J. David Goodman and Jeffery C. Mays

If the plan had been presented last year as a major change in the lives of those struggling to make ends meet in New York City, the reality, announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio and Corey Johnson, the City Council speaker, is far less than anticipated: Only 30,000 New Yorkers — those who already receive cash assistance from the city and are employed — will be eligible for the cards starting this month.

The pool of eligible New Yorkers would expand in April to about 130,000 people who receive federal food stamps and are working, de Blasio and Johnson said — still a far cry from the 800,000 New Yorkers estimated by advocates to live below the federal poverty line of $25,000 a year for a family of four.

The city has no mechanism for people to apply for the discounts; only those who receive cash benefits or food stamps can get the half-priced MetroCards.

Appearing at a news conference at a Harlem subway station Friday, de Blasio chose to characterize the rollout as “a major step to a fair and just society,” even as he and Johnson faced repeated questions about the program’s initial limited scope.

“This is a good start,” Johnson said. “Could things be done in a more perfect way? The mayor and I can always Monday-morning quarterback and figure out ways that we could get it done in a better way.”

A sticking point had been both logistical and ideological: Could the city, which would administer the program, provide the discount for pay-per-ride MetroCards or just for those that provide unlimited use for a week or 30 days? Anti-poverty advocates argued that the program would be much more useful to low-income riders if the pay-per-ride card was included.

The initial launch will include only the half-priced unlimited cards, which are priced at $16 for a week, or $60.50 for the 30 days and look like ordinary MetroCards. City officials were working with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to add the pay-per-ride option in April, de Blasio and Johnson said.

Originally planned for a start date of Jan. 1, the program officially began Friday, a blown deadline that de Blasio seemed to casually dismiss in a radio interview earlier in the day.

“It’s January 4 today. I am precisely three days late. I apologize for that three-day delay,” the mayor said.

But many who cheered its adoption into the city budget last year criticized the limited scope as well as the lack of a timeline beyond April or of any public messaging by the city about the program so far, saying it appeared that some at City Hall were not taking the issue seriously. Some critics were more pointed.

“That was NOT the deal,” Councilman Francisco Moya of Queens wrote on Twitter to the mayor. “We did our job, now it’s time for you to do yours.”

Punctuated by the shouts of hecklers and the constant chime of riders swiping into the system, de Blasio, who struggled to swipe an ordinary MetroCard at the station, defended the program’s rollout, comparing it to a trial run. “We’re trying to use the first 30,000 to make sure the whole system works,” de Blasio said.

The mayor suggested at one point that constructing the bureaucracy for reduced-fare MetroCards had been more challenging than creating a universal prekindergarten system — something he accomplished during his first year as mayor. “Pre-K had an existing application process,” the mayor said; fair fares, by contrast, “was creating a brand-new initiative that never existed before.”

For eligible New Yorkers, getting the discounted MetroCards will be a two-step process at first: They must go to designated offices to pick up the special cards. Then, they must add money to them at MetroCard vending machines, which will be programmed to charge half-price. City officials hope that by April, eligible New Yorkers can sign up online for cards to be mailed to their homes.

Some anti-poverty advocates, invited to participate in the news conference, offered praise for the two leaders for getting the plan started, even as they criticized its slow start. David Jones, president of the Community Service Society of New York, expressed concern at who was left out of the initial rollout.

“Now it is up to the mayor to make good on his side of the bargain,” he said, and deliver the program. “Progressive rhetoric, that all of us use, always has to meet the rubber to the road of getting it done.”

The city budgeted $106 million to cover the expense of the first fiscal year of the program, although de Blasio has promised to fully fund the program to meet demand. Any leftover funds would be rolled over to cover costs next year, he said.

De Blasio originally did not support using city funds to pay for the subsidized rides, saying he preferred instead a dedicated tax on high-income earners to fund the program. Such a tax would need to be approved by the state, which controls the subway and bus system. Ultimately, he came around to the idea after being pressed by Johnson and others on the City Council.

“This one was real slog with no understanding of why it became a slog,” Jones said after the news conference. “I think the mayor feels that maybe we’ve dragged him kicking and screaming into something he didn’t want to do on this scale.”

