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What’s Inside
Dear Neighbors & Friends, We have a few more weeks of legislative session, and I'm pushing key legislative initiatives. One of my bills would give New Yorkers access to lower cost prescription medications. Studies show that U.S. consumers pay the highest prices in the world for life-saving and enhancing drug treatments. The prices we pay may fund the research and development that benefits the entire world, but those same prices make treatment options unavailable here at home if patients cannot afford their medicines or public programs cannot finance expensive treatments for everyone in need. My bill A7954, which would create a wholesale prescription drug importation program that would allow us to import medicine from other countries, like Canada, if they meet USDA standards. By importing prescription drugs from Canada, consumers can expect far more affordable medication. Florida was the first state to have had their program approved by the federal government, and several other states have similar bills proposed. I recently participated in a brief webinar on this topic, which you can view on YouTube here.
Jo Anne Simon, Assemblymember
PS - I was glad to be able to provide $2 million in funding for the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music for their incredible music therapy programs and bringing music to students in Brooklyn and throughout the city. Preventing Gun Violence & Holding Gun Manufacturers Accountable: I have introduced the first-in-the-nation bill to hold Glock and other gun manufacturers accountable for preventing their pistols from being easily converted into illegal fully-automatic machine guns with a $25 add-on. Glock has known about this defect in their weapons for decades, but has not acted to prevent this conversion and has chosen to put their profit margins ahead of people’s safety. My bill update New York’s landmark gun industry accountability law to explicitly require firearm manufacturers to take steps to ensure their handguns cannot be easily turned into machine guns with Glock switches. The bill has the support of a strong coalition of gun violence prevention experts and the NYS Attorney General. You can read more about it here.
Reforming School Lockdown Drills: A network of mental health professionals have joined parents, pediatricians, and students in calling for a reform to our state’s school shooter lockdown drill mandate. New York currently has one of the highest number of mandated lockdown drills in the entire country (more than 46 other states) without any guidelines to ensure the drills are age-appropriate or trauma-informed, or to even give parents advance notice of the drills. However, while there is no objective evidence that drills increase preparedness for a dangerous attack, there is evidence that active shooter drills cause increased depression (39%), stress (42%), and anxiety (42%) among schoolchildren. My bill right-sizes the number of drills, while giving schools the flexibility to do more should they choose. It also ensures parents and school staff are given advance notice, and that drills are trauma-informed, and age and developmentally appropriate. You can read more about this in Chalkbeat. NYCHA Opens Up Section 8 Waitlist on June 3, 2024: NYCHA will begin accepting applications for the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program for the first time in 15 years. Section 8 HCV is a federally funded program administered by NYCHA that provides rental subsidies for eligible low-income families to rent housing in the private market. Interested households may apply to the Section 8 HCV waitlist between midnight on Monday, June 3, and 11:59 PM on Sunday, June 9, 2024. You can learn more about Section 8 eligibility on NYCHA’s website and apply to join the waitlist online starting on June 3 at nyc.gov/section8-application. New York Passes Tenant Protections in the State Budget: While the version of Good Cause Eviction that made it into the budget was a compromise and did not include all of the protections that I had been fighting for, it still provides many tenants in market-rate apartments with protections they have never had before. If you live in a building with 11 or more units that were built before 2009, you might be protected. If your building has 10 units or fewer, you may still be protected if your landlord owns other buildings. Tenant protections include restricting rent increases by more than 5-10% based on inflation, guaranteed lease renewals or the ability to stay month to month without a lease, and preventing eviction without the landlord showing good cause. The Department of Homes and Community Renewal (DHCR), which oversees housing at the state level, must publish each year’s reasonable rent increase by August. The Legal Aid Society anticipates that DHCR may set the number at 8.2%. You can visit Housing Justice 4 All and The Legal Aid Society for more detailed information and to see if you are protected. Section 3 Housing: I recently partnered with colleagues and advocates to host a Webinar to discuss the importance of federally-funded Section 3. This program ensures that federal funding utilized for public housing and community development prioritizes hiring and job training for low-income residents in the area of these projects. You can check out this website to see if a project near you is registered through Section. You can also contact my office to learn more about this program and see if any Section 3 projects are taking place within our district. Odors In Gowanus: For several months, a group of constituents have been in contact with my office about the odors emanating from the environmental cleanup sites near the Gowanus Canal. I sent a letter to the agencies in charge of the areas (EPA, NYS DEC, NYS DOH, and NYC DEP), to obtain more information about their efforts to mitigate the odors. In the response, they noted the tenting over the areas where they are conducting the cleanup and their misting and spraying
odor suppressant foam to combat the nuisance odors. The agencies also conduct air monitoring multiple times daily to ensure the air is safe. I understand this is entirely frustrating and alarming, and will continue to ask the agencies to communicate with the public in a timely manner, and to take strong actions to mitigate the community impact. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): NY State Dept. of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC): NYS Dept. of Health (NYS DOH): NY City Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP): Results of the Fourth Avenue Safety Survey: Last week, my office attended FOFA’s Fourth on Fourth Avenue - a local community group located in Park Slope/Gowanus, community meeting to review the results of the 2024 FOFA community survey and hear from local electeds and NYC agencies that are working to improve safety and strengthen infrastructure in the area. The top issues of concern were greening, more pedestrian/bike safety, more welcoming street life, improved flood mitigation and strengthening small businesses. If you could not attend last week's in-person meeting, FOFA will host a follow-up virtual meeting on Monday, June 17th, to discuss the Community Survey and what they learned from electeds and city agencies. Please RSVP here. Suitcases & Strollers Needed for GMA: Gowanus Mutual Aid is collecting suitcases for migrant families facing shelter evictions. Families and single people are being forced to leave shelters after 60 and 30 days, respectively, and must bring all their belongings with them. Please consider donating large suitcases that are new or in very good condition. I recently donated several suitcases and encourage others to do so as well. Please check the updated drop-off sites here, including sites in Clinton Hill, Crown Heights & Bushwick. The local drop-off is in Gowanus: Dancewave, 182 4th Ave, Monday-Friday, 9am-7pm. BQE Full Weekend Closure: From 2am Saturday, June 1st until 4am Monday, June 3rd, the Queens-bound BQE will be fully closed from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street. This closure is necessary for interim repairs. Detours will be clearly marked. Please plan your travel accordingly. If you have any questions, please contact DOT community Liaison Anita Navalurkar at (347) 647-0876 or [email protected]. High Street Subway Entrance Closure: There will be continued closure of the High Street A/C station Camden Plaza West entrance/exit until early Summer 2024. It is closed due to construction to replace two of the escalators on this side of the station, and the MTA is currently working at the mezzanine level to support the escalators' operation at the station. Truck Route Network Redesign: In 2023, the New York City Council passed Local Law 171 requiring NYCDOT to redesign the city truck route network to enhance safety, increase visibility, reduce traffic congestion, and improve the overall freight roadway network. The NYCDOT just opened its Truck Route Network Redesign Public Feedback Portal, where you can learn more about the city's truck route network and provide feedback. You have until June 30th to provide feedback, which will help inform NYCDOT on how and where they can look to improve the movement of trucks on city streets. Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) Cooling Assistance Benefit: Eligible households receive a cooling benefit of up to $800 for the purchase and installation of an air conditioner. If one cannot be installed safely, a fan will be provided. Applications for the benefit can be submitted in-person, by phone, and through ACCESS HRA. Learn more here. Workers from across New York State joined me in support of my bill to end wage theft. Read more here.
Community Events & Resources:
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