10 NYC 'STATE OF THE CITY' TAKEAWAYS: NYC to regulate e-bikes, label social media 'health hazard,' throw 400th birthday bash

Mayor Eric Adams delivers his third annual State of the City address on Jan. 24, 2024.

NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Mayor Eric Adams held his third-annual State of the City address at Hostos Community College in the Bronx on Wednesday afternoon, and hizzoner focused on City Hall’s dedication to public safety and the working class in the coming year.

“The future-focused vision we laid out today will build on all that we have delivered for New Yorkers by investing in public safety, public spaces, and the working people who make New York City the greatest city in the world,” Adams said. “While our city is still full of questions, history shows we can answer them and progress together when we work as one.”

Below are 10 of the policy goals to take note of from Adams’ speech.

1. NYC to establish Department of Sustainable Delivery, crack down on e-bikes

In collaboration with the New York City Council, the Adams administration is in discussions to create a first-in-the-nation agency to form goals and guidelines for delivery amid the rise of e-bikes, mopeds, cargo bikes and other nontraditional transportation on city streets and sidewalks.

The creation of this entity is cited as a traffic safety initiative, and would consolidate work that multiple agencies currently handle.

2. NYPD to overhaul internal discipline process

According to City Hall, “public safety and justice go hand in hand.”

Currently, NYPD internal discipline cases take over a year to resolve. Adams said that in 2024, police will overhaul this process—set strict timelines, allow cases to work simultaneous to criminal proceedings—in order to halve the time it takes to complete these cases.

3. NYC aims to close illegal cannabis shops in the city

One of Adams proposals, to shut down illegal smoke shops in the city, requires state approval. Adams still discussed this measure, vowing to continue advocating for state legislation that would give NYC the power to stop the proliferation of these illegal businesses in the city.

4. NYC Department of Health declares social media “public health hazard”

The NYC DOH Commissioner and Mental Health Commissioner, Dr. Ashwin Vasan, issued a Health Commissioner’s Advisory on Wednesday declaring social media a “public health hazard.”

This measure, previously used by U.S. surgeons general with tobacco and firearms, is in response to the danger of unlimited access to and use of social media for young people and mental health.

5. Investment in green jobs

The Adams administration is committed to accelerate job growth and hit 5 million total jobs by 2025. In order to achieve this, City Hall is investing in “future-focused” industries, like the green economy, to create jobs from entry with pathways to the top.

Adams previewed the city’s Green Economy Action Plan, which will reduce emissions and benefit NYC economically by helping support 400,000 green economy jobs in NYC by 2040.

This plan includes an investment of $100 million by New York City Economic Development Corporation into the Climate Innovation Hub at Brooklyn Army Terminal, a space for clean tech and climate innovation.

6.    Women Forward NYC

Women Forward NYC is a $40 million action plan to improve working and living in the city for women. This includes funding to help build pathways toward higher wages, dismantle work and education barriers, address sexual and reproductive health, improve access to medical resources and increase initiatives aimed at reducing violence against women.

7. 24 in 24: Affordable housing

On Wednesday, Adams launched the 24 in 24 plan, which will advance 24 affordable housing projects on public sites. These projects will preserve over 12,000 housing units.

To improve housing protections, City Hall will also bring together over a dozen agencies to support tenants through the creation of a Tenant Protection Cabinet. This entity will help coordinate across city agencies and help keep New Yorkers in their homes.

8. Expand on “reading revelation,” bring phonics to elementary schools

Building on the success of 2023’s NYC Reads program, Adams will work with the Department of Education to bring phonics-based methods to every early childhood and elementary school across NYC Public Schools. This will close the gaps after an initial rollout that covered half of the city’s school districts last year.

9. Investment in public spaces

City Hall committed $375 million to create new public spaces in the State of the City address, and appointed Ya-Ting Liu as the city’s first-ever Chief Public Real Officer to help in these initiatives.

Adams also signed the nation’s largest permanent outdoor dining program into law, and expanded on open street programs.

10. 400-year celebration of NYC’s founding to come in 2025

Adams announced that the city will begin planning for the 400^th anniversary of the founding of NYC.

“2025 will be a year to look back on how far we have come in four centuries and celebrate the enduring spirit of our city,” Adams said. “What began four centuries ago as a Dutch trading village on Lenape land has grown into the global capital of politics, commerce, and culture—a great city made up of my favorite people on earth: my fellow New Yorkers.”