As your elected representative of Council District 13, I acted in my duty as legislator to hear three very important topics in three different committees. In the Committee on Contracts — which as you can imagine oversees the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services and city procurement procedure — we, on Monday, considered two bills to increase transparency in the procurement process. By introducing much-needed transparency into the contract assessment process, the city can save money and we engender feelings of fairness into a process many feel is still too opaque.
On Tuesday, as a member of the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations, we considered three bills to elevate historically marginalized voices, including bills to enhance the voice of LGBTQ individuals throughout the city into certain ceremonial positions. I look forward to following these bills throughout the legislative process.
On Friday, as chair of the Committee on Small Business we will conduct oversight of the Key to NYC vaccine mandate program. Obviously well-intentioned, the program seeks to increase the citywide vaccination rate, and according to some measures, has had some success in doing so. That being said, enforcement has proved tricky and the program has presented its fair share of challenges to already-struggling small businesses. Out of this hearing we hope to get guidance from the administration about what they can do to make sure small businesses are remaining as unburdened as possible and in compliance, along with any indication of the intended timeline of the program.
For information related to my legislative work, or questions about upcoming constituent services and events, please contact my district office at either (718) 931-1721 or at MGjonaj@council.nyc.gov. Thank you and stay safe. It remains an honor to continue to represent the good constituents of Council District 13.
