New York City Mayor Eric Adams has announced his formal support for Ryder’s Law, urging the City Council to pass legislation that would phase out horse-drawn carriages in favor of electric alternatives. To facilitate this transition, Mayor Adams signed Executive Order 56, which enhances regulatory oversight, initiates planning for the industry’s phase-out, and directs city agencies to support affected workers with job placement and voluntary license return programs. The move comes amid growing safety and animal welfare concerns following multiple high-profile incidents. By taking this step, the Adams administration is aligning city policy with modern urban standards while seeking to preserve tourism experiences through cleaner, safer alternatives.
Mayor Adams Calls on City Council to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, Signs Executive Order Strengthening Oversight and Enforcement of Industry and Ensuring City Agencies Are Preparing for Eventual City Council Ban
– New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced his support to end the use of horse-drawn carriages in Central Park. First, Mayor Adams called on the New York City Council to pass Ryder’s Law, legislation to phase out horse-drawn carriages and replace them with electric alternatives, which has languished in the Council for over a year. Additionally, Mayor Adams signed Executive Order 56 to prepare for the end of the horse carriage industry in New York, strengthen oversight and enforcement over the industry until the Council passes the bill, create a process for voluntary return of licenses, and identify new employment opportunities for those in this industry. Finally, Mayor Adams sent a letter of necessity to the City Council, which grants the Council the authority to expedite the passage of this legislation by waiving the aging period, and urges them to promptly pass comprehensive reform given safety concerns for everyday New Yorkers.
“New York City is a place where history and progress live side by side, but as long as I am mayor, we will always put public safety first. While horse-drawn carriages have long been an iconic fixture of Central Park, they are increasingly incompatible with the conditions of a modern, heavily-used urban green space. A series of incidents over the last few years have raised concerns about the welfare of the horses, as well as the safety of pedestrians, cyclists, drivers, and carriage operators themselves. To understand all points of view on this complex issue, our administration convened all stakeholders, from driver representatives to community advocates, and it has become abundantly clear that these horse-drawn carriages no longer work for our city. While many talk about change, our administration has always been about real, meaningful action — and this issue is no different. That’s why today, I’m calling on the City Council to do what they should have done long ago: end the horse carriage industry in New York City and help keep all New Yorkers — including our animals — safe,” said Mayor Adams. “I’m also signing an executive order to ensure city agencies are doing everything in their power to prepare for a City Council ban on the horse carriage industry and to strengthen oversight and enforcement in the meantime. To be clear, we will not abandon the drivers themselves, who are honest, hard-working New Yorkers. Through today’s executive order, I have directed our agencies to identify new employment opportunities for those in this industry and create a process for voluntary return of licenses. We are also open to exploring a new program for electric carriages so New Yorkers and visitors can continue to enjoy the majesty of Central Park. Despite the changes we’re announcing today, we understand that this executive order can only go so far, as real, long-term change requires legislation. We need the Council to do their job, step up, and work with us on comprehensive reform. This is not about eliminating this tradition — it’s about honoring our traditions in a way that aligns with who we are today. New Yorkers care deeply about animals, about fairness, and about doing what’s right. The Adams administration hears those concerns loud and clear, and we’re taking action, but we need the Council to meet us at the table. We can preserve what makes New York unique while also ensuring we’re not leaving anyone — human or animal — behind.”
In the past few years, a number of troubling incidents have raised the alarm on this critical issue, including:
In August 2022, a carriage horse named Ryder fell and collapsed at the intersection of West 45th Street and 9th Avenue. The New York City Police Department intervened to help Ryder get back on his feet, and Ryder later died that October.
Just last month, another carriage horse named Lady collapsed and died at West 51st Street and 11th Avenue, bringing proposals for reform or closure of the carriage industry back into the spotlight.
This month also marked the third time this year alone where a carriage horse took off running in Central Park when a horse named Bambi ran out with no person at the reins, frightening visitors and causing three horse carriage passengers to jump out of the speeding buggy. Earlier this year, in May, a similar incident occurred when a pair of runaway carriage horses broke a driver’s wrist and injured others in Central Park after they bolted.
Mayor Eric Adams, alongside Deputy Mayor Jeff Roth and Acting DSNY Commissioner Javier Lojan, announced the next phase of New York City’s “Trash Revolution” in Brooklyn’s Community District 2. Following the successful containerization in West Harlem, the initiative will now bring modern, rodent-resistant “Empire bins” to schools and high-density buildings in Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, and beyond. This move is aimed at cleaning up the streets, improving quality of life, and combating the city’s rodent problem. By 2026, the city plans to extend this system to several Brooklyn neighborhoods, using self-loading trucks and a flexible bin system tailored to the needs of each building. The effort, supported by a $32 million budget commitment, marks a significant step toward a cleaner, safer New York City.
Return of the Trash Revolution: Following Major Success in Manhattan, Mayor Adams, Acting Dsny Commissioner Lojan Announce Brooklyn Community District 2 as Next to Be Fully Containerized
Deputy Mayor Jeff Roth, Operations: Good morning. My name is Jeff Roth. I’m the deputy mayor for Operations, and I want to welcome you all to the next front in the trash revolution right here in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, but please try to contain your excitement.
We all know New York City produces a lot of trash, the equivalent of 100 747s every single day, but we’ve never had a dedicated spot to collect it, not really. Our trash has sat in leaky black bags wherever we could find space for it, against fences, city bike docks, cram necks to doorways and hydrants, and in a feat that surely earns them their moniker, New York’s strongest have had to navigate all that street infrastructure for decades until now. This administration has said enough.
We first changed set out times for our trash. We required food businesses across the city to containerize, then chain businesses, all businesses and smaller residences. We were able to do that by taking a team of over 150 people from New York, and we were able to get them to the nearest residential buildings. And today we’re taking our next leap right here in Brooklyn. The trash revolutionary himself, ladies and gentlemen, Mayor Eric Adams.
Mayor Eric Adams: Thank you, thank you. Thanks so much. Such an important initiative. When I was a police officer, this was my precinct, the 88 precinct. And when you get here and walk through the parks, we will often be encountered by rats and rodents. And that was one of the top missions we wanted to do. to move towards dealing with just the cleanliness of the city. And I really want to thank Commissioner Lojan for his just picking up the mantle and continuing to succeed with our rats who have always also played a major role.
We stated from the beginning, the trash revolution has been a huge win for New York City. I hear it often when I’m on the subways or walking through the streets that people are stating we have all the rats gone. And it’s clear that this movement is carrying out the function that we wanted. And it’s a massive, massive success. And we’re going to continue to move in the right direction. And we started with changing out to set out times.
There was a lot of pushback. But we realized not having trash bags on our streets at an earlier time would assist us in dealing with the roading problem. We were facing in the city and unsightly bags. When we change those times, we were able to coordinate. With the union and ensure that garbage was put out later. And that played a major role in getting the bags off the street off our streets. We’re seeing cleaner streets and sidewalks, better quality of life and massive decline in roading activity.
In fact, the number of rat sightings and 311 calls have dropped for nine straight months. And while the rats are crashing out, we are ramping up today. We’re announcing the next phase in the trash. Revolution, the Battle of Brooklyn, Brooklyn Community Board 12 will soon become the second neighborhood in New York City to have all of this trash fully containerized. Following the success of Community Board 9 in West Harlem, we’re rolling out the new Empire bins to schools in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill this fall. And this is an example of the bins.
This rollout would expand to downtown Brooklyn, Boreham Hill, Brooklyn Heights. Fulton Ferry, Dumbo, Vinegar Hill, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 2026. This is part of a citywide transformation that started with the set out times and also our $32 million commitment in our best budget ever to ensure our streets remain clean. So we’re striking back against rats and filth by expanding the use of our Empire bins.
These are more than just better bins. They are part of a new system that will improve the modernized trash collection in our city. The Empire bins are serviced by an automated self-loading truck, a first of its kind in North America. We put it in place during this administration. These trucks have been running on the streets of West Harlem since April and will soon revolutionize how we pick up trash here. In the borough of Brooklyn. And everyone knows I hate rats and rotors moving through our street. And four years ago when we brought on our trash revolution that included our rat czar, we moved the city in the right direction. And we hired a great team and Acting Commissioner Lojan is really placing this initiative on a fast track. Cannot thank him and his team enough. Community Board 9 in Manhattan has now become the first.
New York City neighborhood to have 100 percent of this trash covered by containerization requirements. A part of this reason we have had so much success is because we have engaged the community. Clear communications and conversations with the community.
So while we’re mandating Empire bins at schools in all buildings with more than 30 units, we will conduct an extensive one to one outreach to build this with 10 to 30 units. Offering them the option to the Empire bins or the smaller wheelie bins already in use as smaller properties. This is a flexible part of engaging the community and really getting buy-in on how we deal with trash in our city. And so we again want to thank our partners, particularly DSNY and all of our city agencies who were involved in the Battle of Brooklyn and getting rid of our rodents here in our borough have started. And we’re looking forward to that success. We’re going to turn it over now to our amazing commissioner at the Department of Sanitation, Commissioner Lojan.
Acting Commissioner Javier Lojan, Department of Sanitation: Good morning. Thank you, Mayor Adams and Deputy Mayor Roth. New Yorkers have a proud history of getting things done. The Empire State Building was built in 14 months. The Chrysler Building was built in 20 months. And the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel was built in four years.
In recent years, however, many New Yorkers have grown to think that we can no longer get things done without. With any speed. Well, we are here once again to prove them wrong. We can do great things, and with the right leadership, we can do them quickly.
For decades, New Yorkers have traveled the world and marveled at how every other city from Amsterdam to Buenos Aires put their trash in clean, sealed containers. And then came home to mounds of smelly, black trash bags. And the city that told them we can’t do that here. The streets of New York City have to be dirty. Well, in the last three years, we have shown that the city that built bridges.
We have shown that the city that built bridges. tunnels, and skyscrapers that awed the world can also be a clean city. How did we do it? We started by telling New Yorkers that rush hour is not trash hour. You have to put your trash out for collection at night, not in the afternoon. We also picked up trash earlier, often in just a few hours.
Next, we required all businesses to put their trash in containers. Then we said buildings with one to nine residential units had to put their trash in containers. Every step was met with cynics who said they loved the idea, but it just couldn’t work here. Well, it’s working. New Yorkers adjusted their habits. They changed their decades-long way of doing things. And we have a cleaner city with 70 percent of trash in containers and fewer rats as a result.
The remaining 30 percent of trash was a bigger challenge. They told us it would take years to build new trucks that did not exist in North America. We didn’t accept that the city that built the Empire State Building in 14 months was a clean city. We would have to wait five years for a new truck. In a matter of months, we had 1,100 Empire bins, just like this one, across the streets of West Harlem, requiring that every last bit of trash be placed in a bin, serviced by trucks that, yes, had to be built from scratch as part of a joint operation that brought in manufacturers from Italy.
We put an end to all trash bags across all of West Harlem. We called it our moon landing. And if you heard us say that the day after our moon landing, we would immediately begin evaluating, so that we could expand to another district. You might have been one of those naysayers, thinking this is just another pilot. But today, we are here to say that these Empire bins are crossing the East River. We are about to bring cleaner streets and sidewalks to all of Brooklyn Community District 2.
In the coming weeks, schools in the Fort Greene and Clinton Hill areas will have Empire bins. And next year, high-density residential buildings across the entire district will have them. Not just here in Fort Greene, but downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Heights, Fulton Ferry, Dumbo, Vinegar Hill, Boreham Hill, and Clinton Hill.
Every building with more than 30 units will receive at least one Empire bin for their trash. And every building with 10 to 30 units will have a choice. They can have one of these Empire bins, or they can use smaller wheelie bins for their trash. These bins are sturdy, rodent-resistant, and locked.
Only a building manager will be able to open it with a card key. And these bins will be serviced by newly developed trucks operated by two sanitation workers. Who will raise the bins and empty them into the side of the truck.
Tomorrow begins a period of intense outreach. Our teams will be on the ground, knocking on doors, speaking to property owners and building managers, to let them know that the era of black bags is coming to an end here. We will be letting them know that our city with a history of doing great things will also have clean streets and sidewalks and fewer rats. Thank you, Mayor Adams, for having the courage to see this through. Thank you.
Mayor Adams: Thank you.
Humberto Ronda: Good morning, everyone. Thank you, Mayor Adams. Thank you, commissioner. Thank you, deputy mayor. My name is Humberto Aranda. I am a superintendent for 10 years on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. And at first, I was skeptic of the Empire bins.
