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The city public school system’s top bureaucrat lobbied Albany lawmakers Tuesday, holding out hope that the Legislature grants Mayor Eric Adams an extension of mayoral control.
“We think that we’ve done a great job rebuilding trust with our families and our communities, and we’ve been delivering real results,” city Department of Education Chancellor David Banks told reporters in the State Capitol Building on Tuesday.
“The mayor is fully engaged," Banks added. "The mayor is absolutely in touch with all the key leaders in the state Legislature that he needs to be in touch with.”
But the new budget deadline — Thursday, April 4 — is approaching.
“I think Chancellor Banks is up here doing his job. I think he’s done a good job in overseeing the education of the children of the city of New York. And it’s a fair request, It has not come up in budget negotiations,” Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told reporters Tuesday.
Heastie was one of the legislators slated to meet with Banks in a closed-door meeting, according to City Hall.
But others argue they would rather deal with the issue after the state’s $233 billion proposed financial plan is finalized.
“I don’t think there’s an appetite to talk about mayoral control in the budget,” state Sen. Jessica Ramos, a Queens Democrat, told NY1.
“It’s something that should be debated outside of the budget, not in the budget. There [are] a lot of reasons why I don’t think we should have mayoral control,” Assemblywoman Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, a Queens Democrat, told NY1.
Gonzalez-Rojas, a mother of a 12-year-old public school pupil, believes in revamping the system.
“I would be open to a citywide control, a local control. Something that is more democratic,” she added.
Lawmakers are also awaiting the release of a state-mandated review of mayoral control by the State Education Department.
The report was slated for release on March 31, but the SED told NY1 they requested an extension for their report assessing the system and whether it should continue.
NY1 obtained a copy of a critical letter dated March 21 from Adams, sent to Education Commissioner Betty Rosa, Board of Regents Chancellor Lester Young, Gov. Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders, among them: state Sen. Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Heastie.
He complains about CUNY Law School’s involvement in the report, arguing they “lack objectivity” after students turned their backs on him during a commencement ceremony last year.
“The law provides that you will contract with an institute of higher education to assist with your report. I am concerned that you chose to contract with CUNY Law School to conduct the review and write the report,” Adams wrote. “As you may be aware, there was a public protest that occurred last year at CUNY Law when I spoke at Commencement. At the very least, this creates a perception of a lack of objectivity regarding Mayoral Accountability when there should be no questions regarding bias on the part of the higher education institution conducting the review.”
SED asked for a week-long extension to work on the report amid budget negotiations, sources told NY1.
Meanwhile, lawmakers aid that there’s still a lot to be done on many open issues.
“April 4 is two days away, so it’s ambitious to think it’ll happen that quickly but we’re trying as hard as we can to conclude a responsible budget as fast as we can,” admitted Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, a Queens Democrat. “All the big issues are still there to be resolved, even though we’re making progress on a resolution.”
Hochul may be gearing up for a fight over raising penalties on those who assault retail workers, as Heastie appears to be holding the line.
“No, I don’t believe in the history of increasing penalties. Has that ever been the reason why crime has gone down? Other things [are] happening is why crime goes down,” said Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat.
The governor also said in a phone interview with Spectrum News earlier Tuesday, that finalizing a deal was delayed due to the Easter Holiday, but she’s still prioritizing spending on health care, education and public safety.
