Mayor de Blasio is digging in his heels when it comes to his so-called Agents of the City. In legal papers filed in response to NY1's public records lawsuit, city lawyers are defending the mayor's unorthodox arrangement with his outside consultants, which has come under frequent fire from government watchdogs. Our Grace Rauh has the story.
When Mayor de Blasio came from behind on the campaign trail to win City Hall, he did so with the help of a group of key advisors. But unlike previous administrations, many on de Blasio's campaign team did not follow him into government. Instead, close confidants like Jonathan Rosen, who runs a powerful consulting firm, stayed on the outside but were treated like the ultimate insiders. Government watchdogs have denounced the arrangement.
"This is a very unusual and very objectionable situation where people who should be going into government to be formal advisors have now figured out some way to stay outside and form a shadow government and not be answerable to the taxpayers," said Susan Lerner with Common Cause New York. "I can't emphasize how wrong that is."
Rosen is one of five "Agents of the City" that the mayor and his lawyers have chosen to treat like city employees when it comes to public records requests, despite the fact that none are actually employed by the city.
In response to a lawsuit filed by NY1 and the New York Post, City Hall released 1,500 pages of emails between Rosen and other top officials that show he is treated like a senior City Hall advisor, and invited to meetings about major policy initiatives.
In court papers filed last week, the mayor's attorneys say Rosen and other agents "serve as confidants and special advisors, and are called upon to render confidential advice and guidance as needed."
And there's little question about the significance of Rosen's role. He is "consulting with the Mayor's staff or the Mayor on issues of public policy in furtherance of the Mayor's policy agenda," according to the court papers.
It's Jonathan Rosen's policy work that raises some of the biggest red flags. His clients include real estate developers, labor unions and groups like CitiBike. In short, people who often need a favor from City Hall.