As a typical New Yorker, we all have those fears of change. But clean, safe, and convenient was three words that came to my head first. Clean. All streets are clean. With no trash laid alongside the roads anymore. Safe. No rodents anymore. No more rats. And convenience. All building workers can dispose of the trash at any given time. That is a major improvement. And I want to thank everyone that was involved in this idea of the Empire bins. Also, I want to thank a major shout out to the DSNY workers that work hard every day to keep the streets clean. And thank you everyone once again for the idea of the Empire bins.
[Crosstalk.]
Question: [Inaudible.]
Mayor Adams: That’s good for them. We’ll see what happens.
Question: In the context of the rollout, are you a Darth Vader or someone else?
Mayor Adams: I like the Darth Vader character. What’s happening?
Question: [Inaudible.] Like, have you had that sort of struggle? How will you use that for the next process?
Mayor Adams: A community engagement. You know, as the commissioner stated, knocking on doors, you know, and really just engaging people on how people want cleaner streets. People don’t want rodents in their streets coming through their garbage, their trash.
On my block, on Lafayette Avenue, we were having a severe rodent problem until the containerization was put in place, and we’re seeing less rats. And it’s just important for us to realize there are sacrifices we have to make, and these bins don’t take up all the parking spaces, and it’s a good tradeoff. We want cleaner streets. That’s one of the top things we hear.
Question: Is there a piece of data from the district that we can look at next year?
Acting Commissioner Lojan: So we anticipate by the end of 2026, we should be mostly completed, but that’s also depending on, you know, some procurement. But, yeah, by next fall, we’ll begin the residential portion of this.
Mayor Adams: Hold on. Before we do that, we just really want to thank our rat czar. She has done an amazing job going all over the city dealing with this action. This was the first time it was put in place, and we’re looking to make sure it’s a permanent position. But thank you. Thank you so much for your service. Good job. Job well done. Why don’t we, you guys can, let me get these off topics. What the hell are they going to do with the press?
Question: [Inaudible] in the poll, it shows that Mamdani is actually gaining ground with the Black voters. I wanted to get your response to that, because, you know, that’s been the heart of your domain. I’ve been reaching out to them. I was with you yesterday. You were at two super centers in Brooklyn yesterday. You know, your reaction to the gain around the Black voters is that [inaudible].
Mayor Adams: No, it doesn’t. It’s all about communications. We have not done one TV ad, not one mailing. We have just started knocking on doors. This is the whole process. We’ve been here before. I keep going. Going back seven months out from the primary. Andrew was up to win the primary through [inaudible] by 87 percent. 87 percent.
He was up 20… I think, 5 percent in the polling. We’ve been here before. Andrew Yang was beating me by 14 points. He was walking around with a tape measure, measuring the drapes at City Hall. We don’t call the mayor Andrew Yang. We call the mayor Eric Adams. This is all part of the process. Let the process play out, and the voters will decide. And whatever the voters decide is fine.
We have 14 people running for mayor. 14 people. I’m the mayor. So this has been a beautiful ride being the mayor of the greatest city on the globe. And whatever the voters decide, the direction they want to go in, I’m going to support. I’m a lifetime New Yorker. I love this city, and I’m always going to serve this city in one capacity or another.
But it’s too early. This is– Races are won within three to four weeks. That’s when races are won. Yes. I said that over and over again. If y’all stop reporting, I’m going to Saudi Arabia, and I’m going to HUD, and I’m going to the Yankees game with the president, and I’m going to Washington, D.C., and I’m dropping out on Friday, and I’m dropping out on Tuesday.
Y’all are undermining my campaign. You know, I don’t think the voters want me out as much as you guys want me out. Let me do what I do. Will my campaign change? I will tell y’all when it’s changed. But all of these false reports and rumors are undermining my campaign. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life, when the press is playing such a major role in undermining the campaign of the candidate that has been very clear on what he’s doing. And when that changes, I will announce it.
[Crosstalk.]
Mayor Adams: Hold on, brother. We’re going to do the press, and then I’ll come to you and get your question, okay? No, all good. I’ll come. I’m not going to forget you, okay?
Question: My question was actually just one clarification on that. You said a little bit of it. [Inaudible.]
Mayor Adams: I like that question. That’s a sharp suit, by the way. You know, I like that question. Think about this for a moment. You stated that you want to hear directly from me. I told the paper directly that I was not at Yankee Stadium with the president. They wrote anyway that I was there. I told them I was never offered a job to Saudi Arabia.
They wrote anyway. I said. I was. I told them I was never offered a job to HUD. They wrote anyway that I was. I told them I was not going to Washington. They wrote anyway that I was. I told them two weeks ago, you’re stepping down on Friday. I said, no, I am not. They wrote anyway. So why am I saying directly from me? Because you’re going to write and report anyway. Give me another question. Go ahead, brother. What was your question?
Question: I’ve been in Fort Greene since the 95 and I was recently evacuated from Fort Prince Hayden by a military helicopter company. I think it’s been [inaudible] has made it huge. [Inaudible], you’re the only one left in there. [Inaudible] I know the problem is that it’s going to be a little bit of a force, but what is it that we’re doing? It’s to maintain the diversity that Fort Greene enjoyed for so long with the [inaudible] and I remember you like the 88 precinct as well, thank you.
Mayor Adams: No, so true, we, and as I was sitting here, I noticed that also, there’s a stark change in this community and we’re hemorrhaging Black and brown working class people because of the cost of living in this city. And I’ve stated over and over again. I cannot control the price of bread, but we put bread back in the pockets of New Yorkers at the tune of $30 billion. And the goal is to build more housing.
Many of these communities were not building housing fast enough. And we are clearly the most pro-housing administration in the history of this city. We have built, we have made sure we maintain and zone this city for 426,000 units. I’m not saying that we’re going to stop. That is more than 12 years of Bloomberg, eight years of de Blasio combined.
We did it in three and a half years. Because our goal is to build housing so the richness of this community, particularly longstanding New Yorkers, can be here and enjoy the prosperity of the city. But I see the same, not only here, Bed-Stuy, going into even East New York, parts of Queens. And we want to make sure that new arrivals and longstanding New Yorkers can have a place to live in New York City. Thank you. Thank you. Got to bounce.
Mayor Eric Adams, Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, and Delaware State University President Dr. Tony Allen cut the ribbon on New York City’s first Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Early College Prep High School as students returned for the 2025–2026 school year. Located in Queens, the new school offers a tuition-free early college program where students can earn up to 64 college credits toward an associate degree while celebrating HBCU traditions. The opening comes as part of the Adams administration’s launch of seven new schools across the city, alongside expanded literacy and math initiatives, stricter classroom technology policies, new after-school programs, and major investments in student success across all five boroughs.
Mayor Adams, Chancellor Aviles-Ramos Cut Ribbon at City’s First HBCU Early College Prep High School, Welcome Students Back at First Day of 2025–2026 School Year
Adams Administration Opens Seven New Schools for 2025-2026 School Year. New Technology Policies, Investments in Student Success Build on Administration’s Commitment to Student Achievement Across All Five Boroughs.
– New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Public Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, and Delaware State University (DSU) President Dr. Tony Allen today celebrated the return to school of approximately 1 million public-school students and staff and cut the ribbon at the Historically Black Colleges Universities (HBCU) Early College Prep High School in Queens. The HBCU Early College Prep High School — the first-of-its-kind for New York City Public Schools — will bring an innovative, tuition-free, early college high school experience to students, where they can earn up to 64 college credits for an associate degree in Liberal Arts from DSU, an HBCU. The event welcomed the first cohort of students with performances and words of encouragement while marking the beginning of a transformative school year, which will include the expansion of signature initiatives in NYC Reads and NYC Solves, the internet-enabled device policy designed to limit distractions in the classrooms, and significant investments in hiring more teachers, among other major announcements.
“We are ringing in the school year with more investments to prepare our students for bold futures. Today, we are opening seven new public schools across the five boroughs, including the first ever HBCU Early College Prep High School, expanding programs for students with autism, rolling out our first batch of 5,000 new after-school seats, and so much more as we invest in our students and families,” said Mayor Adams. “We are thrilled to start the school year with these new investments, offering schools that honor our students’ rich backgrounds and histories and meet local needs, provide rigorous instruction, and prepare all of our students for the future. Our administration is laser focused on making New York the best place to raise a family, and that starts with providing our kids with a quality education.”
“The first day of school is my favorite day of the year. As I watched my own daughter prepare for her first day of middle school, I was reminded of the tremendous trust families across the city place in us with their most precious gifts: their children. That is why we are committed to delivering on our promise to provide a world-class education that prepares every single student for success,” said Public Schools Chancellor Aviles-Ramos. “This year, we’ve opened seven brand-new, innovative schools, launched a device policy that will create more focused learning environments, and expanded our incredibly successful NYC Reads and NYC Solves programs to 186 additional schools across our system. I am beyond proud to lead New York City Public Schools in this groundbreaking work, and I can’t wait to see our students thrive throughout this new school year.”
HBCU Early College Prep High School today opened its doors for over 100 ninth-grade scholars as part of its historic first day. Led by founding principal and HBCU alumnus Dr. Asya Johnson, HBCU Early College Prep provides students with the world-class education of a New York City Public School while preparing them for life beyond high school and success in college. The school’s structure is rooted in the rich legacy of HBCUs and offers students a comprehensive experience that includes college courses, Greek life, Founder’s Day activities, Mr. and Miss Freshman competitions, Homecoming celebrations, and more.
As the school year begins, New York City Public Schools opened the doors to seven new schools in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and on Staten Island, bringing world class education, accelerated programming, and career readiness to over 500 students. With more than 1,600 schools serving diverse communities across the five boroughs, New York City Public Schools remains dedicated to reflecting these communities while upholding excellence and preparing students for success in college, career, and life, including by opening of two new FutureReadyNYC schools, bringing a reimagined high school experience to students so they can plan for a bright future with good careers.
Today also kicked off the New York City Public Schools’ new cell phone and electronic device policy, in line with the New York state mandate passed this year by the state Legislature. While more than half of the city’s public schools already had a cell phone restriction policy in place, under the revised policy, starting this school year, personal internet-enabled devices — such as smartphones, tablets, and smart watches — cannot be used during the school day by students. This work comes on the heels of multi-year consultations with school communities and alongside the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to develop well-rounded policies that meet the needs of students enrolled in New York City Public Schools.
Additionally, 186 schools across 14 districts will implement Mayor Adams’ signature curricula, NYC Reads and NYC Solves, for the first time this year, which will bring high-quality, evidence-based foundational reading and math curricula to middle school students across the five boroughs. These comprehensive programs also provide targeted resources, professional development, and curriculum enhancements for educators. The Adams administration and New York City Public Schools recently celebrated the release of new state test data revealing a substantial increase in reading and math scores for public school children in the city, between grades 3 through 8 in the 2024-2025 school year.
“As an advocate for educational equity and opportunity, I am proud to celebrate the opening of New York City’s first HBCU Early College Prep High School in partnership with Delaware State University,” said New York City Councilmember Kevin C. Riley. “This model not only prepares students for academic success but also honors the cultural pride and excellence of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. By offering tuition-free college credits, we are breaking barriers and creating opportunities for our Black and Brown youth, an investment in the next generation of leaders who will shape our city and beyond.”
September 4, 2025 HBCU Early Prep 88-15 182 Street Jamaica, NY 11423 City Hall Manhattan, New York
New York City Mayor Eric Adams unveiled a major expansion of a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training program targeting justice-involved individuals, aiming to train 300 participants in 2026—a 15-fold increase from the 2025 pilot. In partnership with Emerge Career, the initiative has already shown strong results, with all 2025 graduates landing trucking jobs offering salaries of $78,000 to $124,800. Addressing a 60% unemployment rate among formerly incarcerated individuals and a national shortage of over 60,000 truck drivers, the program provides tuition-free training and job placement, boosting economic stability and curbing recidivism. The move underscores Adams’ focus on workforce development as a public safety strategy.
Mayor Adams Announces Major Expansion of Big-Rig Training Program for Justice-Involved New Yorkers
Innovative Partnership Between MOCJ and Emerge Careers Produced Job Offers in High-Demand Trucking Industry for Every Graduate of Inaugural 2025 Program
Starting Salaries Range From $78,000 to $124,000 for Population That Typically Faces 60 Percent Unemployment Post-Incarceration
Newly Announced Expansion Will Increase Participation 15-Fold from Inaugural Class, Putting 300 More New Yorkers on Pathways to New Careers and Financial Stability
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) Director Deanna Logan today announced a massive expansion of its successful Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training program for justice-involved individuals. The multi-million-dollar investment with reentry workforce development partner Emerge Career will ensure hundreds of New Yorkers will benefit from the life-changing training, personalized coaching, and job placement offered through the program next year — a dramatic increase from 2025’s initial pilot program.
