Thursday, April 9, 2026, 10 a.m. (New York City time), Council Chambers - City Hall
Committee: Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection
0:20 Good morning welcomes today's
0:20 New York City Council here, a
0:23 committee on consumer and work
0:24 protection at this time,
0:26 please. Science, all cel
0:26 lphone electronic devices
0:29 moving forward. No one is t
0:30 oapproach that there is no food
0:31 or beverages are allowed in
0:33 the chambers, please refrain
0:35 from voicing your concerns out
0:36 loud at this time and you will
0:38 be asked to leave the room
0:41 moving forward. No one is to
0:42 approach the days chair, we
0:43 are ready to begin. Good
1:04 morning. Welcome today's
1:05 consumer work of hearing on
1:07 intro 5 18 sponsored by
1:09 Council Member. Come on
1:10 acquiring the last mile
1:12 facilities. My name is Harvey
1:13 iomax of the chair of the
1:15 committee enjoying my by my
1:16 colleagues, counselor all the
1:17 ball and counselor cab on each
1:23 weekday approximately 700
1:24 vehicles travel throughout the
1:26 fiber rose to transport more
1:27 than packages to consumers
1:31 ,these vehicles generally pic
1:32 kup packages from the last mile
1:34 facilities warehouse in
1:35 transit stations where we hate
1:37 package parcels are sort of
1:37 and loaded on vehicles
1:40 delivery and delivered t
1:42 oconsumers in January 2024
1:44 rpossibly 50 fat 50 last mile
1:48 facilities greater than 50000
1:49 square feet of New York City,
1:51 the high volume last mile
1:52 delivery combined with the
1:53 demand for speed creates
1:54 conditions or street safety
1:56 and work our health and safety
1:58 issues, a published report
1:59 from the office of New York
2:01 state comptroller in novembe
2:05 r2025 found that they arrived
2:05 the last mile facility in the
2:07 areas is correlated with
2:11 increased traffic incidents
2:11 increased in and crashes the
2:14 control office also found that
2:15 workers in the last mile
2:16 ,facilities were injured more
2:18 frequently and more seriously
2:20 to those in courier industries
2:23 generally the street safet
2:24 yand worker health and safety
2:25 issues in last mile.
2:27 Facilities are impacted by a
2:28 high rate of turnover among
2:31 last mile. Workers and sub
2:33 employment models used by some
2:35 last mile facilities such as
2:37 amazon delivery service
2:40 partner programs in high
2:41 turnover industry means
2:42 workers have less training and
2:44 on the job experience the
2:46 control office found that the
2:48 amazon delivery service
2:49 partners operating the City
2:50 have higher rates of both
2:52 injuries and injuries that
2:53 result in time, away from work
2:55 or modified work to do it.
2:57 That other last mile
2:58 facilities in general injured.
3:01 Deduction 500 would require
3:02 operators of the last mile
3:03 facilities to obtain busines
3:04 slies is from the department of
3:07 consumer worker protection
3:08 licence holders and when
3:08 required to directly employ
3:11 cor delivery and warehouse
3:12 workers and meet training
3:16 safety requirements. I look
3:16 forward to feedback on this
3:17 legislation in the department
3:18 consumer worker protection
3:19 last mile operators delivery
3:22 service companies as well as
3:23 the public at large. I like t
3:25 ogive over to the council
3:26 member Cabán for an
3:30 introduction. Thank you. Chair
3:30 . Good morning. Our lives, our
3:34 workplaces and our streets
3:35 have been fundamentally
3:36 transformed by e commerce and
3:38 the ability to order virtually
3:39 anything and have it on our
3:42 doorsteps within hours and in
3:43 many ways it's made our life
3:46 easier. I can order food for
3:47 my dog or dish soap or a New
3:49 pair of shoes without needing
3:50 to leave my apartment and it's
3:51 a godsend for folks who, for a
3:53 variety of reasons can't make
3:54 the journey to a store and all
3:59 of us have had how we buy
3:59 things transformed by this
4:01 change and this year alone. We
4:03 expect over a billion packages
4:05 to be delivered within New
4:07 York City and yet our
4:08 regulations have not kept up
4:09 with the shift in how good's
4:10 get to us last year, as was
4:14 ffindings near last mile
4:18 facilities truck related
4:19 injuries rose 137%. And when
4:24 these accidents happen. The
4:25 company who controls the van,
4:26 the worker and the route
4:28 suddenly tells us that this
4:29 worker is not their employees
4:31 and that it's the
4:32 subcontractors who are to
4:35 blame and these facilities
4:35 with all of the fumes that
4:37 accompany them are mostly in
4:38 black and brown neighborhoods
4:39 where residents have already
4:41 faced catastrophic health
4:42 outcomes because of industrial
4:46 pollution injury rates for
4:46 workers at last mile.
