1) Rent Freeze and Tenant-First Housing Policies
Who sues: Rent Stabilization Association; Community Housing Improvement Program; individual landlords/LLCs.
Claims: increased landlord-tenant court filings, Article 78 and declaratory judgment actions alleging arbitrary/capricious Rent Guidelines Board decisions, statutory conflicts with the Rent Stabilization Law/ETPA, and federal due process/takings claims.
2) Fare-Free Buses and MTA Conflict
Who sues: State of New York; MTA Board; taxpayer petitioners under GML § 51 (Prosecution of officers for illegal acts)
Claims: State preemption, funding authority violations, ultra vires municipal expenditures, interference with a state-controlled transit system.
3) $30 Minimum Wage Plan
Who sues: Chamber of Commerce; National Federation of Independent Business (‘NFIB’); restaurant and retail groups.
Claims: State labor-law preemption, ERISA conflicts, Commerce Clause, municipal overreach; declaratory and injunctive relief.
4) City-Run Grocery / “Public Option” Retail
Who sues: Supermarket associations; franchise owners; municipal taxpayers.
Claims: Ultra vires and waste (GML § 51), procurement violations, interference with private enterprise.
5) Policing and Accountability Expansion
Who sues: NYPD unions (PBA, SBA, DEA); correction officers’ unions; potentially national unions if federal issues arise.
Claims: The Public Employees’ Fair Employment Act (“Taylor Law”)/collective bargaining challenges, scope-of-duty disputes, retaliation theories. Expect an increase in plaintiff civil-rights filings under NYC’s local cause of action (no qualified-immunity defense).
6) Rikers, Homeless Services, and Conditions Cases
Who sues: Legal Aid; prisoners’ rights counsel; DOJ/monitors; disability advocates.
Claims: 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Civil Rights Law); ADA; Eighth/Fourteenth Amendment; consent-decree enforcement; Article 78 for right-to-shelter issues.
7) Immigration and Sanctuary Policy
Who sues: Federal DOJ (if hostile administration); ICE-aligned groups; State AG if state-law conflict.
Claims: Supremacy Clause; Spending Clause conditions/loss of grants; anti-commandeering. The City may counter-sue as plaintiff.
8) Public Power and Utility Control
Who sues: Con Edison; National Grid; utility bondholders.
Claims: Takings; Contract Clause; PSC/FERC jurisdiction; eminent-domain valuation challenges.
9) Education Governance and DOE Policy Shifts
Who sues: Parent coalitions; United Federation of Teachers (“UFT”); charter networks; advocacy groups.
Claims: Article 78; state constitutional issues; ADA/IDEA; Title VI; disputes over mayoral control and class-size mandates.
10) Procurement, Budgeting, and Bond Power
Who sues: GML § 51 taxpayer plaintiffs; municipal finance stakeholders; contractors/vendors.
Claims: Illegal expenditures; bonding-authority overreach; spending-clause concerns; procurement irregularities.
Analysis by Susan Chana Lask, New York civil-rights and appellate attorney.
Legal Opinion Update: Michael Wiseberg vs. Susan Chana Lask DC00067919