The innovative program addresses two critical needs: financial stability for individuals with a history of criminal justice involvement and filling workforce gaps in an industry facing significant labor shortages. The average unemployment rate for Americans getting out of incarceration is 60 percent — 12 times the overall national average. However, every single graduate of the 2025 program secured a full-time CDL job offer, with starting salaries ranging from $78,000.00 to $124,800, demonstrating both the program’s life-changing impact and its cost-effectiveness for the city’s workforce pipeline.
“One mistake should not destroy a person’s life because a bend in the road should not be the end of a road,” said Mayor Adams. “Today, we are driving second chances in New York City by expanding our Commercial Driver’s License training program. This innovative program provides formerly justice-involved New Yorkers with the skills they need to earn a CDL and connects them with meaningful employment opportunities in an industry facing significant labor shortages. By providing upstream solutions to downstream problems, we are shifting up a gear to prevent recidivism, keep our city safe, and put justice-involved New Yorkers on a path to build their American Dream in the greatest city in the world.”
“Research has taught us that one of the easiest ways to improve community safety is to help New Yorkers find financial stability,” said MOCJ Director Logan. “The data is also showing us that our investments in Emerge Career are paying immense dividends, in real second chances and wealth creation for some of our city’s most disadvantaged communities.”
“This partnership with the City of New York shows what’s possible when government embraces bold, human-centered technology to truly uplift its people,” said Zo Orchingwa, co-founder and co-CEO, Emerge Career. “We’re deeply grateful for the city’s trust in our vision and its commitment to those too often left behind. While this expansion marks a significant milestone, it’s only the start — our goal is to create lasting high-wage careers for every disadvantaged New Yorker and to transform reentry workforce development — establishing New York City as a leader in innovative, data-backed reentry workforce solutions.”
“What sets Emerge apart is our deep collaboration with the broader community,” said Gabriel Saruhashi, co-founder and co-CEO, Emerge Career. “Our all-in-one workforce development platform gives case workers, emergency shelters, transitional housing programs, and supervision agencies real-time visibility into participants’ journeys — which is how our participants succeed at rates 50 percent higher than national averages and earn nearly twice as much as the typical graduate. This expansion will bring in $24 million in new wealth for their communities and the city.”
According to the American Trucking Association, the U.S. is facing a shortage of more than 60,000 drivers. CDL training provides a fast, accessible path to high-wage, stable employment in a critical industry that urgently needs talent — making it especially well-suited for ideal justice-impacted individuals who are often excluded from licensed professions.
After providing tuition-free training to 20 participants in 2025, MOCJ will expand the program to 300 participants in 2026, with additional expansions planned in the future. The announcement builds on the Adams administration’s broader commitment to investing in upstream solutions to public safety and economic mobility.
MOCJ — and its Community Innovations team — relies on data to guide its outreach efforts. Research consistently shows that poverty and limited access to vocational training and education are major contributors to incarceration and recidivism. According to a 2018 Brookings study, more than 80 percent of incarcerated men were jobless and had no income in the year prior to their incarceration. After release, only 20 percent reported earning at least $15,000 in their first year back in the community. By contrast, newly employed graduates of the city’s CDL program have secured positions with starting salaries ranging from $78,000 to $124,800.
Today’s announcement continues to build off Mayor Adams’ different investments in diversion programs and upstream solutions, including through recent investments in the city’s Fiscal Year 2026 Adopted Budget, which continues Mayor Adams’ ‘Best Budget Ever.’ Investments include:
Funding to invest in alternatives to incarceration services, including case management, substance abuse programming, group counseling, housing placement assistance, health care, and other services for adults charged with a crime ($7.6 million).
Covering the indirect rate for non-profits that provide re-entry services, indigent defense, supervised release, and other criminal justice programming that was previously funded with stimulus dollars ($6.5 million).
Helping to stabilize recently decarcerated individuals with re-entry services, including job readiness training; mental, physical, and behavioral health care; counseling; housing assistance; and mentoring ($4.7 million).
Supporting “Project Restore,” a community-based gang violence intervention program that addresses barriers to personal growth, including economic insecurity, disconnection from education and employment, a lack of role models, and unhealed trauma ($2 million).
Funding to create the South Bronx Community Justice Center, which will provide programming for gun violence prevention initiatives, crisis intervention, and high school equivalency education ($2 million).
“Having a job is the pillar of living a productive life – and an essential component of rehabilitation and re-entry into society after a prison term,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “The expansion of this training program will afford this foundational opportunity to many more people returning from incarceration. This is exactly the type of intervention that helps reduce crime by offering people a better path, so I commend Mayor Adams and the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice for this promising initiative.”
“Providing justice-involved individuals stable, good-paying jobs can help them get back on their feet and on the pathway to success, and I thank the mayor and his administration for their commitment to expanding this important initiative,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jr. “This program can be life changing for New Yorkers who are re-entering into their communities.”
“Securing a job is key to avoiding recidivism,” said QueensDistrict Attorney Melinda Katz. “The city’s commercial driver’s license training program has proven to be a success in providing employment opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals. I thank Mayor Adams for expanding this valuable program that will provide gainful employment opportunities for those reentering the workforce.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, appearing on News12’s “Ask the Mayor” on August 27, 2025, addressed a recent spike in gun violence and outlined initiatives on school safety and affordable housing. Following mass shootings in Midtown and Crown Heights, and multiple incidents in the Bronx, Adams detailed a mobilization plan targeting gang activity and repeat offenders, with increased police focus on hotspots and community crisis teams to prevent retaliatory shootings. He highlighted a new job training program for justice-involved individuals, offering commercial driver’s licenses to deter crime through employment. On school safety, with classes nearing, Adams defended a cell phone ban to reduce violence and distractions, and noted enhanced security measures, including cameras and mobile metal detectors. Responding to a Bronx resident’s call for NYPD cameras, he pledged to review the request. Adams also emphasized housing efforts, citing rezoning initiatives and projects like Willets Point to address a 1.4% vacancy rate driving up costs. On autonomous vehicle testing, he stressed preserving taxi jobs while exploring accessibility benefits. Defending his veto of a City Council decision to block a Bronx casino proposal, Adams argued for including the borough in development discussions.
Mayor Adams Participates in Live Interview on NEWS12 and Takes Questions From New Yorkers
Amanda Bossard: Hello, everyone, and thanks for being with us here on News12, where local matters. I’m Amanda Bossard, and this is Ask the Mayor. It is a pleasure to be back here with you for the next half hour, as we give you the opportunity to ask New York City Mayor Eric Adams your questions right here on the air.
So the number to dial is 718-861-6800, and it will be at the bottom of your screen throughout the program for reference. With that, we’d like to welcome back once again tonight to our studios, New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Always a pleasure to have you with us.
Mayor Eric Adams: Great to be here. Enjoy this time of day, [on] this day of the month, to come around and talk.
Bossard: A great opportunity to answer those questions directly from New Yorkers. I’ll kick off the conversation, though, unfortunately, on a somber note this evening, and talk about this recent spree of violence, specifically gun violence, that we’ve seen in just the short time since we last spoke with you.
We’ve seen a mass shooting in Midtown claim the life of a Bronx officer, another mass shooting where fourteen people were shot inside of a Crown Heights lounge, and then this past weekend in the Bronx specifically, back to back to back shootings, a multiple shooting unfolding in the Bronx as recently as today.
I know in response to this recent violence, you have said that in the Bronx specifically to address gangs and younger shooters that we’re seeing, you’ve issued a full mobilization plan directive to the chief here in the borough. What do you expect to be part of that plan, and how soon do you expect to see it being implemented to immediately address this violence we’re seeing?
Mayor Adams: It is extremely unfortunate. When you see the good work we have done on removing the illegal guns off our streets, and what the police commissioner has done in identifying hotspots, and when you look at these large number of shootings out of one incident, fourteen people in Brooklyn in a night club, four in the Bronx over the weekend, it just really hurts all of the efforts that were put in place.
And there’s a common denominator we’re seeing over and over again. Young shooters, gang involvement, repeated offenders. That repeated offenders that we talked about on some of our laws, that’s just, you know, we are seeing repeated offenders.
So what we’re going to do– the commissioner is going to make sure that we have the attention in the Bronx, looking after the hotspots, knowing some of the known gang members, using our crisis management team members, because they are the best at dealing with retaliatory shootings.
We know how well they do. And so the team must zero in, identify what is causing this uptick in gun violence that we’re seeing. And we have to respond. And the commissioner has done a good job in doing so for the last seven months with the lowest number of shooters and shooting victims. And we have to make sure we continue the implementation of the plan and continue to drive down gun violence.
Bossard: You spoke specifically about how young people are getting caught up in the gun violence, and we’re seeing that number sadly rise, despite other statistics on the decline. We have school a little bit more than a week away at this point.
What efforts are in place right now to ensure that this street violence doesn’t seep into our classrooms, especially as families now navigate this new normal with the cell phone ban? I’m sure parents are concerned about not having such easy access to their kids while they’re in class.
Mayor Adams: And I’m glad you asked that because, believe it or not, cell phones contribute to violence. And that is why the goal was to remove cell phones from schools. This is going to be the first year that it’s going to be actually done. The governor, kudos to her, for partnering with the lawmakers in Albany to state that we have to take the cell phones out of the school. They’re distractions, they’re used for bullying, they’re used to start fights with children.
And really, it’s just not the place for our children. Many have tried. We wanted to take our time and make sure we got it right. And that’s exactly why it took this long. Because we have to get it right. We don’t want to start and then turn back.
But to those parents that are concerned about notifications when something happened, like what happened today, where a mad gunman went in and shot innocent babies, they want to be notified. And so we have to be using state-of-the-art technology, communication methods, so when something does happen, we can immediately let families know what we’re dealing with and if a child is in harm’s way.
Bossard: You mentioned this active shooting situation that we saw unfold earlier today at a Minneapolis Catholic school where two children, sadly, were lost in that situation. Of course, people fear the worst could happen here at home.
In terms of specific security safeguards, should we expect to see more metal detectors? Any other extra efforts in light of the violence that we’re seeing with schools so closely approaching?
Mayor Adams: Good question. First of all, many of our schools, we probably did all by now, but many of our schools, when you come to the school, [there’s] no more just [opening] doors. There is a camera with a bell. The school safety agent must buzz you in. So that’s an important mechanism that we put in. That was the first time this has ever been done.
If we didn’t do all the schools, I know we’re in the process of doing so to make sure that anyone cannot just wander into the school building. We do roving metal detectors and checks using metal detectors based on the circumstances. Some of them are surprise metal detectors that come into the school. They are able to move around.
We have been looking at more technology because it’s getting better and better and better. That is our goal to use technology to make sure we keep our city safe. And we’re going to continue to focus on that.
We have a great team of school safety agents. There’s going to be some movement with the school safety division that the commissioner is going to be announcing, but it’s all about making sure we create a safe environment on our school campuses.
Bossard: And then when we expand this conversation surrounding safety at the national level, we’ve heard from President Donald Trump as of late saying that he’s considering sending the National Guard to New York City. You’ve said that’s not needed.
Other members of your administration have echoed that sentiment with the violence we’ve seen as of late. Why say we don’t need the National Guard right now? Why not welcome that help?
Mayor Adams: Because you don’t– Because the National Guard would send the wrong message, number one, a visible uniform presence in New York City, it could impact business. It could impact the entire perception of our city. The numbers are in the right direction with the decrease in crime, our seven major crime categories, what we’re doing. [What] the Police Department is doing already and taking guns off our street. And just think about it.
Our subway system with 4.6 million riders is only five average felonies a day with 4.6 million people. So it’s the safest that it has been in decades when you take [out the] two years of COVID. So we know how to do it here in the city. And if we need to help other cities, if the president or White House determines they would like to see some of the things we’re doing, we’re more than willing to do so.
But we also coordinate with our federal, state, and city partners every day at 10 a.m. in the morning. We meet in something called HIDTA. We go after trigger pullers. We go after shooters. We go after those who are known to carry guns. So we are coordinating already.
The real need of the federal government, we have to stop the flow of guns in our cities. When you have a person that has an AR-15, drives across the country and shoots four innocent people and himself, that is what our focus point must be. We have to stop this fixation with guns like what we saw happen in another state.
