Public Employee Press

Looking Ahead
DC 37 Legislative Conference
Planning for 2005

Buoyed by the union’s landmark civilianization victory, hundreds of members at DC 37’s annual Legislative Conference Oct. 23 prepped to press for action on working people’s needs.

“We have to tell the governor, the mayor and the legislators that our city needs more,” said Political Action Director Wanda Williams. “We need equity for our school children, more state funding for better health care. And we need to see our civilianization victory in arbitration implemented with uniformed police on the streets and more DC 37 members behind the desks.”

The daylong legislative seminar was jampacked, including a substantial contingent of retirees, as City Council member Alan Jennings described his involvement with the union’s civilianization case. Keynote speaker Andrew Cuomo blasted the state’s draconian Rockefeller drug laws, and lauded the state Court of Appeals for ruling the state’s death penalty law is unconstitutional.

Many local presidents and more political leaders weighed in on issues affecting DC 37 members. Participants learned of DC 37’s work with the Campaign for Fiscal Equity on a lawsuit that could bring an additional $5.6 billion a year in state aid to city public schools. The union advocates raising revenue by restoring the commuter and stock transfer taxes and closing corporate tax loopholes. It continues to work with community groups to build solidarity on labor and immigration issues.

State Assembly member José Peralta offered lobbying tips such as, “Let them know you live in the district. Let them know you vote.”

“The idea of civilianization met tough resistance,” Mr. Jennings said. “But it was a commonsense idea to save the city millions.” City Council member Eva Moskowitz said she supports DC 37 in its ongoing battles with the Dept. of Education. She said DOE “must explain its policies to parents and the public.”

“Human resources shell game”
But DOE’s recent reorganization is a “human resources shell game with the odds stacked against parents, children and staff,” said Veronica Montgomery-Costa, president of Local 372 and DC 37.

Criticizing the agency’s contracting out of food delivery she said that, “Local 372 members can do the job for less, provide safer delivery of food, are more accountable and are less likely to commit contract fraud.” (See 'Union asks guarantees on HHC food plan'.)

The afternoon session began with workshops on pensions, education, health care and retirement issues. Panels held question-and-answer sessions.

Keynoter Andrew Cuomo said, “New York State doesn’t need the death penalty. It’s expensive and discriminatory.” He contrasted the economic prosperity under President Clinton with Republican “political pandering” and said, “We’ve become a nation of haves and have-nots. There’s the rich and then the rest.”

“Governor Pataki has mastered the art of doing nothing,” he continued. “State government is not getting anything done.”

In the spring, DC 37 conference participants will go to Albany with improved grassroots lobbying skills. They will press lawmakers to support labor’s agenda on funding for quality public health care, libraries and education. “The system responds to people power,” Mr. Cuomo said.

— Diane S. Williams