The Weekly Watchdog

Good morning! Welcome to the Weekly Watchdog. We’ve been busy here at Citizens Union (as we always are), and this week, we put forward a proposal that would allow the City to remove a mayor for misconduct while in office and picked up momentum towards shifting City elections to even years, long a priority of ours. Read all about it below, along with other stories on the latest on good governance within NYC.

News Worth Clicking

CU in the News Should NYC voters be able to remove Mayor Adams for misconduct Gothamist By Brigid Bergin	Your very own Citizens Union pitched an idea to Mayor Adams’ Charter Revision Commission last Wednesday: New Yorkers should have a way to remove a mayor from office for misconduct. In it, we propose a hybrid system between impeachment and recall processes with roles including the City Council and voters. What do you think?
CU in the News Part ✌ NYC Charter Revision Commission seriously considering election reforms City & State By Sahalie Donaldson	In related news, the Mayor’s Charter Revision Commission is also considering a ballot question on moving the City’s municipal elections from odd years to even years, aligning with higher turnout presidential or midterm elections. Voter turnout in the 2021 mayoral election was a mere 23% and data suggests that it could get worse. Read CU’s full report here.
Nothing to see here! This Agency Fights Corruption. New York City Leaders Have Weakened It. The New York Times By Jan Ransom	What’s one sign that someone may be corrupt? They paralyze the organizations whose job it is to police them with lack of funding, and that is exactly what is happening at the City’s Department of Investigation. Even as caseloads rise and hiring freezes are lifted, the DOI’s funding requests are rejected, and the stats suggest that the agency is having trouble keeping up with a recent influx of corruption complaints.
Can’t stop, won’t stop Hochul, NYS lawmakers eye changing rules on public campaign financing, sources say Newsday By Yancey Roy	Another legislative session in Albany, another attempt to dismantle the state’s new campaign public matching funds program and put power back in the hands of wealthy individuals. Not even one year after New York provides a viable prescription to Citizens United and the destruction that that Supreme Court decision wrought on our politics and government does the state think, you know what, that chaos at the federal level seems pretty, pretty good.
Two peas in a pod Once-close Eric Adams ally alleges migrant contract corruption Politico By Joe Anuta	Ahhhh, corruption and the Eric Adams Administration. Like two peas in a pod. What’s the latest? A former ally of the Mayor is alleging that he was told by people in the Mayor’s administration to submit contract bids related to the migrant crisis for three times their actual price. We admit, the accuser and the Mayor are probably not on the best terms, but the allegation does not surprise anyone if true.
Two peas, no pod Hochul’s move to reimagine lieutenant governor races draws mixed reviews Politico By Bill Mahoney	Governor Kathy Hochul threw another wrench into the still ongoing budget negotiations last week, proposing language that would allow her (and all candidates for Gov) to select a Lieutenant Governor in her campaign for reelection rather than whatever candidate wins the Lieutenant Governor primary in June. Interesting… This idea seems like a more appropriate topic for after the budget, but it also seems like someone is taking their latest breakup pretty harshly. 💔😢
To drama, or not to drama? That is the question A couple of Cuomo endorsers in the City Council lose budget negotiation roles City & State By Annie McDonough & Holly Pretsky	Speaker Adrienne Adams removed two fellow Council Members from their posts on her budget negotiation team recently after they endorsed former-Governor Andrew Cuomo for mayor. The Speaker’s team claims it came after concern the members did not share leadership’s values, but the move does seem like an act of retribution, which, as one points out, is notable for someone running for mayor under the tagline, “no drama.”