Bossard: Yeah, and a lot of pressure being applied to those federal lawmakers to act on that now more than ever. I do want to get to our first caller of the evening. We have Noel who’s called in from Soundview. Thanks so much for the call, Noel. And what’s your question for the mayor this evening?
Question: Yes, good evening, Mayor Adams.
Mayor Adams: Good evening.
Question: My question for today is about the crime that’s going on in our borough, the Bronx. You know, it’s kind of concerning, you know, and it’s just, I was wondering to see what– how can we fix that? How can we address that much better?
It’s kind of scary to even go outside to go to the store when someone’s getting robbed. You can’t wear any jewelry, you can’t wear– you have to be actually keeping your head on a swivel. And it’s scary.
Mayor Adams: Well said, Noel. And we don’t want you living that way in our city where you are afraid just to enjoy the beauty of the city. I hear over and over again from people, they hear about these terrible incidents, but they say, “Eric, I feel safer walking the streets, I feel safer going out in my parks at night.”
What we’re seeing in the city, we have really dealt with the issue of crime in the city. And when you do– there’s always this bar graph [that shows] how crimes are in big cities. We’re the safest big city in America. Safest in America. The largest in America. Very complex.
But we have a Police Department that is second to none. And they’re doing a good job. And Noel, we must make sure that, I like to say, that we have to be reactive to go after those crimes, but we have to be proactive. And what does proactive action mean?
What we did today, we just announced justice-involved people are now able to get free training for their CDL and tractor trailer driving. It is a job that pays between $74,000 to $124,000 a year. No high school diploma needed. We’re going to be training three hundred more. That is how you prevent crime, by having people have the employment they deserve.
Bossard: Yeah, and this opportunity that’s being created to hopefully stop that cycle of violence, like you mentioned, repeat offenders being one of the big issues right now and trying to stem that. Well, the conversation is just getting started here on Ask the Mayor tonight. 718-861-6800 is the number to dial if you have a question. Call in right now. We’ll be right back right after this.
[Commercial Break.]
Bossard: Welcome back to another edition of Ask the Mayor here on News12 with New York City Mayor Eric Adams. As we continue the conversation with our callers right now, we have Sidney who’s on the line. He’s called in from [inaudible] tonight. Sidney, thank you for calling and what’s your question for the mayor?
Question: Good evening, Mr. Mayor.
Mayor Adams: Good evening.
Question: Mr. Mayor, we had a shooting this morning on College Avenue. We had three people shot around 8:30 this morning, College Avenue, 170. And I have asked in the past, [where] I live– I’m a resident here, if we could get a NYPD camera. I asked the previous borough president and I asked Ms. Gibson and nothing, nothing has happened yet.
I’ve spoken to detectives on the 44 precinct. They agree with me and they told me they even have mentioned it, but it’s up to the politicians to allocate the money. And I understand that. And I also understand that Ms. Gibson gave $1.2 or $1.1 million for cameras, for sanitation and police. And I’m hoping maybe you could pick up the phone tomorrow and let her know, please give College Avenue that well-needed NYPD camera at the intersection of College Avenue.
Mayor Adams: Is College Avenue and what, what is the cross street?
Question: It’s between College Avenue, it’s right on College Avenue, East 170 Street, the intersection.
Mayor Adams: Okay. Okay. Let me look into it. Let’s find out from Chief Gurley, who’s here in the Bronx and let us find out exactly how we can move it forward if [there’s] a need for it. Okay.
Bossard: Mr. Mayor, I’ll ask, what is the determining factor for where those resources are placed?
Mayor Adams: Because you’re talking about making sure that you deploy it correctly. If there are issues of violence there, if there are issues such as a shooting like this, if there’s a known gang activity. And so you want to make sure it’s where it is needed, like that is how you deploy the resources correctly. And so they’ll do an analysis to determine where you want to deploy these cameras.
Bossard: So Sidney, thank you for the followup. It’s now on the mayor’s radar for sure. Let’s get to another caller that we have on the line. I believe Anika has dialed in from Co-op City. Thanks so much for the call tonight, Anika. And what’s your question for the mayor when you’re ready?
Question: Yes, my question is, when the years to come, would it be a change with affordable housing and supportive housing?
Mayor Adams: Tell me more about that, Anika. I want to understand your question.
Question: [Inaudible.]
Bossard: I think she’s breaking up a little bit, unfortunately.
Mayor Adams: Okay. You broke up, Anika, but I think I got the gist of it. When you talk– when we talk about housing in the city, we have rent stabilized. We have our affordable housing, a stock of– when people want to build higher, we are able to do zoning changes and we’re able to leverage the number of units that are going to be affordable. It could be anywhere from 20 percent, 30 percent, in some cases, 50 percent.
And like our Willets Point project, it is 100 percent affordable, 2,400 units. Here’s what we were having our problem. We were seeing that it’s an inventory issue. When you have only 1.4 percent vacancy, you could build units, but the demand is so high.
So like in the Bronx, for example, you could have a 500 unit building. But if you have 14,000 people trying to get those 500 units because we haven’t built enough, that’s the problem. That’s why we continue to put shovels in the ground. We have preserved, created, and zoned for over 426,000 units of housing in the next decade throughout [the] City of Yes.
We did five neighborhood rezoning with 50,000 units of housing. We just did a major rezoning in Manhattan where you get 10,000 units of housing. We just did Fordham South where we’re going to do several hundred units of housing, just creating new communities.
And so we have to build more. And that’s what this administration, what we have done so that we can make sure that we have the inventory. Because the inventory is low, then the price goes up.
Bossard: The supply and demand equation, right?
Mayor Adams: There you are. So now for the first time through our City of Yes, we’re going to be developing all over the city. Not over developing communities, but just enough to say that we can all share the responsibility of housing.
Bossard: Housing, a perennial topic that comes up, especially the need for more affordable housing from our viewers. So good to see work continues on that front. When we talk about keeping up with the times, one of the most recent announcements coming from you is these new driverless cars that we’re going to see piloted in some parts of the city, specifically downtown Brooklyn and parts of Manhattan.
I think the big question coming from a lot of people [is], how do you regulate autonomous vehicles? And of course, keep things safe for those who are inside of the vehicle and everyone outside in a city as busy as New York.
Mayor Adams: People automatically jump to the conclusion that, okay, we’re going to have these for taxis. That is not true. We want our men and women who are taxi drivers to continue to be taxi drivers. It’s good employment, the hardworking men and women, and we believe that is a good middle class income.
We’re testing out the technology and that technology can be used in many ways. And we’re testing the technology, driverless vehicles, they are here. We need to make sure that we’re not displacing employees, but at the same time, we should use the technology to be a benefit.
Let’s say a person who, for whatever reason, is visually impaired and they want to just be able to have control of their lives and not be restricted. So this technology can be used appropriately and we’re looking forward [to it] on our city streets. These are some of the most complicated streets to drive on.
Bossard: If you can navigate New York City, you’re pretty safe to make it anywhere else in this country, at least by my opinion here. In terms of safety, we are confident that the technology is going to keep that in mind as well.
Mayor Adams: A lot of tests. When I was in– I believe, when I was in the borough president’s office, it was the first time I found out about Waymo. So it’s safe technology.
Bossard: All right. Great to hear and very reassuring for a lot of people watching. More conversation right on the other side of this quick break. Stay with us here on News12.
[Commercial Break.]
Bossard: Thanks for staying with us here on News12 for this edition of Ask the Mayor with New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Last time you were with us, Mr. Mayor, we were talking about the Bally’s Casino proposal in the Bronx specifically, and since then, you have issued a veto to the City Council’s decision to pretty much halt that proposal from being able to move forward.
Your veto would allow it to continue to be considered by the state. What was your motivation behind that decision, considering that people in the area say, we don’t want this here, and what is your response to the council saying, well, we plan to override that.
Mayor Adams: And they have a right to. They have a right to override the veto. What I was saying is that I’m not for or against any of the projects, and we don’t make the ultimate decision anyway, but why do we deny the Bronx all the time? Why is the Bronx the place where we say always no? I said this is a City of Yes, and the Bronx is part of that City of Yes, and many Bronx electeds supported having an opportunity to discuss and put Bally’s as one of the places that is being considered, and they should have the right to do so.
If you don’t give them the right to do so, then they’re not even in play, and so I think Bronx residents should be part of the conversation, should be part of if the determination is made, they should be part of that conversation, and it’s just wrong to use the council as saying we’re going to prevent the Bronx from having an opportunity to be part of the conversation. Doesn’t mean that they’re going to win it, it just means why are we denying the Bronx once again? I just don’t believe that.
Bossard: Understood. We are inching closer to September, which means November is going to be here sooner than we realize. We just got some new poll numbers that put the Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani in a comfortable lead. I think he has more than 40 percent of support based on those polls.
I know the idea of other contenders dropping out, banding together, supporting one candidate in opposition to perhaps Mamdani has been floated around. Is that something that you would at all consider as we get closer to November?
Mayor Adams: The ballot is the ballot. That’s what many people don’t understand. The ballot is going to be Eric Adams, Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa, and the last person, I don’t even remember who he is. That is the ballot.
And so we must go after those 2.5 million voters that have yet to vote, a million Independents, hundreds of thousands of Republicans that are going to make a decision, and the process is going to move forward.
And I think voters must decide, you know, if we would have listened previously when Mamdani was 1 percent in the poll, we would have had a different primary winner if he would have dropped out.
Bossard: And a long way to go between now and November. Mr. Mayor, thank you as always for the time and for the conversation, and thank you all for watching. We’ll see you next time here on News12.
On Aug. 24, 2025, Mayor Eric Adams hit 107.5 WBLS’s “Hear From the Mayor” to hype the clubhouse model—free, open 365 days, and aimed at jobs, housing, and belonging—with 13 newly contracted sites citywide targeting 6,600 members by 2027. Joined by Venture House Bronx’s Faqueni Ravel, Adams praised recovery-through-work while callers torched City Hall over more than 5,000 vacant NYCHA units; he said control is limited under receivership and an ~$80B repair backlog. Another listener griped about disappearing DSNY pails, and Hizzoner vowed to crack down and get bins put back where they belong.
Transcript: Mayor Adams Hosts “Hear From the Mayor” Radio Show
Gary Byrd: As you know, each and every second Sunday of the month, normally WBLS is proud to welcome the 110th mayor of New York City and second mayor of color, first hip-hop mayor in the city’s history. But we’re on an extended schedule this month and proud to bring back our mayor, Mayor Eric Adams on 107.5 WBLS. Mr. Mayor, good morning and welcome.
Mayor Eric Adams: Hey, thank you, Gary. And yesterday was a really somber but powerful moment for a good brother, Brother Lloyd Williams. And he just meant so much to so many people in general, but specifically he meant a lot to me. And so I was happy just to celebrate a life well lived. So I want to say to the audience, welcome back.
This is Hear from the Mayor, your mayor, Eric Adams, and if this is your first time tuning in, the purpose of this show is just to have a dialogue and hear directly from you. So listeners should give me a call and hear directly from your mayor on what we are doing to build a better New York. And you can sign up to hear more from me by visiting nyc.gov/HearFromEric. You can sign up on our website to text with Eric and talk with me on WhatsApp.
For today, though, please feel free to call in 212-545-1075. I want to say happy Sunday to everyone. And really, this is such an important topic that we’re going to have today. I have an amazing sister here, Faqueni Ravel, director of Venture House Clubhouse in the Bronx. And many people say, what is a clubhouse? What does that mean? And I didn’t even know what it was until I got into the Mayor’s Office.
I was hearing about it when I was campaigning and just really impressed with clubhouses. And we’re going to let sister Ravel just share with us the foundation of it. But let me say this. Everyone is going through some form of mental concern, I would like to say. Some is more severe than others. All of us feel a level of sadness sometimes, a level of depression sometimes. Some is more severe. And we need to be there for our fellow New Yorkers as they experience a level of mental illness.
But it’s nothing to be ashamed about. And you should not feel as though you cannot communicate with those who understand how to cycle us out of those moments. And that is what we believe clubhouse, the model, is one method that should be used. So I want to really celebrate this administration and what we have done.
We opened the first time in nearly 30 years, we’ve opened up a process for new clubhouses to be opened. And as a result, our administration has opened 13 newly contracted clubhouses across the five boroughs to serve adults living with severe mental illness. And the numbers are impressive, 6,600 members by 2027 is our goal. And our guest today is going to really break this down for you. So Faqueni, can you just first tell us, what is a clubhouse? The ABCs of a clubhouse.
