State passes bill restricting NYC mayor from 'bumping' proposals off voter ballots
New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ office is pushing back against an effort by state lawmakers to rescind a mayor’s power to block ballot proposals from reaching voters.
At issue is a bill the state Legislature approved last week that would prevent mayors across New York from “bumping” proposals off local ballots by appointing charter review commissions to make their own proposals.
The legislation would eliminate a legal tactic that critics have accused Adams and several of his predecessors of using to derail ballot questions the mayors find objectionable. That includes last year, when Adams effectively blocked an effort to require City Council approval for his agency commissioners, and in the late 1990s, when then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani blocked a proposal that would have prohibited city money from going to a new Yankee Stadium.
”The balance of power was unchecked and unbalanced,” said Assemblymember Tony Simone, a Manhattan Democrat who sponsored the bill. “We wanted to balance the power.”
https://gothamist.com/news/state-passes-bill-restricting-nyc-mayor-from-bumping-proposals-off-voter-ballots