REMARKS
Council Member Julie Menin introduces Intro 991, the Safe Hotels Act
0:43:43
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119 sec
Council Member Julie Menin introduces the Safe Hotels Act to address issues in New York's hospitality sector.
- Consumer complaints about hotels have doubled in the past 5 years to the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) and Better Business Bureau.
- The bill requires all hotels to be licensed and prohibits subcontracting for core services.
- It sets standards to prevent human trafficking, maintain hygiene, install panic buttons, and protect workers.
- Menin cites a 2021 homicide at a hotel where the city had no jurisdiction as an example of the need for regulation.
- She emphasizes the bill addresses consumer protection, public safety, and workers' rights issues.
Julie Menin
0:43:43
Thank you, majority leader.
0:43:44
Today, I'm thrilled to introduce INTRO 991, also called the SAFE Hotels Act.
0:43:50
I want to thank council members Hudson, Dela Rosa, Abreu, Files, Juan, Schulman, and Banks for joining me on this critical bill.
0:43:59
New York's hospitality sector is one of the best things about our city.
0:44:03
There are so many high quality hotels that keep visitors coming back.
0:44:07
But unfortunately, there are too many that threaten the well-being of their guests, neighbors, and workers.
0:44:13
Consumer complaints about hotels have doubled in the past 5 years to DCWP and complaints to the Better Business Bureau about hotels have doubled nationwide also in the past 5 years to over 15,000 complaints per year.
0:44:29
My bill is about ensuring that all hotels in our city are operated in a responsible manner by targeting the bad actors that are operating in our city.
0:44:38
For example, at the beginning of 2021, New York City Experience its first homicide of the year at the umbrella hotel in cue gardens.
0:44:46
Despite numerous complaints made by community members about this hotel prior to the murder, no action could be taken because the city literally had no jurisdiction over the hotel.
0:44:57
The hotel ended up closing in 2021 but it was the management's not the city's decision to do so.
0:45:04
Licensing, quite frankly, is one of the most powerful and effective tools we have to regulate businesses.
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My bill would require all hotels to be licensed, prohibit subcontracting for core services, set standards to prevent human trafficking, and meet minimum hygiene standards with the sanitation policy, install panic buttons and guest rooms, maintain certain records for DCWP, and protect workers.
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In short, we're addressing a consumer public safety and workers' rights issue all in one bill.
0:45:32
Hotels are an important economic driver of the city and we wanna make sure that they are properly regulated in a way that benefits all.
0:45:39
I asked my colleagues to sign on to this vital bill.
0:45:41
Thank you.