Committee on Environmental Protection and Waterfronts meeting
March 19, 2026, 12:30 PM
The Committee on Environmental Protection and Waterfronts held its FY2027 preliminary budget hearing on the Department of Environmental Protection. The committee took testimony and recorded no votes.
What was discussed
- Committee gavels in for the DEP preliminary budget hearing Chairperson James Gennaro opened the Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts' Fiscal 2027 preliminary budget hearing on the Department of Environmental Protection, and counsel administered the affirmation to the agency panel.
- DEP Commissioner presents the agency's budget and water system Lisa Garcia, about a month into her tenure as DEP Commissioner, delivered the agency's testimony, describing how the city's drinking water comes from 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes across a nearly 2,000-square-mile Catskill and Hudson Valley watershed and how DEP touches every New Yorker
- Should DEP police get law-enforcement parity? Chairperson James Gennaro pressed on parity for DEP police, who protect the upstate watershed; Commissioner Lisa Garcia agreed they should have the same standing as other law enforcement, noted the governor had vetoed a related measure, and welcomed a Council resolution to support the effort.
- Will DEP keep its filtration avoidance, and what would a filtration plant cost? Asked by Chairperson James Gennaro, Commissioner Lisa Garcia and Deputy Commissioner Paul Rush said DEP fully intends to continue its Filtration Avoidance Determination, which is up for renewal in 2027, that DEP is negotiating with the state Health Department and has convened a scientific advisory
- What happens to water-bill collections with lien sales paused? Pressed by Chairperson James Gennaro and Finance Chair Linda Lee, Commissioner Lisa Garcia and Deputy Commissioner Nerissa Moray said the water-lien sale is paused this year pending a comprehensive study, that DEP has other mechanisms to work with customers on payment, and that DEP's revenue, drawn
- How accurate is estimated billing, and how fast is the meter upgrade? Asked by Finance Chair Linda Lee and Chairperson James Gennaro, Deputy Commissioner Nerissa Moray and Beth DeFalco said about 22% of customers currently receive estimated bills (peaking this winter), that DEP is replacing automated meter-reading devices across roughly 650,000 accounts at about 5,000
- Can DEP meet its savings targets without hurting operations? Asked by Finance Chair Linda Lee, Commissioner Lisa Garcia named Anna Ponte as DEP's Chief Savings Officer and Beth DeFalco said the agency is targeting operations-and-maintenance savings to meet the 1.5% (FY26) and 2.5% (FY27) goals without interfering with day-to-day operations.
- How is capital spread by borough, and how many households are cost-burdened by water bills? Asked by Council Member Kamillah Hanks, Deputy Commissioner Nerissa Moray provided a per-borough capital investment breakdown and said the typical single-family water and sewer bill is $1,224 in Fiscal 2026, pointing to the Home Water Assistance Program for homeowners who struggle to pay.
- How is DEP funding waterfront resiliency and flood mitigation? Asked by Council Member Justin Sanchez, Commissioner Lisa Garcia cited roughly $921 million in infrastructure investments and said the new Bureau of Coastal Resiliency is reviewing vulnerable areas as part of the city's flood-mitigation planning.
- What major watershed projects are underway? Asked by Chairperson James Gennaro, Deputy Commissioner Paul Rush described the more than $1 billion Kensico-Eastville tunnel and related Hillview work intended to restore the system's aqueduct-bypass flexibility, and said a study found only limited PFAS contamination risk near Kensico and Hillview
- How will the city replace lead service lines, and who pays? Asked by Chairperson James Gennaro, Commissioner Lisa Garcia and Anastasios Georgelis said DEP has secured $72 million, tied to the federal Lead and Copper Rule, against a multi-billion-dollar need, estimated roughly 120,000 lead service lines, and that gaining homeowner access and consent is a key
- Is New York getting its fair share of state and federal water funds? Asked by Chairperson James Gennaro, Commissioner Lisa Garcia and Deputy Commissioner Nerissa Moray said federal money is about 1% of DEP's funding, state aid increasingly comes as loans rather than grants, and DEP has received only 2.5% of distributed Environmental Bond Act funds despite the city
- Is DEP meeting its CSO and green-infrastructure obligations? Asked by Chairperson James Gennaro, Commissioner Lisa Garcia said green infrastructure now reduces 839 million gallons of combined sewer overflow a year, and Deputy Commissioner Angela Licata said DEP is under a consent order carrying out 11 long-term control plans, including large tunnel projects
- Advocates on water rates, affordability, and the rental payment Eric Goldstein of the NRDC, Brendan Cheney of the New York Housing Conference, Jakob Franco of the NYU Environmental Law Clinic, David Abreu of Save the Sound, and Audie Soucy of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest urged the Council to control water rates (which have risen about 5% a year
- Advocates on stormwater, resiliency, and electrification Richard Leigh of Food & Water Watch (urging a 'heat pumps for all' electrification push), Alia Soomro of the New York League of Conservation Voters, Tyler Taba of the Waterfront Alliance, Mackenzie Scheuermann of Riverkeeper, and Michelle Luebke of the SWIM Coalition, among others, testified on
- Remote testimony heard and hearing closed Chairperson James Gennaro heard remaining remote witnesses, made a final call for anyone who had registered but not yet testified, and closed the hearing with no vote taken.
Agenda
1 item
- T2026-1371 New York City Council Budget and Oversight Hearings on The Preliminary Budget for Fiscal Year 2027, The Preliminary Capital Plan for Fiscal Years 2027-2030 and The Fiscal 2026 Preliminary Mayor’s Management Report 12:30 p.m. Department of Environmental Protection 2:00 p.m. Public Hearing Held by Committee