Overview
- At a City Council hearing, the NYPD said it has no objections to the amended bill requiring it to publish protocols for managing protests at houses of worship.
- Deputy Commissioner Michael Gerber testified the worship-site measure aligns with protecting access for congregants and facilitating First Amendment activity without adding new criminal penalties.
- The department raised legal concerns about a parallel schools and campus proposal, particularly its application to private institutions, and emphasized safeguarding protesters’ rights.
- Councilmember Eric Dinowitz revised the schools bill by scrapping a 100-foot buffer and explicitly affirming unions’ federal picketing rights, yet labor groups and the NYCLU remain opposed.
- Speaker Julie Menin’s worship bill counts 27 co-sponsors, short of a veto-proof margin, the schools bill has 23 co-sponsors, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani has not committed as city lawyers review the measures.