Thanks to GSPI Co-Chair Karen Yau for sharing news about NYC’s Municipal IDs!
Check out Karen’s latest update from the Government Service & Public Interest Committee:
Dear Colleagues,
Hope you are well!
There are many reasons to attend our Government Service and Public Interest Committee events. A chief one among them is that you will meet very interesting people and learn very interesting information.
As many of you know, NYC’s Municipal ID has been very popular and useful. But it has also been hard to get an appointment to secure it. See:http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/07/nyregion/more-popular-than-expected-new-yorks-id-program-has-officials-scrambling.html?_r=0
At last Friday’s panel discussion on the proposed changes to the
Specialized High School admissions process, in the after-event reception, I met a deputy director of the Municipal ID Program and learned that its capacity has recently increased greatly. Interested persons can get appointments almost immediately.
I have just tried it and secured appointments for me and my husband with no problem. I highly recommend that you check out the program. The ID comes with many privileges, including free membership to cultural institutions. http://www1.nyc.gov/site/idnyc/benefits/museums-and-cultural-institutions.page
Sincerely,
Karen
GSPI Committee Co-chair
If you’d like to become more active in AABANY’s Government Service & Public Interest Committee, feel free to contact Karen at [email protected] to join their mailing list, attend or volunteer at their events, and hear the latest. You can join their LinkedIn Group by clicking here. Our GSPI Committee is one of our most active, and there’s always room for more!
Responding to the Needs of Immigrants and Immigrant Families in New York: Implementation of Executive Action for the Unauthorized
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
9am to 5pm
Sheen Center
18 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10012
Over the last several years, communities throughout the nation have prioritized initiatives to regularize the lives of persons in need of protection, including individuals and families with members that lack immigration status. In the New York City metropolitan area, public and private entities have devoted extensive resources to mobilizing in response to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, to planning for the newly announced Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) program, and to providing legal and resettlement services to children and families who have fled violence and privation in Central America and Mexico.
In recent months, New York collaborative initiatives have intensified in response to the massive Executive Action programs announced by President Obama on November 20, 2014, which will cover the unauthorized parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (DAPA). The President also announced the expansion of the DACA program and other important, but more modest initiatives. This work comes in the midst of New York City’s municipal identification card program, “IDNYC,” launched in January 2015, and on top of large-scale “steady state” work with immigrants by community-based organizations.
To examine the coordinated response of public and non-profit entities to the DAPA and DACA programs, the Archdiocese of New York, the Diocese of Brooklyn, the Diocese of Rockville Centre, and the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) are hosting an all-day event on March 25th at the Sheen Center, located in Manhattan’s NoHo neighborhood.
The event will include key-note presentations by faith leaders, as well as panel discussions with federal, state, and local officials, legal service agencies, community-based agencies, and national immigrant rights groups. Its panel discussions will:
- Examine federal, New York State and New York City policy, outreach, and initiatives on Executive Action.
- Explore legal services mobilization efforts by public and private entities and other collaborative programs in New York City, Long Island, and the Lower Hudson Valley, looking particularly at outreach, public education on benefit eligibility and the risk of fraud, and provision of legal screening, representation and advocacy.
- Address the role of non-legal, community-based institutions, particularly Catholic parishes, in ensuring the program’s success.
There will also be a short discussion on the work of national organizations in assisting local communities in implementing these programs and efforts to evaluate the programs’ success. After the formal event, there will be a reception and, for those interested, a roundtable discussion that will provide an opportunity to share and coordinate best practices and approaches to serving and empowering this population. The all-day event will seek to place this work in a broader policy, moral, and demographic context; improve the response to the needs of these populations in the New York metropolitan area; and identify lessons, successes and challenges in implementing these programs.
The event is free, but please register only if your attendance is definite. To register, visit http://goo.gl/forms/LDgubFchST or email your name, title, organization and email address to [email protected].
