“Representing a neighborhood that has a high unemployment rate, I understand the effects unemployment can have on an individual and his or her family.”
“Eliminating 300 jobs is a big concern for me as is ensuring the health and safety of the horses,” Espinal said. “I look forward to reading the proposed legislation and working with both sides to reach a resolution.”
It is more likely the bill will move to the Transportation Committee, where chair Ydanis Rodriguez has voiced support for the ban and would move it to the full council for a vote.
“Horses should not be forced to share our city’s congested roadways alongside ambulances, trucks, and buses,” Rodriguez said in a statement.
Rodriguez also said he supported the proposal for providing alternative employment for people whose livelihood would be affected if the industry closes. “We at the council have made sure that while advocating for the rights of our animal friends, we have not forgotten the potential human impact of this legislation.”
The industry was taken aback by this bill, said Demos Demopoulos, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 553 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union.
The teamsters had offered council members and City Hall staff tours of the stables and reached out for negotiations that all “fell on deaf ears,” he said. “All year long, we offered to discuss with the administration what changes to make for the industry,”
The bill will need the support of 26 council members in order to pass, and most council members are currently undecided.
“What support we do have, I hope that’s enough,” Demopoulos said. Labor groups, some council members, and 63 percent of New Yorkers according to a public poll earlier this year support the industry.
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