NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Friday vetoed a controversial City Council bill that would allow the NYPD to set up “buffer zones” around schools and educational facilities during protests, raising tensions with Council Speaker Julie Menin who could move to eliminate them.
Mamdani’s first veto comes as his working relationship with Menin has grown strained over disagreements over how to deal with the city’s billion-dollar budget deficit. The bill that Mamdani vetoed arose out of concern that protests against Israel’s war in Gaza had created chaos on local college campuses.
In a statement on Friday morning, Mamdani expressed concern over how broadly the bill defines an educational institution and also that it raises constitutional concerns around the right of individuals to protest. He argued that the bill as written could apply to universities, museums and teaching hospitals.
“This could impact workers protesting ICE, or demanding their school be divested of fossil fuels, or college students demonstrating in support of Palestinian rights,” he said. “(The bill) is not a narrow public safety measure; it is a piece of legislation that has alarmed people across this city, including the labor movement, reproductive rights groups and immigration advocates, among others.”
But Mamdani said he would sign another measure sponsored by Menin that would establish protest “buffer zones” outside houses of worship. He argued that the measure initially raised constitutional concerns but that the final version is “narrow in scope and impact.” Nevertheless, he said he did not agree with what he described the bill as “presenting all protests as a security concern”.
“The NYPD needs to document its current practices related to protests near houses of worship,” he said. “After a thorough legal review, I do not believe it poses the same risks as before, and that is why I will allow it to become law.”
The House of Worship-focused bill came in response to concerns over anti-Israel protests. In particular, outrage grew last year when pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in front of a synagogue on the Upper East Side, where a group had organized an event to promote land sales to Israel and parts of the occupied West Bank.
Neither bill specifies how large the NYPD buffer zones could be. Instead, they propose allowing the NYPD to determine how large zones should be on a case-by-case basis.
The Council passed the educational facilities legislation, which was sponsored by Education Committee Chairman Eric Dinowitz, with 30 yes votes – four short of the veto-proof majority.
Menin is considering the votes to try to muster enough support to override Mamdani’s veto, according to two people with knowledge of her thinking. The people, who were granted anonymity to discuss internal negotiations, told POLITICO that a final decision had not yet been made on whether to attempt an override.
In a statement, the Speaker made it clear that he disagreed with the mayor’s veto.
“Ensuring that students can enter and exit their schools without fear of harassment or intimidation should not be controversial,” he said. “This bill requires the NYPD to clearly outline how it will ensure safe access when there is a threat of obstruction or physical injury while fully protecting First Amendment rights.”
Mamdani’s decision to veto one bill and let another stand may have been a matter of simple mathematics.
Unlike the educational facilities-related measure, the bill related to houses of worship passed with a veto-proof majority. If he had vetoed that bill, it would probably have been easier for the Council to reject him.
While Mamdani’s veto is creating friction at the city level, Governor Kathy Hochul has adopted a state-level measure in ongoing state budget negotiations that would allow protest-related buffer zones. He told reporters earlier this month that the measure would “protect people and their right to practice their faith without persecution.”
Hochul’s plan would allow buffer zones outside houses of worship and medical clinics that provide fertility services.
The governor’s bill has been criticized by the New York Civil Liberties Union as well as abortion-rights advocates due to concerns that the measure would be implemented too broadly.
“We already have existing legal protections, but we also know the unintended consequences,” said Robin Chappell Golston, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Empire State ACT, a former colleague of Hochul’s. “If something doesn’t hold up against judicial scrutiny, we could actually lose more rights and more protections.”
Both city-level bills were also rejected by advocates who are closely aligned with Mamdani, including the Democratic Socialists of America, the New York Civil Liberties Union and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, as well as labor groups such as the Professional Staff Congress, the City University of New York’s faculty and staff union. Members of the council’s Progressive Caucus also opposed it.
Council Member Tiffany Cabán, who co-chairs the body’s Progressive Caucus, praised the mayor’s veto, arguing against giving police “more tools to suppress dissent and brutalize protesters.”
“I am grateful that the Mayor has vetoed this ill-conceived bill, which would further enable efforts to criminalize protests and stifle free speech,” Cabán said in a statement.
Dinowitz told Politico that he learned of Mamdani’s decision on Friday morning. He said he was “disappointed” and stressed that there was no text in the bill that restricted freedom of expression.
“Fundamentally, students deserve protections and New Yorkers deserve transparency, and that’s what this bill does,” he said. “Students should not be harassed when entering their school building. It’s that simple.”
With additional reporting by Nick Reisman
