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Public testimony highlights: Legal Aid bargaining, EMS pay parity push, delivery workers oppose e‑bike criminalization and PATH funding cuts
Summary
Public testimony at the budget hearing highlighted four urgent local issues: Legal Aid Society contract bargaining and a call for roughly $74M in additional funding, EMTs pressing for pay parity and $50M for EMS, delivery workers opposing criminal summonses for e‑bike infractions, and community groups asking the council to restore PATH anti‑hate funding and support community violence intervention.
Members of the public used the executive‑budget hearing to press for funding or policy changes across criminal‑justice and public‑safety topics.
Legal Aid Society union and public defenders
Jane Fox, chair of the Legal Aid Society Attorneys Union (UAW Local 2325), said bargaining has stalled and warned members were prepared to withhold labor if the employer did not present an economic offer before the contract expiration. “By our employer's estimate, this council needs to increase funding to the legal aid society by at least $74,000,000 to make sure our demands at the bargaining table are met,” she said. Union speakers argued that current public‑defender salaries lag comparable cities and that attrition is reducing experienced counsel on felony and misdemeanor dockets.
EMS staffing and pay parity
Multiple EMS speakers asked the Council for immediate action on workforce stability and pay parity. Michael Greco, vice president of Local 2507, and several FDNY EMT and paramedic speakers called for restoring or adding $50 million to support ambulances, training and recruitment and for pay parity with other uniformed first responders; they cited high attrition and heavy overtime. NYPD and Council testimony earlier in the hearing confirmed system pressure from higher call volumes.
Delivery workers and e‑bike enforcement
Delivery workers and organizers said the NYPD's decision to issue C‑summonses for specified e‑bike infractions will disproportionately affect low‑wage, immigrant couriers. William Medina and other Deliveristas Unidos representatives called for decriminalization and urged the city to invest instead in bike infrastructure, designated loading zones, battery‑swap stations and stronger labor protections. They said early enforcement already produced thousands of citations and risks ICE consequences for undocumented workers.
Hate‑prevention funding and community violence intervention
Anchors and subgrantees of the PATH (Partners Against the Hate) initiative and anti‑violence groups described recent cuts and a rescinded federal DOJ grant that reduced funding for several community violence intervention (CVI) programs. Testimony asked the council to restore the $30,000 anchor funding cuts and provide additional city investment for immigrant‑serving, language‑accessible anti‑hate and anti‑violence services.
911 and other operational testimony
A 9‑1‑1 operators’ union representative described ongoing short staffing and long tours; public comment and council interchange with NYPD earlier in the hearing documented a 202‑position shortfall in the police communications PCT title (budgeted 1,412; staffed 1,210 at the time of testimony). Witnesses urged faster hiring timelines and improved training and mental‑health supports.
Ending
Speakers from multiple sectors asked the council to treat this budget cycle as an opportunity to shore up public defenders, stabilize EMS staffing and avoid criminalizing low‑wage delivery workers while boosting community‑based violence prevention.
