Celebrating Women, Budget Priorities, Dyslexia, & More

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What's Inside:
* Message from Jo Anne
* Women’s History Month
* Dyslexia Awareness Day: 5/17/23
* BQE South Forums
* DEC Update on 514 Union St, Gowanus
* Gowanus Oversight Task Force Meeting, 3/29/23
* Helicopters: New Rules are Inadequate
* Public Safety & the Governor's Bail Proposal
* Ensuring Legal Counsel for Immigrants
* USACE Gowanus & Red Hook: Public Comments
* Smith St BID Meeting, 3/25/23
* Affordable Housing Lottery, apply by 4/3
* NHS Brooklyn's Home Repair Grants
* Blood Shortage
* Community Updates

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Dear Neighbors & Friends,

Since Governor Hochul introduced her Executive Budget Proposal in January, I have participated in several budget hearings and meetings to review the needs of New Yorkers and the agencies and nonprofits that serve them. One thing is clear: New Yorkers have been strong in the face of adversity over the past few years, from navigating a pandemic to dealing with supply shortages to stagnating wages and inflation that made day-to-day life harder. The state budget is a critical opportunity to support New Yorkers with a smart budget and policies to bring costs down and provide relief to keep New Yorkers healthy and our economy running.

In response to the Executive’s proposal, the Assembly and the Senate each release their “One-House Budget” that reflects their priorities. There are many things in this year’s Assembly one-house budget that I am excited about, whether it’s the focus on providing more housing opportunities, expanding access to child care, improving care for people experiencing mental illnesses and mental health crises, reducing gun violence, or protecting our climate. I’m relieved that the legislature rejected the proposed bail reforms that are not based on public safety or facts, but rather on fear mongering (see more on this below).

Charter Schools: The Assembly budget has rejected the Governor’s proposal to open dozens of additional charter schools in New York City, which would harm the quality of and increase segregation in our public schools. When charter school legislation was passed, there was deliberate intent to distribute charters throughout the state so as to limit the financial burden on any particular public school district. Lifting the cap for New York City and opening new charter schools here will lead to smaller New York City public school budgets and more closures of those schools, hurting vulnerable black and brown students the most. Charter school enrollment is down significantly, while charter schools have received a disproportionate share of the increased foundation aid provided to comply with the Campaign for Fiscal Equity decision. The Assembly is prioritizing the needs of public schools that are already lacking necessary funding and resources instead of opening up more charter schools that would
only assist a significantly smaller portion of our school children.

No Tuition Increase: The Assembly budget has rejected the Governor’s proposal for a 3 percent tuition increase for SUNY and CUNY students. Increasing the education costs for SUNY and CUNY places the burden on working class students who already face extremely high cost of living and other school-related expenses. The Assembly instead proposes increased funding for SUNY and CUNY institutions. In the last several years, we made significant strides in making these schools more affordable in response to the ballooning costs of college and student debts - we cannot move backwards.

Increased Tax on the Ultra-Wealthy: Instead of burdening students with added costs and tuition hikes, the Assembly budget is seeking to increase the personal income tax for residents making over $5 million to 10.8 percent, up from 10.3 percent, while those making over $25 million would see their rate rise from 10.9 percent to 11.4 percent. New York City created 10,000 new millionaires during the pandemic, and the city continues to have the highest concentration of millionaires and billionaires in the world. This proposal would raise an additional $865 million in revenues in the first year alone, and nearly $2 billion in the second year.

Housing: Both the Legislature and Executive recognize the urgent need to address the state’s housing crisis by building more affordable housing. While the Governor’s proposal would allow State intervention over local municipalities to force construction of new properties by overriding local zoning laws, the Assembly has taken a different approach by committing to a $500 million fund to provide awards to local municipalities that develop new affordable housing. This will give local governments more autonomy to oversee the housing developments in their own neighborhoods, as opposed to leaving the oversight to individuals in Albany. The Assembly’s approach also focuses on the high costs of living, preventing evictions and homelessness by curbing runaway rental costs, and keeping New Yorkers in their homes. The Assembly also included $1.5B to help tenants and homeowners, including: $385 million for Rental Arrears Assistance, $250 million for the Housing Access Voucher Program, $250 million for
Homeownership Funds, & $100 million for First Time Homeowner Assistance.

