The state legislative session ends Wednesday, and leaders now say they're hopeful they can reach a deal renewing mayoral control of city schools. NY1's Zack Fink filed the following report.
There are more leaders meetings taking place behind closed doors in the Capitol, but still no final deal to wrap everything up in Albany as the session draws to a close.
Independent Democratic Conference leader Jeff Klein says the Senate is now considering a two-year extension of mayoral control. Mayor Bill de Blasio has only been granted one-year extensions each of the last two years.
"We are hopeful we can do a two-year on mayoral control. But again, that is not an agreement yet," Klein said.
In a conference call earlier in the day with former Education Secretary Arne Duncan, de Blasio expressed his frustration that mayoral control still hasn't been resolved.
"I can’t remember when an issue of this important went this late in the day with so little action," the mayor said. "The support for mayoral control is across the ideological spectrum."
The mayor has opted not to come to Albany himself to lobby for mayoral control. Instead, he sent his schools chancellor, Carmen Fariña, who says they are preparing for the worst should mayoral control expire.
"I would not be a very good head of schools if I did not have contingency plans for all kinds of scenarios. Obviously, yes," Fariña said.
De Blasio has sent up some members of his administration to Albany this week to push for various pieces of legislation they would like to see passed, including more speed cameras.
"Yes, it's basically doubling the number," said Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. "The city currently has the ability to put speed cameras in 140 speed zones. This would add 150, 50 per year for the next three years."
The city is also seeking design/build authority that the state already has. That greatly streamlines the process for building infrastructure. And finally, Governor Andrew Cuomo has introduced a bill that would give the state a majority on the MTA board.