Questions for the Mayoral Candidates

Development:

New York has more development projects than anyother American City. What's your plan to ensure that thesedevelopment projects serve working families’ interests by creatinghigh-quality, good paying jobs and truly affordable housing?

Paid Sick Days:

During the Swine Flu panic, public health officialsurged New Yorkers to stay home if they felt sick. But thousands of working New Yorkers don’t have a single day of paid sick time.Should New York City pass an ordinance mandating paid sick daysfor everyone who works inside the city limits?

Education:

Whatever one’s view may be on the success of charterschools, they serve only 2% of New York City’s public schoolstudents. Meanwhile, many of the large schools that servethousands continue to fail. What is your plan to turn around thesefailing schools so that we don’t have a two-tiered system of “haveand have-not” public schools?

Green Jobs:

New York City leaders are considering a proposal torequire owners of large buildings to make energy-efficiencyimprovements. This initiative is long past due, but energy savingsshouldn’t be the only goal. How do we ensure “green” publicpolicies also protect tenants from unfair rent increases, and creategood job opportunities for all residents?

Homelessness:

The New York Times recently reported that thereare more families in homeless shelters than there were five yearsago. Under these circumstances, should the homeless get priorityfor affordable housing programs such as public housing and section8?

City Budget:

The Working Families Party agrees with Nobel Prizewinning economist Joseph Stiglitz that during an economic crisis,reductions in vital spending or increases in regressive taxes do moreharm than modestly raising taxes on wealthy individuals. As our cityworks to recover from this economic crisis over the coming years,which of these options do you believe we should pursue?