Amid the ongoing discussions and uncertainties surrounding the future of our federal government, it’s easy to overlook local politics. While staying informed about decisions at the national level is important, the legislation passed by the City Council can directly and significantly impact our daily lives, particularly regarding our food system.
Here are three pieces of legislation currently being considered by the City Council that could change New York City’s foodscape:
1. Establishing a Division of Street Vendor Assistance (Intro 0408)
The life of a New York City food vendor can be needlessly difficult. Despite being a cornerstone of the local food economy, vendors have long been denied access to the licenses and permits they need to sell food legally. Making matters worse, this past November, amid an ongoing crackdown on this largely immigrant industry, New York City overwhelmingly voted in favor of a ballot proposition to change the City Charter to expand enforcement targeting street vendors.
A bill introduced on February 28, 2024, by Public Advocate Jumaane Williams could ease some of the pressure by establishing a Division of Street Vendor Assistance within the city’s Department of Small Business Services. Specifically, this proposed division would provide outreach and access to street vendors to help them better comply with existing regulations while also updating the department’s procedures for permitting and licensing street vendors.
The bill is currently under review by the Committee on Small Business before any additional action can take place.
2. Expanding Protections for Food Delivery Workers (Intro 1133)
Despite the important role that food delivery services have in New York, the way drivers are treated and protected under city law remains a topic of ongoing debate. Recently, drivers who are under contract with third-party services like Uber Eats and Doordash earned a pay raise via City Council, but delivery drivers across the city still report unsafe working conditions and a lack of protection from the elements.
Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez (Democrat for District 34) recently introduced a bill in the City Council to address these workplace hazards. The bill would require delivery services to provide their drivers with more specific information regarding their trip prior to their accepting a job and to allow them the option of setting a maximum travel distance. This bill would also task the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection with studying companies’ compliance with existing laws and would require food establishments to let drivers make use of on-site toilets when picking up a delivery.
At the moment, this bill has been laid over in committee, indicating a postponement in action. With the legislation having been introduced by CM Gutiérrez only last week, this remains a bill to watch.
3. Collecting and Recirculating Used Shopping Bags (Intro 1102)
With state legislation banning single-use plastic bags for most retailers in 2020, and additional legislative efforts to reduce plastic waste having been made with 2023’s passage of the Skip the Stuff bill, Department of Sanitation studies have boasted an impressive 68 percent decrease in plastic bag waste. Still, the city has its work cut out for it, with these same studies also indicating the tendency for the reusable bags sold at grocery stores, which are made of both textile and plastic, to wind up in our waste stream.
An elegant legislative solution requiring food retailers to collect, sanitize, and recirculate unwanted grocery bags was introduced this past November by Council Member Shaun Abreu (Democrat for District 7). Council Member Abreu spoke specifically to the tendency of household collections of bags to grow ever-larger, meaning this bill’s passage could entail both ecological and domestic relief for New York City.
