Queens Lawmakers On The Move Jan. 3, 2019

De Blasio Calls Special Election For Queens Borough President

Mayor Bill de Blasio yesterday declared Tuesday, March 24, 2020 as the date for the Queens Borough President special election. 

“I encourage all eligible Queens residents to vote in the upcoming special election, and I thank outgoing Borough President Melinda Katz for her leadership and increasing the World’s Borough’s diversity and dynamism, and wish her all the best in her new role [as Queens DA],” said de Blasio.

Among those running are City Council Members Donovan Richards (D-Arverne, Brookville, Edgemere, Far Rockaway, Laurelton, Rosedale, Springfield Gardens), Costa Constantinides (D-Astoria, East Elmhurst, parts of Long Island City, Woodside) and Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside)  as well as former City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley.

“This is our time to Transform Queens for a stronger future. The next Borough President should have a plan to protect Queens residents from unprecedented rising tides and rising rents. That’s why I’m committed to reimagining the land use, budgetary, and advocacy duties of the Borough President’s office to create 50,000 good green jobs, bring services into communities who need them the most, and provide our children with a pathway to the middle class by preparing them for careers in emerging industries. I cannot wait to share our vision with my Queens neighbors over the coming weeks and transform our borough for the better,” said Constantinides.

Addabbo Helps Bring E-Waste Recycling Event To Ridgewood

State Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. (D-Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Woodhaven, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth, parts of South Ozone Park, Ridgewood, Woodside, The Rockaways) has once again partnered with the Lower East Side Ecology Center, along with the Friends of Rosemary’s Playground and the Department of Parks and Recreation, to bring an e-waste recycling event this month to Ridgewood.

“I love having these e-waste recycling events throughout the district, because it gives my constituents an easy way to recycle their electronics at a central location right in their own neighborhood,” Addabbo said. “With sanitation laws seemingly always changing, it can be confusing for constituents to know what can legally be thrown out with your curbside recycling. So if you got some new electronics over the holiday season and need a place to get rid of your old ones, come down to Rosemary’s Playground and take part in this great event.”

Electronics accepted at the event include working and non-working computers, monitors, printers and scanners, keyboards, mice, cables, TVs, VCRs and DVD players, phones, audio/visual equipment, cell phones and PDA’s.

The event is slated for 10- a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 25 at Rosemary’s Playground located on Fairview Avenue between Woodbine and Madison streets in Ridgewood. For more information, call Senator Addabbo’s office at 718-738-1111.

Cuomo Signs NY Call Center Jobs Act

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo yesterday signed legislation (S.1826C/A.567C) enacting the New York Call Center Jobs Act to protect call center jobs in New York.

The new law establishes rules within the Department of Labor to publicly track all call centers that move New York jobs to another country; imposes severe penalties against companies that fail to timely report such information; forces employers that received benefits for call centers from the State that move jobs from New York to another country to repay the value of any grant or guaranteed loans they have received for the call center in the past five years; and prohibit companies from receiving future state benefits for five years. State agencies would be required to make best efforts to ensure call center and customer service contracts are performed in New York.

The Department of Labor will compile an annual list of all center employers that relocate a call center to a foreign country or reduce their call center employment by at least 30%. That list will be available to the public through the Department’s website.

“As technology advances, more and more call centers are sending jobs overseas, leaving employees scrambling to find work to support themselves and their families,” said Cuomo. “This legislation will protect New York’s call center workers by putting in place serious financial disincentives for employers who move jobs out of New York.”