Rangel defends the process and the Council complains about a 'garbage tax'
Briefing: Bloomberg and Quinn. Spencer T. Tucker via nyc.gov
8:51 am Jul. 5, 2012
The recently approved New York City budget deal which passed the City Council 50-1 includes $17.2 million in revenue from garbage-collection that hasn't yet been approved by city lawmakers, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"I don't see how they could have snuck this into the budget," complained City Councilman David Greenfield.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who praised Bloomberg for his "visionary fiscal leadership" when the budget was announced, hasn't taken a position on the issue, according to a spokesperson.
The $172 million expected from the garbage tax is on top of the $825 million the city expects to collect in the next two years from selling new taxi medallions, a process that has gotten held up in the courts.
Events
9 a.m. NY-13 paper ballots are counted at 200 Varick Street in Manhattan.
9:30 a.m. A hearing continues in the legal challenge to the NY-13 election at 851 Grand Concourse Avenue in the Bronx.
12 Noon. Mayor Michael Bloomberg kicks-off Summer Youth Employment Programs at 43-50 Main Street in Queens.
2012
Mitt Romney's campaign adviser Eric Fehrnstrom agreed with an MSNBC host that the individual mandate included not "a tax" but "a penalty." A spokesman later confirmed Fehrnstrom's point. The next day, Romney changed course, saying it was a "tax." [Wall Street Journal]
NY-18
Freshman Republican congresswoman Nan Hayworth was knocked off the Independence Party line after a judge ruled 66 of her 814 signatures were invalid. [Barbara Nackman]
NY-13
Rep. Charlie Rangel was "draped in symbolism," speaking in front of a statue of his predecessor and saying he was motivated by the July 4th holiday to speak out about the election dispute. [Brigid Bergin]
The Post notes Rangel referred to the Civil Rights march from Selma to Montgomery. [Carl Campanile]
Rangel: "I’m not making a big deal out of papers that are served on the Fourth of July or the eve of it." [Jill Colvin]
"Rangel accused Espaillat of slandering election workers." [Meghashyam Mail]
Rangel defended election workers. [Laura Kusisto]
Rangel's lead "is a mere 800 votes." [Grace Rauh]
Rangel's lead over State Senator Adriano Espaillat "has been shrinking since last week's election." [M.J. Lee]
Rangel and Espaillat look like they're still campaigning. And one Rangel supporter said a Dominican neighbor was encouraged to vote even though she wasn't registered. [Anne Barnard]
Espaillat has said he "received hundreds of complaints of voter suppression and voters being turned away." [Sandra E. Garcia and Debralee Santos]
Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who stayed neutral in the race, sent a letter to the Board of Elections complaining about their vote-counting method. [David Freedlander]
City Hall
City Councilman David Greenfield is shocked that the newly approved City budget anticipated getting money from a "trash tax" even though it wasn't yet approved by the City Council. [Michael Howard Saul]
Albany
"The problem of secrecy in Albany is bigger than Cuomo’s accomplishments." [James Lawrence]
Cuomo's State Senate politics: "A recent, ambiguous comment gave Democrats a chance to be optimistic." [Associated Press]
Moody's puts New York's on-time budgets in context, and finds it an improvement over the past, but not historic or unique. [Joseph Spector]
A progressive blogger thinks New York Sate Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has "a lot on his plate" with the financial fraud investigation he's co-chairing and shouldn't be spending too much energy investigating the Chamber of Commerce's political activities. [David Dayen]
9/11 Museum
An editorial board sides with Bloomberg. [New York Times]
Law Enforcement
"[T]he courts need to step in" and stop the NYPD from arresting people for public possession of marijuana after they were ordered to empty their pockets, an issue the New York State legislature has failed to resolve. [New York Times]
Media
"[H]ow much navel-gazing can a single borough sustain?" [Austin Considine]
On Air
Richard French: "Turns out lying [is] protected by the constitution." [RNN]
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