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Tech:NYC Digest: January 22

Tech:NYC Digest: January 22

January 22, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 11 minutes

Friday, January 22, 2021As NYC works through another surge of the coronavirus, the digest focuses on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.Was this digest forwarded to you? Subscribe here.

The latest: Pres. Biden signs orders expanding EBT and SNAP benefits and upping the minimum wage for fed contractors; New York runs out of vaccine doses today, more on the way; Senate split on Biden relief proposal, negotiations over direct payments and more are ongoing; today is the deadline to enroll in 2021-2022 kindergarten programs, teacher’s union says in-person school unlikely.

Confirmed Cases:

New York State: 1,300,481 (+15,144)
New York City: 549,106 (+6,307)
Statewide Fatalities: 33,763 (+165)
NYC Positivity Rates:
- NYS reports: 5.7 percent (no change)
- NYC reports: 9.0 percent (+0.2 percent)

General Updates:

Some good news: Gov. Cuomo indicated today the rate of increase in new hospitalizations has drastically slowed, with the last week seeing a net average of five hospitalizations per day. Today the total number of hospitalizations dipped back below 9,000. (Bloomberg)
However, NYC is still in the thick of it with 54 of its ZIP codes reporting seven-day average positivity rates of over 10 percent. The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island have positivity rates over nine percent borough-wide. (New York Times)
Gov. Cuomo said today 97 percent of the state’s allocation of vaccines have been administered and supply will run out today. (New York Post) More on that below.
Pres. Biden signed two executive orders today to add to the dozen signed yesterday. (Axios) The first asks the Dept. of Agriculture to expand EBT benefits by 15 percent to families who traditionally rely on schools meals programs, many of which remain closed due to the pandemic, as well as to increase emergency SNAP benefits to about 12 million low-income Americans. The second addresses the jobs of federal contractors, requiring them to pay $15 minimum wage and provide paid leave. (New York Times)

The latest results: Yesterday several devoted New Yorkers launched NY Forever, an opportunity for all New Yorkers to affirm their commitment to a stronger, more equitable New York. How long are committed to New York for?

Today’s poll: Positivity rates have remained consistently high across all five boroughs, so indoor dining is unlikely to return anytime soon. Walking down pretty much any city street, however, you will see the adaptability and entrepreneurship of restaurateurs who have propped up heated yurts, canopied seating, and bubbles to dine in during the cold months. Diners are adapting too: snowsuits and sleeping bag coats are selling out. How often are you outdoor dining this winter?

*|SURVEY: More than once a week|*
*|SURVEY: Once a week|*
*|SURVEY: Two to three times a month|*
*|SURVEY: Once a month|*
*|SURVEY: I stick to takeout/delivery|*

Find the poll results from all previous editions of this newsletter here.

The Next Federal Stimulus Plan:

In yesterday's digest, we provided a roundup of the White House’s new plan to fight virus spread and expedite vaccine distribution. Simultaneously, President Biden is working to respond to the economic fallout the pandemic has caused. Ahead of his inauguration, he released a $1.9 trillion relief proposal — now in his second full day in office, here’s where that stands:

Much of the original plan is unchanged, including $1,400 direct payments to eligible Americans to add to $600 checks sent at the end of last year, as well as funding for vaccines and testing; state government and small business relief; reopening schools; and housing, food, and child care assistance. Here’s a good roundup of all the components. (Vox)
But Senate Democrats are pushing for two significant changes: adding a $3,000 per child tax credit to parents and bumping up the $1,400 payments to $2,000. (Washington Post)
Senate Republicans vowed today to oppose the plan as currently written, calling the price tag already too high. In a Senate evenly split along party lines, there’s very little chance it gets the necessary 60 votes. Without changes, the only hope is forcing a budget reconciliation process, which just needs a simple majority. (POLITICO)

The latest round of federal unemployment aid will expire on March 14, imposing a natural deadline for lawmakers of both parties to make decisions on strategy. (POLITICO) For New York, that deadline is important — the state budget must be balanced by April 1, giving Gov. Cuomo just a few weeks to negotiate that budget with full knowledge of how much aid will come from Washington.

Vaccine Rollout:

Here are a few updates on New York’s vaccine distribution status:

Gov. Cuomo today echoed Mayor de Blasio’s warnings, confirming the state runs out of vaccine supply beginning today. (Bloomberg) The state has 28,246 first doses remaining on-hand from the first five weeks of delivery. But it now administers around 80,000 per day, depleting our supply ahead of the next shipment.
The week six shipment of doses will arrive with 250,400 doses, but we don’t have confirmed numbers for future shipments beyond that. The takeaway: we’re now week-to-week with supply, and therefore, the number of appointments that can be booked.
Increases in supply can’t be made without federal decisions, but current manufacturing agreements with Pfizer and Moderna were finalized ahead of the Biden Administration, and it's unlikely the supply it inherited will grow before April. (New York Times)
- Pres. Biden wants 100 million doses administered over 100 days. The napkin math on what that means for New York: with 6 percent of the country’s population, that would mean 60,000 doses per day, or 420,000 doses per week. Administering that many doses for the 7.1 million currently eligible will take 17 weeks.
Amazon has offered to help distribute the vaccine nationwide, given it’s immense logistics network. (Fast Company) Other large companies like Walmart, Starbucks, and Microsoft are also offering help with vaccine delivery on regional and national scales. (Washington Post)
One ray of hope: assuming ongoing clinical trials being approved, Johnson & Johnson said it could have 100 million doses for Americans by the spring, adding to the country’s stock. (CNBC)

Other Reopening News:

Gov. Cuomo confirmed a new case of UK variant strain in Brooklyn and two new cases in Westchester, bringing the total number of variant cases in the state to 25. (Patch Brooklyn) While the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has indicated efficacy to the UK strains, new studies about the South Africa strain suggests it could dodge immune responses. (New York Times)
Today is the deadline to apply for NYC children to be enrolled in kindergarten programs for the 2021-2022 school year. (CBS New York) But with vaccine supply lagging in New York, the head of NYC’s teachers union said the city’s public schools likely will not reopen for full five-day in-person classes this school year. (Wall Street Journal)
A long-awaited proposal to overhaul the Port Authority Bus Terminal has been released, at a $10 billion price tag over the next decade. (New York Times)