16 THE QUEENS COURIER • DECEMBER 2, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Hochul signs Nourish NY legislation into law
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
As she has done so many times
during the COVID-19 pandemic,
Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz helped
La Jornada distribute food to 5,000 families
on Saturday, Nov. 20, at the New York
Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows
Corona Park.
Governor Kathy Hochul joined Cruz,
her colleagues in government, and community
advocates in the parking lot aft erward
to sign Cruz’s landmark Nourish NY
legislation into law making the program
permanent.
“Th e COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated
the hunger and food insecurity problems
already plaguing many communities
across the state including thousands
of families in my district,” Cruz said.
“Nourish NY provided a lifesaving opportunity
to support the food pantries caring
for our neighbors while fi ghting for the
survival of our farming community.”
Cruz added that she’s proud to have
pushed for the allocation of $50 million to
Nourish NY in this year’s budget.
“Additionally, together with the signing
of this law, we are now ensuring the continuity
of this lifesaving program. It is now
critical that we now also strengthen our
emergency food system through a yearly
review included in this new law,” she said.
Th rough three rounds of the program,
New York’s food banks purchased over 35
million pounds of food products, which
equates to 29,800,000 meals, according
to the governor’s offi ce. In this current
fourth round, food banks across the state
have purchased 6,903,366 pounds of food,
creating an additional 5,752,805 meals for
households in need.
“Th e COVID-19 pandemic brought
unprecedented hardship to so many New
Yorkers and made the situations for those
already struggling even worse,” Hochul
said. “Th e implementation of the Nourish
NY program was a huge success in helping
those facing food insecurity while
also benefi ting New York’s farms. As we
get ready to celebrate the holidays, I am
proud to sign this legislation to ensure our
state will continue to combat hunger and
provide for those in need.”
Governor Kathy Hochul signed Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz’s Nourish NY legislation into law on
Nov. 20.
State Senator Michelle Hinchey, the
chair of the Committee on Agriculture,
traveled from her upstate district to join
Cruz and Hochul at the signing ceremony.
“During one of the darkest moments
our state has ever faced, Nourish NY was a
beacon of compassionate, bipartisan support
Photo by Kevin P. Coughlin/Offi ce of the Governor
that addressed the devastating surge
in food insecurity and provided upstate
farmers, who were struggling to stay in
business, with a new avenue to continue
feeding our communities,” Hinchey said,
calling the Nourish NY program “a winwin
in every sense of the word.”
Gov. OKs Queens lawmakers’ LGBTQ protection bills
BY JULIA MORO
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Gov. Kathy Hochul signed bills sponsored
by Jackson Heights Assemblywoman
Jessica González-Rojas and state Senator
Jessica Ramos that require utility, water
works and telephone companies to allow
customers to use their preferred names
and pronouns as well as to protect survivors
of traffi cking.
Th e bills were signed Friday, Nov. 12,
during National Transgender Awareness
Week.
According to González-Rojas’ offi ce,
800,000 adults in New York are a part
of the LGBTQ+ community and about
78,600 identify as transgender. Since the
name changing process is costly and
time-consuming, only 30% of people
legally change their name.
González-Rojas said that this legislation
comes at an important time when
hate crimes toward transgender people
has increased.
“At a time when we are witnessing
a record number of murders of trans
people, particularly trans women, and
of anti-LGBT pieces of legislation being
introduced and passed in other states
across the nation, New York must take
leadership and stand against hate. I’m
proud to have sponsored legislation
which will ensure that transgender people
are respected by utility corporations
as they do business in our state,”
González-Rojas said.
According to an NYPD crime statistics
report, hate crimes have increased
by 98% this year. Hate crimes against
LGBTQ people increased by 188%, with
23 hate crimes reported this year compared
to eight in 2020.
Th e legislation would help prevent the
risk of transgender people being found
by a possibly abusive family member or
partner, reducing the risk of harassment.
“Th is trans awareness week let us move
from awareness to action. To our trans
siblings, please know that you have an
ally in me because you matter,” González-
Rojas said. “Trans lives matter.”
Th e START Act, introduced by Ramos,
relates to vacating convictions for off enses
committed due to being a survivor of
sex traffi cking, labor traffi cking and compelling
prostitution. Th e law builds on a
law passed in 2010 in New York allowing
victims of human traffi cking to vacate
prostitution-related criminal convictions
that were directly tied to their victimization.
“During National Transgender
Awareness week, the notion of building
visibility around the structural challenges
experienced by trans and gender-nonconforming
New Yorkers has to be more
than a gesture. We have to legislate in a
way that honors and protects their rights
as members of our community,” Ramos
said. “Th e START Act gives survivors of
traffi cking the fresh start they deserve
— lessening the barriers to employment,
improving access to appropriate immigration
legal remedies, and helping break
cycles of trauma for thousands of survivors
across our state.”
Hochul said these laws show that New
York stands with LGBTQ+ people.
“As we witness attacks on LGBTQ+
rights and protections around the country,
New York is once again declaring
that we are a state for all — one where we
don’t needlessly criminalize victims and
where our trans, gender non-binary and
gender non-conforming communities are
affi rmed,” Hochul said. “My administration
is committed to equality and safety
for everyone and New York is able to
lead the way because of the work of our
tireless advocates and our partners in the
Legislature. Together we will continue to
build a state that is welcoming to all.”
Additional reporting by Angélica
Acevedo.
Photo by Don Pollard/Offi ce of Governor Kathy Hochul
Gov. Kathy Hochul signed two bills into law
at the LGBT Community Center, including
one introduced by Assemblywoman Jessica
González-Rojas.
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