Faqueni Ravel, Director, Venture House Bronx Clubhouse: ABCs. Well, good morning, everybody. I’m excited to be here. Thank you, Mayor Adams, for inviting us over and for your leadership in New York. We’re proud and we’re very excited to be here and to talk about the best kept secret, right? It’s been the best kept secret for such a long time until the Mayor Adams administration has put a spotlight on it. And the clubhouse model is good news for people with mental health issues.
It’s like the gospel of it. It’s a community-based model that helps individuals work side-by-side and gain access to employment, housing, civic engagement, the arts. They work and help us run the clubhouse side-by-side. We have units devoted with goals, a mission, and a vision. We have a commercial kitchen where members come and they work with us.
You have the administration unit, you have an education and employment unit, and the clubhouse model is to help focus on the strengths rather than the illness, right? So members are much more engaged and they’re able to apply their talents in the work that they like to do. So it is rooted in the concept that work is restorative.
So there’s conventional ways of treatment and therapy and that helps, right? We want to get our therapy, we want to take our prescribed medications, but then what happens later when a person leaves their psych office and doesn’t have a place to be? So they come to the clubhouse.
Mayor Adams: And that’s what I enjoyed about the clubhouses that I have visited. And I think the best way, in my layman analysis, is that when you’re dealing with severe mental health illness, you go to your medical professional for your help. And then when you leave that medical professional’s office, who is there to support you as you find your way to continue being part of society.
So when you walk inside the door of a clubhouse, you’re not judged, you’re not afraid to state what you’re going through to help you get through what you’re facing. And that’s what I saw. When I was up in the Bronx, at Venture, I saw people who came in shy, afraid to talk about their mental health illness. But then the clubhouse, all of a sudden, said, you’re not alone. And you do it in a creative way, such as cooking. How does that help people reintegrate themselves?
Ravel: Absolutely. So like I said before, when they walk in, and thank you, Mayor Adams, for saying that, they walk in sometimes highly medicated, right? Or sometimes they walk in and do not want to speak with anybody. And once they feel the energy, the clubhouse, each clubhouse has its own culture. And they’re introduced through a tour. And once they start working in a unit, first, in their minds, they’re stigmatized. They’re also marginalized.
They have been told that they’re unable. And once they start working in something that’s meaningful, and they start connecting with others that have, they might have the same diagnoses. So they’re working side by side with a member and a staff. They’re able to not just reintegrate into the clubhouse overall, and they start running and they start taking initiatives. They start taking leadership. They become stakeholders of every work that we do there. And they start to have that voice that was taken away from the mental health issue that they might be living, right?
So they speak on these things, and the recovery is seen throughout their attendance and their participation in the clubhouse community. And they just slowly but surely, organically, they integrate. And it shows, and it equals to recovery overall. When someone is out there, I mean, you could be completely sane and not have a job, and you feel like you’re coming down with something, right? So the minute that you feel that you have purpose and you have value, and you’re able to identify your own strength and be attached to a specific meaningful task, then that’s recovery, that’s reintegration.
Mayor Adams: You know, it is as though when I visit the clubhouse, particularly up in the Bronx, it is as though people are invited and they’re saying, it’s okay not to be all right, because we’re going to help you be all right. You know, and finding ways to do that.
Now, I know I saw the cooking, they were preparing their own meals, and the food was excellent. What are some of the other things that they do to take a person from that shyness, that feeling as though that no one understands what they’re going through, to, okay, you’re fitting, you have a home here?
Ravel: Absolutely. So we tried, this is a person-centered care approach. And the first thing we want to let the individual know is that we know that you’re here, we’re all in this together, let’s work together. So besides the commercial kitchen that we run, there are other units devoted into certain tasks, like education and employment. And we have members there that are seeking employment and helping other members to seek employment and seek education.
We have members helping other members, you know, seek housing and obtain housing as well through these units. We have members working in the newsletter, publishing the outcomes that are happening in the clubhouse, spreading the news, right, presenting the model also to other CBOs and other entities, spreading the good news of this psychosocial rehabilitation model.
So they’re getting engaged. They’re also building these meaningful relationships, which helps members find themselves, right? And they’re able to say and apply what they have learned and also apply their strength in making sure that the clubhouse is working in a sense that that brings recovery overall and rehabilitation.
Mayor Adams: And you know, I think about that song, I never thought I’d be quoting Barry Manilow, but I think about that song, I made it through the rain. And basically, I got my respect from those who made it through the rain too. And so people who are in the clubhouse, the senior members or members who have been there and made that transformation, they made it through the rain. And now they’re helping others make it through the rain too. And it means a lot. Absolutely.
Ravel: Absolutely. Because you have these people that it’s hard for them to sustain relationships. It’s hard for them to make friendships. It’s hard for them to keep a job. It’s hard for them to have a job. So when they come and they make it through the rain, right, and they see someone else that came out of that rain, they build that connection. And membership is for life.
So with membership being for life, it’s a clear indication that their relationship might be for life, right? And usually people that are living with mental health issues, right, because you hear voices or you’re depressed, statistics show that it’s really hard for them to sustain a relationship, right?
So some members just come in and they don’t want to do work. And they just, I just want a place to be. I just want to be here. And we make sure that we help them feel wanted, expected, and needed. And they are needed because we are unable to run the clubhouse without their help. And we’re understaffed on purpose. If we do the work, then we’re taking recovery from them.
So we promote the sense of urgency that, and then they say, okay, you know what? I’m good at cooking. I’m going to go cook. And you know what? I’m good at speaking. I’m going to go speak about this model. I’m good at doing administration things. You know what? I’m going to be a receptionist. And they welcome the other members. And we all, if the cloud rains on one member, it rains on all of us, right?
Mayor Adams: I love that. And that energy. Now, let’s say if we were to remove our clubhouses, then a person is home, often home alone, or sitting in a dark place somewhere, not feeling as though they have a purpose. And so absence of the clubhouse, you are dealing with a lot of the issues of loneliness. Loneliness is a very important social determinant to help when people feel lonely. And so we’re going to be back.
We’re going to take a break now. But we’ll be back to field your calls. You can ask anything you want about the clubhouse or any other topic that we’re hearing. Faqueni is here to really share that experience. So you can call 212-545-1075, 212-545-1075. We’ll speak to you on the other side of the break.
Byrd: The program is Hear From the Mayor. And as you hear, the mayor wants to hear from you. 212-545-1075 is the number to call. Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Long Island, Staten Island, Westchester, wherever you are, 212-545-1075. We’ll come back right after these messages from 107.5 WBLS.
[Commercial Break.]
Mayor Adams: And we’re back. We’re looking forward to hear from you and get your thoughts. 212-545-1075. So let’s go to the first caller. Caller, you are in the air. Caller, you’re in the air. Okay. So while we [wait] for our caller, why don’t we dig into the clubhouse model a little more. Tell me, Faqueni, what are the hours of operation?
Ravel: Great question. So Venture House in particular, Venture House Inc. has been around for over 37 years and we have steps to schedule. We’re open 365 days of the year. And I don’t know if I mentioned that membership is free. And we’re open Monday through Friday for a work order day task. We’re open 9 to 4, 9 to 5 rather. And we have social programming and we’re open from 9 to 8 p.m. We’re open on Saturdays from 10 to 3. And on Sundays, we’re also open for the same time frame.
Mayor Adams: You know what I learned in my policing days that the highest number or one of the highest periods of suicides occurs around holidays, you know, because people are not with family. There’s a great level of sadness. Are you open during the holidays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, all of those holidays?
Ravel: Actually, Thanksgiving is actually the day that we serve the membership. We, it is a tradition for us to make the meal and serve the members. It brings joy. It brings– it actually helps us become more integrated as a family.
This is how you see those individuals that do not have anybody, they come to Venture House and they sit and have a meal with us. So we’re open 365 days a week. Yes, every Christmas, we’re there sending them letters. And for those who are not coming, we’re not able to see them. We are reaching in and reaching out so they can come in for Christmas, Thanksgiving. We celebrate every holiday. We have the members and staff working. But it’s amazing.
Mayor Adams: I think we got a caller on. Caller, you’re in the air. I’m here with Faqueni. If you have a question for me or our clubhouse, please feel free.
Question: Yes. Good morning, Mayor Adams. My name is [Joe Gonzalez.] I’m calling from Brooklyn, New York. You often speak about housing issues. And it was recently developed that there are in excess of 5,000 empty apartments in the New York City Housing Authority developments. And unfortunately, many people believe that that’s part and parcel of a plot to just wipe out public housing. And so can you speak to the pain of people who believe that? And second, can you with specificity reveal when those 5,000 apartments going to start getting filled with needy people? Thank you and have a good day.
Mayor Adams: Yeah, thank you so much. One of the most disappointing aspects of our NYCHA situation is how little control the mayor has over NYCHA. When you look at the fact that it is in receivership and there’s a special monitor that’s in charge, hiring and firing is not within my scope because, trust me, when I looked at some of the things that happened over at Riis Houses when there was a water scare, I stepped up and said, listen, we need to take immediate actions. And they said, Eric, you don’t have the authorization to do that.
We need to give control back to the mayor and let the mayor be held fully responsible like we did with our school system. And so when you talk about those housing, all those housing units should be repaired. Some of them are taking longer than others. They have to be led abatement. Our NYCHA stock is a stock that has been ignored far too long. It has almost an $80 billion capital deficit. We need help on the federal and the state level.
They’ve walked away from NYCHA. We have done successful things. We included NYCHA in our housing plan, which has never been done before. We’ve also were able to go to Albany and get what’s called their housing land trust. Sheepshead Bay was one of the first areas where the tenants voted on the improvements in NYCHA. We must do something differently, get those units back online. But we have to repair NYCHA, not with a Band-Aid, but with real ideas that we have presented to rebuild our NYCHA stock. Thank you for that call. Caller, you’re in the air.
Question: Good morning, Mr. Mayor.
Mayor Adams: Good morning.
Question: I just have one issue. Is there anything that you can possibly do when sanitation comes around after they take the garbage, if they can put the garbage pails back in front of the property? I’ve lost two brand new garbage pails, and they’re quite expensive. Every week, I have to stay up until two, three o’clock in the morning. I have to walk sometimes a block away. Your garbage pail cannot be found. They don’t put it back in front of the property. Is there anything you can possibly do? I’m begging.
Mayor Adams: Yes, yes, yes. Those pails are expensive. I’m going to speak with the commissioner and just reinforce the policy of putting the pail right back in front. Just basic etiquette on how to do it correctly. Our DSNY members are doing an amazing job. But thanks for that feedback. And I will share it. I’ll share it.
Question: But then I got to get up to walk. Sometimes they come at two in the morning. I have to stay up to go just bring it back inside. I’ve lost three. They’re like up to $54, $55. I’m a senior. I can’t afford that anymore.
Mayor Adams: Yes, and we don’t want that to happen to you. So I’m on top of it. Callers, that music is telling us that the lady is singing, so the show is concluding. But I look forward to being back on with you in the next few weeks. And again, we want to thank our guest that’s here today. Thank you so much for your input.
Ravel: Thank you, Mayor Adams, for your exemplary work. Thank you for taking the initiative and bringing clubhouses [out from] under the rug and making it not just the best kept secret anymore. Right now, there’s been a spotlight. And that’s thanks to your administration from bringing it from awareness to results. You’ve done it under your leadership and Venture House, and all the other clubhouses, want to thank you for bringing clubhouses to our local neighborhood communities.
Summary: A New York City detective was shot and wounded during a carjacking in Queens on Friday, in what police say was likely a friendly fire incident. Mayor Eric Adams criticized state laws that allow repeat offenders back on the streets, pointing out the suspect, 28-year-old Kevin Dubuisson, was arrested just a day earlier and released with a desk appearance ticket despite a long record of violent crimes. The 12-year NYPD veteran is expected to recover after surgery, while Dubuisson is in custody. Police unions and city officials are calling on Albany lawmakers to act quickly to close loopholes that they say endanger both officers and the public.
Transcript: Mayor Adams Briefs Media With NYPD Commissioner Tisch and Visits Detective Shot in 109th Precinct
Mayor Eric Adams: Today, we are reminded once more of the risk every man and woman that performs public safety in the city, specifically the members of the New York City Police Department, the faces they put on the uniform and that badge, especially with our current state laws that allow for a revolving door of criminal activity. And for dangerous people to be put back on our streets after they have committed crimes, and as recently as yesterday, and on parole, it just sends a terrible signal to our public and a terrible signal to the men and women who repeatedly attempt to apprehend and ensure our city is a safe place.