Increasing the Minimum Wage and Ensuring Home Care Workers get a Raise: The Assembly is putting workers first with our proposal to index our state’s minimum wage with annual inflation (currently $15 in NYC), to keep up with the significant inflation our residents have faced over the past several years. Additionally, we will ensure that the wages for home care workers is $3 above minimum wage. We have a severe staffing shortage of home care workers which is putting vulnerable people, people with illnesses, and older citizens at risk because they are not receiving the care they need to stay safe and stay in their homes; the other option is for them to receive institutional care, which will cost the state significantly more money.

All-Electric Building Provisions: The Assembly is committed to reducing our carbon footprint and ensuring that new building construction utilizes cleaner energy standards. This provision would ban the use of equipment that uses fossil fuels during the construction of new buildings, beginning in 2025 with small buildings, followed by new larger buildings in 2028. We are also requiring that all state owned buildings fully decarbonize by 2040. These steps are intended to provide a cleaner, more energy efficient future for our children and planet.

There are many other topics covered in the budget, so feel free to reach out if you have questions in particular areas. You can also see my video clips from budget hearings on my website here ([link removed]) . You can also watch the full hearings on particular topics here. ([link removed])

What’s next? Negotiations with the Governor are underway. As you may recall, the fiscal year ends March 31; the final budget is due by April 1st and must be voted upon by both houses.

Sincerely,

Jo Anne Simon
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Women’s History Month: Each March, we honor the incredible women who fought to give future generations a brighter future and who strive every day to make an indelible mark on our community and our world. For Women’s History Month, please join me in honoring our local Woman of Distinction, Ms. Rolanda Telesford-Hastick, Senior Director of Community Development at the YWCA in Downtown Brooklyn.

Rolanda’s motto is “together we achieve more.” She is described by her colleagues, family, and friends as a woman of courage who is intuitive, creative, and a humanitarian.

Ms. Telesford-Hastick has over 25 years of community involvement in working with women and girls, immigrants, and families in the areas of education, health, and advocacy. For the past 11 years, she has worked as a leader at the YWCA Brooklyn, with a mission of eliminating racism and empowering women, leading community affairs, developing programs, civic engagement, outreach and communications.

As a change agent, Rolanda has led many initiatives within NYS and the borough of Brooklyn. She is one of the “founding mothers” of the YWLEAD college access and youth development program which serves girls of color in over 44 high schools in Brooklyn as the YWCA Brooklyn.

She is a strong advocate for women of domestic violence and continues to lobby on Capitol Hill and Albany. She has won numerous awards, most notably an EMMY in 2020 for a short PSA - Your Voice Your Vote - which she co-produced and wrote with young women in the YW Brooklyn Lead program.

She currently is the Senior Director of Community Development and continues to be a strong leader and champion for women and girls at the YWCA Brooklyn. She is the Board Chair for a non-profit, Incredible Credible Messengers, which provided restorative justice practices for women who are formerly and currently incarcerated. She is also the Board President for Black Women for Black Girls, a philanthropic organization that assists black girls in providing all they need for college success, through mentorship and monetary assistance.

She continues to support her local communities and welcomes challenges in uplifting and supporting all communities.

Brooklyn would not be the same without you, Rolanda!
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Save the Date: Dyslexia Awareness Day on May 17, 2023. I am thrilled to be hosting my 8th annual Dyslexia Awareness Day! This day brings together families, students, advocates, teachers, and legislators to build support for the Dyslexic community and those with related learning disabilities, and to highlight legislative initiatives. We will be convening in person in Albany for a speak out so that we can hear directly from impacted students, educators and New Yorkers. More details to come. You can RSVP through our Eventbrite ([link removed]) .
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BQE South* Virtual Meeting: Thurs., March 30, 6:30PM to 8:30PM. Please register in advance ([link removed]) and see the full list of meetings here ([link removed]) , including tonight’s meeting for BQE North. The NYC DOT held a meeting on BQE South this week. You can read more about ([link removed]) the ideas DOT presented and join next week’s meeting to give your input.

