New York Lawyers for the Public Interest

Thanks to Gothamist for covering our latest report with TDTNYC on how NYC's Commercial Garbage Companies Continue to Put Workers and the Public at Risk. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/eEMzY_eR

Our new New York Lawyers for the Public Interest / Transform Don't Trash NYC report on deadly hazards in the private sanitation industry covered in Gothamist: https://lnkd.in/e7yEXj9s

NYC’s Commercial Waste Industry: STILL Hazardous 🚨 New report alert! Five years after NYC passed Local Law 199, private garbage trucks are still involved in shocking numbers of crashes—61 serious incidents from 2022-2024, causing 103 injuries and 3 tragic deaths. Even more concerning, 61% of these trucks failed safety checks, far above the national average. The root causes? Excessively long, overlapping routes, poorly maintained trucks, and fatigued drivers working grueling night shifts. NYLPI and the Transform Don’t Trash Coalition are calling for a full, citywide rollout of the Commercial Waste Zones System and strong enforcement of safety and environmental standards to address these risks. It’s time to make NYC’s waste industry safer for all! Read the full report: https://lnkd.in/eZ9MzQQC

We’re proud to announce that A Band Named Sue won the Judges’ Choice Award at Law Rocks NYC! Rocking the stage on behalf of NYLPI, they performed in support of our mission for justice and equity. A huge thank you to our talented band members from Schindler Cohen & Hochman LLP, Parker Pohl, White & Case LLP, Law Offices of Benjamin Haber, and ASCAP and to Law Rocks for organizing this incredible event. #LawRocksNYC #NYLPI #BandNamedSue

NYLPI Recommendations on New York Ballot Proposals In addition to voting for representatives, New Yorkers will decide on several important ballot measures in this election. Remember to flip your ballot over to vote on Propositions #1-6! REMINDER: To register to vote in New York, your application must be received by October 26! Find resources and learn more here: https://lnkd.in/euDykmbR

"In [Baerga v. City of New York], the city is saying that the police need to be present for public safety, and we know that that simply is not true." - Marinda van Dalen, #NYLPI Read more via NY Amsterdam News: https://lnkd.in/gaZ2MKnQ

NY’s Climate Action Fund, which will direct $ to communities for climate justice projects statewide, didn’t come out of the blue. It's the result of years of campaigning. But the reality is that where and how that money is spent is still to be determined. Join us on October 28th at 6 pm for NY Renews's upcoming mass call, The Next Chapter: Our Fight for Climate Justice in 2025, to learn about our campaign to win transformational climate investments in 2025. RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/dADnyqui

Last call from our friends at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest! Deadline extended to today. Apply at: https://lnkd.in/eustvDh8

“The Department of Justice’s involvement underscores the serious implications of allowing New York City, along with other communities across the country, to continue treating individuals experiencing mental health crises as if they were criminals" Director of Litigation Marinda van Dalen, #NYLPI Read more via Legal Reader: https://lnkd.in/giWcnnqG

What a huge achievement for NY (especially NYSERDA and New York State Department of Public Service)! 6 gigawatts of clean, local solar - enough to power a million homes. And they disrupted our classist and racist status quo by driving resources to the communities that had borne the brunt of our expensive, fossil-fueled energy economy. Congratulations! Since we don't always take the time to tell the advocacy stories behind these real world impacts, I thought I'd take a step back to share this one. In 2017, a few of us (Rick Umoff, Hannah Muller and myself) had a crazy idea that NY could build enough local solar to power a million homes - about 6 gigawatts - in 5 years or so. Shawn Rumery took pen to paper and showed us we weren't so crazy - it could be done. Vote Solar and partners (New York Lawyers for the Public Interest Alliance for Clean Energy New York New Yorkers for Clean Power Acadia Center Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Pace Energy and Climate Center New York Solar Energy Industries Association Coalition for Community Solar Access Solar Energy Industries Association) turned that into a roadmap and #MillionSolarStrongNY campaign in 2018. With help from trusty organizer Renee Vogelsang, we held events across the state highlighting both the need for these resources and the incredible benefits that communities could reap from them. In 2019 the Governor Cuomo adopted our goal in his State of the State. After the incredible efforts of the broad, powerful NY Renews coalition, by July of that year it was codified in law in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). While it had taken us a bit to build the campaign and get it across the finish line, it did indeed take only 5 years to get to that #MillionSolarStrongNY powered by 6 gigawatts of local solar.