger on the popular education blog, eduwonkette. And recently, the New York Times Editorial Board weighed in. Stay tuned for more...

Give parents more power in New York City school system
By Betsy Gotbaum

Monday, September 29th 2008, 4:00 AM

In 2002, Mayor Bloomberg accomplished what those before him could not: He gained control of New York City's vast school system.

I supported mayoral control then and I support it now. Many of the changes it delivered have been positive. But with three major reorganizations to the school system and many dissatisfied customers, it's clear that the system is not perfect - and demands adjustments as Albany decides whether to reauthorize the law.

There are two areas where we see flaws most clearly: the wholesale disenfranchisement of and disregard for stakeholders, including parents; and the lack of real accountability and transparency.

Parents and stakeholders are routinely shut out by the Department of Education. We have seen this with cuts to school bus routes, the cell phone ban, the revamping of the special education evaluation process and the opening of new small schools within larger established ones, just to name a few. I've gotten complaints by the thousands. Often parents are the last to know and have no opportunity to comment.

Parents have also been denied a reliable resource to help solve school-related problems. Parents are typically referred to 311 and parent coordinators. However, my office has found that these resources often fail to provide parents with the help they need.

These problems can be solved, as recommended by an independent commission I appointed at the request of the state Assembly. How? By modifying the terms of the Panel on Education Policy and reestablishing school district offices.

When in 2004 the mayor abruptly fired members who were planning to vote against his plans to eliminate third grade social promotion - a policy that at least deserved discussion - the panel became nothing more than a rubber stamp. As a result, there is no venue where parents can both learn about and have a meaningful dialogue on proposed policy and program changes. The mayor should continue to designate a majority of members, but the panel should be appointed to fixed terms and should select its own chairperson.

At the same time, the 32 local school districts should be reestablished with a superintendent in control of each. With more than 1,400 schools and more than a million students citywide, there must be some decentralized authority to make decisions about local problems like enrollment, transfers and transportation. Allowing superintendents to have true power, staff and oversight over principals, rather than locating all authority in the central offices, will help them run their districts more effectively and responsively.

Additionally, there is often a lack of transparency and accountability. This must change.

We see it most clearly with the hundreds of millions of dollars in no-bid contracts doled out by the department. These contracts - including the $17 million one given to Alvarez & Marsal, which resulted directly in the bus reorganization fiasco - are awarded with no public input or oversight. Since the DOE spends billions of taxpayer money, it should follow the same procurement procedures as every other city government entity.

Also, the current DOE is not transparent. Budget information is difficult to decipher and graduation rates reported by the DOE have come under scrutiny. To address this problem, the Independent Budget Office should serve as an outside evaluator to monitor and assess the data.

We have until June to decide exactly what adjustments to make to the law that authorized mayoral control. Between now and then, these reforms and others must be openly considered and debated.

No one should be defensive about considering changes to the system. We learn from experience. Mayoral Control 2.0 can and should be an improvement. We must debate this issue with good will, integrity and open-minde dness. The future of our schools is at stake.

 

Accessing City Services: How to get free or low-cost emergency contraception and birth control

Do you need free or low-cost emergency contraception or birth control, but aren’t sure how to get it?
New York City is required to provide emergency contraception for free at city DOHMH STD clinics. In 2005, Mayor Bloomberg announced that all city Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC) facilities would provide emergency contraception.

This means that you should always be able to get the help you need – when you need it.
Find a hospital or clinic: DOHMH publishes a pamphlet on Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in New York City where you can find a list of public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the city to find out which locations offer clinical services for adults, clinical services for teens, free emergency contraception and referrals for family planning.

More resources: For additional information on sexual and reproductive health services, DOHMH suggests calling 311 and asking for the Women's Healthline. And Planned Parenthood of New York City provides sexual and reproductive health services and education to women, men, and teens, regardless of age, income, or immigration status.

New York City also offers free condoms that may be picked up at any one of dozens of sites throughout the five boroughs. Click here for list of locations and information about free female condoms. For teens, public high schools can be another valuable resource for reproductive health.  As part of a mandated HIV/AIDS prevention program, all public high schools must have a health resource room stocked with free condoms.

Need more information? Call the Office of the Public Advocate at 212-669-7250.

