New York Daily News

A new City Council bill would mandate the use of recycled concrete in all new street construction projects.

Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) is introducing the legislation that would require at least 30% of concrete to come from demolished roads and buildings.

It’s a move to cut carbon emissions that come from concrete production, he said.

“We need to make sure that any new construction is limiting our greenhouse gas emissions,” Kallos said. “The city deals with tens of thousands of tons of demolition waste every day.”

A Manhattan city councilman is looking to end the game of hide-and-seek that faces drivers whose cars are towed because of temporary parking restrictions.

A bill introduced Thursday by Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Upper East Side) would let owners find out where their car was moved by calling 311 or consulting the Department of Transportation’s website.

With President Obama set to tout a proposal for free community college education in Tuesday night’s State of the Union, some local pols are pushing for the city to take matters into its own hands with free tuition at CUNY schools.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams said instead of waiting for Washington to act, the city should eliminate tuition at its seven community colleges. He sent a letter to the Independent Budget Office asking them to determine how much it would cost.

“When you look at the political reality in Washington and the challenges that they are going to face in the upcoming legislative cycle, this relief is needed now and we really can’t wait for the infighting that’s taking place in DC,” Adams said.

Tuition for 77,000 community college students is now $4500 a year - but Adams noted free tuition used to be standard practice at CUNY schools.

Another proposal by Councilman Ben Kallos would have the city repay 10% of CUNY grads’ loans for every year they remain living in the city - so if they stay here for ten years, they’d get the education free.

“One of the largest hurdles we’re seeing to a productive America is everyone graduates ready to enter the market under a crushing amount of debt,” Kallos said.

New Yorkers would be able to cast ballots in municipal elections early — really early — under legislation that is set to be introduced before the City Council on Wednesday.

The bill, sponsored by Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan), would open select polling places for two weeks leading up to election day for elections for mayor, council and other city offices but not for state or federal elections. The bill would apply to both primaries and the general election.

The city would have to open at least 51 polling sites — one in each City Council district — from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each weekday, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends, until the Friday before the election.

The city would launch its own taxi hailing app to compete with Uber and Lyft under a bill introduced in the City Council Monday.

Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) is sponsoring the bill to require the city to create an e-hail app for its regular fleet of more than 13,000 yellow cabs and 6,000 green ones.

“City taxis need an app if they’re going to compete, and New Yorkers should be able to e-hail a cab in the rain without having to worry about surge pricing,” Kallos said, referring to Uber’s practice of jacking up prices when demand is highest.

The Council also passed a bill to require more city agencies to register New Yorkers to vote.

Seven agencies including the Human Resources Administration and Department for the Aging will be newly required to distribute registration forms under the bill, sponsored by Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan.) 

Voters would be able to register to vote and apply for an absentee ballot at the same time under a bill to be introduced in the City Council this week.

Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) will sponsor the measure, meant to streamline what is now a slow process.

“Voters don’t actually plan their lives around election day,” Kallos said. “This is a transient city where people are moving to where affordable housing is. And this would help a huge group of voters to be able to register and get an absentee ballot.”

New Yorkers would finally be able to register to vote with a click of a mouse under a bill to be introduced in the City Council.

Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) will introduce legislation to allow would-be voters to register online.

Currently, the Board of Elections requires paper registration forms to be mailed in the old fashioned way.

“We hope to have a city where everyone who is eligible can vote easily,” Kallos said. “We make it really hard to register, really hard to vote, and we can make it a lot easier.”

Fifteen more city agencies will be required to distribute voter registration forms under a bill to be introduced in the City Council Tuesday. The bill sponsored by Councilman Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) will require agencies like the NYPD, FDNY, the Human Resources Administration, which handles welfare benefits, and the Department for the Aging, which runs senior centers, to have the forms on hand at offices where they interact with the public.

A report written with extensive community input, titled Livable Streets, spotlights the 10 most treacherous intersections --including E. 57th St. and Second Ave., where there have been nearly six collisions per month and Second Ave. crossings at E. 63rd and E. 60th Sts., which each record roughly five collisions per month.