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Queens senator calls on Gov. Hochul
to fully implement the NY HERO Act
Vallone secures $280K for cleanup services in NE Queens
BY JENNA BAGCAL
A northeast Queens lawmaker
recently secured
$280,000 to keep local streets
clean for his constituents.
On Friday, Aug. 20, Councilman
Paul Vallone announced
that these funds
would go toward additional
cleanup services from the
city’s Department of Sanitation
(DSNY) and Wildcat
Service Corporation, which
provides jobs for unemployed
individuals with criminal
convictions. This year’s funding
for cleanup services is up
$120,000 from the last fiscal
year.
Approximately $140,000
from the funding will go to
DSNY in order for the agency
to increase litter basket service
and maintain the Manual
Litter Patrol program to
keep trash off of the streets.
The other $140,000 in funds
will be allocated to Wildcat’s
Neighborhood Improvement
Program, which provides
community street cleaning
services and job training and
employment services.
“Keeping our neighborhoods
clean and comfortable
is key to ensure that our city
recovers completely from the
pandemic. Last year I was
able to maintain our community’s
cleanup funding while
so many other parts of our
city had to go without, and
this year I fought to make our
streets even cleaner,” Vallone
said. “I am proud to have secured
this funding so that
we are ready to come back
stronger than ever!”
After many New York City
agencies, including DSNY, lost
funding during the pandemic,
TIMESLEDGER | Q 16 NS.COM | SEPT. 3 - SEPT. 9, 2021
many residents suffered from
a lack of trash maintenance
services. But Vallone was able
to secure $160,000 to maintain
these services in 2020 to keep
District 19’s streets clean.
Many civic organizations
in the district rallied to save
and increase these street
cleaning services in order to
maintain a healthy quality
of life. According to Vallone’s
office, the work of organizations
like A Better College
Point Civic Association and
the Whitestone Merchant Association
were key factors in
resurgence of the funding.
“A Better College Point
Civic Association would like
to thank Paul Vallone for securing
these much-needed
funds and services. The reduction
of the DSNY’s litter
basket pick-up and other services
during the pandemic really
impacted College Point,”
said Jennifer Shannon, president
of the organization. “We
are still experiencing a lot of
illegal dumping and litter in
this area, it is a relief to get
some support and ABCPCA
will continue to help in any
way we can.”
Neighborhoods in District
19, particularly College Point
and Whitestone, have taken
full advantage of the Wildcat
Neighborhood Improvement
Program and thanked
the councilman for securing
funds to bring the program
back for another year.
BY BILL PARRY
A Queens lawmaker is urging
Governor Kathy Hochul to
direct the state Department of
Health (DOH) to act under the
NY HERO Act to keep workplaces
safe.
The landmark bill, passed
earlier this year by the Legislature
and signed into law
by former Governor Andrew
Cuomo, requires the DOH to
declare a disease, like COVID
19, “a highly contagious,
communicable disease that
presents a serious risk of
harm to public health” before
the law’s protections can be
implemented. To date, the
state’s health agency has not
done so, according to state
Senator Michael Gianaris.
“While the outgoing administration
has been distracted,
New York’s challenges
have not gone away. The delay
in HERO Act implementation
has resulted in preventable
danger of coronavirus spread
in the workplace,” Gianaris
said. “The new administration
needs to act quickly. Too many
workers already sacrificed
their health for our community’s
benefit. The New York
HERO Act recognizes their
efforts by giving workers the
tools to protect themselves
while on the job.”
The New York Health and
Essential Right Act (NY HERO
Act) requires the DOH to
implement enforceable minimum
standards for workplace
safety. The regulations must
include protocols on testing,
PPE, social distancing, hand
hygiene, disinfection and engineering
controls.
Workers would also be
given a direct role in monitoring
and reporting violations
through workplace health
and safety committees and
employees would be protected
from retaliation for utilizing
their rights under the law.
Bronx Assemblywoman
Karines Reyes, who carried
the bill in the lower chamber,
said the Cuomo administration
largely failed to implement
laws passed by the Legislature
in its final months.
“Governor Hochul must
immediately take action and
ensure the NY HERO Act is
enforced by the Department of
Health,” Reyes said. “With the
delta variant on the rise in our
state, we must have protection
plans for employees in place as
soon as possible.”
A spokesperson from the
DOH said the agency is “actively
working on a designation
for implementation of the
NY HERO Act.”
The legislation is supported
by more than 100 labor,
community and safety organizations,
including the AFLCIO.
The Essential Workers
Coalition joined Gianaris and
Reyes in calling on Hochul to
push the DOH to take action.
State Senator Michael Gianaris is calling on Governor Kathy Hochul
to fully implement the NY HERO Act. Courtesy of governor’s offi ce
Photo courtesy of the New York City Department of Sanitation
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