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FOR NEW YORK CITY VOTERS- IMPORTANT!
Election in New York City, voters will decide on three ballot proposals that, if approved, would set a new racial equity agenda for the five boroughs.
The Racial Justice Commission, which was formed last year by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio, crafted the ballot questions after consulting with representatives of other cities and local agencies and receiving public testimony from hundreds of New Yorkers.
Here are the three questions that'll appear on all New York City voters' ballots on November 8th:
Question 1: "Aspirations"
This measure would add a preamble to the City Charter, which is effectively New York City's constitution, that says the city must try to remedy "past and continuing harms and to reconstruct, revise, and reimagine our foundations, structures, institutions, and laws to promote justice and equity for all New Yorkers."
What it means: The preamble is intended to guide city agencies and officials in their work. It would begin: "We, the people of New York City, declare that our city is a multiracial democracy and that our diversity is our strength." The new language would outline city goals, such as ensuring all residents have affordable housing, quality education and resources to "prosper economically and build wealth."
Question 2: "Tools"
This measure would create a new city agency and commission to lead a planning process aimed at improving racial equity citywide.
What it means: The city and its agencies would have to craft Racial Equity Plans every two years, along with their strategies and goals to "reduce or eliminate" the city’s racial disparities.
Question 3: "Accountability"
This measure would require the city to create and annually measure a new "true cost of living" metric to inform policy decisions.
What it means: The measure would have to take into account needs like housing, food, childcare, transportation – not including extra public or private aid.
3 CITY PROPOSALS
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The Racial Justice Commission (RJC) put forth the three city ballot proposals that will appear on the 2022 general election ballot. The ballot proposal, ballot abstracts, and brief summaries of each proposal can be found on their website (here). I’ve included the short summaries for the proposals below:
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Ballot Question 1: The Commission’s first proposal is to add a preamble to the NYC Charter. The New York City Charter does not currently have a preamble. Adding a preamble would allow New Yorkers to adopt a vision and statement of foundational values intended to guide City government in fulfilling its duties.
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Ballot Question 2: The Commission’s second proposal is to create an Office of Racial Equity, require Racial Equity Plans, and form a Commission on Racial Equity.
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Ballot Question 3: This proposal would amend the City Charter to require the City to create a True Cost of Living measure to track the actual cost in New York City of meeting essential needs.
1 STATE PROPOSAL
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The NY State Board of Elections has an overview of the statewide ballot proposal on their website (Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022). I have included a sentence on one of the several things the proposal would allow for:
- The proposal authorizes the State Comptroller to issue additional state bonds in sums up to or exceeding the amount of the bonds initially issued to refund, to advance refund, or otherwise to repay part or all of such bonds prior to the scheduled dates of their maturity.
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