4:47 Facilities are Eric times, the
4:49 national average for private
4:51 employers beyond this report
4:53 we've heard directly from
4:54 workers who have told us about
4:56 harrowing conditions that
4:57 they've been forced to endur
4:59 ein order to meet ever higher
5:02 quotas and constantly
5:02 shortening delivery windows.
5:05 We've heard of drivers put
5:06 behind the wheels of vans
5:07 without any training we've
5:09 heard of drivers being
5:10 required to drive vans
5:11 literally held together with
5:13 tape missing side mirrors wit
5:14 hdoors that fall off, drivers
5:17 have had to urinate in bottles
5:19 to skip meals and breaks in
5:20 order to meet and possible
5:23 quotas and in order to meet
5:24 the quotas they have to
5:25 violate traffic laws so as the
5:28 lead sponsor of the bill. I
5:29 also get communications from
5:30 folks impacted by the bill and
5:31 I got an email yesterday from
5:35 a group of drivers who shared
5:38 the following, they said our
5:40 belongs to a coalition called
5:42 New York delivers that opposes
5:44 this bill opposing it is their
5:47 right. The problem is how the
5:47 yare doing it. The protest
5:50 tomorrow is not voluntary. It
5:51 is bought with money and
5:54 forced with threats, buses
5:55 full of drivers will be
5:56 arriving from the bronx
5:58 stations. Drivers are being
5:59 offered days route pay as if
6:01 they were working 10 hours
6:02 just for showing up, the
6:05 coalition will hand out blue t
6:05 shirts that say dry delivery,
6:08 drivers say no to intro
6:10 hundred 18 signs and we'll
6:10 have its own film crew drivers
6:13 were forced to attend in
6:15 mandatory meetings, management
6:16 asked in front of everyone who
6:18 was not going to go and they
6:20 made us raise our hands in
6:20 front of our co workers
6:23 .everyone knows the owner and
6:24 what he's like, so everyone
6:25 knows that if you raise your
6:26 hand or refuse, they will
6:28 start cutting your workdays
6:29 puts you on standby or tell
6:31 you, amazon, cut your route
6:34 and that continues until you
6:35 give up and quit. That's an e
6:36 mail again that I received
6:38 yesterday from a group of
6:39 drivers. I'm concerned that
6:41 driver's face retaliation
6:43 unless they participate in
6:43 opposition to this bill, and
6:46 I'm here with a simple
6:47 proposition New yorkers need
6:49 good jobs where they're
6:50 treated with respect, and New
6:53 yorkers deserve safe streets
6:54 and my bill would make New
6:57 yorkers, including workers,
6:59 safer, it would require
7:00 licensing for last mile
7:02 facilities. Direct employment
7:03 of drivers protection against
7:05 unfair ternatimion and
7:06 retaliation real worker
7:09 training, and we've had a
7:10 noutpouring of support from
7:11 workers, unions, environmental
7:13 groups and traffic safet
7:15 yorganizations. I look forward
7:17 to hearing from those most
7:17 directly impacted by this
7:19 industry industry during
7:20 today's hearing as we move
7:22 toward passing this essential
7:23 legislation. So thank you,
7:28 chair. Thank you,
7:30 councilmember gabon now I'd
7:32 like to welcome the
7:34 administration for being here
7:35 and we'll be hearing directly
7:37 from them. Carlos ortiz,
7:40 michael, tiger and emily
7:41 hoffman got councils wear them
7:45 in. Do you affirm to tell th
7:46 etruth, the whole truth and
7:47 nothing but the truth before
7:47 this committee and to respond
7:49 honestly to counts member
7:50 questions I do, I do, pepe.
7:56 Good morning, sherif. Seen
7:56 members of the committee on
7:57 consumer and worker protectio
7:59 n. My name is carlos ortiz and
8:00 I am the chief of staff and
8:01 deputy commissioner for
8:02 external affairs at the
8:03 department of consumer work
8:04 protection. I am joined by our
8:06 general counsel michael tiger
8:08 and director of litigation in
8:08 our office of the labor policy
8:09 and standards. Emily hoffman.
