State Legislators Announce Public Hearing on NYC School Governance and Mayoral Accountability

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, February 21, 2022
Contact: Scott Sieber | 917-789-8758 | press@johnliusenate.com  

State Legislators Announce Public Hearing on NYC School Governance and Mayoral Accountability

Public is encouraged to testify at hearing on ‘mayoral control’

New York, NY – The chairs of the New York State legislature’s committees on education today announced an upcoming joint public hearing to examine New York City Mayoral Governance and Accountability. The virtual hearing will be open to public testimony and hosted jointly by the New York State Senate committees on Education and New York City Education, and the New York State Assembly Committee on Education. 

Last month, Governor Hochul announced in her executive budget the renewal of New York City’s system of mayoral accountability (aka mayoral control) for four years. As mayoral accountability is set to expire on June 30, the state Senate and Assembly must also make a determination on whether to renew, amend or disapprove mayoral accountability by the state budget deadline on April 1, or via legislation before the June 30 expiration. 

The public hearing will take place virtually on March 4, 2022 at 10 a.m. via ZOOM. Those wishing to testify must pre-register here: NYC Education Committee Witness Registration Form

Senator John C. Liu, chairperson of the Senate Committee on NYC Education, said, “There continues to be widespread dissatisfaction among parents, teachers, and other stakeholders with mayoral control of schools. What structural changes can be enacted to improve public engagement and strengthen accountability?  Should we simply do away with mayoral control, as Chicago has done?  What if any system could work better? We seek ideas and suggestions at this public hearing.”

Senator Shelley B. Mayer, Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, said, “During the height of COVID, we heard from many NYC parents about their frustrations that their voices were not heard. I look forward to hearing all of the witnesses to have a full airing on this important issue.”

Assembly Member Michael Benedetto, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Education, said, “With the approval of mayoral control last time, we committed to having hearings on the matter. The public hearing on March 4 continues that commitment and encourages the input of all viewpoints.”

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