The City Council has approved two pieces of legislation proposed by Council Member Mark Treyger to better prepare residents in coastal neighborhoods for major storms and to formalize the role that houses of worship and charitable organizations play in the aftermath of emergencies. Council Member Treyger proposed these laws in his role as Chairman of the Council’s Committee on Recovery and Resiliency, which is monitoring the ongoing Sandy recovery and investigating ways to make New York City more resilient and better prepared for future storms.

“As we continue the recovery from Sandy, it is imperative that we do not forget about the many charitable organizations and houses of worship that opened their doors to residents in the hours, days and weeks after the storm hit and played a vital role in the recovery. It is also critical that we learn from this experience and find ways to better connect residents with information and resources that are specific to their community. These two pieces of legislation will create a safer, more resilient New York City and help better prepare us for the next major storm,” said Council Member Treyger.

The first piece of legislation creates a task force to review the role that houses of worship and charitable organizations played in the aftermath of Sandy and examine ways for government to reimburse these groups for expenses incurred while helping residents recover. Most of the post-Sandy recovery funds and focus have concentrated on rebuilding homes and businesses. Yet many charitable organizations and houses of worship were in the affected areas and did not have access to recovery dollars, with many deemed ineligible to receive any form of federal funding. This task force would investigate any unmet needs of these organizations and make recommendations on steps the city can take to assist in their recovery. This legislation would also formalize the role these groups play in the recovery from the next major storm or emergency so they can again immediately provide aid to local residents. Under this new law, the task force will submit a report to the Council within eight months of its formation containing its findings and recommendations.

The second law requires that pamphlets and other materials distributed by the Office of Emergency Management are tailored to vulnerable communities and include specific details on local organizations, evacuation zones and other information that residents need during a storm or emergency. Currently, OEM’s pamphlets and other emergency preparedness materials are citywide in nature, making it difficult to reach and understand evacuation zone maps. Under Council Member Treyger’s law, these new materials would be specific for each vulnerable community across the city and would be translated into the ten most commonly spoken languages in each targeted neighborhood to ensure this information reaches as many residents as possible.

Both pieces of legislation were approved by the full City Council at last Thursday’s Stated meeting and are expected to be signed into law by Mayor Bill de Blasio. During his remarks on the floor of the Council chambers, Council Member Treyger thanked Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and members of the Committee on Recovery and Resiliency for their continued dedication to the recovery effort, along with committee counsel Brad Reid for his work on these pieces of legislation.

(YWN Desk – NYC)