New York City Council’s Human Rights Record Reviewed

Christine Quinn, speaker of the City Council, at a recent event. (Benjamin Chasteen/The Epoch Times)

The speaker was commended for the passage of 22 pieces of human rights legislation, including the whistle-blower protection expansion act, which protects city contractors from taking an adverse personnel action against an employee who reports fraud or mismanagement.

Quinn was also applauded for leading the council to override Mayoral vetoes of five human rights bills, included the prevailing wage and living wages bills (Mayor Michael Bloomberg filed suit against the override).

While the living wage bill was passed, the report says Speaker Quinn used her position to restrict the scope of the bill, something the Human Rights Project viewed as a negative. 

Additionally, the speaker was criticized for delaying hearing and votes of human rights bills, which on average have more sponsors than nonhuman rights bills. The most noted of these bills is the paid sick leave bill. It has a veto-proof 36 sponsors, but Quinn has not allowed the bill come to a vote. Quinn said early in October “given the current economic reality, now is not the right time for this policy.”

Power Check

While the speaker has more power than other members, that power is not unchecked by the council. For bills needing a committee hearing, lead sponsors can use the Sponsor’s Privilege, which allows them to petition the committee chairperson for a meeting. The chair has 60 days to schedule a meeting for a vote to be taken on the spot or a hearing held within 30 days. 

For legislation stalled in committee after a hearing and needing to be voted on, such as the paid sick leave bill, the City Council as a whole can use the Discharge of Committee rule. This rule says if the majority of council sees fit, they can collectively vote to discharge a piece of legislation from committee.

“While recognizing the nuances of the political climate and what it is like to be in Council, we really want to stand on our human rights ground and ask that Council to use these to restore democratic functioning in this process and allow bills to come to hearings,” Markman said.

Mark-Viverito, who has stood up to Speaker Quinn on issues before such as council redistricting, believes the issue is not as clear-cut. “It is important to be able to stand on principal, but understood that there are repercussions,” Mark-Viverito said. 

She said providing for their constituents is priority one and pushing back can hurt that long-term goal. “I can see where council members are in a dilemma and don’t want to be too confrontational because at the end of the day, legislation is not going to move, and you may not as get as much discretionary money for your community. That is an unfortunate reality of the dynamic right now.”