The Delivery Protection Act has 34 Council sponsors and no vote. Here's where Int. 518 stands

The fight over the Delivery Protection Act has moved out of committee rooms and onto the steps of City Hall. Mayor Zohran Mamdani accused Amazon of trying to "fear-monger" about the bill at a Bushwick press conference last week, amNY reported. On Thursday, Teamsters President Sean O'Brien used a City Hall rally to press Speaker Julie Menin to bring it to a vote, Streetsblog reported.

The bill would require large "last-mile" delivery warehouses to get a license from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, and would generally require operators to directly employ their core delivery and warehouse workers rather than rely on contractors. Amazon's delivery service partner program, in which small companies employ the drivers, is the main target.

Why it matters to residents: the bill is about who is responsible when a delivery van crashes or a worker gets hurt, and about how many delivery vehicles companies can put on city streets.

Menin told Streetsblog she has "concerns" about the bill as written, that the Council is "in conversation with the Law Department," and that she wants to be sure consumer prices don't rise. "I'm committed to working on it," she said. Amazon says the bill would hurt the small businesses it contracts with and cost jobs, according to amNY. The National Urban League's president, Marc Morial, has also urged the Council to "step back," City & State reported, arguing it would wipe out Black-owned contractors. Supporters, including Cabán, say it is a safety bill.

What our records add

The bill is Int. 518, introduced Feb. 12 by Council Member Tiffany L. Cabán. It is titled "Requiring the licensing of last-mile facilities." Earlier versions were filed in the previous Council term; this one was reintroduced this year.

It has 34 Council member sponsors. Our record lists Cabán plus 33 Council members, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, and the Brooklyn and Manhattan borough presidents. A bill needs 26 votes to pass. Among the sponsors are Majority Whip Kamillah Hanks, Gale A. Brewer, Lincoln Restler, Carmen N. De La Rosa, Oswald J. Feliz and Lynn C. Schulman. Speaker Menin, who represents District 5, is not on the sponsor list in the Council's legislative record. Streetsblog reported that Menin was among the members who signed on in support; the record we track does not show her as a sponsor.

It has waited 201 days since its only hearing. The Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection heard the bill on April 9 and laid it over. There has been no committee vote. That committee now has 106 pending items, 70 of them older than 180 days.

The administration testified in support. At the April hearing, the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection said it supports the bill and was ready to implement it if it passed. At the Council's May 29 budget hearing, a Council member asked the department whether it had the staff to enforce the bill if it passed. An official said the department "enthusiastically" supported the bill and estimated it would need 19 new positions, which were not in the executive budget.

Cabán took it to the floor in September. At the Sept. 10 stated meeting, Cabán presented a stack of almost a thousand signatures from delivery workers and called the bill "ultimately a safety bill," one she said would reduce crashes and stop companies from hiding behind contracting models to avoid liability.

A second delivery licensing bill is also pending. Int. 950, from Lynn C. Schulman with 10 sponsors, would license delivery services more broadly. It was heard Sept. 30 by three committees at once and laid over. Its sponsors include Joann Ariola, Vickie Paladino and Frank Morano, none of whom sponsor Int. 518.

Money on the other side, reported separately. amNY reported that Amazon put $5,001,377 into the Five Boroughs Jobs Campaign between February and May, according to state lobbying disclosures. That money went to a campaign group, not to any Council member's campaign.

What's next

Only the Speaker can schedule a floor vote. Menin told Streetsblog the Law Department recently sent "additional red lines" on the bill, and her office is working on what she called legal issues. No committee vote or stated meeting vote is scheduled. The next full Council meeting is Nov. 12. Amazon has invited every member to tour its delivery stations before any vote, Streetsblog reported.