City council is the main lawmaking body for your city, although it can have other names depending on where you live (and how your local government system works). It decides how to spend tax dollars and other funding, and makes laws that impact everything from installing new stoplights to banning DIY guns to regulating rooftop activities. It also has broad oversight powers over the city’s agencies.
In a mayor-council government model like that of New York, City Council members represent their constituents’ needs at the highest levels of city governance and serve as a check against the mayor on land use decisions and other legislative matters. They may pass bills through committees, which take in-depth looks at specific issues and recommend action to the full Council; they can also convene as a Committee of the Whole to debate major initiatives in front of the entire body.
Council Members work in the council side of City Hall and have offices in their districts. They hold Stated Meetings — the formal name for legislative sessions held twice monthly and at other times at their discretion — in Council Chambers to vote on legislation, discuss city business and hear reports from department heads. They also meet in their caucuses, groups of Members with shared concerns, to ensure that the voices of diverse communities are heard.
With just three current Republican councilmembers, Laurie Cumbo, Steven Matteo and Joseph Borelli, the council doesn’t have a lot of clout as a party, but they can still enact important policies by themselves or with other nonpartisan coalitions. One of the most powerful tools they have is their ability to issue subpoenas to compel city officials to testify at hearings and produce documents.