2014 New York City Council Committee Assignments

There were major changes afoot in the New York City Council today with the assignment of committee chairmanships and leadership positions by Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. The Speaker elevated Queens Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, who bucked the Queens delegation to support Mark-Viverito’s bid for Speaker, to be the new majority leader and chair of the cultural affairs committee.

Additionally, under a new hierarchical structure, the Speaker named seven deputy leaders—one from Manhattan, three from Brooklyn, one from Staten Island and two from the Bronx—all of whom will also be chair committees. The seven deputy leaders are Manhattan’s Dan Garodnick, who challenged Mark-Viverito for the Council’s top job, and will now also serve as economic development chairman; Vinny Gentile of Brooklyn, the Council’s most senior member, who will also be chair of the oversight and investigation committee; Brooklyn’s Jumaane Williams, a leading member of the progressive caucus, who will chair the housing and buildings committee; Brooklyn’s Brad Lander, who was previously announced as chair of the rules, privileges and elections committee; Staten Island’s Debi Rose, who will chair the waterfronts committee; the Bronx’s Jimmy Vacca, who will move over from chair of the transportation committee to helm the technology committee; and the Bronx’s Ritchie Torres, the lone freshman to be named a deputy leader, who will also chair the public housing committee.

The two traditionally most powerful committee assignments, finance and land use, went to Queens’ Julissa Ferreras and Brooklyn’s David Greenfield, respectively. Republican Vincent Ignizio will serve as minority leader, and his fellow Staten Islander Steven Matteo will be the minority whip.

A mere four of the 51 members were denied committee or subcommittee chairmanships or leadership positions, and as such will receive no lulu in addition to their base pay of $112,500. Notably, two members of the Queens delegation that posed the strongest opposition to the election of Speaker Mark-Viverito, Karen Koslowitz and Elizabeth Crowley—whose cousin, Rep. Joe Crowley, the boss of the Queens Democratic party was one of Mark-Viverito’s fiercest adversaries in the leadership fight—received committee chairmanships, while several other Queens members, Mark Weprin, Peter Koo, Costa Constantinides and Ruben Wills, were given subcommittees to head. Veteran Councilwomen Annabel Palma of the Bronx was shut out of the spoils, with Palma making no secret of her opposition to Mark-Viverito’s bid. The other members who left the Council empty-handed today were Manhattan’s Rosie Mendez, the Bronx’s Andy King, and Queens’ Rory Lancman.

A complete listing by borough of the Council leadership assignments and their accompanying lulus is below.

2014 CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS

MANHATTAN

1^st             Margaret Chin                           Aging ($8,000)

2^nd            Rosie Mendez                             N/A

3^rd            Corey Johnson*                           Health ($8,000)

4^th            Dan Garodnick                             Deputy Leader / Economic Development ($15,000)

5^th            Ben Kallos*                                     Governmental Operations ($8,000)

6^th            Helen Rosenthal*                    Contracts ($8,000)

7^th            Mark Levine*                            Parks and Recreation ($8,000)

8^th            Melissa Mark-Viverito            Speaker ($25,000)

9^th            Inez Dickens                              Subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions and Concessions – Land Use ($8,000)

10^th          Ydanis Rodriguez                     Transportation ($8,000)

BRONX

11^th            Andrew Cohen*                        Mental Health, Development Disability, Alcoholism, Drug Abuse and Disability Services ($8,000)

12^th            Andy King                                  N/A

13^th            Jimmy Vacca                             Deputy Leader / Technology ($15,000)

14^th            Fernando Cabrera                    Juvenile Justice ($8,000)

15^th            Ritchie Torres*                         Deputy Leader / Public Housing ($15,000)

16^th            Vanessa Gibson*                      Public Safety  ($8,000)

17^th            Maria del Carmen Arroyo       Community Development ($8,000)

18^th            Annabel Palma                         N/A

QUEENS

19^th            Paul Vallone*                            Subcommittee on Senior Centers – Aging ($8,000)

20^th            Peter Koo                                  Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting & Maritime Uses – Land Use ($8,000)

21^st             Julissa Ferreras                       Finance ($15,000)

22^nd            Costa Constantinides*           Subcommittee on Libraries – Cultural Affairs ($8,000)

23^rd            Mark Weprin                            Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises – Land Use ($8,000)

24^th            Rory Lancman*                        N/A

25^th            Danny Dromm                         Education ($8,000)

26^th            Jimmy Van Bramer                 Majority Leader / Cultural Affairs ($20,000)

27^th            Daneek Miller*                         Civil Service and Labor ($8,000)

28^th            Ruben Wills                               Subcommittee on Drug Abuse – Mental Health ($8,000)

29^th            Karen Koslowitz                       State and Federal Legislation ($8,000)

30^th            Elizabeth Crowley                    Fire and Criminal Justice Services ($8,000)

31^st             Donovan Richards                   Environmental Protection ($8,000)

32^nd            Eric Ulrich                                Veterans ($8,000)

BROOKLYN

33^rd            Stephen Levin                        Government Welfare ($8,000)

34^th            Antonio Reynoso*                 Sanitation and Solid Waste Management ($8,000)

35^th            Laurie Cumbo*                      Women’s Issues ($8,000)

36^th            Robert Cornegy*                    Small Business  ($8,000)

37^th            Rafael Espinal*                      Consumer Affairs ($8,000)

38^th            Carlos Menchaca*                 Immigration ($8,000)

39^th             Brad Lander                           Deputy Leader for Policy / Rules, Privileges and Elections ($15,000)

40^th            Mathieu Eugene                     Youth Services ($8,000)

41^st             Darlene Mealy                        Civil Rights ($8,000)

42^nd             Inez Barron*                          Higher Education ($8,000)

43^rd             Vinny Gentile                         Deputy Leader / Oversight and Investigation ($15,000)

44^th            David Greenfield                      Land Use ($15,000)

45^th            Jumaane Williams                  Deputy Leader / Housing and Buildings ($15,000)

46^th            Alan Maisel*                             Standards and Ethics  ($8,000)

47^th            Mark Treyger*                          Recovery and Resiliency ($8,000)

48^th           Chaim Deutsch*                       Subcommittee on Non-Public Schools – Education ($8000)

STATEN ISLAND

49^th             Debi Rose                                  Deputy Leader / Waterfronts ($15,000)

50^th             Steven Matteo*                        Minority Whip ($5,000)

51^st             Vincent Ignizio                        Minority Leader ($15,000)

* indicates new member

Additional reporting by Nick Powell