This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/04/nyregion/fair-fares-metrocard-discount-nyc.html" id="4b5510fb-8dde-3638-af12-883b90e413e3">The New York Times</a>.

Of 800,000 Poor New Yorkers, Only 30,000 Can Get the New Half-Priced MetroCards

NEW YORK — The first phase of what was to be a sweeping plan to provide half-priced subway and bus rides to the poorest New Yorkers arrived Friday, a few days late and many people short.

<h1>The proposal, which requires City Council approval, comes a day after de Blasio announced a $100 million effort to help ensure that the city’s health care resources are used by the uninsured, including immigrants in the country illegally — a move that immediately set up a contrast with Republican leadership in Washington.</h1>

De Blasio appeared eager to billboard that contrast with both announcements, leading to speculation among political consultants in New York City that his larger aim leading up to his State of the City address Thursday is to thrust his name back into the national conversation as a leader of progressive Democratic principles.

De Blasio did nothing to alter that impression during a news conference in City Hall, in which he presented his paid time off plan as a link in the long history of workers’ rights initiatives going back to the New Deal. He said that he would travel the country “very soon” to encourage other cities and states to follow suit.

“I’m focused on New York City, but I know what we do here could have a huge impact on the rest of the country,” de Blasio said. “I’m going to go out and talk about the things we’re doing here and the impact that they can make. I’m going to push other leaders to take on these ideas. I’m certainly going to push my party to support these kind of ideas.”

From almost the moment he became mayor, de Blasio has looked to extend his political reach beyond New York City, though his efforts have not always succeeded.

Now in the second year of his second term, the mayor seems to be renewing those efforts in earnest. He revealed the health care plan in a national television interview on MSNBC; he announced the paid vacation plan, which city officials say could benefit about half a million workers, in The Washington Post.

While the promise on health care largely amounted to improving customer service for coverage that has existed for decades, the paid-vacation measure would be genuinely new. No state or city in the United States has such a requirement, according to City Hall, though Puerto Rico does guarantee paid time off.

The mayor presented a list of mostly European countries that he said require paid time off for workers.

“We’re the exception — and it’s a bad exception,” de Blasio said of the United States.

The bill, as described by City Hall officials who did not share its text, would largely mirror one introduced in 2014 by Councilman Jumaane Williams of Brooklyn. The approach is modeled on the city’s paid sick-leave law and would likely apply to the same pool of roughly 3.4 million working New Yorkers. Businesses with fewer than five employees would be exempt. Full- and part-time workers at larger businesses would earn vacation time during the year, up to 10 days.

“Time off — we often treat it as a luxury: it is not,” said Williams, a candidate for public advocate and frequent critic of de Blasio who appeared with him at the news conference. “You cannot lead a healthy life if you do not have time off.”

De Blasio said he hoped the new rules would be “voted on quickly, but phased in smartly.”

Using data from the census and the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the city estimated that the law would affect some 500,000 workers, mostly in hotels, retail, restaurants and big-box stores. Most white-collar workers already get some form of paid vacation, and unionized workers usually receive it as part of their contracts.

Freelancers and contract employees would not be covered by the new rules, the mayor said.

The effort to broaden his reach comes as de Blasio has struggled with some local issues such as repairing public housing and implementing MetroCard discounts for the poor.

“It’s a good thing to have a mayor who thinks big and broadly,” said Kenneth Sherrill, a professor emeritus of political science at Hunter College. “But he sometimes does not seem to be terribly concerned with implementation.”

The new regulations would be enforced by the city’s Department of Consumer Affairs, which would investigate complaints of noncompliance and potentially issue fines or penalties. City officials have not determined the size of the fines.

City Hall officials said they discussed the measure with economists but did not broach it with business leaders, who seemed skeptical of it.

“The New York business community got no heads-up on this ‘national first’ announcement, so apparently we are not the audience being addressed, although local entrepreneurs will certainly be the victims,” said Kathryn Wylde of the Partnership for New York City, an influential business group.

