Ben Kallos
Kallos in 2015
Member of the New York City Council
from the 5th district
In office
January 1, 2014 – January 1, 2022
Preceded byJessica Lappin
Succeeded byJulie Menin
Personal details
Born (1981-02-05) February 5, 1981 (age 43)
Florida, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materUniversity at Albany (BA)
University at Buffalo (JD)
WebsiteBenKallos.com

Benjamin J. Kallos (born February 5, 1981) is an American attorney and politician who represented the 5th district of the New York City Council from 2014 to 2021, and now serves in the Executive Office of the President in the United States Digital Service. He is a Democrat. The district includes East Harlem, Midtown, Murray Hill, Roosevelt Island and the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Kallos is also a software developer who ran his office on Agile, and has office hours at green markets.[1]

Early life and education

Kallos was born in Florida.[2] He attended Rabbi Arthur Schneier Park East Day School.[3] He then attended Bronx High School of Science, SUNY Albany as an undergraduate, and SUNY Buffalo School of Law.

Career

Kallos has served as a Manhattan Community Board 8 public member and statewide coordination committee chair for the New York Democratic Lawyers Council from 2005 to 2013. He was also chief of staff for New York State Assemblymember Jonathan Bing from 2007 to 2009,[4] director of policy for then New York City Public Advocate Mark Green in 2009, and executive director of New Roosevelt from 2010 to 2013.[5]

New York City Council

On September 10, 2013, Kallos won the Democratic primary for the 5th New York City Council District, receiving 46% of the vote to Micah Kellner's 39% and Ed Hartzog's 15%.[6] He won the general election on November 5, 2013, and assumed office on January 1, 2014.[7] On November 5, 2017, Kallos won reelection to another term with 81% of the vote.[8]

Kallos has been ranked one of the best lawmakers on the New York City Council, with City & State giving him fifth place in 2017 and seventh in 2020.[9][10] He was named one of the most powerful politicians in New York City in 2018,[11] 2019,[12] and 2021.[13]

He is well known as an advocate for student loans, affordable housing and government transparency, as well as for keeping "big money" out of government.[12] In 2018, Commercial Observer named him as one of the "Officials Who Call the Shots on Real Estate."[14] Kallos was endorsed by the editorial board of The New York Times, who praised his "fresh ideas", including proposals to forgive student loans, incentivize the construction of more affordable housing, reform congestion pricing and expand access to broadband service.[15]

He chaired the Committee on Contracts and was a member of the committees on Education, Governmental Operations, Oversight and Investigations, and Women and Gender Equity.[16]

In 2015, Kallos proposed legislation to allow low-income residents on the Upper East Side to automatically receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and other government social safety benefits.[17] In 2016, Kallos worked with Intuit to release their Benefits Assist software as free and open-source software.[18] Later that year, Kallos proposed legislation to get scaffolding down in a timely manner.[19] He introduced a law in 2017 to lower the noise allowed from construction during the evenings and weekend.[20]

In 2016, Kallos, who is an ERISA attorney, authored legislation with Public Advocate Letitia James and Mayor Bill de Blasio for the city to automatically enroll employees in individual retirement accounts at no cost to employers who did not offer a retirement plan themselves.[21] The law passed in 2021 and was then extended statewide.[22]

Campaign finance and ethics

In 2014, Kallos refused $64,000 in additional income,[23] and authored legislature to ban outside income and make the job of Council Member full-time.[24] In 2016, Kallos wrote a law to make New York City's budget available online, which he worked with Mayor de Blasio to implement.[25]

On March 22, 2018, Kallos authored the law that raised the cap on public funds received by participating candidates to establish a full public matching system that matches every small dollar donated by New York City residents at a rate of 8 to 1.[26][27] The new public matching system worked to elect the first majority women City Council.[28]

Land use

In 2015, Kallos worked with ProPublica and a whistle blower on an investigation that found 50,000 affordable apartments that were not registered by landlords who were receiving tax breaks, and might have been charging tenants too much rent.[29] Kallos authored legislation to force landlords receiving tax benefits for affordable housing to register every unit and allow anyone to apply for them online.[30] The law passed in 2017, requiring most landlords in New York City to register their affordable housing.[31] In 2020, as part of the legislation, the city began to add back hundreds of thousands of existing affordable apartments and launched an affordable housing portal, Housing Connect.[32]

Kallos has advocated against the construction of new luxury tower developments in New York City. In 2015, Kallos organized a community initiative to fight a proposed 950-foot "supertower" that would expand the neighborhood known as Billionaire's Row.[33] In 2016, Kallos joined a grass roots rezoning effort to prevent the construction of more supertowers to protect existing affordable housing.[34] This rezoning effort successfully halted the construction of another luxury skyscraper in 2017.[35] Kallos led a rezoning that banned the use of mechanical voids as a loophole for luxury housing developments to exceed height limitations by "give billionaires better views".[36]

