Inside Authorities is a Q&A collection that offers New Yorkers a glimpse contained in the function of the elected officers who signify them. This version of Inside Authorities with PoliticsNY options New York State Assembly Member Nikki Lucas. Meeting Member Lucas represents the sixtieth Meeting District in Brooklyn which incorporates East New York & Starrett Metropolis.
What piece of laws are you most proud to have handed this legislative session?
I’m proud to have co-sponsored Invoice A00355C, a regulation that eases the burden on low-income households by reducing property taxes. If a nonprofit, land financial institution, or group land belief transfers a house to a family incomes lower than 80% of the realm’s median revenue, that household could qualify for a 25–75% tax exemption. This measure helps households afford, hold, and preserve housing whereas encouraging nonprofits to develop reasonably priced housing improvement and long-term group stability.
How does your workplace work to assist your constituents of their day-to-day lives?
Constituent companies are the center of my work. My workplace ensures residents’ are heard and wishes addressed. For housing points, like repairs, lease, or eviction, we step in, contact companies resembling HRA or HPD, and even accompany constituents to hearings. Past housing, we assist households with advantages, join seniors to companies, information job seekers to alternatives, and assist small companies. We don’t simply reply calls, we take motion to make authorities accessible and efficient.
What’s the most prevalent problem dealing with your constituents and the way are you working to resolve it?
Housing is among the most crucial points for my constituents. My workplace supplies direct assist to residents making use of for reasonably priced housing via NYC Housing Join. We maintain workshops, information folks via the applying course of, and credit score readiness so that they’re ready when alternatives come up. I additionally maintain builders accountable to ship reasonably priced items and push for Space Median Earnings (AMI) ranges that mirror our zip codes – not citywide averages that value out native households.
What do you hope to perform by the tip of 2025?
My focus is empowering residents with actual alternatives for stability and success. Meaning getting ready for careers, pursuing residence possession, and gaining abilities to thrive. I’m working with nonprofits, commerce unions, and utility corporations to carry commerce coaching into faculties. College students graduate with each diplomas and profession choices in carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and extra. These good-paying jobs construct wealth and stability. My aim is easy: create pathways to monetary independence and powerful futures for households.
What’s the proudest second of your political profession?
I’m happy with the stance I took on the reparations invoice. I insisted that lineage-based chattel slavery be included. Households, enslaved in the US and by U.S. corporations, ought to obtain reparations. I held agency and noticed that place included within the closing invoice. I additionally imagine the state should dedicate not less than 18 months of funded analysis. This isn’t nearly {dollars}, it’s about reshaping a story that has lengthy devalued African Individuals.
