New York taxpayers are getting ripped off by overpaid politicians who treat their jobs like optional hobbies. State lawmakers and City Council members got massive pay raises promising to be full-time public servants, yet they routinely skip work to chase personal agendas. It is a slap in the face to the hard-working folks in the five boroughs who actually show up for their shifts.
According to reporting from the New York Post, the ten worst attendance offenders in Albany skipped a combined 442 votes. That means each of these lawmakers blew off more than 37% of the votes while collecting six-figure taxpayer-funded salaries. The situation is even worse when you look at the four state lawmakers who didn’t set foot in the Albany Capitol once during the past session. They hid behind remote-voting rules long after the COVID emergency ended to shirk their basic duty.
The Absentee Problem in Albany and Brooklyn
The excuses these politicians use range from the understandable to the outrageous. Some cite childbirth complications or medical emergencies, which are valid, but others lean on sheer indifference or advanced age. If you cannot show up for work, you should retire. The New York Post specifically calls out City Councilman Chi Ossé (D-Brooklyn) for skipping work to play activist instead of serving his constituents.
To attend an anti-Israel demonstration at the United Nations, Ossé skipped Stated Meetings and key committee hearings. He also journeyed upstate to participate in a socialist drive for public utility company takeover. The Post observes that Ossé chooses performative grandstanding over the drudgework required to fulfill his elected duties. Showing up is a core responsibility, not a suggestion.
Why Remote Voting Must End
The system allowing these no-shows needs to be scrapped immediately. Both Albany and City Hall bear a clear duty to eliminate the remote-voting free pass enabling politicians to evade their constituents. We need leaders who are present to deal with the real issues facing our city, from crime to housing costs. Geriatric politicians who can no longer handle the workload should step aside for younger, hungrier leaders.
It is time to stop letting lazy pols take a free ride on the backs of working families. The promise of being “full-time” was a lie if they are willing to miss nearly half the votes. New Yorkers deserve representatives who respect their time and their money enough to actually show up for the job.
MTA Safety Review Underway
While politicians skip votes, the MTA is trying to clean up its own house after a pair of high-profile incidents. On Thursday morning, MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber declared that the agency had withdrawn fare enforcement agents from the city’s bus network. These so-called EAGLE teams will not return until a top-to-bottom review is complete.
Lieber informed reporters that the teams failed to properly alert agency leaders about two skirmishes involving physical contact between officers and riders. One incident on October 6 involved agents allegedly punching a school aide. Lieber stated on Thursday morning that he would not keep our teams active in the field, referencing the necessity of ensuring all protocols regarding customer interactions and reporting are followed.
This is opinion and commentary from the RapForMayor team.
