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The City Council on Thursday voted to approve a torrent of bills related to criminal justice, housing construction, labor and even a resolution honoring the New York Knicks in an end-of-year push before the turnover of power at City Hall and the Council itself.
Lawmakers weighed more than 50 bills and over a dozen resolutions on Thursday night during the final stated Council meeting for outgoing Speaker Adrienne Adams of Queens, whose term expires at the end of the year. She is expected to be replaced by Council member Julie Menin, a Democrat from the Upper East Side, who last month said she had enough support from her colleagues to be elected the chamber’s next leader.
Among the passed legislation are bills that increase the prevailing wage for construction workers on some affordable housing projects to a minimum $40 hourly; a duo of bills that establish “just cause” protections for for-hire drivers and food delivery workers; and a package of bills that expand services and the number of licenses for street vendors.
Lawmakers also approved a trio of bills, reviled by real estate groups, that seek to regulate the building of affordable housing.
Ahead of the meeting, Speaker Adams spoke about her legacy as the first Black woman to lead the chamber and her tenure as speaker advancing affordable housing, equality and workers’ rights.
“Our historic representation fully represented the breadth of New Yorker’s experience, allowing us to lead differently than our predecessors,” said Adams.
“Our city is only as strong as our people, and I am so proud of how we prioritized New Yorkers over the last four years when chaos in this building was all too present,” she said, in an apparent rebuke of the mayor. “As public servants it is our responsibility to improve the conditions of our communities, ensuring that all of us can lead safe, healthy and dignified lives.”
Lawmakers continued to amend and discuss their bills well into Thursday afternoon – delaying the votes by several hours past the 1:30 p.m. scheduled start time. Council majority leader Amanda Farías (D-The Bronx) announced the final vote tallies shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday.
Mayor Eric AdamHowever, many of the bills had a veto-proof majority in the Council. ills if he chooses. Any measure not vetoed will become law at the end of the year, even if the mayor does not sign them.
The mayor flew to Mexico this week on what his staff has described as a non-taxpayer-funded trip; he has not said when he will return to New York.
Wage Boosts and Job Protections
The Council overwhelmingly approved highly sought-after wage boosts and job protections for workers in a variety of industries, from construction and building services to gig workers.
In a victory for unions and community groups, developers of some city-funded affordable housing projects will be required to hire workers locally and to pay a minimum combined wage and benefits package of at least $40 an hour after lawmakers approved the wage boost by a veto-proof majority. In a rally ahead of the vote, lawmakers and union leaders from LiUNA Laborers Local 79 said that it was a long road to approve the bill, known as the Construction Justice Act, noting that it was roughly seven years in the making.
Gig-work giants, including Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Grubhub, will be prohibited from locking workers out of their accounts unless for just cause or “bona fide economic reasons,” after lawmakers approved a pair of bills introduced by Council members Shekar Krishnan of Queens and Justin Brannan of Brooklyn that seek to protect for-hire vehicle drivers and delivery workers from that they describe as unjust firings.
Taxi Worker Alliance director Bhairavi Desai speaks outside City Hall ahead of bill to add just cause protections or app-based drivers,
Taxi Worker Alliance director Bhairavi Desai speaks outside City Hall ahead of bill to add just cause protections or app-based drivers, Dec. 18, 2025. Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Krishnan, who introduced the driver bill last year, rallied with members of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance outside of City Hall ahead of Thursday’s vote. Also on the for-hire vehicle driver front, lawmakers approved a separate bill that allows drivers to park in unused commercial metered spaces for bathroom and other work breaks.
Building security guards won wage increases, benefits and paid time off standards under a bill championed by the union 32BJ SEIU that is named after fallen member Aland Etienne, the security officer who died in the line of duty at the mass shooting at 345 Park Avenue in July. A veto-proof majority of lawmakers voted to approve the reforms Thursday.
Street Vendors Win Long-Fought Reforms
The Council approved the first expansion since the 1970s of permits for merchandise vendors, which are currently limited to 853 and have years-long waiting lists, adding 10,500 new licenses in 2027. The same measure adds 2,200 new food vending permits annually for the next five years.
In all, the vending system will see 21,500 more new permits — which along with existing permits add up to a systemwide total of 29,413. The Immigration Research Initiative estimates that about 23,000 vendors currently operate in the city, most without a permit.
Street vendors rally outside City Hall ahead of full Council hearing,
Street vendors rally outside City Hall ahead of full Council hearing, Dec. 18, 2025. Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
The bill initially would have eventually lifted the permit cap entirely, and vendors and their advocates have pushed the bill for more than two years, making concessions to address brick-and-mortar retailers’ concerns.
The new law comes with new rules that would suspend or revoke licenses for repeat violators of rules that require vendors to keep sidewalks clean and clear of obstructions.
“We’re here with a bill that is stronger, clearer and more balanced than where we began,” said the bill’s lead sponsor, Council member Pierina Sanchez (D-The Bronx).
Affordable Housing Restrictions
Over the objections of the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and a host of affordable housing advocates, the Council approved three bills that add guidelines for new affordable housing development.
One bill dictates a minimum proportion of two- and three-bedroom apartments within new developments. Another, aimed at subsidized buildings, says half of apartments must be targeted for extremely and very low-income households. And a third bill requires HPD to set aside at least 4% of new city-subsidized apartments to be for homeownership, not rentals, over five years.
A construction worker joins a City Hall rally ahead of a Council vote on a bill to increase wages for affordable housing projects,
A construction worker joins a City Hall rally ahead of a Council vote on a bill to increase wages for affordable housing projects, Dec. 18, 2025. Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Bill sponsors said they were filling a need for struggling New Yorkers seeking housing and addressing gaps in affordable housing portfolios, but those who opposed argued that the measures imposed high costs and a lack of flexibility that would actually stymie housing production.
Handing the Mayor Adams administration a win, the Council also passed a bill mandating landlords to provide cooling equipment in the bedrooms of tenants, such that the air temperature stays no hotter than 78 degrees. This would create a cooling season — similar to the winter’s heating season — between June 15 and Sept. 15.
The legislation would take effect in June 2030, and tenants would have to opt in to get a cooling option, such as an air conditioner, starting in March 2028. The Adams administration made setting a maximum air temperature a goal as part of the 2023 edition of PlaNYC, the city’s sustainability agenda.
Police Oversight
The Council approved a bill granting the Civilian Complaint Review Board, which independently investigates alleged NYPD misconduct, direct access to footage from officers’ body-worn cameras. The legislation is meant to speed the timeline for evidence in response to a report by Comptroller Brad Lander that found the CCRB faces lengthy timelines and constraints on obtaining documents and body-camera footage. The Police Benevolent Association staunchly opposed the bill, saying it would drive cops to quit.
Additional reporting by Katie Honan.