On his first day as mayor, Zohran Mamdani signed executive orders that aim to address housing in the city Thursday afternoon in Brooklyn.

“These are sweeping measures, but it is just the beginning of comprehensive measure to champion the cause with tenants too long, ignored and homes too expensive,” he said at a press conference.

What You Need To Know

  • On his first day as mayor, Zohran Mamdani signed executive orders that aim to address housing in the city Thursday afternoon in Brooklyn

  • According to a news release, the orders will revitalize the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants and create two new task forces that aim to speed up housing construction, get New Yorkers into homes faster and increase supply by identifying city-owned properties

  • Along with the housing executive orders, Mamdani also signed orders on how his team will operate in City Hall

According to a news release, the orders will revitalize the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants and create two new task forces that aim to speed up housing construction, get New Yorkers into homes faster and increase supply by identifying city-owned properties.

The Office to Protect Tenants will protect tenants’ rights and make sure city agencies act to protect renters facing unsafe or illegal conditions.

Mamdani announced that Cea Weaver will be the director of the office. She currently serves as the executive director of Housing Justice for All and the New York State Tenant Bloc.

One of the executive orders will create a LIFT, or Land Inventory Fast Track, Task Force. According to a press release, this task force will aim to conduct a review of city-owned properties and identify sites to develop housing by no later than July 1.

According to the release, one of the executive orders will also create the SPEED, or Streamlining Procedures to Expedite Equitable Development, Task Force. The task force will identify and remove barriers that increase costs and slow housing construction.

Along with the housing executive orders, Mamdani also signed orders on how his team will operate in City Hall.

The first executive order cancels executive orders issued on or after Sept. 26, 2024 – the day former Mayor Eric Adams was indicted. According to the release, executive orders that “the administration feels are central to delivering continued service, excellence, and value-driven leadership” will be reissued.

“We have to reckon with why so many New Yorkers have turned away from politics,” Mamdani told reporters. “That was a date that marked a moment when many New Yorkers decided that politics held nothing for them but more of the same.”

The second order outlines the deputy mayor structure of the Mamdani administration. The administration will have a first deputy mayor, deputy mayor of housing and planning, deputy mayor of economic justice, deputy mayor of operations and deputy mayor of health and human services, according to the release. Mamdani appointed Dean Fuleihan, Leila Bozorg, Julie Su, Julia Kerson and Helen Arteaga, respectively, to these positions.