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Thank you to the New York Immigration Coalition for sharing news of this important event.
NYC’s Municipal ID Card Program Officially in Place
NYC’s Municipal ID Card Program Officially in Place
On Monday, January 12, New York City officially introduced the country’s largest municipal identification program, issuing ID cards to residents regardless of immigration status. This is a welcome measure for undocumented immigrants, who without government-issued ID cards, have found it difficult to obtain access to city services and institutions, or to carry out many routine activities such as opening a bank account, filling prescriptions, and renting an apartment. The ID card can also be used as a library card.
Enrollment is free in 2015, but fees may be charged in the future. In addition, information will not be shared with other government agencies or third parties (except for verifying applicant eligibility or in response to a subpoena or warrant), allaying many immigrants’ fears that obtaining an ID card may alert the immigration service of their undocumented status.
Known as “IDNYC,” the identification card is available to all NYC residents at least 14 years of age and who can prove identity and residency. Individuals can apply at several enrollment center locations throughout the five boroughs.
Aside from the many benefits described above, the card will provide free membership to zoos and museums.
We applaud Mayor de Blasio and the City Council for undertaking this initiative. For more information on how to apply for an IDNYC, please see the application page here and documentation requirement page here.
Best regards,
Rio, Tsui and All of Us at Guerrero Yee LLP
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The latest IDNYC update comes to us from our Immigration and Nationality Law Committee Chairs Rio Guerrero and Tsui Yee. To visit Rio and Tsui’s law firm site, dealing with immigration matters in all 50 states and in countries all over the world, click on the link above. Thank you, Rio and Tsui!
NYS Joint Commission on Public Ethics Seeks Recommendations for Qualified Candidates …
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics currently seeks recommendations for qualified candidates to serve as independent and impartial hearing officers to oversee the adjudication of Commission matters.
Hearing officers will preside over formal hearings, render decisions on certain appeals and consider questions of fact and of law in connection with administrative proceedings of and applications to the Commission. The hearing officers will be called on a case by case basis and compensated for their service.
Eligible candidates are requested to submit a resume, writing sample, and professional references to:
NYS Joint Commission on Public Ethics
25 Beaver Street
7th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10004
Candidates must have been admitted at least 10 years, must be in good standing, and must be a current New York City resident or be willing to move to New York City in the event of a possible appointment.
Eligible candidates should download the Uniform Judicial Questionnaire from the Committee ’s website at www.nyc.gov/judiciary, and should contact the Committee’s Office to request waivers. Applications will remain active for one year from the date of the receipt by this office. Applications will be accepted on a continuing basis for appointment to future vacancies as they arise.
Get Involved, Stay Connected: New York City Bar Association Committee Applications Still Being Accepted
It’s not too late to become a Committee member at the New York City Bar Association, which means that it’s not too late to become involved in over 150 areas of law within a membership body of over 24,000 students and legal professionals! NYCBA is still accepting applications for Committee member positions, and though some deadlines have passed, others are ready and willing for someone to take strong hold of the leadership opportunities.
NYCBA has reached out and noted that AABANY members are strongly encouraged to apply. The sooner, the better. Let’s get the ball rolling.
If you are interested contact [email protected]. Thank you!
New York City Bar Association Discounted Membership
The New York City Bar Association, founded in 1870 in response to public concern over the New York City justice system, is a voluntary association of students and legal professionals that has grown to a membership of over 24,000. Benefits of membership include over 150 committees working to improve and reform the practice and administration of law, a members-only library that happens to be the largest member-funded in the country, and not to mention the unparalleled professional opportunities. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Read more about membership benefits here.
The New York City Bar Association has prepared a special discount for AABANY members, waiving the one-time admission fee and giving members 20% off their semi-annual membership dues payment.
PROMO CODE: AABANY14
Go to https://www.nycbar.org/cgi-bin/special_offer_aaba.pl
Get it while it’s hot, folks.