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Thanks for being with us on this episode of Power and Politics on News 12. I'm Amanda Bossert. The city council just had its last meeting of the year, passing dozens of bills in the final days of 2025, from street vending reform to increased protections for security guards and rideshare drivers as well, action was taken. On a wide range of issues, capping off a year where affordability, public safety, and immigration dominated a lot of the debate. So joining us now to discuss is a sponsor of one of the many bills that have been passed over the last 12 months, Brooklyn council member Shahana Haneef. Thanks so much, council member, for being with us. Absolutely, thank you for having me, Amanda and congratulations for making it to the end of the year in those dozens in those dozens of bills because quite literally dozens of bills were passed in the 11th hour this week. Are there any that you specifically want to highlight that you're especially happy to see action taken on? Yesterday's stated meeting really reflected the city council's progressive vision on supporting working class people and ending unjust deactivations for deliveristas and Uber and Lyft drivers. That was a huge, huge advocacy push for years, and we won that last night. We also are supporting preserving. housing through the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act. We wanna make sure that no New York resident is getting displaced, unjustly evicted, and it's a great honor to work in a council that deeply believes that working-class families come first. Affordability really emerging as a huge theme throughout 2025. Now since we are in the home stretch of this year, do you expect Mayor Eric Adams to sign any of those bills that were passed yesterday into law? And if he doesn't, what happens? I do not expect Mayor Adams to sign a lot of the bills. I won't generalize and say yes, maybe there's hope for some, but bills like the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, ending unjust deactivations for Uber Lyft drivers and deliveristas, I know that he prioritizes uh billion-dollar corporations and will not be signing. Uh, what I do know is coming into the next session, we're gonna be working with Mayor-elect Mambani, who, uh, was vocal about supporting the uh end to unjust firings and deactivations of Uh, uh, working class people and so we will have a partner in him to ensure that our law is actually enforced and we look forward to working with a mayor that is looking to ensure the city is affordable, not, not pushing back against it and making it less affordable. To that point, anything that you feel wasn't achieved or acted on that should have been. On issues related to immigration, we have much more to do. We passed Councilmember Caban Safer Sanctuaries Act, which will end the Department of Correction to ICE pipeline on Rikers Island. My bill in 214, the Trust Act did not make it to the finish line, and it is critically important that we pass the Trust Act, uh, which will ensure that ICE is not getting help from our city agencies. We have heard reports, including at my hearing, that, uh, frequently NYPD, Department of Corrections, Department of Probation work with ICE to, uh, to unjustly create uh havoc and separate families. It is not our city. Agency's job to do that. They are not supposed to be collaborating with ICE, and there needs to be enforcement when they do something that's illegal by our city laws, our city sanctuary laws. So I look forward to pushing for the passage of the New York City Trust Act. Since you talked about that, I want to kind of go back. To a scene that unfolded at City Hall a little bit earlier this month when there were a hearing on these bills on sanctuary city protections, the Adams administration did not send a representative to testify. however, the commissioner of the Office of Immigrant Affairs decided to do so on his own in his own capacity. What did you take away from that moment and his remarks? I was deeply angry and infuriated, uh, and also not shocked that Adams, uh, refused to show up, that, uh, his agency heads, commissioner of the immigrant Affairs unit did not show up. Uh, what was More embarrassing is that they, these folks were actually downstairs as we were conducting the hearing and they were making an announcement about uh language, uh, justice and improving those services for immigrants. So, it is a slap in the face, uh, that, um, these leaders, our, our city leaders did not show up. It's noble that Commissioner Castro showed up in his personal capacity, but that's not enough. That shows to New Yorkers that their top leaders did not have them in mind, that they will continue to fear the uh the ICE raids and family separation and slowing down their process of citizenship. There is so much anxiety and fear, and I look forward really to work with a new immigrant affairs unit that deeply believes that all immigrants are welcome in New York City and that ICE is not welcome in New York City. To that point with this incoming mayoral administration, how do you expect the relationship between yourself, the council overall, to be different with Mayor-elect Mamdani than it's been with Mayor Adams? With Mayor Mamdani, we have an opportunity for close alignment. It is critically important that uh our mayor and our council, uh, uh, have a strong partnership as we move along in the next couple of years. Particularly because uh Trump's continued threat. And so it's gonna be absolutely a priority of the council and for me, uh, to work very closely with uh Mayor Mamdani and his administration.

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Mayor-elect Sura Amdani continues to build out his administration in the weeks leading up to his inauguration, appointing several members to his team in these past few days. Leila Borzo will serve as the deputy mayor for housing, while Julie Sue will hold the title of deputy mayor for economic justice, a new department created by the Mamdani administration. Sue previously worked as the US Secretary of Labor. Under former President Joe Biden, Sharif Soleiman is the incoming director of the mayor's Office of Management and Budget. He currently serves as the chief financial officer for the City University of New York. He also worked in previous administrations, including for former Mayor Bill de Blasio and current Mayor Eric Adams. Jamila Edwards will be the director of intergovernmental affairs. Edwards is a labor union veteran. And currently serves as the associate director of DC 37 representing the city's largest public employee union. Catherine Almonte DeCosta was announced alongside her as the director of appointments. DeCosta's duties would have included sifting through the upward of 70,000 applicants who want a new job in the new administration. However, DeCosta announced her resignation just one day after her appointment. The Anti-Defamation League revealed what they deem anti-Semitic posts that DeCosta put on social media as far back as 2011. In a statement, DeCosta wrote in part, quote, These statements are not indicative of who I am. As the mother of Jewish children, I feel a profound sense of sadness and remorse at the harm these words have caused. Mayor-elect Zam Amdani said that he accepts DeCosta's resignation, adding that she expressed her deep remorse over her past statements. However, questions still remain as to who will lead the nation's largest public school system. It is a topic that Mamdani has not been vocal about amid his transition to City Hall, but some advocacy groups and parents have been pushing for him to keep current Chancellor Melissa Aviles Ramos in place. The Chancellor's parent advisory council sent a letter to Mamdani back in November. citing Aviles Ramos' measurable success, and they say a change mid school year would jeopardize the progress made, the council says they have not gotten a response to their letter. Mamdani has not said who he is considering. We've reached out to his transition team for comment, and they have not responded as of yet. A reminder that Mamdani is going to be inaugurated as mayor on New Year's Day, and we'll be bringing you that ceremony live here on News 12. For now, that's all for this week on Power and Politics right here on News 12. Thanks so much for watching.

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State Sen. Nathalia Fernandez and Brooklyn Council Member Shahana Hanif join the show.

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