The New York City Council is set to vote on a bill that would require city officials to reveal what they knew about air pollution after the Sept. 11 attacks and what they failed to disclose, despite efforts by the Adams administration to keep the information secret.
The resolution, to be introduced Thursday by City Council Member Gayle Brewer, comes after Governor Adams was hesitant to release records related to 9/11 two decades ago, citing fears that it could expose New York to huge liability.
“Remaining residents and survivors of the attack have a deep interest in what the city knew about the dangers at the time and exactly when it knew it,” Brewer said.
“The Adams administration is refusing to release the documents due to potential liability, which is no justification for keeping the files sealed.”
Brewer said the resolution, which is binding and cannot be vetoed by the mayor, would require the bureau to provide an analysis of the types of poisons, their health effects, the true severity of the problem, and to obtain city files on any information released to the public.
The new bill comes after the New York City Fire Department revealed earlier this week that federal funding for emergency responders and survivors with 9/11-related illnesses is declining.
More than 125,000 people are currently enrolled in the CDC's World Trade Center Health Program, and more than 6,900 have died since then.
FDNY union president Andrew Ansbro said he expects all 960 spaces on the memorial wall at FDNY headquarters to those killed from World Trade Center-related illnesses will eventually be filled.
Ansbro said more than 20 firefighters have died from 9/11-related illnesses in the past year, and the FDNY continues to bury more firefighters each month.
“We, the survivors, owe it to the families of the victims and those who died to find out the facts about what the city knew after the attack, what was there, and who made the decisions that affected so many people's lives,” Ansbro said.
The bill marks the latest effort in a years-long fight to force the city to release the coveted documents.
in spite of Freedom of Information Request, Letter to the Mayor Lawsuits from survivors Submitted in Junethat information has yet to see the light of day.
After NY1 filed an open records request for documents such as inspections and daily updates provided to then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and the city's Office of Emergency Management told the outlet: They had no papers.
A spokesperson for Mayor Eric Adams' office confirmed in February that the office was “aware of the city's request for documents related to the aftermath of the attack and is evaluating how to determine the cost of such a review, which will require an extensive legal review to identify sensitive materials and liability risks.”
A spokesman said Brewer's office had not formally requested the information.
“By withholding 9/11 related materials from the public, the City is dishonoring these men and women, many of whom have already died,” Reps. Jerrold Nadler (NY-12) and Dan Goldman (NY-10) wrote in a letter to Mayor Eric Adams in April. “Far from simply releasing the requested materials, the City continues to publicly contradict itself.”
If the bill passes, DOI would be required to complete the report within two years and provide updates twice a year.