Patrol officers from the 109th precinct responded to a carjacking of an Uber driver. While at the location, on-duty narcotics detectives from Queens South, who were headed back to their office after executing a search warrant, came across the incident and stopped to help the apprehension. During the apprehension, one detective from Queens South Narcotics was shot twice, wounded in the arm and the leg.
At this time, it appears this was a friendly fire incident. [I’m] thankful these injuries are not life-threatening, and we expect him to make a full recovery. We just visited his mom and his wife, who is expecting a child at this time. And it was a relief to them that their loved one will be okay. And I wanna thank him for his bravery when I visited him. He’s now in surgery at his 12 years of service.
Right now, one perpetrator is in custody and will face justice in the court of law. But I wanted to be clear, regardless of who shot our detective, there’s one person responsible for starting the chain of events that landed us in the hospital today. This is a man who should have been behind bars, not on our streets. He’s a 28-year-old recidivist with a lengthy rap sheet of robbery and assaulting officers who was on parole for a robbery that took place in March. And was literally arrested again and released yesterday with a desk appearance ticket.
Before going out to attempt a carjacking in Queens, he walked out of one of our criminal justice locations. This is a definition, I believe, of insanity. Arresting the same people over and over again and expecting different results. NYPD is gathering more information about the crime, but it’s clear that this individual has no business walking free and endangering New Yorkers.
From day one, this administration has been focused on driving down crime and have delivered results over and over again. But we need help from our lawmakers. We cannot allow repeated offenders to commit repeated violent acts in our city. We know the reality of what that means, and we know what it means to prepare our officers for this dangerous work.
They’re training hard and taking risks. They run towards dangers while others run away. We call them New York Finest for a reason, and we saw that today. And we’re going to continue to support them as they do their job. I’m going to turn it over to the commissioner to give her full details of the events.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch: Thank you, sir. The information that I am about to provide is preliminary and subject to change. At this point, here is what we know. Earlier this morning, as detectives assigned to Queen South Narcotics were returning to their command after performing a search warrant in the 113 precinct, they encountered officers from the 109 precinct along the side of the White Stone Expressway near 22nd Road engaging a suspect.
That job began when an Uber driver in a black Toyota Highlander was parked just off the service road of the White Stone Expressway at approximately 8:52 AM. A male approaches the vehicle, announces a robbery, and displays what appears to be a firearm to the driver. The driver exits the vehicle and is assaulted by the perp. The driver calls 911 to report the carjacking a minute later at 8:53 AM. The perp attempts to drive away, but the victim still has the vehicle’s keys, forcing the perp to immediately return and collide with another car at the location.
The perp then assaults the victim a second time in an effort to retrieve the keys, tackling the victim to the ground. Having retrieved the keys, the perp starts to slowly drive away and makes a right-hand turn onto 22nd Road. At this point, officers from the 109 are responding to the victim’s 911 call about the robbery in progress. They engage the car in an attempt to make an apprehension.
Detectives assigned to Queen South Narcotics see the patrol officers attempting to make the apprehension and try to assist by blocking the car in. At 8:57 AM, officers discharge their firearms. The perp is not hit, but one of our officers assigned to Queen South Narcotics is struck one time in the right hand and one time in the left leg. He was removed here to Jamaica Hospital.
This incident is recorded on [the] body-worn camera. Blessedly, as the mayor said, our officer is in stable condition and is both conscious and alert. I am pleased to report that I met with him and his family, and he is in good spirits. He is in surgery now. The perpetrator is uninjured and was taken into custody. At this time, this incident appears to be friendly fire as we did not recover a firearm from the perpetrator on scene.
The perp in this incident is identified as 28-year-old Kevin Dubuisson. Mr. Dubuisson has a lengthy violent criminal history with ten career unsealed arrests, including multiple knife point robberies and multiple assaults on police officers. At just 28 years old, he is a four time convicted felon. Mr. Dubuisson is currently out on parole for robbery after being released from prison in March of this year. He was actually arrested just yesterday for theft of service in Manhattan and released with only a desk appearance ticket.
Importantly, prior to the criminal justice reforms of 2020, an individual out on parole would not be eligible for a D.A.T. Mr. Dubuisson also has documented EDP history with the department. Prior to the incident with the Uber driver at approximately 8:40 AM this morning, Mr. Dubuisson attempted to steal a car from a mobile gas station on Parsons Boulevard and 20th Avenue, but was scared off by employees there. Then two minutes later, he attempts to carjack a female on Parsons Boulevard, just steps away from the gas station, but the victim’s husband runs outside and scares him off.
It was then that he encountered the Uber driver on the service road along the Whitestone Expressway. This chain of events, which could have ended quite differently, began because a career criminal, a person who has terrorized victims for nearly a decade, was allowed to continue his violent spree. It is unconscionable that a violent predicate felon who pled guilty to two more robberies was out on the streets to commit his crimes today. That is criminal justice reform for you.
I want to thank the entire staff of Jamaica Hospital. They are taking excellent care of our officer. This is just another reminder of the dangerous situations that our cops confront every single time they put that uniform on. We are praying for a speedy recovery and hope to see our officer home with his family soon. Thank you, and now I’m going to turn it over to Scott.
Scott Munro, President, Detectives’ Endowment Association: Good morning. My name is Scott Munro, the Detective Endowment Association president. I have a message for Albany. Come off your vacation now, get up in Albany, and let’s start working to protect our police, our detectives that are out there working every day. In fact, this detective, thank God he’s okay today. He was out working protecting the people of the City of New York this morning executing a search warrant. And now he’s sitting upstairs in surgery.
We need your help in Albany. It’s just not about retaining police officers. We want police officers to be safe. That’s what we hear. We want them to be safe. Just like the people of New York, we want to be safe. But we want our police officers safe. And it’s about time that the legislators– it’s about time Albany gets together, the assembly and the senate, with the governor, and start working on this.
Get this fixed. It needs to be fixed right away. That should be your first thing on your agenda back in the next couple weeks. It actually should be started tomorrow, right now. Let’s get this done. I’d like to thank the hospital, everybody, the doctors, everybody that’s done a great job with our people here. We don’t want to plan funerals. That’s not what we’re here for. We’re here to protect the City of New York. Now we need your help, Albany. Thank you.
Question: The firearm, was that a detail in the 911 call, the flash, the central firearm that wasn’t with the weapon?
Chief Joseph Kenny, Chief of Detectives, New York City Police Department: Yeah, so the two different 911 calls that we looked at, the one female from the gas station, she describes what appeared to be a firearm, and the male, the Uber driver, describes that the male perpetrator was armed with a weapon.
Mayor Adams: But he was never found with that gun?
Chief Kenny: That’s correct.
Question: Chief, is it yet clear if the officer who fired realized that the narcotics were at the door of that police, and can you describe the layout? Was this a ricochet or a vehicle that the officer was in, or was it a line of fire?
Chief Kenny: Crime scene is going through that right now. We’ll get the trajectory of who fired what round. But what it appears is that there was a crossfire incident. The narcotics detectors were in the front of the perpetrator car. The 109 patrol was in the rear.
Question: [Inuadible.]
Chief Kenny: Right now it appears three officers from patrol fired.
Question: Can you tell us anything about the officer you mentioned?… [inaudible].
Chief Kenny: No, that’s it.
Question: I have a question for the mayor and the commissioner. So regarding the release of the felon who was arrested yesterday, I mean, it’s all likely that even pre-report he would have been arraigned and released. But is there anything about his release in March that’s particularly troubling beyond the fact that he was—
Police Commissioner Tisch: Yeah, this was a guy who was a violent predicate felon [who was] arrested two more times thereafter. He should not have been out on our streets this morning.
Summary: At a Haitian Heritage Reception on August 22, 2025, Mayor Eric Adams paid tribute to the Haitian community’s history, resilience, and contributions to New York City. He honored security officer Aland Paoli, who was killed while saving lives during a recent shooting, and urged continued action against gun violence. Adams praised Haiti’s legacy of freedom and resilience, highlighting its role in shaping global history and celebrating Haitian New Yorkers’ achievements in business, education, and public service—including NYC Budget Director Jacques Jiha. Stressing his commitment to immigrant support and equity, Adams said unity is key to overcoming challenges, declaring, “From Port-au-Prince to Brooklyn, we still rise.”
Transcript: Mayor Adams Hosts Haitian Heritage Reception
Mayor Eric Adams: Wow, look at this. Look at this crowd. You know, earlier this– a few weeks ago, I was working late and actually it was around six o’clock, we got the call that at 345 Park Avenue, there was a shooting. And in the shooting, when I responded, we learned that four New Yorkers were killed. Later that night, I walked through the building and looked at the tape. And [what] I saw, it was just so heart wrenching. And people talked about losing Officer Islam and other workers.
But I want to talk about our Haitian brother, Aland. We call Aland. What that brother did was unbelievable. And how he tried to save the lives of the people that were in the building. He had that energy of Toussaint. He had that resiliency of this community. And as I watched the sick action of his assassin, and his desire to save the people who were there, it just tore me apart.
And I just want to say as his wife is here, I’m gonna ask her to come on, Rachelle Paoli, if you will come on [stage]. And his beautiful children. I want us to just take a moment, a moment of silence of a life that is worth living because he gave his life to save the lives of others. More people would have been lost in that building if it wasn’t for the courageous actions of the security personnel and our first responding law enforcement.
And when you see a family like this, this is why I am so committed to remove every illegal firearm off our street. And the 23,000 we have removed is just the start of what we need to do. So do something for me. Just raise your hand towards this stage to this family and say silently to yourselves, a word of prayer to lift them up, to give them the hope and the aspiration they need to forge ahead. And just a moment of silence. Thank you so much. Thank you for being here with us.
And so to my Haitian people who are here, I remember going to Haiti a few years ago when I was borough president, you know, I like to believe that Brooklyn is the Port-au-Prince of America. And it was in the middle of a hurricane, and I watched how no matter what is thrown at you, you are so resilient. And America owes you a debt of gratitude because it was due to you whipping Napoleon’s butt that we were able to do the Louisiana Purchase.
But not only that, I think that the councilwomen pointed it out. Because you beat Napoleon so bad, you’re still being held accountable for it. You know, people want to give the impression that this is all by accident. It’s not. Becoming the first Black republic, you pay a price. That’s like the price you pay when you become the second Black mayor.
You know, you will rather live a lifetime in poverty than one day in slavery. And [with] your fighting spirit and fighting energy. And I remember just walking through Port-au-Prince and going up into the mountains and seeing folks just resilient and willing to fight and stand tall. And I remember as a child reading about Toussaint and how he inspired me. He was willing to fight for freedom. And people need to know that. That history has been lost in the conversation.
Don’t be so Yankee-ized that you don’t realize how powerful you are as a country. And it’s significant. One of the highest levels of academic achievements. One of the highest levels in the medical profession. One of the highest levels in starting your own businesses. One of the highest levels of making sure of building institutions.
You have a legacy that is so proud of and we allow people to beat us down so much that we don’t acknowledge how much we have accomplished. You have so much to be proud of. You grace us by being here on Gracie Mansion’s lawn right now. And so we have a lot to do and a lot to accomplish.
And tonight we want to recognize your history, your culture, your contribution that our Haitian brothers and sisters have done from little Haiti and Brooklyn to proud homeowners in Queens. Every place you go, you bring about a level of prosperity and commitment and dedication. So I am proud to be the mayor of the second largest Haitian population in the country. And eventually we’re going to be the first because they’re going to leave Miami and come to New York.
And let me tell you something. We have a $115 billion dollar budget. $115 billion dollars. The largest budget of any city. $115 billion dollars. And you know who controls it? Jacques [Jiha], a Haitian. I don’t spend a dime unless Jacques tells me it’s okay to spend it. And so we need to find our gems within not only city government but the city and that’s what this is all about. Lifting up how we manage crises.
Look at what we manage under Jacques [Jiha]. We manage COVID under Jacques [Jiha]. We manage the migrants and asylum seekers under Jacques [Jiha]. We manage the sunsetting of COVID dollars that left gaping holes under Jacques [Jiha]. We lowered all income tax for low-income New Yorkers under Jacques [Jiha]. Free high-speed broadband under Jacques [Jiha].
Breaking records of building housing in year one, two, and three more than anyone in the recorded history of the city of a mayor under Jacques [Jiha]. More jobs in New York City and the entire history under the city under Jacques [Jiha]. Jacques Jiha. Sorry, Jacques. I’m thinking of Maurice, my mentor. You know, he was another Haitian brother that was there for me.