Protecting a Woman's Right to Reproductive Health Services

Last week, the Public Advocate sent a letter to the United States Department of Health and Human Services urging them to reconsider the proposed Provider Conscience Regulation - a regulation that would severely limit women's access to reproductive health services. This regulation would interfere with women's access to basic health care services by allowing health care professionals to refuse services which conflict with their "religious beliefs or moral convictions" – services like emergency contraception for rape victims, insurance coverage for contraceptive services and birth control at pharmacies. Current federal employment law, Title VII, already protects the religious beliefs of all employees, including health care providers.

Read the full text of the letter here: Download letter_re_provider_regs.pdf

Betsy Gotbaum has long been a champion of women’s rights -- working hard to improve services for women over her two terms as Public Advocate. In 2003, she teamed up with NARAL NY and successfully lobbied the Health and Hospitals Corporation to institute an abortion training program for its medical staff and create separate facilities for women undergoing this procedure. Last year, she forced 100% of City Hospitals to prepare information for prospective mothers about c-section rates, epidurals, episiotomies, and other vital maternity information as required by state law. Her investigation into the lack of availability of the HPV vaccine – which prevents cervical cancer – led the city to make the vaccine available at all immunization clinics. 

Concerned about the proposed Provider Conscience Regulation?
Send comments opposing this regulation today to the Department of Health and Human Services at consciencecomment@hhs.gov.

Please post your thoughts here.

Community Spotlight: Betsy in Brooklyn & the Bronx

Yesterday, Public Advocate Gotbaum attended the Senior Umbrella Network of Brooklyn's "Honor Our Phenomenal Seniors" Event at Brooklyn Borough Hall where she talked about her office's Guide to Senior Services pdf (left). She then spoke in front of a meeting of Community Board 4 in the Bronx about her Commission on School Governance (right).

Guest Post: Joel Berg on Hunger

Betsy Gotbaum has reached out to advocates around the city and asked for their opinions on how the current financial situation and citywide agency cuts will affect New York's most needy populations. Our first guest post on this subject comes from Joel Berg, Executive Director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. Stay tuned for more guest posts...

Joel Berg, Executive Director of the NYCCAH, says: “The number of meals served by City-supported soup kitchens and food pantries was nine percent higher in Spring 2008 than a year before. While Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposal to cut funding to these agencies in Fiscal Year 2008 was rebuffed by the City Council, Governor David Paterson and the State Legislature cut funding for emergency feeding programs twice in just the last six months, slashing their funding by 16% in April, and by another 6% in August. If these trends continue, or if, even worse, the City does cut funding too, the results will be catastrophic.”

Money Spent at Tweed Could Be Better Used in the Classroom

In light of the mayor's announcement today that all city agencies must cut their budgets, Public Advocate Gotbaum released this statement:

"I am very concerned about how the latest round of cuts to the DOE will impact schools and classrooms. School budgets were cut just six months ago and now, having planned out the year, they face another round of painful cuts.  As schools face further budget cuts, the already bloated central administration at Tweed continues to spend money on itself that they could spend in the classroom. The DOE now has posted on their web site 14 job openings within the Chancellor's Accountability Initiative, seven paying up to $170,000 a year each."

 

Willets Point Plan: Too many questions, not enough answers

Tomorrow, the City Planning Commission will vote on a development plan for Willets Point that is far from complete. We can expect that the Commission will rubber stamp the plan. In less than two months, the City Council will be required, because of the ULURP clock, to vote on this same plan.

What’s wrong with this scenario? Plenty.

First, we just don’t have enough specific information. The Request for Proposals (RFP) sets out the framework for the redevelopment, but we don’t know who is going to be the ‘master developer’ for the site, to hold accountable for what the actual plan will look like at completion.

Second, the needs of local businesses in Willets Point haven’t been adequately addressed. These businesses have been in the area for a long time. Many have dealt with horrible conditions, including no sewer system and a lack of any City improvements or maintenance for years.

Third, given our current economic crisis, we need to know what kinds of public subsidies will be provided for this plan, and where the money will come from.

Unfortunately, the clock is already ticking for the City vote on the Willets Point plan. The administration shouldn’t force the Council to speculate on the details of this plan. It may be difficult in the short time left, but they need to come up with the specifics about the future of this development.