City Council Takes Aim at Adams and Ally by Closing Lobbying Loophole

The New York City Council approved a bill on Thursday to bar a select group of top city officials from lobbying city agencies for two years after they leave government.

The bill, which passed 39 to 9, was inspired by Frank Carone, a former chief of staff to Mayor Eric Adams who started a lucrative consulting business after leaving City Hall.

The bill’s sponsor, Lincoln Restler, a progressive councilman from Brooklyn, said that Mr. Carone should not have been able to immediately seek to influence the city staff members whom he had hired and once managed. He said the bill would close the “Carone loophole.”

“This legislation slams the revolving door shut for the mayor’s most powerful staff,” Mr. Restler said. “This bill will strengthen integrity in our city government by ensuring that public servants are prioritizing the needs of New Yorkers, not preparing to line their own pockets.”

City law had already prohibited some former city officials like Mr. Carone from directly lobbying the mayor’s office for one year, but allowed them to lobby other city agencies. Former elected officials are also barred for two years from appearing before any agency in the branch of city government where they served.

The new rules bar several top city officials, including the mayor’s chief of staff, chief counsel and communications director, from lobbying any city agency for two years. The rules also prohibit the chiefs of staff to deputy mayors from lobbying city agencies for one year.

Fabien Levy, the deputy mayor for communications for Mr. Adams, said in a statement that his administration had pushed for a broader version of the bill that would apply to top City Council staff members as well.

“It’s unfortunate that City Council staff and leadership are using their powers to push forward ‘rules for thee but not for me’ legislation,” he said, adding that the Council was holding “themselves to a different standard” and had missed an opportunity to provide a “better line of sight into their government.”

Mr. Levy said the Adams administration had “negotiated in good faith, agreeing to the Council’s changes for senior leaders in our administration.” If Mr. Adams were to veto the bill, it appears to have enough support among lawmakers for the Council to override the veto.

Leaders in the City Council have had a tense relationship with the mayor. At a news conference on Thursday with Adrienne Adams, the Council speaker, Mr. Restler said that he was confident the Council could override a veto with the required two-thirds of members if needed. He said that whenever the Council had gone “toe to toe” with Mr. Adams, “we’ve won every single time.”

Mr. Restler said in response to Mr. Levy’s criticism that lawmakers had listened to ethics experts who had said that it was best to focus on a narrow list of the “most powerful people in city government” instead of imposing limits on a broader set of staff members.

Mr. Carone, who is helping to lead the mayor’s re-election efforts, declined to comment on the bill.

A Brooklyn power broker and lawyer, Mr. Carone was a partner at the law firm Abrams Fensterman before serving as the mayor’s chief of staff for his first year in office. He then immediately started a consulting business in 2023 and began working for two commercial real estate titans, including one seeking a casino.

SL Green Realty Corporation, which describes itself as the city’s largest office landlord, hired Mr. Carone to help its bid to build a Caesars Palace casino in Times Square, an effort that is likely to require city support. Mr. Carone has also represented the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, which often has business before the city and is a powerful ally of the mayor.