QUESTION
What actions is the Mayor's Office of Operations taking to address staffing and city service concerns?
1:35:05
·
4 min
The Mayor's Office of Operations focuses on supplying data to leadership for informed decisions regarding staffing and city service impacts, with specific attention on Deputy Mayor Ison-Williams' efforts.
- The Mayor's Office of Operations primarily ensures that leadership, like Deputy Mayor Ison-Williams, is informed about issues such as staffing impacts on city services.
- Deputy Mayor Ison-Williams is aware of and working to resolve staffing issues, with a focus on the health department.
- The Office of Operations steps in directly only when requested, emphasizing its role in data provision and strategic planning.
- Interagency collaboration and data-driven approaches are highlighted as critical for coping with the complexities of managing a large city like New York.
- The council member expresses satisfaction with the attention these issues are receiving from Deputy Mayor Ison-Williams.
Lincoln Restler
1:35:05
I mean, I just I will just cite some of the examples that are in the that you have as well, I'm sure.
1:35:15
But that are concerning to me about some of the staffing impacts.
1:35:20
You know, with DOI, they're seeing a 16% increase in background check completion time.
1:35:25
And a 45% decrease in the backlog investigations getting closed due to limit limited staffing at I mentioned some of the issues of the health department around their failure to control roll tuberculosis spread to maintain the restaurant inspections.
1:35:40
There's been a decline in pest control inspections by 23%.
1:35:44
This is one of the things that the mayor purports to care about more than anything else, and we're seeing a 23% year over year decline in pest inspections.
1:35:52
Due to the lack of staffing in the health department.
1:35:56
Individuals served by co response teams, which is something that I care a ton about.
1:36:02
The catch basin's inspected by DP.
1:36:06
Average time for DOT to process permanent applications is up by 4%.
1:36:10
The So I just I guess the question I wanna ask on this because these are all really concerning trends.
1:36:23
Is Ops involved considering that you're tracking this information, focused on it, bringing accountability and transparency to it, that the project management team is thinking about strategies to increase hiring Like, are you involved in the conversations around pigs and budget cuts and, like, the impact that these are having on services, the hiring freeze decisions, the 2 to 1 for replacement policy, when the mayor is saying that there's gonna be mineral minimal disruption to city services due to the 7 rounds of budget cuts.
1:36:50
We just see a different story here.
1:36:52
And you know this data better than I do, you understand these trends better than I do, what is ops doing about it?
1:37:03
And are you all I mean, like, to help reverse this?
Dan Steinberg
1:37:07
Well, when it comes to this ocean of data, you you know, we really feel like it's our first and highest responsibility to to make sure that deputy mayor, the respective deputy mayor is aware of the problem.
1:37:19
And and is and is and has the information they need to make informed decisions.
1:37:24
So the sort of a different answer to each one, but I can tell you that DM Eyson Williams is one of our best clients and and was actually, you know, very aware of of the issues that you mentioned, and it's been working closely with the health out department to resolve them.
1:37:38
She didn't ask for our involvement necessarily, but we're always, you know, game, give you know, capacity is always an issue, obviously.
1:37:48
I think our project management team has a a sterling reputation, and and figuring out how and where to use them is is really difficult and tricky.
1:37:56
And I mentioned that I do think I add the most value in interagency work.
1:38:00
And so when deputy mayor wants to work directly with one of their agencies to to resolve something, that that's certainly their prerogative.
Lincoln Restler
1:38:10
That's helpful.
1:38:12
And glad to hear that it's on deputy mayor William Sison's radar and that she's focused on trying to address it.
1:38:19
And we'll follow-up with the health department during preliminary budget hearings to understand how they are addressing it.
1:38:24
We certainly appreciate that if she's involved, it it should be helpful.
1:38:30
And you feel that across the board, you're getting the responsiveness that is needed from deputy mayors when identifying these kinds of troubling trends.
Dan Steinberg
1:38:41
We've never had this strong in audience.
1:38:44
I do think it comes from the top in terms of what what's expected of people and and and what's required to manage a city is large and complex.
1:38:52
It's it's this one.
1:38:53
You know, each agency is the size of a local government, and and I think there is a a general confidence that data is really the only way that we can even aspire to to get all the signals we need to make informed decisions.
1:39:08
So so I am very pleased with the the the audience we have and how seriously the the the betas take