What a bunch of foolish billies!
Progressive Caucus Metropolis Council members are backing a slew of out-of-left-field payments, starting from the doubtless harmful to the downright wacky, a Put up evaluation discovered.
A few of these payments push for standard-issue progressive pipe desires, reminiscent of abolishing the NYPD’s gang database or setting a $30 minimal wage.
However 13 payments rely as Grade A wack-a-doodle doozies — from banning elephants to letting pet homeowners take sick depart if their canine are in poor health — by The Put up’s reckoning.
“They need the world to know that is what they imagine in and that is what they struggle for,” mentioned Zilvinas Silenas, president of the Empire Heart, an impartial assume tank.
“They’re placing up a flag to say, ‘Hey, I’m the council member who’s all in on natural eggs” or, ‘I’m the council member who actually cares about elephants in New York.’”
Democrats maintain a supermajority on the Council, with a big bloc of progressives – however the payments would want to first advance past varied committees earlier than they go up for a vote by the total lawmaking physique.
Right here’s what lefty Council members need New Yorkers to know the place they stand.
Sick depart for pets
Fido having a ruff day?
New Yorkers received’t have to decide on between going to work or taking good care of a sick pet if a invoice sponsored by Councilman Shaun Abreu (D-Manhattan) is handed.
Metropolis regulation at the moment doesn’t permit staff to make use of accrued sick time to take care of a sick pet or service animal — a scenario that forces uncertainty if they should take time without work for veterinary care.
“This invoice would make clear that caring for a sick animal is a professional use of already earned sick depart and doesn’t create any further depart entitlement,” a memo in help of the invoice states.
The invoice would tweak town’s sick depart regulation, permitting staff to take time to take care of some — however not all — sorts of animals.
Animals “saved primarily for companionship” — as in, pets and repair animals — would fall below the tweaked regulation.
Cattle like barn cows, nonetheless, must moooove apart.
Abreu isn’t a part of the Progressive Caucus, however the invoice has backing of lefties reminiscent of Councilwoman Tiffany L. Cabán (D-Queens). He advised The Put up the laws doesn’t increase the variety of sick days out there, it solely offers staff extra freedom in how they use them.
Free-range eggs solely
What does this invoice should do with the worth of eggs?
Nothing, however it has quite a bit to say about what sort of eggs New York Metropolis municipal businesses can purchase.
A invoice by Councilman Harvey Epstein (D-Manhattan) would prohibit metropolis authorities from shopping for eggs that aren’t natural or free-range.
“We need to make it possible for town is offering good, nutrient-dense, protected meals to the folks it’s serving,” Epstein mentioned.
“Natural eggs are higher for human well being, with thrice extra unsaturated fat, 40% extra vitamin A, and twice as a lot vitamin E in comparison with the USDA commonplace, and free-range eggs are additionally thought to comprise superior vitamin. Following the lead of states like Florida, Ohio, and Kentucky, New York Metropolis ought to implement guardrails to maintain folks protected and wholesome.”
The memo succinctly argues that eggs from caged hens are the merchandise of cruelty, noting the hapless birds are confined to areas smaller than a single sheet of letter-sized paper.
Self-service checkouts
At least one worker for each three self-service checkouts, please!
Councilwoman Amanda Farías (D-Bronx) is pushing a invoice to superb pharmacies and meals retail shops as much as $1,000 per worker each day that self-checkouts usually are not correctly staffed.
The correct workers ratio, as outlined by the invoice, is one staff per each three self-checkout machine.
And it additionally requires that shops impose a 15-item most for the machines.
Each strikes would assist fight retail theft, a scourge that drives up the price of meals and important items, a memo supporting Farías’ invoice states.
“Reinvesting in staffing is nice for income, for jobs, and for shopper confidence,” the memo argues. “We should repair the system, quite than persevering with to cross the price of preventable losses onto New Yorkers who’re already fighting the affordability disaster.”
Farias added, “Retail theft has been a problem for our metropolis for the reason that pandemic, and now we have been working to handle it from each angle. This laws is one other piece of that work.”
Elephant care
RIP, Completely satisfied the (allegedly sad) Elephant.
The lengthy lifetime of Completely satisfied within the Bronx Zoo lumbers within the background of a invoice by Councilwoman Shahana Hanif (D-Brooklyn) that prohibits maintaining elephants within the metropolis, except strict circumstances are met.
Elephants saved within the metropolis should have at the very least 15 acres of usable habitat the place they’ll forage for meals or water, the invoice stipulates. Feminine pachyderms should even be saved in teams and allowed to type herds, and likewise for males.
The necessities additionally emphatically state: “The elephant should not be mounted, ridden, or pressured to do labor.”
‘Hostile structure’
Does that bench look … hostile?
So-called “hostile structure” designed to preserve homeless folks from resting or sleeping — reminiscent of spiked platforms or many-railed benches — throughout town can be focused in a invoice by Councilman Christopher Marte (D-Manhattan).
“In 2017, 2021, and 2025, the MTA eliminated quite a few benches from prepare platforms and changed them with metallic leaning bars; once more, focusing on the homeless inhabitants,” the invoice’s memo states.
“Hostile structure, nonetheless, impacts everybody, not simply the meant goal. Within the case of the MTA’s leaning bars, a number of riders have expressed concern concerning the concern of accessibility.”
The invoice, nonetheless, would take no motion apart from require town’s planning division to conduct a examine inside 18 months of it turning into regulation.
Abolishing NYPD gang database
A dumbfounding 25 Metropolis Council members are sponsoring a invoice to abolish the NYPD’s gang database.
Lefties typically take into account the database racist, however police officers — not least NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch — argue it’s a significant crime-fighting instrument, with hundreds of entries and intel together with distinctive tattoos linked to legal teams and gangs.
A spokesperson for invoice sponsor Councilwoman Althea Stevens (D-Bronx) mentioned the lawmaker has seen firsthand how the record unfairly targets black and brown folks.
The record doesn’t have checks to ensure folks on it have legal histories, the spokesperson argued.
Handcuffing the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group
One other 26 Council members have signed onto a invoice to ban the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group from deploying throughout First Modification-protected protests.
SRG has lengthy been a progressive bugbear, with opponents — together with Mayor Zohran Mamdani — contending the unit recurrently brutalizes protesters and tramples their rights. The specialised unit responds to civil dysfunction and main occasions, together with parades and protests. It’s additionally deployed for main crime occasions, reminiscent of financial institution robberies, shootings and lacking individuals.
Police officers reminiscent of Tisch argue the unit performs a significant half in maintaining protests from descending into violence.
Setting a $30 minimal wage
Lefty Council members need to set the Massive Apple’s minimal wage at a really max $30 an hour.
The invoice launched by Councilwoman Sandy Nurse (D-Brooklyn) would practically double town’s present baseline pay of $17 and have an effect on as many as 1 million staff.
Progressives have lengthy referred to as for a minimal wage to maintain up with town’s excessive value of residing, however enterprise leaders warn it’ll be a pricey catastrophe for employers.
Gender-affirming objects for jail inmates
Transgender inmates in metropolis jails will have the ability to request “gender-affirming objects” below one proposed invoice.
“These things embody, however usually are not restricted to, wigs, hair extensions, chest binders, tucking undergarments or gaffs, and prosthetics,” a memo in help of the invoice states.
Union officers have slammed the proposal, sponsored by lefty Brooklyn Councilwoman Crystal Hudson, as probably harmful for corrections officers.
