The Power of Public Banking

State Senator James Sanders Jr. and Assembly-member Victor Pichardo are sponsoring legislation to establish public banking in NYS. They are hosting a virtual town hall this Thursday, Jan 28, at 6pm to help educate the public and answer questions about how a public bank can be used as a tool to help lessen today’s economic imbalances. Speakers include Senator Jabari Brisport, NYC City Council member Robert E. Cornegy Jr. and experts from the public banking sector.

Proponents of public banking believe that “public money should work for the public good, not private gain.” A public bank has easy, sure access to lower cost funding, can on-lend at lower interest rates, and invest in community based projects at lower cost. According to the Public Bank NYC Coalition, a public bank can shift billions of dollars from “Wall Street banks that routinely exploit and extract wealth from low income communities.”

“The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the deeply rooted imbalances at the core of so many of our economic institutions. As Wall St. banks continue to exploit the crisis and exacerbate economic inequalities, we must advance towards a financial solution that will help us invest in our New York. The need for a public bank that will generate revenue, with the community as its top priority has never been clearer.”

TOWN HALL: Thursday, Jan. 28th, 6pm. Please pre-register for the event here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUrdOusqzwoGtapQ_mUN4LYFi5U13nc7G2K