He opposed legislation that would weaken the city's landmarks law in 2015.[37] In 2017, Kallos authored laws to reform a zoning relief board and force developers to honor commitments for promised public spaces.[38][39] In 2019, Kallos opened supportive housing for homeless women and children in the Upper East Side.[40] He advocated for opening a new safe haven shelter in his district in 2021.[41]

Education

Kallos wrote legislature to force transparency around how the city determines need for school seats.[42] As a result of these laws, the city agreed to add hundreds of new school seats to the neighborhood Kallos represents.[43] He began advocating for free pre-kindergarten for all four-year-olds in 2014.[44] After this proposal won, he advocated for the addition of 400 new pre-kindergarten seats for his district in 2018, which had not been granted enough seats.[45] Kallos advocated for extending free pre-kindergarten to all three-year-olds, which had a citywide rollout in 2021.[46]

As a public student, Kallos was too ashamed to stand on the free and reduced school lunch line and went hungry instead.[47] He authored a law to mandate reporting on the number of meals served to students to help extend breakfast after the bell and free lunch to every public school student in 2015.[48] In 2021, Kallos proposed offering free supper at every public school to end youth hunger.[49]

In 2015, Kallos joined Letitia James in advocating for cable companies to offer low-cost high-speed Internet to low-income New Yorkers, as a way of bridging the digital divide.[50] In 2017, Kallos and James won low-cost high-speed Internet for one million students on free and reduced lunch as well as seniors on Supplemental Security Income.[51] Kallos then proposed legislation to force landlords to offer basic internet as a utility.[52]

Public health and climate change

Kallos authored a law to create the Offices of Food Policy and Urban Agriculture.[53][54] Kallos passed a law in 2019 to require that only healthy drinks are offered with children's meals in New York City.[55]

In 2019, Kallos authored a declaration of climate emergency and passed it making New York City the largest city in the United States to do so.[56] In 2018, Kallos introduced legislation to ban the sale of plastic water bottles in city parks and purchase by city agencies[57] that Mayor de Blasio implemented by executive order in 2020.[58]

He authored the law to ban toxic pesticides from being used in New York City parks in 2021.[59]

Campaign for Manhattan Borough President

Kallos ran in the primary for the Democratic nomination in the 2021 Manhattan borough president election, finishing fourth. In the first round, Kallos received 13% of votes, putting him in third place. He was eliminated in the sixth round of the ranked-choice voting process.[60]

Election history

New York City Council: District 5
Election Candidate Party Votes Pct Candidate Party Votes Pct Candidate Party Votes Pct
2013 Primary election Ben Kallos Dem 7,513 45.92% Michah Kellner Dem 6,420 39.24% Ed Hartzog Dem 2,429 14.85%
General election Ben Kallos Dem 18,135 57.06% David Paul Garland Rep 10,518 33.09% Michah Kellner WFP 3,118 9.81%
2017 Primary election Ben Kallos Dem 7,156 75% Gwen Goodwin Dem 1,411 15% Patrick Bobilin Dem 947 10%
General election Ben Kallos Dem 22,514 81% Frank Splotorno Rep 5,419 19%

