Public Hearing Over Term Limit Law
The debate over the New York City term limit law has been debated ad nauseam in the previous weeks, and is coming to a head as the election looms near. The public weighed in on the subject during a more than ten hour public hearing, with no resolution in sight. The public will not get to vote on the matter, that falls first to the City Council’s Governmental Operations Committee before it goes to the full city council, but made sure their voices were heard on the matter.
Protesters carrying a blanket-size sign reading "Bloomberg to Democracy: Drop Dead" briefly interrupted the meeting. Before the small group was ushered out, they yelled that voters had already decided the issue. Voters supported term limits twice, in 1993 and 1996.
Supporters like Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz said the current limit reflects the feelings of a public burdened by scandal and crooked officials in the 1990s.
"At the time, New Yorkers had lived through so many recent corruption scandals that they had lost faith in the integrity of their elected officials," he said. "Back then, the rallying cry was, ‘Throw the bums out.’"
Opponents said the proposal is diverting focus from the slumped economy. They criticized supporters who said Bloomberg, who got his start on Wall Street, is the best candidate to guide the city through the fiscal crisis.
Roughly 150 members of the public spoke at the meeting, which included Mario Cuomo and Ed Koch. The bill to extend the term limits looks to go to vote on Thursday.
