Mamdani launches government efficiency commission – Spectrum News NY1

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Mayor Zohran Mamdani says he has killed a relic of the past: former Mayor Eric Adams’ so-called “zombie” Charter Revision Commission. 
“With this decision, we are bringing what was an extension of that prior administration to an end," he said.
Mamdani took action on Wednesday night, issuing a notice that said, “such Commission shall expire and all appointments to such Commission shall be nullified.” 
“We are instead delivering on something that we know many New Yorkers, frankly many Americans, care about, which is government efficiency," the mayor said.
The Commission on Government Efficiency, also known as COGE, launched on Thursday, and to some, the name seemed familiar. 
“It’s just a name and what it should’ve been," Mamdani said. “Elon Musk manipulated the fact that so many people across this country want to see a government that is more efficient. He used that as a justification for simply slashing and burning so much of the services Americans rely on.” 
The mayor says that unlike Musk’s DOGE, his effort will be one that actually aims to improve government and come up with proposals to be placed on the ballot this fall.
“That means looking at the processes we have, means looking at the procedures of city government and that means looking at anything we can do to deliver a more efficient and more excellent government," he said. 
NY1 has reached out to Musk for comment and has not heard back. 
The new commission will be made up of 16 members who are all close allies of Mamdani. They have backgrounds in business, housing and government accountability and include familiar faces like former City Councilwoman Carlina Rivera and ex-head of the Partnership for New York Kathy Wylde.
It’s chaired by former Ambassador Patrick Gaspard, who also served as a top aide to Barack Obama.
Adams’ commission is vowing to move forward despite Mamdani’s move.
In a statement to NY1, the commission’s secretary wrote: “Evidently, the idea of New Yorkers having a voice in the future of their city — and the right to vote in open primaries — terrifies City Hall…Make no mistake: these are blatantly illegal tactics designed to silence New Yorkers and undermine public participation in our local democracy. Our open primaries proposal has already been transmitted to the City Clerk for placement on the November ballot.” 
“In New York City, you can always expect some type of a legal response to a decision that we make," Mamdani said in response to a possible legal challenge.
Some good government groups, like Citizens Union, are raising alarms about the commission’s political intentions and its short window for completing work to get issues in November. 

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