Tuesday, September 22, 2026, 10 a.m. (New York City time), 250 Broadway - 8th Floor - Hearing Room 2
Committee: Committee on Civil Service and Labor
The Committee on Civil Service and Labor, chaired by Council Member Shirley Aldebol, held an oversight hearing on municipal recruitment strategies and civil service pathways. DCAS Deputy Commissioner and Chief Human Capital Officer Katrina Porter, joined by a colleague named Katie from workforce operations, testified about DCAS programs including the Civil Service Pathways Fellowship (recently doubled to 400 fellows), Public Service Corps, Summer Internship Program, Urban Fellows, the 55-a program, free exams for high school students and first-time test takers, and outreach efforts. Council members questioned DCAS on veteran recruitment, exam and hiring timelines, fee waivers, retention data, hard-to-recruit technical titles amid the Legionnaires' outbreaks, and agency decentralization. A public panel of four former City employees and good-government advocates testified on civil service modernization, urging plain-language standards, banded scoring instead of the rule of three, faster timelines, and greater transparency. No votes were taken.
0:01 Phone is off good make sure my
0:01 phone is off yeah yeah good.
0:15 Good welcome to today's New
0:17 York City Council hearing for
0:18 the committee on civil service
0:20 and labor at this time please
0:23 silence cell phones if you
0:24 wish to speak in today's
0:26 hearing please fill out one of
0:27 the parents card with one of
0:30 the sergeants moving forward
0:31 no one is to approach the dez
0:33 . Chair you begin good morning
0:40 and welcome to today's hearing
0:43 of the New York City Council's
0:45 committee on civil service and
0:46 labor I'm Council Member
0:48 charlie all ball chair of this
0:51 committee today we will will
0:53 be discussing municipal
0:54 recruitment and pathways t
0:56 ocivil service in this
0:58 committee held a hearing on
0:59 rebuilding the municipal
1:01 workforce where we discussed
1:03 discussed the New hiring
1:04 strategies and heard from
1:06 decaf commissioner to say
1:08 about how the New
1:09 administration plan to advance
1:10 the municipal workforce these
1:12 discussions touched on several
1:15 different strategies to expan
1:16 dpathways into civil service
1:17 currently the administration
1:20 operates several programs
1:21 aimed at recruiting talented
1:23 candidates to serve the City
1:26 they love and ensuring that
1:27 they are equipped with the
1:28 information they need t
1:30 osuccessfully find a position
1:31 that suits their skills the
1:33 civil service pathways
1:35 fellowship which is
1:36 administered by d caste in
1:38 partnership with cuny focuses
1:40 on recent graduates and offers
1:42 participants a two year full
1:44 time job with City agencies.
1:45 And a chance to take civil
1:47 service exam after the first
1:48 year of completed service
1:51 duca's also offers the public
1:53 service corps program which
1:56 facilitates internships with
1:57 the administration through a
1:58 work study program for
2:00 applicants who are currently
2:01 in their undergraduate or
2:02 graduate degree programs.
2:05 These annan initiatives are
2:08 offered alongside regular
2:10 outreach recruitment events
2:11 through the civil service
2:12 ambassador program these
2:13 programs are designed t
2:15 oprovide applicants with the
2:16 skills and information needed
2:18 to navigate the application
2:19 process into the municipal
2:21 workforce with particular
2:24 emphasis on increasing equity
2:26 and representation within
2:27 civil service dicus also has a
2:29 dedicated office of citywide
2:31 recruitment which is tasked
2:34 with building partnerships
2:35 with educational institutional
2:37 and community based
2:39 organizations to promote City
2:41 government jobs these efforts
2:42 are reflected in the 308
2:45 outreach events that ocr
2:47 participated in fiscal year 2
2:49 025 that were conducted across
2:51 the City.
2:51 Furthermore you want t
2:53 ohighlight that ocr has
2:54 recently expanded the types of
2:56 pathways at which they are
2:58 holding these events including
2:59 increased outreach at foster
3:02 care programs and juvenile
3:04 justice facilities yet despite
3:05 these efforts the City still
3:07 has a vacancy rate of nearly
3:10 5% overall with some agencies
3:13 seeing vacancy rates in the
3:15 double digits the department
3:16 of social services for example f
3:19 our most vulnerable New York
3:21 er's has a vacancy rate of 1
3:22 5of almost 15% and the human
3:26 rights commission has a
3:27 vacancy rate of nearly 20%
3:30 civil service vacancies have
3:32 remained persistent and we
3:32 have heard from municipal
3:35 workers union representatives
3:36 and advocates that hiring
3:38 delays can take over a year.