8:13 Thank you for the opportunity
8:13 to testify before the
8:14 committee today on instruction
8:18 500, the New York City
8:18 department. Consumer worker
8:19 protection is the nation's
8:20 leading municipal enforcement
8:21 agency charged with delivering
8:23 economic justice. These
8:24 leverage is its authority to
8:25 bring New yorkers real
8:26 economic relief and protect
8:27 them from predatory, deceptive
8:30 and unfair practices that
8:30 violate their rights as
8:31 consumers and workers. This
8:34 includes pioneering cutting
8:35 edge protections such as the
8:36 city's consumer protection law
8:37 protect the time ofthe law
8:39 fair workweek law and delivery
8:41 worker laws, including the
8:42 minimum pay rate for deliver
8:45 yworkers through licensing more
8:46 than 45000 businesses in over
8:48 45 industries in fair
8:49 competition in a level playing
8:50 field for responsible small
8:52 businesses that are integral
8:53 to New York city's vibrant
8:56 communities. Tcp also provides
8:57 essential services such as
8:57 free tax preparation and
8:59 financial counseling to ensure
9:00 New York keep more of what
9:00 they are and we can plan for
9:03 their futures. This is
9:04 committed to making sure New
9:05 York City is a fair more for
9:07 more affordable place to live
9:10 under Mayor mamdani commission
9:12 , levin is built upon our
9:13 historic track record of
9:13 success to go even further and
9:15 take on the challenge of
9:16 delivering economic justice t
9:18 onew yorkers from expanding the
9:19 minimum pay rates a grocery
9:21 delivery workers to litigatin
9:22 gagainst predatory corporate
9:25 entities to adopting New
9:25 protections against junk and
9:27 other consumer traps are fight
9:28 on behalf of New yorkers
9:29 economic lives has been
9:31 relentless last year we
9:32 delivered our record breaking
9:35 $44.4 million in rest to more
9:36 than 24000 workers through our
9:38 enforcement of cornerstone
9:39 ,New York City workplace laws
9:41 such as the fair workweek law
9:42 protect time off delivery
9:43 worker laws and more so far in
9:47 20 26. We've already secured
9:48 more than $9.3 million for New
9:52 yorkers that represents nearly
9:52 $100000 back to New yorkers
9:54 per day since the start of the
9:57 administration. This is real
9:58 economic relief for New
9:59 yorkers at a time when
9:59 affordability is a central
10:00 issue in all of our lives, we
10:03 take our crucial role of
10:04 delivering economic justice
10:04 with great pride and
10:07 responsibility the
10:08 corporations or companies that
10:09 shirt their legal obligations
10:10 to exploit New yorkers are my
10:12 sister's clear you will be
10:15 held accountable as the mom
10:16 down administration was David
10:16 with an ambitious vision for
10:18 economic justice. We will
10:18 continue to implement and
10:20 enforce vital protections for
10:25 New yorkers turning to today's
10:26 legislation introduction 580
10:27 requires operators of certain
10:29 warehouses and storage
10:29 facilities from which goods
10:30 are delivered to consumers in
10:32 the City to obtain a business
10:33 license from creepy. This bill
10:37 also provides for work
10:37 remedies when companies do not
10:39 comply through administrative
10:40 enforcement and a private
10:42 right of action supports
10:44 instruction 580 in the last
10:47 decade, last mile. Facility
10:48 jobs have grown significantly
10:49 in New York City and companies
10:51 in the space are benefiting
10:52 from record profits, however,
10:55 protections for workers at
10:56 last month. Facilities have
10:57 lagged behind other cutting
10:58 edge work protections
10:59 establishing fairness and
11:03 civility last month,
11:03 facilities frequently
11:04 subcontract much of their core
11:05 delivery work instead of
11:05 hiring their own employees t
11:06 odo the work, this model
11:10 externalize his costs as wel
11:11 las liabilities, which can lead
11:12 to labor violations and the
11:14 exploitation of workers and
11:16 nof the parent company from I
11:22 liability in those spaces has
11:23 supported efforts to eliminate
11:25 self contracting such as
11:25 through the safe hotels act,
11:29 even though last mile facility
11:30 subcontract work. They still
11:31 maintain significant control
11:33 of workers schedules, workflow
11:36 and lives oftentimes
11:36 oftentimes pressuring workers
11:38 to reach unreasonable quotas
11:39 without taking responsibility
11:40 for any subsequent issues that
11:44 arise. The parent companies
11:44 are therefore the root problem
11:45 and must be held accountable
11:48 for any exploitation of
11:48 workers or violations of the
11:51 law while we have concerns
11:51 with certain provisions of the
11:52 bill. Ultimately, we believe
11:54 this bill will empower the
11:55 agency to address these core
11:56 economic justice issues on
11:58 behalf of thousands of workers
11:59 we look forward to working
12:00 with the council for passage
12:01 of this legislation. Thank you
12:04 for the opportunity to testify
12:05 before the committee on
12:06 today's legislation, as alway
12:07 s, we are eager to partner with
12:08 the council legislation to
12:08 improve protections for
12:11 workers and prioritize
12:12 economic justice in our City.
12:13 I welcome any questions you
12:14 have for further discussion.
12:18 Thank you. I want to recognize
12:19 my colleagues, counselor jose
12:21 and who have joined us today
12:23 and thank the administration
12:25 for their testimony and the
12:26 work they've done really? Just
12:27 in a few months just over, you
12:31 know, it's just three months
12:33 in the year, so the
12:35 congratulations on that the
12:36 achievement. Thank you up. I
12:38 want to start focusing on the
12:40 comptroller report from the
12:41 end of last year. I want to
12:42 get a sense of did you read I
12:44 t. What it was assessment of
12:47 the the fact finding the
12:48 controller did around last
12:51 mile facilities. Thank you for
12:52 the queer chart up that