Borough President

Borough President (informally BP, or Beep in slang) is an elective office in each of the five boroughs of New York City.

Reasons for establishment

Prior to January 1, 1898, the city was coterminous with New York County, which at that time comprised Manhattan and the Bronx. On that date, the Boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx and Richmond (Staten Island) were created. Brooklyn was coterminous with Kings County, the Boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx with New York County, and the Borough of Richmond with Richmond County. Queens County included the borough of Queens together with all of what today is known as Nassau County. The boroughs assumed most county functions, but did not replace them^[1].

The offices of borough president were created by charter in 1898 with the formation of the City of Greater New York, to preserve (in a later writer's words) “local pride and affection for the old municipalities” after consolidation^[2].

Memorial to Joseph Guider, Borough President of Brooklyn

On January 1, 1899, Queens County was partitioned. The easternmost 280 square miles (730 km²) was transferred to form Nassau County, which terminated its connection with New York City^[3].

On April 19, 1912, the New York State Legislature separated the County of Bronx (which began separate activity in January 1914) from the County of New York, which now became coextensive with the Borough of Manhattan. ^[4].

Role of the Borough President

To balance local authority along with the centralization of government, the Office of Borough President was established with a functional administrative role derived by having a vote on the New York City Board of Estimate, which was responsible for creating and approving the city's budget and proposals for land use. The Board of Estimate consisted of the Mayor, the Comptroller and the President of the New York City Council, each of whom were elected citywide and had two votes, and the five Borough presidents, each having one vote.

In 1989, the Supreme Court of the United States, in Board of Estimate of City of New York v. Morris (489 U.S. 688) declared the New York City Board of Estimate unconstitutional on the grounds that the city's most populous borough (Brooklyn) had no greater effective representation on the board than the city's least populous borough (Staten Island), this arrangement being an unconstitutional violation of the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause pursuant to the high court's 1964 "one man, one vote" decision (Reynolds v. Sims). ^[5].

The city charter was revised in 1990 and the Board of Estimate was abolished. The Office of Borough President was retained but with greatly reduced power. The borough budget reverted to the mayor or the New York City Council. A Borough President has a small discretionary budget to spend on projects within the borough. The last significant power of the borough presidents—to appoint a member of the New York City Board of Education —was abolished, with the board, on June 30, 2002.

The two major remaining appointments of a Borough President are one member of the city Planning Commission and one member of the Panel for Educational Policy. Borough Presidents generally adopt specific projects to promote while in office; but, since 1990, Borough Presidents have been seen mainly as the ceremonial leaders of their boroughs. Officially, they advise the Mayor on issues relating to each borough, comment on all land-use items in their borough, advocate borough needs in the annual municipal budget process, appoint Community Boards, chair the Borough Boards, and serve as ex officio members of various boards and committees They generally act as advocates of their boroughs at the mayoral agencies, the city council, the New York State government, public corporations and private businesses.

Borough presidents are elected to four-year terms.

As of 2009, the borough presidents are:

• The Bronx : Ruben Diaz, Jr. (D)
• Brooklyn : Marty Markowitz (D)
• Manhattan : Scott Stringer (D)
• Queens : Helen Marshall (D)
• Staten Island : James Molinaro (R/C)

Borough Boards

Each Borough has a Borough Board consisting of the Borough President, the City Council members from the borough, and the chair of each of the borough's Community Boards. The Borough Boards meet monthly to serve the needs of the local communities. They may hold public hearings, make inquiries into the performance of public services, and make recommendations about city owned land use and sales within the borough.

Community Boards

See also:

• Bronx Community Boards
• Brooklyn Community Boards
• Manhattan Community Boards
• Queens Community Boards
• Staten Island Community Boards

New York City is divided into 59 administrative districts, each served by a Community Board. Community Boards are local representative bodies that serve as advocates for New York City residents and communities. Each board has up to 50 voting members, with one half of the membership appointed each year for two-year terms; there are no term limits. Additionally, all city council members whose council districts cover part of a community district are ex-officio board members and may participate in all board activities. However, council members may not vote on board issues. Borough presidents appoint the voting Community Board members, with half of the appointees nominated by council members representing the district in proportion to the percentage of the community board's population they represent. Broadly assigned by the city charter to "Consider the needs of the district which it serves," the boards have been limited in their ability by ineffective local communication channels, minuscule budgets and archaic technology. As a result, many residents have concluded that they have little impact on the operation of their communities or their lives. The BeyondVoting Wiki and the Community-Based Planning Task Force have begun to address the limitations. See Queens Community Board 3's website for an example of a typical board's operation and efforts to improvement neighborhoods.

Borough Presidents since 1898

Bronx Borough Presidents

† Terms begin and end in January where the month is not specified.

1. unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of New York City

Brooklyn Borough Presidents

1. second Comptroller of the post-consolidation City of New York, 1902–1905
2. first New York City Comptroller after consolidation, 1898–1901; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Governor of New York in 1902.
3. unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of the City of New York

Manhattan Borough Presidents

†  Terms begin in January and end in December where not otherwise indicated.

c. (circa) approximately

1. President of the Board of Aldermen of the City of New York (first in succession to the Mayoralty), 1914-1916; New York City Comptroller, 1933
2. President of the Board of Aldermen, 1917
3. unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of the City of New York
4. Mayor of New York City, 1954–1965
5. Mayor of New York City, 1990–1993

Queens Borough Presidents

†  Terms begin in January and end in December where not otherwise indicated.

c. (circa) approximately

Richmond/Staten Island Borough Presidents

1. George Cromwell 1898-1913
2. Charles J. McCormack 1914-15
3. Calvin D. Van Namee 1915-21
4. Matthew J. Cahill 1922
5. John A. Lynch 1922-33
6. Joseph A. Palma 1934-45
7. Cornelius A. Hall 1946-53
8. Edward G. Baker 1953-54
9. Albert V. Maniscalo 1955-65
10. Robert T. Connor 1966-77
11. Anthony Gaeta 1977-84
12. Ralph J. Lamberti 1984-89
13. Guy V. Molinari 1990-2001
14. James Molinaro 2002-

See also

• Government of New York City
• Government and politics of the Bronx
• Government of Staten Island

References

1. ^ New York. Laws of New York; 1897, 120th Session, Chapter 378; Section 2; Page 2.
2. ^ Jackson, Kenneth T. (1995). The Encyclopedia of New York City. New Haven, Connecticut: The New York Historical Society and Yale University Press. pp. 129–130. ISBN 0-300-05536-6. 
3. ^ New York. Laws of New York; 1899, 121st Session, Chapter 588; Section 1; Page 1336.
4. ^ New York. Laws of New York; 1912, 135th Session, Chapter 548; Section 1; Page 1352.
5. ^ Cornell Law School Supreme Court Collection: Board of Estimate of City of New York v. Morris, accessed June 12, 2006

External links

• World Statesmen List of Borough Presidents