NYC NOW - January 29, 2024: Morning Headlines

Episode Date: January 29, 2024

Get up and get informed! Here’s all the local news you need to start your day: The New York City Council is preparing to hold a vote on Tuesday to override vetoes by Mayor Eric Adams on a pair of bills. Meanwhile, some New Yorkers in need of housing could catch a break under Mayor Adams’ plan to issue thousands of federal rental assistance vouchers but the proposal is short on details. Plus, the city has launched “NYC Free Tax Prep,” offering free tax services to eligible residents.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Monday, January 29. Here's the morning headlines from Michael Hill. The New York City Council is preparing to hold a vote tomorrow to override vetoes by Mayor Eric Adams on a pair of bills. One bill, the so-called How Many Stops Act, would require police to document low-level interactions with the public. City Council Speaker Adrian Adams told WBLS yesterday the law will keep police officers accountable on the job. While we absolutely need our NYPD partners to continue to keep us safe to the best of their ability, what we do not need is the abuse of that.

Speaker Adams says the reporting will highlight any racial bias. The legislation would require police to report the race, gender, and other characteristics of people, NYPD officer stop. The mayor argues the bill would drown police in excessive paperwork and make the city less safe. Some New Yorkers in need of housing aid could catch a break later this year under Mayor Adams' plan to issue thousands of federal rental assistance vouchers, but as WNYC's David Brand reports, the proposal is short on details. The federal Section 8 program is helping nearly 100,000 households pay their rent in the five boroughs. But New York City, stopped accepting new Section 8 applications in 2009, three mayors ago. By then, tens of thousands of

people had put their name on a waiting list for a limited number of housing vouchers. Now, Adams is touting a plan to reopen applications, with the waiting list down to about 7,000 households. But there's no clear time frame for when that will actually happen. City officials are saying only that it'll be sometime later this year. Time to get our tax documents ready. Tax season is here. is accepting on-time tax returns starting today through April 15th. Some New York City residents will be eligible for free help with filling out tax forms this year. Today, city officials are launching NYC Free Tax Prep, a program providing professional tax preparation services free of charge.

Annual income caps for the program are $59,000 for single filers and couples without dependents and $85,000 for families. 38 with light snow and some spots out there. A chance of rain and snow a little bit more by about 9 o'clock this morning than a chance of snow, mostly cloudy and 42 for a high. Tomorrow partly sunny and 37 for a high. Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC.

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