3:40 When that time line is
3:42 paired with non competitive
3:45 salaries inconsistent training g
3:48 opportunities the civil
3:50 service becomes unattractive
3:52 to many highly highly
3:54 qualified potential employees
3:56 moreover while we understand
3:58 that these existing timelines
3:59 mean that the New
4:02 administration's expanded
4:03 strategies will not show
4:04 measurable results yet
4:05 . We are committed to ensuring
4:06 that the policy is being today
4:08 will only serve to improve the
4:10 civil service process of
4:12 tomorrow this committee looks
4:12 forward to conducting
4:14 oversight on the department's
4:16 required outreach on
4:17 recruitment ask about how New
4:19 initiatives such as the youth
4:23 apprenticeship title
4:23 . And delve into how this
4:25 administration plans to focus
4:26 its efforts to ensure a fully
4:29 staffed municipal workforce
4:32 before we begin I'd like t
4:34 othank committee staff senior
4:36 policy analyst nina rosenberg
4:38 and senior legislative counsel d
4:43 work in preparing this hearing y
4:46 chief of staff sophia brown
4:48 and my district 13 team for
4:49 the work that you do to serve
4:53 the bronx site district 1
4:55 3constituents at this point I
4:56 would like to recognize that
4:58 we've been joined by council
5:01 members Frank Morano Chris and
5:04 Crystal I will now hear
5:06 testimony from representatives
5:08 of decaf and I'll turn t
5:09 ocommittee counsel t
5:10 oadminister the oath for this
5:13 you yes all right good morning y
5:31 from the administration before
5:32 right hand I will read the
5:37 affirmation once then call on
5:39 each of you individually to
5:41 respond do you affirm to tell
5:41 the truth the whole truth and
5:42 nothing but the truth before
5:44 this committee and to respond
5:46 honestly to Council Member
5:48 questions the reporter yes
5:51 thank you.your utor yes
6:08 good morning chair audubon
6:09 and members of the City
6:11 council's committee on civil
6:13 service and labor my name is
6:15 katrina porter and I proudly
6:17 serve as deputy commissioner
6:18 and chief human capital
6:19 officer for the department of
6:22 citywide administrative
6:22 services more commonly known
6:23 as d castes I am joined today
6:26 by my colleague katie and otar r
6:30 workforce operations at d cast.
6:32 We are grateful for the
6:34 opportunity to be here with
6:36 you today to discuss the vital
6:38 City civil service career
6:40 pathway programs overseen by
6:42 our agency each program has
6:44 its own distinct qualities but
6:48 together they create pathways
6:49 into public service for a wide
6:51 range of talent from those
6:53 just beginning their careers
6:55 to those looking to advance
6:56 and grow as well as
6:58 professionals with highly
6:59 specialized skills and
7:01 expertise what connects them
7:02 all is a shared interest in
7:05 serving government and making
7:07 a difference for New York er's
7:09 together these programs are
7:10 part of our broader efforts t
7:12 obring top talent into City
7:14 agencies and most importantly
7:17 orphan New York er's
7:18 opportunities to build
7:19 meaningful long term and life
7:20 changing careers in public
7:22 service to achieve this decaf
7:24 supports agencies by employing
7:27 strategic targeted and ongoing
7:28 recruitment efforts as well as
7:31 creating spaces and forums for
7:33 professional development it
7:34 gives us great pride to say
7:36 that decaf is often there for
7:39 municipal staff from their
7:42 very first government
7:43 application to their first day
7:44 of work work all the way
7:45 through to the day they retire s
7:49 interest in ensuring that
7:50 there are ample pipelines into
7:52 City service and that those
7:55 pathways are strong robust and
7:56 continued to evolve to meet
7:58 the ever changing workforce
8:01 landscape recognizing how the
8:02 way people find access and
8:04 engage with information has
8:06 changed and we've invested in
8:07 New ways to make civil service
8:10 more accessible starting this
8:12 past July 1 2026 civil service
8:16 exams are now free for New
8:17 York City high school students
8:19 and first time test takers
8:22 this includes all of the
8:24 city's students those
8:25 attending a public school
8:27 private school charter school
8:28 parochial school or home
8:29 school this is also afforded
8:32 us an opportunity t
8:33 opotentially reach millions of
8:34 first time test takers this
8:37 initiative was undertaken as
8:38 part of our compliance with
8:40 local law 57 of 200
8:44 5illustrates what we can
8:44 achieve when government works
8:46 together it is as much a win
8:48 for us as it is for the
8:50 council and we are grateful
8:53 for the partnership
8:54 . Coupled with our existing
8:55 fee waivers decaf is working
8:57 to ensure that financial
8:59 barriers do not stop a
9:01 prospective candidate from
9:01 applying and taking an exam in
9:03 addition this past we rolled
9:05 out a New update that allowed
9:08 notices of examination to be
9:10 translated into any language a
9:11 candidate is most comfortable
9:12 with we would like t
9:14 orecognize councilmember member
9:15 Carmen De La for this idea and
9:18 we are very excited to see how
9:20 translatable notices of exams
9:23 can remove limitations t
9:25 oaccessing information about
9:28 civil servants opportunities
9:29 as part of our compliance with
9:30 local law hundred 91 of 200
9:34 5doukas has also begun
9:35 producing and distributing
9:36 brochures to cuny for
9:38 prospective current and recent