As you know, I have been working with a coalition of electeds throughout Brooklyn to encourage State DOT to come to the table and meaningfully engage on the BQE reenvisioning, since most of the roadway is in their purview. I was also very pleased to see Community Board 7 and several BQE community partner program groups send a letter to the state expressing the importance of the state’s presence and partnership. It had an impact. I am happy to report that the state did send a DOT representative to attend and engage with meeting participants. This will be a long process and we truly need all levels of government at the table.

Flashback 20 Years Ago: In a vivid reminder that the community has long been advocating for changes to the BQE, the Brooklyn Eagle and Reader published a story today ([link removed]) that reviewed my work, alongside a strong coalition of community members and elected officials, to sink the Gowanus Expressway into a tunnel over 2 decades ago! The article also highlighted a medical linking pollution from the Gowanus to higher rates of childhood-asthma. Think about how much healthier our communities would be if the tunnel option had been seriously pursued 2 decades ago.

*What is BQE South? Dot is using this term to describe Cobble Hill, Columbia Street Waterfront, Carroll Gardens, Red Hook, Gowanus, Sunset Park and communities south down to Fort Hamilton (this is the south portion of the BQE that is owned by the state).
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514 Union Street in Gowanus Update from DEC/EPA. On March 17, my staff and I joined NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos and his senior staff, EPA Region 2 Administrator Lisa Garcia and Region 2’s Deputy Director of the Superfund & Emergency Management Division John Prince, Senator Gounardes, and staff from Rep. Dan Goldman’s and Councilmember Hanif’s office to tour the Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club (514 Union St), as well as an area along the canal itself.

DEC gave us a detailed explanation of the soil vapor intrusion system in place at the site. We learned that the air inside the shuffleboard club had been tested in 2020-2021 and no conditions of concern were detected at that time. However, later testing during the winter heating season measured vapor intrusion levels that indicated remedial action was warranted, but air sampling results showed levels well below State Department of Health guidelines. The system has been installed and is effective; DEC has done testing and is confident there are no health concerns.

Given the history of industrial pollution at the Canal, I was concerned to learn of news reports about this site and I was very disappointed that it took DEC so long to respond publicly, but DEC has informed me there were inaccuracies in that initial news story and they provided me with the above update. DEC has committed to providing more timely information about the sites and cleanups - and most importantly in a way that we can understand the information so that people know how it affects their day to day lives. Attached is a letter from DEC to the shuffleboard club ([link removed]) and a DEC update ([link removed]) on the topic.

DEC will be hosting a Public Information Forum on Gowanus clean-ups and brownfield sites in April on a date to be announced. We’ll alert you when the date is public; you can also sign up for DEC updates here ([link removed]) .
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Gowanus Oversight Task Force Quarterly Public Update #1, March 29, 6PM - 8PM. Register Here ([link removed]) . This meeting will be held both in person and online. Join in-person at P.S. 032 ([link removed]) , or viaZoom ([link removed]) .

The Gowanus Neighborhood Plan promises to add new and much-needed affordable housing. The City has also committed to 56 Points of Agreement (POA) ([link removed]) that outline investments in housing, infrastructure, community amenities, public spaces, and businesses. The Task Force is working to help ensure these commitments are met. Members of the public are encouraged to submit questions to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) . Online attendees will be able to submit questions through a “Q and A” function on Zoom. In-Person Attendees must bring some form of ID to enter.
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Helicopters: New Regulations are Inadequate. Non-essential helicopter flights are way beyond a public nuisance–they are disrupting people’s ability to work, study, sleep, and simply live their lives. It is appalling that the public’s clear input to reduce the noise and air pollution of non-essential flights has been ignored, and that the Federal Aviation Administration and National Park Service new agreements with air tour operators could yield even more helicopter traffic. The new agreement, which limits commercial air traffic near Ellis and Liberty Island, will do little to curb the noise pollution that local families in our district will face. Luxury helicopter tours for the wealthy should not take precedence over the quality of life for everyday residents. Congressman Dan Goldman recently held a press conference to demand answers to these new agreements and push for enhanced public protections.

