What Does A Public Advocate Do?

Current Public Advocate Jumaane Williams outside of the Brooklyn Museum for early voting on October 24, 2020

The public advocate is a relatively new position in New York City government, created in 1993 after major revisions to the City Charter in 1989.

Since then, the position, originally called the New York City Council President, has been occupied five times, including by the current mayor, Bill de Blasio, who served one term until 2014. Currently, the public advocate office is held by Jumaane Willams, who won the 2019 special election after the seat was vacated by Letitia James, who became the state attorney general through a special election. Thanks to the City Charter, the role is seen as largely ceremonial. Its pure might comes from the bully pulpit they preside.

There are a handful of candidates running this year, raising the question of what exactly does the public advocate do? Here’s a rundown of their responsibilities and power they hold in city government.

Serves As The People’s Watchdog

The primary role of a public advocate is to serve as a watchdog or ombudsman over city government, monitoring city agencies and investigating citizen complaints as the people’s roving representative.

While the public advocate holds little power over city services, they're responsible for calling attention to any issues involving city agencies. If those issues go unaddressed, following an initial briefing, the public advocate is instructed to take it to the New York City Council or the mayor and provide a proposal addressing the failures while offering guidance and direction towards a solution. The public advocate has even filed lawsuits to enact change.

The public advocate can also investigate complaints towards businesses or individuals. When de Blasio held the seat, he created a list of the Worst Landlords Watch List, a public shaming of landlords that carried over to his successors.

Holds The Second Highest Ranking Office

Technically, the public advocate is the second highest ranking official in New York City, following the mayor, and stands first in line to assume mayoral duties (if the public advocate is not available, the responsibility then goes to the council speaker).

If the mayor is unable to work for nine consecutive days, the public advocate takes over the mayor’s duties until their return. In the event the mayor quits the public advocate becomes acting mayor until another is elected.

Introduces Legislation in City Council

While the public advocate has no vote in the City Council, they can introduce a bill or co-sponsor one with a council member, similar to that of a borough president. They can also attend City Council meetings.

Initially, a public advocate’s duty included overseeing the City Council but the 2002 City Charter revision shifted that responsibility to the council speaker.

Other Duties

A public advocate also serves as chair of the Commission of Public Information and Communication, whose primary goal is to improve public access to city information and develop new technological approaches to improve the distribution of city data. Office-holders also serve on the committee that selects the director of the Independent Budget Office (IBO) and appoints members to several boards and commissions.

A public advocate can serve up to two terms. The position is known as a stepping stone to higher roles in government such as mayor. Besides de Blasio, the first public advocate Mark Green also ran for mayor but was unsuccessful. Following de Blasio, James vacated her seat after she was elected as the New York attorney general.

With no concrete guidelines on how to serve as the people’s watchdog, the position is ever-evolving and molded by the office-holder elected.