But Jacques handled his business in this city and he’s going to go down in history as one of the best budget directors the city has ever seen and he is Haitian. And so we’re doing more with our Haitian response initiative, a partnership between the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and eight Haitian serving nonprofits and CUNY’s Brooklyn College Haitian Students Institute to give resources to provide information to Haitian New Yorkers in your language regardless of their immigration status.
What we’ve done with free legal services, what we’ve done, we’re putting more money in legal services, what we’ve done and all of the issues of uplifting everyone who’s in the city. My obligation as the mayor is not to ask how you got here, but to make sure while you’re here you can provide for your family, provide for your children, receive police support if you need it and get medical attention when it’s required and I’m going to continue to do that.
I didn’t start doing that when I was a mayor. I did it when I was back with 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement, state senator, borough president. I’m going to continue the legacy we started many years ago. And so we know these are uncertain and painful moments. We know that. We know what we’re going through right now and I hear all the time folks. I hear all the time people say these are the most difficult moments.
I want to ask all of you something. When wasn’t it a difficult moment for Black folks? Can somebody tell me the year? Because it was a difficult moment for me when I grew up in South Jamaica, Queens, dyslexic, undiagnosed. It was a difficult moment for me when mommy was working three jobs. It was a difficult moment for me when my sister didn’t have her childhood because she had to raise the five of us.
It was a difficult moment for me when we had to eat that hard [] cheese that came from welfare. It’s always been difficult folks, but you know what? We’ve always survived. Because if we are honest in what we say, God is still in charge. And that is what I believe and no matter what is thrown at me in this administration, we have been able to move this city forward and have been successful in the process.
And in your flag states, unity creates strength. It is a measure that recalls your resiliency through struggles in the past and is a symbol for the future that together we are stronger. So from Port-au-Prince to Brooklyn through tragedy and triumph, we will continue to do as Maya Angelou stated. We will continue to rise. We still rise. Thank you so much.
Summary: New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Friday he won’t resign despite growing political pressure and corruption probes involving close associates. Speaking after a police-involved shooting, Adams dismissed rumors he might step down, saying he will “never quit on New York City.” He defended his record on crime, jobs, and housing while insisting his allies deserve due process. Critics say the scandals raise questions about his judgment, but Adams argued his administration is delivering results and promised to stay focused as the city heads into a heated election season.
Mayor Adams Makes Announcement
Mayor Eric Adams: There was a shooting involving members of the department when they attempted to apprehend an extremely dangerous and violent offender on parole, released yesterday for committing a crime, attempted several crimes this morning. And men like him, dangerous offenders like him, are on the streets of our city because of the action of the reform that Andrew signed into law.
And so when you were calling around to my staff saying, there’s the announcement today that Eric is stepping down, [] no. That cannot happen. I’m not going to leave this city to a beret-wearing, carnival display. I’m not going to leave it to a person who put dangerous laws on the books that hurt us from cannabis to bail reform to 15,000 nursing homes death.
I’m not going to leave this city to someone that wants legalized prostitution on our streets. I’m not going to leave this city to someone that does not understand what it is to run a city that went from being a rapper to an assemblyman and now wants to be the mayor of the most complex city. We’ve come too far to go backwards. That is not going to happen.
I’m never going to quit on the City of New York. We’ve worked too hard to get here, and to those thousands of men and women who serve this city every day, I want to tell them thank you. One of them is that officer who fought to take a dangerous person off the streets. So I wanted to address you because there’s been a lot of questions over the last few days after the indictment of two former employees of City Hall, one DCAS and one here at City Hall.
And one of them is Ingrid. Ingrid is like a sister to me. I love Ingrid. She’s worked with me for over forty years. I served as a police officer with her husband. I know her son, and I know her, and I know her heart. And she and her attorney will deal with the case that’s in front of her. My prayers are with Ingrid, and I wish her the best.
And throughout the number of years that I have known her, I found her to be a hardworking, dedicated member of city government for over 40 years. And with Jesse Hamilton, former state senator, former employee here, I wish him the best as well. I wish them to go through this process and allow their attorneys to do their role. And I am not going to interfere in any way with the process. Our communications with the district attorney’s office indicated that in no way am I involved in any of the reviews that they’re conducting in this manner.
And I’m going to continue to do the job that I’ve done for 8.5 million people. And to New Yorkers, I’m sorry. Instead of us talking about what we have done in this city, instead of us talking about how we brought down crime, brought back jobs, put money back in the pockets of working-class people, revitalized our economy, and made our city safer, we have to deal with conversations like this. But on the campaign trail, I’m going to continue to tell my story and allow you to make the right choices.
I’ve committed my life to this city. As a police officer, as a state senator, as a borough president, and now as your mayor. We have not always gotten it right, but we have never stopped being dedicated to the people of this city. And I’m going to continue to do that as long as you allow me to do so. I’m going to turn it over to the opening for a few questions.
Question: Hi Mayor Adams, I just wanted to ask you specifically, about the case and about what the city is potentially paying for. Well actually, this is a specific question. So Ingrid’s lawyer says she was only trying to help her constituents navigate the city’s onerous bureaucracy. But I wanted to get your take on that since some of those constituents also allegedly bribed her with free food and home repairs and $50,000 wired to her son.
And the second question is, these are people who are very close to you, Ingrid in particular. How can you let New Yorkers know that people who are so close to you, including even your son, have a movie funded by the Argentos who were arrested yesterday. How can you truly believe that you had no knowledge, no information or no understanding or no involvement at all in any of this? These are people who are so close to you that it even involves your son.
Mayor Adams: First of all, it didn’t involve my son. My son wrote, he had a job at Broadway–
Question: [Inaudible.]
Mayor Adams: Are you going to let me answer the question? My son was employed at Broadway Stages. And anything involving the case, you said you spoke to the attorney. Speak to the attorney. I’m not talking about their case. The attorney will handle that.
Question: Is the city paying for the legal fees of anyone who was arrested and indicted yesterday?
Mayor Adams: Speak to corporation counsel. Not of my knowledge.
Question: I actually have a couple of questions. One, I wanted to ask Randy Mastro. You’re a former federal prosecutor. You’ve prosecuted racketeering cases. You’ve prosecuted all kinds of things. What’s your take on this case? Do you think that this goes to the heart of corruption in city government?
First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro: Thank you for asking. I’m not going to comment on the specifics of any case. But I’m not going to remain silent when ancient conduct of people who are no longer in government are being used to smear a government and a city hall and an administration producing every day for New Yorkers. I’ve stood by this mayor’s side for the past five months. We talk every day. We talk about how to resolve issues, how to address questions.
There’s not a single time when he’s given me a direction that wasn’t in the best interests of the city. And the people who work in this building, who are so dedicated, I cannot tell you how proud I am to be their colleague. They are doing the people’s work every day. And they’re doing it honestly. They’re doing it professionally. They’re doing it productively. That’s why crime is down to record lows. Jobs are up to record highs. Affordable housing being produced at unprecedented levels.
That’s why right across the street, [the] Department of Education and the chancellor [are] producing public school student test scores higher in math and reading in every grade, every category. That’s why quality of life is improving in our city. I’m not going to dwell on the past. I came here to help this mayor, this administration, [and] this city [to] focus on the present and the future. And the future is bright. I care about good government. I’ve been a federal prosecutor. I’ve done this job before.
And the work of this administration and the people in this administration, from the mayor on down, I could not be prouder of them. So I’m not going to sit silently by and accept a characterization of how these good public servants are serving this city, because we’re serving this city well and producing unprecedented results for New Yorkers. And I’m not going to let ancient history that will play out eventually in a courtroom one way or the other be the way the work of this administration is described, because we are doing great things for New Yorkers and we’re going to continue to do that every day.
Mayor Adams: Thank you.
Question: I have two questions. Number one, your opponents have obviously weighed in and they say it’s a city for sale. It’s Tammany Hall all over again. I wonder if you would respond to that. But also, if you could answer a question about the friendly fire situation with the police officers. Do you think that the police officers broke protocol in the way they handled the case?
Mayor Adams: It’s under investigation, and what we’re clear on, not one shot would have been fired if the perpetrator would have been behind bars where he should have been if we did not have these major changes in our laws. And when you respond to a call of service where the preliminary reports indicated that the person was armed with a weapon, those officers don’t know what they’re responding to.
And I thank God that they took this dangerous person off our streets. And the review will look at it. A shooting team will determine if there are any changes that should be done. But I thank God for those responding officers and how they responded. He was robbing an Uber driver who was just trying to do his job. And those officers didn’t run away. They ran towards the danger.
Question: And in terms of what your opponents have said, do you want to respond to that?
Mayor Adams: No, they’re in their political season. This is what happened in the political season. There are five people who are in the race. Three of them don’t have a record. One of them is running away from his record. I’m the only one that has a record. And when you have a record, people can pick it apart. And as the first deputy mayor stated, it’s a darn good record for this city.
Question: Your staff confirmed they put these down. I was just wondering, first, why? And then the second question is probably more pertinent and serious. What do you say to New Yorkers that see these recent allegations of corruption and bribery, look at the previous allegations and say this reflects poorly on your judgment, sir?
Mayor Adams: First, let me answer your first part about the whistle. Many of these women here are interviewing Andrew Cuomo, and they feel unsafe. They’re going to have a whistle to help them through it, okay? That’s one. Two, this is from previous investigations that is taking place. I said it then, and I’ll say it again. We’re going to deliver for this city as we have done and we will continue to do.
Question: When you were indicted, you suggested that this was politically motivated. Is there anything about these charges that you would like to also connect with that statement you made in the past? And the second question, you are running on the fact that you are tough on crime. So how do you reconcile that with these revelations when people hear about corruption, how [do] you react to allegations?
Mayor Adams: Let me answer both of them. First, the attorneys will determine what are their beliefs on these charges and how to respond. I’ve made it clear, when you’re dealing with cases, respect the attorney process. They all have attorneys. Communicate with the attorneys to get their thoughts. It is not up to me to decide what the thoughts are. I’ll speak with the attorneys.
Tough on crime? I’ve always been tough on crime. From my days as a police officer, state senator, borough president, and now the mayor. And the results of that toughness have proven successful. 23,000 illegal guns removed off our streets. Lowest numbers of shootings and homicides in the first six months of this year.
Our pursuit to do preventive measures with after-school programs for children, summer employment programs. We have been both proactive and reactive. And I’m always going to be tough on crime. And this is not an indicator of me not being tough on crime.
Question: Could you talk a little bit about your relationship with the Argentos? I know that they-
Mayor Adams: I’m sorry, who?
Question: The Argentos. You know, they’ve contributed to your campaigns over many years. You just said that your son Jordan worked for Broadway Stages. Could you elaborate a little bit? How did he get that job? Was that something that you helped him get through the Argentos?
Mayor Adams: I am very clear with my son. My son finds his way. I’m not going to raise a son that cannot find his way. My son has been working and has been finding jobs. He has been doing what he needs to do as he reaches his 30th birthday. He found his way. He went out. He interviewed from his degree in communication. And he found the job. And both Gina and her brother are wonderful people. They’re great New Yorkers. They contribute in the area of their community. They give back. They’re very dedicated to the people of this city.
And I’m not the first elected that they supported. They’ve supported many electeds that they felt understood how important it is to move the city in the right direction. And my heart goes out to both of them because they are, from my interactions with them, they are beautiful people. And they really care about the City of New York. And if you look at their volunteerisms, their contributions, what they’ve done with the 94 precinct in that area, they have continuously given back.
Question: There are those who look at this, your opponents in particular, and will say Eric Adams called the reporters here today to do damage control. Is that what this is, mayor? Is this damage control?
Mayor Adams: No. I want to move around the city, and I don’t want you following me around with the cameras in my faces and the phones in my faces, so I might as well get you all together and explain. And I owe New Yorkers an explanation of what we’re doing. So this is not damage control. It is about communicating with you so that I can do the business out there without you having to follow me around. You can speak to me right here.
Question: Mayor, the election is [getting] more complicated day by day. How do you see the future?
Mayor Adams: Well, first of all, if you would ask those who are regularly here, they would tell you a year ago, I said this is going to be the most interesting election in the history of the city. It turned out to be true. This is New York. New York is a complex place. New York is a place where any given day you can get a call. I got a call early this morning. I have an officer shot. We deal with hurricanes that hit our shores.
That’s why you have to be ready to do this job. In order to do this job as mayor, you can’t go from rapper to assemblyman and then mayor. It’s too complex. There’s too many layers. The first job, a real job, should not be leading the City of New York because you have to respond to these uncertainties. And I challenge all of you, go back. The first time I had to deal with the lawfare of the federal authorities, look at what we did after that. I never wore my personal crisis.