I have passionately advocated for a ban on tourist helicopters and non-essential flights to airports for years. We desperately need federal legislation, which our federal partners have been advocating for, and the City of New York could greatly assist since the City EDC oversees the contracts for the helipads.
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Public Safety & the Governor’s Proposed Bail Rollback: The Assembly and Senate are united in protecting the bail reforms we passed in 2019 despite an onslaught of misinformation on the issue. Here’s why: First, incarceration is an extreme loss of personal liberty, which cannot be removed without due process, which requires that any deprivation of liberty first requires analyzing whether a less restrictive means is available to reasonably ensure the goal. In the context of bail, that is a return to court. In other contexts, such as involuntary commitment, it requires less restrictive means than simply institutionalizing people with mental illness. That is why we have legal standards for doing so.

The data from the NYS office of Criminal Justice Services since the passage of bail reforms confirm that bail reform did not cause an increase in criminal activity, and that those released with less restrictive conditions (such as check - ins, ankle monitors, treatment, job counseling, supportive housing and the like) returned to court. The Governor acknowledged this in her State of the State and the Acting Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals confirmed this in her testimony before both houses of the legislature. Poor people in NYS are no longer at risk for pretrial incarceration simply because they are poor.

Why? Bail is merely a condition of release. If cash bail is sought and paid, the defendant is released. Thus, people with financial means don’t serve time before being convicted of any crime. Their transgressions are not any less serious than those of poor people. Under bail reform, judges have great discretion in fashioning non-incarceratory conditions of release and must, in accordance with the constitution and long standing case law, fashion the least restrictive means that would reasonably achieve the end - the defendant’s return to court. This is true for those misdemeanors and non-violent felonies for which cash bail is disallowed (absent certain circumstances such as repeated offenses), as well as for those offenses that are bail eligible. This is the constitutional standard clarified in 1973 by the New York Court of Appeals for any deprivation of liberty. Nevertheless, a minority of judges and many District Attorneys have complained that they don’t understand how to apply the
restrictive standard. The Acting Chief Judge, however, testified that they indeed do know how to apply the standard.

The Governor’s proposal would be to eliminate the “least restrictive means” standard and replace it with no standard at all. That would be unconstitutional. No state in the country has no standard and New York shouldn’t either.

The Governor’s proposed rollback of the law would return us to perpetuating racial biases and criminalizing mostly black and brown people who lack the resources to navigate a cash bail system that favors wealthier individuals. The Assembly and the Senate have instead chosen to invest in communities and successful anti-violence efforts.

Recently, I held a joint briefing with Assemblymember Latrice Walker and legal scholars on this topic. Please watch it for more background ([link removed]) .
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Ensuring Legal Counsel for Immigrants. I’m proud to cosponsor the first-in-the-nation bill The Access to Representation Act to guarantee the right to legal counsel for individuals during immigration court proceedings. New York immigrants, who make up 22% of our state's population, are unfairly expected to navigate complex immigration law and to defend themselves simply because they lack financial resources. Immigrants who have access to legal counsel are 10 times more likely to establish their right to remain in the US as opposed to those without counsel. As the granddaughter of immigrants and a representative to a district rich with immigrants, I’m urging the passage of this legislation as a pressing civil rights matter. The budget should include significant funding to guarantee that quality legal counsel is available for all immigrants.
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USACE Gowanus & Red Hook: Public Comments. The comments period for Brooklyn’sU.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Headquarters ([link removed]) storm resiliency plans has been extended to March 31!

