Gov. Hochul is not removing Mayor Adams from office, but is proposing a series of strict guardrails that would impose greater oversight and control over the operations of New York City government, a source familiar with the plans told the Daily News.
Hochul is expected to unveil the plan to expand oversight of the local government through state and city legislation on Thursday as questions swirl about Adams’ ability to lead in wake of the terms of the DOJ’s decision to dismiss criminal charges against him.
The move doesn’t mean she is ruling out removing him from office in the future, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preempt an announcement.
The proposed guardrails would, if implemented, allow top citywide elected officials, like the comptroller, the council speaker and the public advocate, to file lawsuits against the federal government without input from the mayor’s office and expand the oversight powers that the city’s Department of Investigation and the state inspector general hold.
Her plan would also give the state comptroller’s office a bigger budget for oversight of the city’s finances, according to the source. Specifically, Hochul’s proposal would add a new deputy state inspector general with oversight of the mayor’s operations, according to the New York Times.
The move was first reported by NY1.
State legislators will have to vote the proposals through to put them in place.
Calls for the mayor’s removal have grown as Trump’s Justice Department has pushed to throw out Adams’ federal corruption case on the basis that his indictment impedes the mayor’s abilities to carry out the president’s hardline immigration agenda in the Big Apple.
Critics and former allies of the mayor have called into question his ability to lead the city in what some have characterized as a “hostage” situation.
Adams is accused him of selling off his political influence to wealthy foreign businessmen, some tied to the Turkish government, and is further accused of soliciting and accepting illegal campaign contributions from his foreign benefactors. He’s pleaded not guilty to a five-count indictment.
“I encourage the mayor to examine all of his actions and know that he’s going to be under a spotlight,” Hochul said last week. “…He has to demonstrate to New Yorkers that he’s putting them first above all, and that includes in his relationships at the White House.”
The governor hosted a series of meetings this week with city and state leaders to determine Adams’ future and to consider whether to boot him from office, which is in her power as governor.
At an unrelated press conference on Thursday, Adams did not respond to questions about the governor’s move but flashed two thumbs up.
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