References

  1. ^ Jones, Suzie (October 22, 2014). "Meet Ben Kallos: The New York City Councilman Who Keeps Office Hours at the Greenmarket". Edible Manhattan. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  2. ^ Mark Strong Shinozaki (September 23, 2018). "Council Member Ben Kallos on the Joys of Being an Outsider in NYC Politics". The Main Street Wire.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "Rising Stars 40 Under 40: Ben Kallos". City&State. September 19, 2011. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  4. ^ "Kallos Departing Bing's Staff for Council Run". Observer. January 21, 2009. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  5. ^ Kassel, Matthew (March 8, 2021). "Ben Kallos keeps the faith". Jewish Insider. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
  6. ^ Daniel Fitzsimmons (September 18, 2013). "The Education of Ben Kallos". New York Press. Archived from the original on October 7, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  7. ^ Campbell, Colin (April 25, 2012). "The Redistricting Lawsuit's Lawyer Discusses Its Impact in Harlem and More". New York Observer: Politicker.
  8. ^ "Election Results: De Blasio Wins Second Term as New York City Mayor". The New York Times. December 20, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2018 – via NYTimes.com.
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  10. ^ "The Best & Worst New York City Lawmakers". City & State NY. January 27, 2020. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  11. ^ Baird-Remba, Rebecca (April 25, 2018). "Power Politicians: The Officials Who Call the Shots on Real Estate". Commercial Observer. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  12. ^ a b "The 2019 Manhattan Power 100; 66 - 100 | CSNY". July 16, 2019. Archived from the original on July 16, 2019. Retrieved September 28, 2022.((cite web)): CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  13. ^ "The Manhattan Power 100 2021". City & State NY. October 4, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  14. ^ Baird-Remba, Rebecca (April 25, 2018). "Power Politicians: The Officials Who Call the Shots on Real Estate". Commercial Observer. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
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  16. ^ "New York City Council, Ben Kallos". Retrieved March 23, 2020 – via council.nyc.gov.
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  24. ^ Goodman, J. David (February 6, 2016). "New York City Council Votes to Raise Members' Pay". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  25. ^ "Mayor and City Council Launch Searchable Open Budget for New York City". The official website of the City of New York. May 11, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  26. ^ "The New York City Council - File #: Int 0732-2018". New York City Council.
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  28. ^ "NYC Public Campaign Financing Program Leveled the Playing Field: Report". Sludge. December 2, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  29. ^ "Landlords Fail To List 50,000 N.Y.C. Apartments for Rent Limits". ProPublica. November 5, 2015.
  30. ^ "NYC Bill Targets Landlords Who Get Tax Breaks, Duck Rent Limits". ProPublica. December 9, 2015.
  31. ^ Podkul, Cezary (December 20, 2017). "Bill Seeking Transparency in Affordable Housing Passes New York City Council". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  32. ^ Haag, Matthew (June 15, 2020). "25 Million Applications: The Scramble for N.Y.C. Affordable Housing". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  33. ^ Bagli, Charles V. (August 18, 2015). "Skyscraper That Would Soar Over Sutton Place Runs Into Neighborhood Opposition". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
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  35. ^ Barbanel, Josh (December 3, 2017). "New York City Council Halts Midtown Tower Construction". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  36. ^ Spivack, Caroline (May 29, 2019). "Mechanical void loophole closed by City Council vote". Curbed NY. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  37. ^ Chaban, Matt A. V. (September 2, 2015). "Preservationists Fight Bill Setting Time Limit on Landmarks Decisions in New York". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  38. ^ "The Battle Over New York City's Board of Standards and Appeals". Commercial Observer. October 11, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  39. ^ Barbanel, Josh (March 1, 2017). "A Trump Tower Bench Sparks an Effort to Reclaim Public Spaces". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  40. ^ "Supportive Housing Facility Opens On Upper East Side". Upper East Side, NY Patch. August 20, 2019. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  41. ^ Spivack, Caroline (January 22, 2021). "Upper East Siders Embrace a Homeless Shelter, Unlike Their Crosstown Neighbors". Curbed. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  42. ^ "640 new school seats planned for UES". www.ourtownny.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  43. ^ "City Commits 184 Additional K-8 Seats To Upper East Side". Upper East Side, NY Patch. December 19, 2019. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  44. ^ Hernández, Javier C.; Stewart, Nikita (February 8, 2014). "De Blasio Tests Political Might in Pre-K Push". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  45. ^ Brody, Leslie (January 5, 2018). "More Pre-K Seats Planned for Upper East Side". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  46. ^ Higginbotham, Emily. "Expanding 3K for All". www.westsidespirit.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  47. ^ Piccoli, Sean; Harris, Elizabeth A. (September 6, 2017). "New York City Offers Free Lunch for All Public School Students". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  48. ^ Gay, Mara (April 28, 2015). "Bill Would Boost Free Breakfasts in Classrooms". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  49. ^ "NYC should boost free supper for students, says Manhattan councilman". New York Daily News. April 14, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  50. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: $78B Time Warner Cable deal tied to aid for poor". New York Daily News. September 21, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  51. ^ Davies, Erica (March 16, 2017). "NYC Seniors, Low-Income Families to Receive Affordable High-Speed Internet". NBC New York. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  52. ^ Spivack, Caroline (October 18, 2021). "Should Landlords Be Required to Pay for Your Internet?". Curbed. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  53. ^ "Food Czars and Food Policy Councils". Culture. August 14, 2014. Archived from the original on May 14, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  54. ^ "NYC Councilman Ben Kallos Wants Future Generations To Realize The Power Of Urban Agriculture". AGRITECTURE. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  55. ^ "New Push for Healthier Kids Meals in NYC". NBC New York. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  56. ^ Andrew, Scottie; Ahmed, Saeed (June 27, 2019). "New York City declares a climate emergency, the first US city with more than a million residents to do so". CNN. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  57. ^ Hu, Winnie (April 20, 2018). "Could New York City Parks Be Going Plastic Bottle-Free?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
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  60. ^ "DEM Borough President New York". vote.nyc. Retrieved October 21, 2021.

External links

Political offices Preceded byJessica Lappin New York City Council, 5th district 2014–2020 Succeeded byJulie Menin
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