(The Center Square) — The New York City Council on Tuesday approved a plan to limit the mayor’s authority to enter into no-bid contracts for goods and services during emergencies.
The legislation, sponsored by Speaker Julie Menin, limits the term of any emergency contract to 90 days, unless a prior approval is offered by the City Comptroller and Corporation Counsel for a longer period. If the order is extended beyond 90 days, the mayor’s office must explain why a longer term is necessary “to avoid or mitigate a serious danger to life, safety or property.”
The bill also requires emergency contracts to be submitted to the City Comptroller for audit within 15 days of execution.
“No bid emergency contracts cannot become business as usual,” Menin, a Democrat, said in a statement. “We are restoring accountability and putting real guardrails in place so crisis spending is transparent, justified, and fiscally responsible. New Yorkers deserve smart oversight, not blank checks.”
The legislation, which moves to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s desk for consideration, is seen as a check on mayoral power by the 51 member Democratic-controlled City Council.
Menin said the decisions of the last two mayoral administrations — Democrats Bill de Blasio and Eric Adams — during emergencies have “demonstrated the need for improved oversight over emergency procurements.”
“We owe it to the taxpayers to ensure that every dollar spent is tied to a verifiable service and a responsible vendor,” she said.
Backers of the proposal cited a $432 million no-bid city contract with DocGo, a private medical services provider, authorized by Adams to provide housing and other services for migrants during a surge of asylum seekers. The company was hired under emergency procedures that waived the city’s standard competitive bidding requirements.
Despite concerns raised by then City Comptroller Brad Lander, Adams decided to move ahead with the contract, and his administration defended the company’s work.
An 2024 audit of the DocGo contract by Lander revealed nearly 80% of payments to the company were “not supported” and needed to be recouped, costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
The deficiencies prompted Lander to revoke Adam’s emergency powers to sign deals with private contractors providing housing, food, laundry and other services for asylum seekers without prior approval. Adams stepped down in January after deciding not to seek another term.