James Parrott, director of economic and fiscal policies at the Center for New York City Affairs at the New School, said that businesses that have already had to adjust to the state’s $15 minimum wage and the city’s paid sick-leave law might struggle to provide paid vacation, too.

“As labor costs have increased over the last five years, businesses may have increased efficiency by taking the low-hanging fruit,” Parrott said. “It’s a fair question of whether there are more ways to increase efficiency.”

The mayor did not consult with the Democrat-dominated City Council as he shaped his paid vacation plan, according to several people with knowledge of the discussions. Council members were not told until the morning.

But the measure did not appear likely to meet resistance at the council, where the speaker, Corey Johnson, has been an enthusiastic backer of progressive policies.

City Councilman Williams applauded the mayor for following his lead.

“I’m just glad that the mayor is a big proponent of this now,” he said in an interview. “And I’m even prouder that we have a speaker who is willing to engage in the conversation. So I think it is a good day.”

Paid vacation to be required for private sector workers, Mayor says

NEW YORK — Mayor Bill de Blasio pledged Wednesday to make New York the first city in the nation to require private employers to provide at least two weeks of paid vacation to all employees.

<h1>NEW YORK — Mayor Bill de Blasio pledged Wednesday to make New York the first city in the nation to require private employers to provide at least two weeks of paid vacation to all employees.</h1>

The proposal, which requires City Council approval, comes a day after de Blasio announced a $100 million effort to help ensure that the city’s health care resources are used by the uninsured, including immigrants in the country illegally — a move that set up a contrast with Republican leadership in Washington.

De Blasio did nothing to alter that impression during a news conference in City Hall, in which he presented his plan for paid time off as a link in the history of workers’ rights initiatives going back to the New Deal. He said that he would travel the country “very soon” to encourage other cities and states to follow suit.

From almost the start of his mayoralty, de Blasio has looked to extend his political reach beyond New York, though his efforts have not always succeeded.

While the health care promise largely amounted to improving customer service for coverage that has existed for decades, the paid-vacation plan would be genuinely new. No state or city in the United States has such a requirement, according to City Hall, though Puerto Rico guarantees paid time off.

“We’re the exception — and it’s a bad exception,” he said of the United States.

The bill, as described by City Hall officials who did not share its text, would largely mirror one introduced in 2014 by Councilman Jumaane Williams of Brooklyn. The plan is modeled on the city’s paid sick-leave law and would probably apply to the same pool of about 3.4 million working New Yorkers. Businesses with fewer than five workers would be exempt. Full- and part-time workers at larger businesses would earn vacation time during the year, up to 10 days.

“Time off — we often treat it as a luxury: It is not,” said Williams, a candidate for public advocate and frequent critic of de Blasio who joined him at the news conference. “You cannot lead a healthy life if you do not have time off.”

Using data from the census and the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the city estimated that the law would affect some 500,000 workers, mostly in nonunionized hotels, retail, restaurants and big-box stores. Most white-collar workers already get some form of paid vacation, and unionized workers usually receive it as part of their contracts.

The city’s Department of Consumer Affairs would enforce the new regulations, investigating complaints of noncompliance and potentially issuing fines or penalties. City officials have not determined the size of the fines.

But the measure did not appear likely to meet resistance in the council. Speaker Corey Johnson has been an enthusiastic backer of progressive policies.

Councilman Williams applauded the mayor for following his lead.

This article originally appeared in <a id="f22291f8-7e06-42fb-b9d2-a8003bda54b3" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/09/nyregion/bill-de-blasio-paid-vacation-nyc.html">The New York Times</a>.

The proposal, which requires City Council approval, comes a day after de Blasio announced a $100 million effort to help ensure that the city’s health care resources are used by the uninsured, including immigrants in the country illegally

De Blasio moves to guarantee paid vacations for private-sector workers

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J. David Goodman and Jeffery C. Mays

Articles written by the author

Of 800,000 Poor New Yorkers, Only 30,000 Can Get the New Half-Priced MetroCards

Paid vacation to be required for private sector workers, Mayor says

De Blasio moves to guarantee paid vacations for private-sector workers