OFFICE OF LGBTQIA+ AFFAIRS
WHEREAS, LGBTQIA+ people across the United States are facing an increasingly hostile political environment; and
WHEREAS, LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers represent at least 15 percent of the City's population, comprising a community that intersects and enriches the entire City, yet they have unique needs that have been historically underfunded and left unaddressed; and
WHEREAS, the cost-of-living crisis confronting the City's working class hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard, with higher rates of unemployment and homelessness than the City population at large; and
WHEREAS, this Administration believes that LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers should be represented in all aspects of our City; and
WHEREAS, the NYC Unity Project was launched in September 2017 as New York City's first Citywide initiative focused on delivering and coordinating affirming services for LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers; and
WHEREAS, this Administration is committed to identifying and addressing the needs of the LGBTQIA+ community and to providing a single destination for LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers to turn to for matters affecting their communities;
NOW, THEREFORE, by the power vested in me as Mayor of the City of New York, it is hereby ordered:
Section 1. There is hereby established an Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs within the Office of the Mayor. The Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs ("the Office") shall operate within and report to the Mayor's Office of Equity & Racial Justice which shall be supervised and coordinated by the Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice. The Office shall be headed by a Director appointed by the Mayor and shall replace the NYC Unity Project, whose former responsibilities will be carried out pursuant to this Order.
§ 2. The Director of the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs shall have the power and duty to:
- Oversee and coordinate the implementation of initiatives concerning LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers across all City agencies, including community outreach and public education;
- Assist City agencies in developing and supporting liaisons to the LGBTQIA+ community;
- Coordinate with the New York City Commission on Human Rights, the Commission on Gender Equity, and other City entities as appropriate to advance measures to ensure offices and agencies do not engage in discrimination based on gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation;
- Work with the Mayor's Office of Nonprofit Services in outreach to nonprofit organizations serving LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers to increase awareness of the City's initiatives and procedures to ensure that nonprofits receive timely dispersal of funds for City contracts;
- In coordination with the Office of the Chief Counsel to the Mayor and City Hall, the Law Department, the New York City Commission on Human Rights, the Commission on Gender Equity, and other City entities as appropriate, develop legal resources to ensure the City's sanctuary status for LGBTQIA+ individuals is upheld, providing support for LGBTQIA+ people and their families escaping oppression for identifying as LGBTQIA+;
- Assume any function served by the NYC Unity Project prior to the effective date of this Order, including, but not limited to, any such function assigned by executive order or local law, and serving on the Gender and Racial Equity Advisory Board in place of the former Executive Director of the NYC Unity Project; and
- Perform any other duty, responsibility, or function assigned by the Mayor or Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice.
§ 3. Upon request of the Director, mayoral agencies shall cooperate with and provide assistance to the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs to perform its duties.
§ 4. This Order shall take effect immediately.