I delivered for the city. City of Yes. Universal after-school program. Paying off medical debt for New Yorkers. Removing the income tax for low-income New Yorkers. I never stopped. I’ve been able to deliver for the city no matter what came at me. And that’s what you need to do if you’re the mayor of the greatest city on the globe, New York.
Question: So, I understand you’re not going to comment on any of the specifics in the case or go over any of those things. But I think, you know, for your employees, the New Yorkers, what message does this send that you’re not condemning these actions? If true, of some of these things that happened, whether it’s your long-term friend Ingrid or anybody like that.
Because, you know, do you believe that it’s okay for somebody to cut through red tape and city government, as you’re saying, just to help people out? But then simultaneously, what– benefiting themselves? What message does that send New Yorkers? And then, is there anything you’d like to address with Winnie Greco this week? You know, whatever that situation is at this point, saying that she accidentally gave a bag full of cash to Katie Honan or she meant it as a gift. Did you want to comment on that at all?
Mayor Adams: Okay. First of all, the message that I’m sending. The message I’m sending is something called due process. Something we all believe in. What makes our country different than other places. And what makes us great. And so, if you condemn someone without their due process [it’s a] slap in the face of what our constitution stands for. Let the due process play out. And you can communicate with their attorneys if you have some questions.
Question: I’m not looking for you to say, Ingrid did this and she should be convicted. I’m just saying, like, to the people that are still working under you. Everybody that Randy Mastro just praised. They’re doing great work here. You know, if any of these allegations, not just Ingrid, not just Jesse, all these allegations, any of these are true. Would you want to condemn that, to say that you are looking to root out corruption in your administration.
Mayor Adams: First of all, you’re being hypothetical and I’m not going to do that with someone’s life. And we have very, very strict guidelines on rooting out and not allowing corruption to be in our administration. And we have [a] Conflict of Interest Board that tells us what we can do and what we can’t do. Do people make mistakes in those Conflict of Interest Board rulings? Yes. Fines are given out all the time often when people make a mistake in what they do. That is why we have a Conflict of Interest Board. We do training. We do all the things that we’re supposed to do. And we’re going to continue to do that.
Question: Would you like to say anything on Winnie Greco?
Mayor Adams: I’m sorry?
Question: Would you like to say anything?
Mayor Adams: I have no idea of the communication between Winnie and the reporter involved. I don’t know what conversation they had. We don’t give money to reporters. I don’t know anything about what took place there. We condemned that type of action. If it was done for the wrong reason, I have no idea. And she’s no longer able to volunteer on the campaign because that’s an action– that is the perception of it, we don’t agree with and I don’t tolerate it.
[Crosstalk.]
Hold on. Don’t stop. Don’t start yelling. Don’t start doing that. All that yelling and screaming because then I am going to bounce. We’re going to take a few more questions, but I got a city to run. Okay? Go ahead.
Question: I’m wondering, do you agree with Ingrid’s lawyer’s characterization of the charges? He said this was politically motivated lawfare.
Mayor Adams: I just answered that. Her lawyer represents her. I don’t represent her in this case. Speak with her lawyer and her lawyer will give you his input. I don’t represent her in this case.
Question: Do you make of the timing? Obviously it’s coming– as you’re seeking re-election, and you had to deal with legal challenges in the past. Do you make anything of that timing?
Mayor Adams: Well, you know, I wake up every day and I deal with the plate that’s in front of me. I don’t say woe is me. I say why not me? I have to succeed no matter what because I’m fighting for New Yorkers. My mother didn’t wake up and say life is tough. She woke up and she delivered for our family and that’s what I’m going to do. So the timing or non-timing doesn’t matter. I got to communicate with voters and voters are going to make the decision what direction we want to go in.
Question: Mayor, you said you were very close to Ingrid, [inaudible]… close to Jesse Hamilton as well. So I’m wondering, were you aware of any allegations or corruption while they were working for your administration? Did anyone raise concerns to you on [inaudible]… favors being given.
And then secondly, the second question is, both of them were very close to you, winning records also very close to you. So I’m just wondering, how do you explain to people in New York the fact that these are, you know, people that you are close to, that you trust, and that they are now facing these sort of criminal charges? You say that doesn’t reflect on you, but I’m wondering how you explain that to New Yorkers who might think that your closeness to these individuals somehow reflects on you and your judgment.
Mayor Adams: Well, first of all, yes, you’re right. She is close to me and I love her like a sister. And she’s in my prayers and her attorney will handle her case.
Question: Were you aware of any allegations of corruption?
Mayor Adams: There were no complaints on her work ethics. In fact, to the contrary, people knew that she knew how to make sure that the people in the city got the services they needed. And she did that in the senate office, in the borough president office, and here as well.
Question: Mayor, I wanted to ask you, are you disappointed at all in Ingrid, Jesse Hamilton, or Winnie Greco’s actions? And I also wanted to ask you, why should New Yorkers trust you, because this is another case, more indictments, to make sure that this isn’t going to continue to happen at least in your first term and possibly in your second term?
Mayor Adams: Well, I think New Yorkers should trust me on how I deliver for the city. I mean, you’ve covered me for some time. You know that we brought down crime. You know that we’ve helped foster care children. You know that we improved grade scores in our schools. You know we build more housing in individual years than any other mayors. You know we took 23,000 guns off the streets. You know what we’re doing for foster care children, for NYCHA residents.
You know what I do. They would trust me if you write about the good things I do. They would trust me. I am fighting for New Yorkers every day, and I get up to do that. And there’s going to be distractions. And New Yorkers, there are things I would have loved to have done differently, but I’m going to live life in my rearview mirror. I learn from those bumps in the road and become a better, not only mayor every day, but a better human every day.
Question: Any disappointment in Ingrid, Jesse Hamilton, or Winnie Greco’s actions?
Mayor Adams: Due process. Due process.
Question: You know, just now you said there were things that you wish you could have done differently [inaudible]… is there anything certainly you could’ve done differently?
Mayor Adams: No.
Question: So what could you do differently then?
Mayor Adams: There’s a lot of things I could do differently in life. I think all of us, everyone that’s sitting here, could look at something they wish they would have done differently. I wish I would have spent more time with my son when he was growing up, instead of being the advocate for everything that I was doing.
There’s a lot of reflection I have on my life, what I could have done differently. And anyone who doesn’t reflect on their life and states that I wish I could have done differently, then shame on you. That means you stayed home every day in the bed. I got up every day and delivered for this city. In every role that I had, I delivered for the people of this city. I’m going to continue to do that.
Question: I have a question again about the [inaudible]. You know, the indictment says that the bribery led to the redesign of McGuinness to get a change. I was wondering, with all these allegations coming out, are you going to go back to McGuinness, the director of DOT, to go back to the original plan or make any changes in response?
Mayor Adams: No. McGuinness, it was a win to sit down and come to a resolution that both sides could agree on. And there will be continuous modifications of our streets. That’s part of what we do. We keep modifying to get it 100 percent right. And from my understanding, there were a lot of conversations. There were people on both sides of the issue. And you have to come to a middle. This is New York. In New York, you know, every one person that wants something, there’s another person that wants something differently.
New York City is rolling out a new pilot program to make sure nonprofits get their money faster. Mayor Eric Adams and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams announced the Discretionary Grant Pilot, which will launch in fall 2025 and slash the payment process for smaller nonprofits receiving $25,000 or less in City Council funds. The program removes 13 steps from the traditional contract system, cutting wait times for payments nearly in half. About 100 organizations will be included in the first year, with hundreds more expected to join in year two. The change comes during NYC Nonprofit Week and is part of a larger push by the Adams administration to reduce contract delays, boost nonprofit worker wages, and strengthen partnerships with community groups that provide critical services like housing, food, senior care, and immigrant support.
Mayor Adams, Speaker Adams Announce Bold Contract Reform to Help Nonprofits Get Paid Faster
What you should know
Discretionary Funding Grant Pilot Will Cut Red Tape and Accelerate Payments to Half the Time of Traditional Contract Process for Small-Dollar Awardees
New Program Eliminates 13 Steps from Contract Process to Help Nonprofits Receive Funding They Need Without Delay
Highlighting City’s Investments and Support for Nonprofits
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams today announced a new pilot initiative to accelerate payments for a selection of small-scale discretionary funding awards and streamline the city’s discretionary funding process. Launching in fall 2025, the Discretionary Grant Pilot will replace the traditional contract process with direct grant agreements for approximately 100 organizations receiving $25,000 or less in City Council discretionary dollars during its first year. The grant pilot will eliminate 13 steps, allowing eligible nonprofits to receive 100 percent of their City Council-allocated funds in nearly half the time of the current contracting process. In its second year, the pilot will be extended to hundreds of organizations that qualify. The pilot addresses long-standing inefficiencies that have required small-dollar discretionary awards to undergo the same complex registration process as multi-million-dollar, competitively bid contracts. As a result, many nonprofits have faced delays before being able to register their contract or submit their first invoices for small-dollar funding awards. This initiative comes as Mayor Adams recognizes “NYC Nonprofit Week” and builds on his administration’s progress in reducing the city’s backlog of unregistered contracts — achieving an 88 percent rate of on-time submissions for the registration of standard human service contracts for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026.
“When nonprofits thrive, our city and our people thrive. New York City’s nonprofits do the work millions of our city’s residents rely on — delivering meals to seniors, providing legal services to immigrants, connecting people to housing, caring for our young people, and so much more. In order to ensure that these organizations succeed and continue to support New Yorkers, we need to remove the different barriers and obstacles that stand in the way of their crucial mission,” said Mayor Adams. “The new Discretionary Grant Pilot does just that — revamping the old process and replacing it with a new, streamlined approach to get the money nonprofits need and are owed to them within weeks instead of years. Nonprofits always deliver for New Yorkers, and today, we’re proud to continue delivering for nonprofits.”
“Non-profits provide essential services to New Yorkers through city contracts and funding, but far too often are paid late for their work and forced to shoulder excessive administrative burdens,” said Speaker Adams. “This new Council discretionary grant pilot program, in partnership with Mayor Adams’ administration, will remove excessive barriers to get non-profits their funding faster and with less red tape. The Council is proud to continue our work to ensure that our non-profit sector can successfully deliver New Yorkers the lifesaving care and dignity they deserve.”
Led by the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services (MOCS), the Mayor’s Office of Nonprofit Services (MONS), and the New York City Council, in collaboration with key partner agencies including the New York City Department of Youth & Community Development (DYCD) and the New York City Department for the Aging (NYC Aging), this pilot will significantly reduce bureaucratic hurdles and speed up payments to the city’s nonprofits — delivering on Mayor Adams’ promise to empower organizations that serve on the frontlines of New York City’s neighborhoods.
Under the pilot, eligible nonprofits will receive one-year grant agreements, bypassing the traditional months-long contract registration process. Once agreements are signed and returned, 100 percent of funds will be disbursed to the nonprofits, allowing organizations to serve their communities without delayed payments.
Nonprofits may qualify for the pilot if they:
· Were awarded a total of $25,000 or less in City Council discretionary dollars in FY 2026; and
· Are being funded through one of the following agencies:
· DYCD
· NYC Aging
· New York City Department of Veterans’ Services
· New York City Department of Small Business Services
The City Council, MOCS, and the contracting agency will determine participating organizations to be chosen as the pilot cohort for FY 2026 and notify them of their inclusion in the pilot. Final announcements are expected in October 2025, with grant agreements to be issued shortly thereafter. Participating organizations will have 30 days to return signed agreements and can expect to receive funding by January 2026.
This initiative builds on the Adams administration’s 2023 multi-year discretionary contract reform and has already shown significant progress in getting City Council discretionary providers paid on time.
In March 2024, the administration committed $741 million toward a cost-of-living adjustment for approximately 80,000 human services workers employed by nonprofits with city contracts. This workforce — 66 percent women and 46 percent women of color — plays a critical role in providing frontline services related to housing, health care, food access, and support for asylum seekers. In total, the administration has now directed over $1.4 billion toward wage enhancements in the sector.
In January 2025, Mayor Adams issued Executive Order 47, formally establishing chief nonprofit officers within city agencies to enhance service delivery, respond to nonprofit partners more effectively, and speed up payment processing. To date, 18 chief nonprofit officers have been appointed and are actively collaborating with nonprofits to drive systemic improvements. Finally, Mayor Adams created the city’s first-ever Nonprofit Advisory Council, bringing together leaders from across the sector to collaborate with MONS and strengthen the connection between nonprofit organizations and city government.