9:41 graduate graduated students
9:43 designed to demystify the
9:44 civil service system and
9:46 provide easily digestible
9:47 information on how to get a
9:49 job in City government with
9:51 hundreds of thousands of
9:52 students across the City this
9:54 is another vital touch point
9:56 to recruit for municipal
9:58 service now I like to talk
10:00 more about our marquee
10:02 programs at decaf civil
10:04 service pathway fellowship the
10:05 urban fellows program the
10:07 public service corps summer
10:09 internship program and 55 a
10:12 the civil service pathway
10:13 fellowship is a two year
10:14 program for City university of
10:17 New York graduates designed t
10:18 ocreate a pipeline from college
10:21 to career and from college t
10:22 oa career in civil service the
10:24 fellowship is a full it's full
10:26 time and offers competitive
10:27 salary and benefits for
10:29 graduates perhaps most
10:31 importantly fellows receive
10:32 professional development
10:33 training and experience that
10:34 helps them to qualify for
10:36 various civil service exams
10:38 after completing the first
10:39 year of the program after
10:41 completing the program fellows
10:42 can transition into a full
10:44 time position within their
10:45 agency the civil service
10:47 pathway fellowship serves as a
10:48 critical component of our
10:50 talent pipeline we recruit
10:52 interested college and
10:54 graduate students for seven
10:55 different career tracks
10:55 through our program which
10:57 helps agencies and mayoral
10:59 officers fill critical service
11:01 roles just this past we
11:03 announced a major expansion t
11:05 othis program increasing it t
11:08 o400 fellows up from the prior
11:10 200 doubling the reach of the
11:11 program and creating a secon
11:13 dyearly cohort creating even
11:14 more opportunities for recent
11:16 graduates to join this program
11:18 has been nothing short of
11:19 successful with approximately
11:22 75% of graduates transitioning
11:23 to full time jobs from the
11:25 program another program we
11:26 administer is the New York
11:27 City public service courts the
11:29 nation's first and largest off
11:33 campus internship program that
11:34 connects undergraduate and
11:36 graduate students who
11:37 participate in federal work
11:39 study with paid or academic
11:42 credit internships across a
11:43 range of City agencies d cast
11:45 partners with the New York
11:46 City with New York City
11:49 colleges universities and City
11:50 agencies to offer diverse
11:53 internship experiences that
11:54 expose students to public
11:56 service careers celebrating
11:57 its sixtieth year this this
11:59 year public service corps
12:00 provides interns with crucial
12:02 experience to help them set t
12:04 ohelp set them up on a path t
12:06 opublic service this year 1
12:08 3agency partners are hosting
12:10 more than 120 public service
12:13 corps interns this program is
12:16 a tremendously beneficial one
12:17 and has seen many City City
12:18 leaders come through the
12:20 program I would also like t
12:22 ohighlight two shorter term
12:23 programs that we oversee the
12:25 first is the summer internship
12:27 program which provides
12:28 graduate and undergraduate
12:30 students and recent graduates
12:32 with valuable experience
12:33 working for City government
12:35 nand explore career
12:40 opportunities across a wide
12:41 range of City agencies interns
12:43 can work during the summer
12:45 from through September for a
12:47 maximum of 13 weeks this year
12:49 over 900 interns were hired
12:51 across 27 agencies the secon
12:55 dof our shorter term programs
12:56 is the urban fellows program a
12:58 nine month fellowship that
13:00 combines work and mayoral
13:01 officers and City agencies
13:03 with volunteer service
13:05 opportunities and a weekly
13:06 seminar series that explores
13:09 current urban issues impacting
13:10 public policy urban fellows
13:12 are placed at an array of
13:14 agencies across the City where
13:16 they learn about public policy
13:18 through a hands on approach we
13:20 continue to see a growing
13:21 number of fellows remain in
13:23 City government with 77%
13:25 saying staying on last year
13:26 and 38% said staying on this
13:29 year
13:29 . The last pathway I would
13:30 like to speak on is our 55 a
13:34 program a valuable asset in
13:36 our recruitment
13:37 . Portfolio our administration
13:38 of the 55 a program allows a
13:41 qualified person with a
13:42 certified mental or fiscal
13:45 disability to be hired into
13:47 competitive civil service
13:49 positions without having t
13:50 otake an exam as stated earliers
13:54 require the candidates to take
13:55 and pass a competitive civil
13:58 service exam before they can
14:00 be hired through our 55 a
14:03 program eligible eligible
14:04 persons are evaluated for
14:05 positions based on their
14:06 qualifications and interviews
14:08 this program is a great
14:10 equalizer for municipal hiring
14:12 and promotes City work in an
14:13 equitable manner for New York
14:15 er's currently we are working
14:16 closely with the mayor's
14:18 office of people with
14:19 disabilities to amplify its
14:23 reach in tandem with our
14:24 marquee program our marquee
14:26 recruitment programs civil
14:27 service exams continue to be
14:28 the most important pathway
14:31 into City jobs exams are the
14:33 most well known facets of
14:35 cast's work to promote
14:36 municipal work to New yorkers
14:38 more than 80% of City job City