Common Cause New York's Positions on NYC Ballot Proposals for the 2025 General Election

NEW YORK, NY (10/28/2025) (readMedia)-- Common Cause New York has been a government watchdog organization for over 50 years, advocating for government accountability in both the City and State. We urge voters to take the time to understand and educate themselves on the ballot proposal. Be sure to flip your ballot and vote on the proposals.

Engaging with ballot proposals is crucial for New Yorkers because these measures directly shape the functioning of our state and local governments, impacting our daily lives as much as the outcomes of candidate elections. Ballot proposals represent direct democracy in action, empowering voters to decide major issues themselves rather than relying solely on politicians to represent their interests. Unfortunately, ballot proposals are often overlooked by voters. This can lead to a small minority determining the outcome of proposals that affect everyone. Therefore, it is even more critical for your voice to be heard. In response to repeated requests for our positions on the questions on the New York City ballot, we have further analyzed the questions and take the following positions. Common Cause NY's positions are based on our assessments as a good government advocate concerned with government efficiency and maintenance of checks and balances. We have not taken positions on issues that we feel do not impact our core areas of concern.

Proposals on NYC General Election Ballot

Question 1: Amendment to Allow Olympic Sports Complex In Essex County on State Forest Preserve Land

This proposal would allow the expansion of new ski trails in the Olympic Sports Complex in Essex County, New York. The Olympic Sport Complex is in state forest preserve land. This proposal would also require New York State to add 2,500 acres of protected forest land to Adirondack Park.

CCNY Position: No position.

Question 2: Fast Track Affordable Housing to Build More Affordable Housing Across the City

This proposal would create new fast track public processes for affordable housing. First, it would create a new action at the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) that could grant zoning relief for publicly financed affordable housing projects. Second, it would establish a new, streamlined public review procedure for applications that deliver affordable housing in the community districts that have permitted the least affordable housing. This proposal builds on the New York City Council's Fair Housing Framework, which was passed unanimously in 2023.

CCNY Position: No position.

Question 3: Simplify Review of Modest Housing and Infrastructure Projects

This proposal would create ELURP, a new, simplified review process for certain land use changes, including modest increases in how much housing is allowed, acquisition and disposition of land to facilitate affordable housing, and urgently-needed climate resiliency projects.

CCNY Position: No position.

Question 4: Establish an Affordable Housing Appeals Board with Council, Borough, and Citywide Representation?

This proposal would create a new Affordable Housing Appeals Board, made up of the relevant Borough President, the Speaker of the City Council, and the Mayor, that would replace the Mayor's veto at the end of the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) for projects that would create affordable housing. The Appeals Board would have the ability to reverse City Council decisions on certain land use matters only if two out of three officials agree. Responding to public input, this proposal was modified to only be available to projects that would create affordable housing, rather than all land use applications.

CCNY Position: We recommend a NO vote.

Rationale: Common Cause NY opposes this measure, which would effectively remove the NYC Council from the land use process, substituting an unelected advisory panel, dominated by the mayor. While member deference has been misused by some council members, this revision of the City Charter is not the right corrective measure. This is an unwarranted shift in the balance of power between the executive and the legislative branch of city government, in an already unbalanced system that favors mayoral power.

Question 5: Create a Digital City Map to Modernize City Operations

This proposal would consolidate the official City Map, which plays a little-known but critical role in the approval of housing and infrastructure projects, into a single map and digitize it. Today, the City Map consists of five different sets of maps, one for each borough, totaling over 8,000 individual paper maps.

CCNY Position: We recommend a YES vote.

Rationale: Common Cause New York supports Proposal 4 as a general government efficiency measure.

Question 6: Move Local Elections to Presidential Election Years to Increase Voter Participation

This proposal would move the City's primary and general election dates to even-numbered years when presidential elections are held, to improve voter turnout, make local democracy more inclusive, and save taxpayer money. This change would also require a further change to the New York State Constitution before it could go into effect.

CCNY Position: We recommend a YES vote.

Rationale: Common Cause New York strongly supports this proposition. We have consistently advocated for consolidating even-year elections for many years through various legislative efforts and constitutional amendments in Albany. Experience in other jurisdictions shows that consolidating local elections with statewide and federal elections in even years results in many more people voting on local races and issues, i.e., higher voter turnout for local elections.