Last week, Rep. Dan Goldman and Community Board 6 hosted an informative Town Hall on this critical infrastructure plan. Known as “HATS,” it includes storm surge gates & will dramatically affect our area, especially Red Hook and Gowanus. If you missed the meeting, all of the presentation documents and links have been aggregated by Community Board 6here ([link removed]) . Also, you may be interested in a recent presentation focused on alternative, more natural, climate-focused solutions, hosted by PortsideNY ([link removed]) . The meeting featured content from Aggéres ([link removed]) , Local Office Landscape & Urban Design ([link removed]) & Alex Washburn. The recording and chat are available here ([link removed]) . ([link removed]) I urge you to look at the plans & comment. We must get this piece of our complex, changing infrastructure right, given the advance of climate change and the prevalence
of flood zone areas in our district.
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Smith St Alliance Public Meetings on March 25 and April 19. The Smith Street Alliance Steering Committee invites you to come learn about the Business Improvement District (BID) formation effort and it will help Smith Street. The Smith Street Alliance Steering Committee is comprised of a group of local property owners, business owners, and residents who have banded together in order to establish a BID on Smith Street in the Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, and Carroll Gardens neighborhoods of Brooklyn. BIDs exist across New York City in order to deliver services above and beyond what is provided by New York City. RSVP here ([link removed]) .
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Affordable Housing Lottery in Bklyn Heights, Due April 3. This building is located at 200 Montague St in Brooklyn Heights, and preference is given to Community Board 2 residents. Apartments include studios up to three bedrooms. To learn more and apply online, visit Housing Connect ([link removed]) . To request an application by mail, send a self-addressed envelope to: 200 Montague Street Apartments C/O Affordable For NY INC, 141 Flushing Avenue, Suite #1315, Brooklyn, NY 11205.
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NHS Brooklyn Offers Home Repair Grants. NHS Brooklyn is offering home repair grants to Brooklyn, NY, homeowners of 1-4 family homes, condos, and coops. Homeowners can receive up to $20,000 toward the cost of repairing their homes. Learn more here. ([link removed])
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NY Blood Center Emergency Are you able to donate blood? If yes, please do! Last week, The New York Blood Center ([link removed]) declared the first blood emergency of 2023 – due to several evolving factors, including recent weather, school breaks, and cold and flu season. Blood donations are currently 12% below hospital and patient needs. Blood donors can give every 56 days, and platelet donors can give twice per month. The Center encourages first-time donors and young people to donate. The need for blood is constant, but the supply is not. Visit nybc.org ([link removed]) to schedule an appointment to donate, or call 800.933.2566.
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Community Events
* NYC Rat Academy Training at the Brooklyn Central Library on March 23 from 6-8pm. NYC's Department of Health's Rat Academy will be in session at the Brooklyn Public Library - Central Library at Grand Army Plaza. Join the Brooklyn Borough President’s office in person to learn about safe and effective methods for rat prevention in homes, buildings, and communities. RSVP here ([link removed]) .
* Brooklyn Book Bodega Book Giveaway. The Brooklyn Book Bodega ([link removed]) has an excess of well-loved and overstock books for kids and adult readers. Please sign up ([link removed]) for their Brooklyn Navy Yard Book Hub Giveaway to take as many books as you can carry. Pre-registration is necessary; all attendees must be over 10 years old. Sat., March 25, 11AM - 2PM. The Brooklyn Book Bodega Book Hub - Brooklyn Navy Yard, 141 Flushing Ave, Suite 407
* CEC15 2023 Candidate Forum on Monday, March 27 at 6pm. Community Education Council (CEC) Candidate Forums are the best opportunity for you to meet the candidates running for a council seat. Forums are organized by the district and borough Presidents’ Councils, in collaboration with the Office of Family and Community Empowerment (FACE). For the 2023 elections, all forums will be held on a virtual meeting platform and will begin at 6 PM. This forum is for candidates and for parents voting. Meet the candidates running for a seat here ([link removed]) . Registration to attend forums is open now
([link removed]) .
* Brooklyn Legal Services Corp A Tax Tips Webinar on March 27 at 6pm. It’s tax season and Brooklyn A has you covered. Join their webinar "Tax Tips" on Thursday, March 30 at 6PM to learn about refundable credits, filing statuses, and other helpful filing tips. Brooklyn A experts will walk you through the key details to pay attention to this year and can answer questions you have about your return.Click here to sign up ([link removed]) .

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