Res 1325-2020

By Council Members Powers, Kallos and Chin Whereas, The proposed Pandemic Heroes Compensation Act (PHDA) was unveiled at a press conference on May 14, 2020 and it was announced that it would be co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of members of Congress including Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Peter King (R-NY) and Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), who plan to introduce a bill to create a fund for essential workers affected by COVID-19; and Whereas, According to the bipartisan co-sponsors, the proposed legislation would be modeled after the September 11th Victims Compensation Fund and designed to assist those whose jobs require them to continue to go to work during the pandemic, putting them at significant risk of becoming infected by COVID-19, so the public at large could remain safely at home; and Whereas, In addition to establishing a compensation fund for all essential workers, the co-sponsors propose including all personnel and their families, for the purpose of providing financial assistance to cover the costs of healthcare, loss of employment, loss of business and burial assistance; and Whereas, The proposed legislation would require that a Special Master would be appointed to oversee the creation and administration of a website to assist in the application process and allow applicants to provide information for consideration regarding the extent of their financial losses; and Whereas, New York City has been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, as of May 19, 2020, the City had registered 191,650 confirmed cases, 50,6187 hospitalizations, 16,059 confirmed deaths and 4,828 probable deaths due to COVID-19; and Whereas, During the outbreak of COVID-19, New York's first responders and essential workers have continued to work tirelessly in order to provide essential services including medical, fire and police emergency response, transportation, food and grocery delivery, pharmacy services, as well as postal and package delivery services that are all crucial to maintaining the public wellbeing and ability to comply with stay at home orders as directed by New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the federal government to introduce and pass the Pandemic Heroes Compensation Act to help all essential workers, personnel and their families, across all industries, who were required to leave their homes to perform their services and became ill or died as a result of COVID-19. CD LS 14890 5/21/20