Jeffrey Dinowitz
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Jeffrey Dinowitz (born December 3, 1954) is an American politician who represents District 81 in the
New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...
, which comprises
Kingsbridge Kingsbridge is a market town and tourist hub in the South Hams district of Devon, England, with a population of 6,116 at the 2011 census. Two electoral wards bear the name of ''Kingsbridge'' (East & North). Their combined population at the abo ...
, Marble Hill, Norwood, Riverdale,
Van Cortlandt Village Van Cortlandt Village is a subsection of the Kingsbridge neighborhood in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 8. Named after Van Cortlandt Park, it is bordered by the Major Deegan Expressway to ...
,
Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...
, and Woodlawn Heights. Dinowitz has served in the New York State Assembly since 1994.


Early life, education, and family

Dinowitz was born and raised in the
Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
. He grew up in Soundview before moving to Kingsbridge Heights at age 10. He is a graduate of the
Bronx High School of Science The Bronx High School of Science, commonly called Bronx Science, is a public specialized high school in The Bronx in New York City. It is operated by the New York City Department of Education. Admission to Bronx Science involves passing the Spec ...
,
Lehman College Lehman College is a public college in the Bronx borough of New York City. Founded in 1931 as the Bronx campus of Hunter College, the school became an independent college within CUNY in September 1967. The college is named after Herbert H. Lehma ...
of the
City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven Upper divis ...
, and
Brooklyn Law School Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a private law school in New York City. Founded in 1901, it has approximately 1,100 students. Brooklyn Law School's faculty includes 60 full-time faculty, 15 emeriti faculty, and a number of adjunct faculty. Brookly ...
. Dinowitz first entered politics as a volunteer on the
George McGovern George Stanley McGovern (July 19, 1922 – October 21, 2012) was an American historian and South Dakota politician who was a U.S. representative and three-term U.S. senator, and the Democratic Party presidential nominee in the 1972 pres ...
1972 presidential campaign. He was also involved in community issues such as tenant advocacy and volunteering on the board of Bronx Council for Environmental Quality during the 1970s. Prior to entering the Assembly, Dinowitz served for a decade as an administrative law judge for New York. He and his wife Sylvia Gottlieb have been married since 1978 and now live in the Riverdale section of the
Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
after previously living together in
Kingsbridge Kingsbridge is a market town and tourist hub in the South Hams district of Devon, England, with a population of 6,116 at the 2011 census. Two electoral wards bear the name of ''Kingsbridge'' (East & North). Their combined population at the abo ...
and Kingsbridge Heights. They have two children: Kara and
Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...
, and four grandchildren.


Career


New York State Assembly

Dinowitz was first elected in a
special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...
held in 1994 to replace G. Oliver Koppell. Dinowitz is currently serving as chair of the New York State Assembly Committee on Codes, as well as the Bronx Delegation. He is also a member of Committees on Ways and Means, Rules, Health, Election Law, and is a member of the Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force. Previously, Dinowitz served as Chair of the Assembly Committee on Judiciary from 2018-2020. In 2017, Dinowitz served as Chair of the Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities, and Commissions which has oversight of the MTA and public utilities among other entities. Before that, Dinowitz served as Chair of Committees on Consumer Affairs and Protection, Aging, and Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.


Major policy achievements

Dinowitz has passed hundreds of bills over the course of his tenure in the New York State Assembly. In 2020, Dinowitz was able to pass legislation to protect tenants and homeowners including the Tenant Safe Harbor Act as well as the Emergency Eviction & Foreclosure Prevention Act. Also in 2020, Dinowitz passed legislation to expedite court-ordered apartment repairs in honor of a child (Jashawn Parker) who was tragically killed in a fire while the apartment's landlord was fighting tenants in court to avoid making repairs. Also in 2020, Dinowitz passed legislation to allow absentee voting through 2021 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, Dinowitz passed a personal record 28 bills through both the Assembly and State Senate. One of these bills, which eliminated all non-medical exemptions to school vaccine requirements attracted worldwide attention and praise from the medical community as well as vitriol from people who do not believe in vaccination. Dinowitz has also passed legislation in 2016 to enter New York State into the National Popular Vote compact, to enact then-strongest in the nation protections against human trafficking, and more.


Rainbow Rebellion

Dinowitz was a key figure in the 2008 so-called "Rainbow Rebellion" which united several factions of the Bronx Democratic Party in order to overthrow the party chair, who had been accused of nepotism and patronage in his time as county leader. Dinowitz joined with then-Assemblyman Ruben Diaz Jr., Assemblyman
Carl Heastie Carl Edward Heastie (; born September 25, 1967) is an American politician from New York (state), New York. Heastie has served in the New York State Assembly since January 2001, and was elected Speaker of the New York State Assembly on February 3 ...
, Assemblyman
Michael Benedetto Michael Benedetto (born June 2, 1947) is a Member of the New York State Assembly representing the 82nd Assembly District, which covers the Co-op City, Throggs Neck, Westchester Square, City Island, Country Club, and Pelham Bay sections of the ...
, then-Assemblywoman
Aurelia Greene Aurelia Greene (October 26, 1934 – May 8, 2021) represented District 77 in the New York State Assembly, which comprises the Highbridge, Morrisania, and Morris Heights sections of The Bronx. She had been representing her district since 1982. ...
, and others to overthrow former county leader Jose Rivera. The Rainbow Rebellion ushered in a new era of Bronx Democratic politics and brought nearly unprecedented levels of unity across the borough.


Other political roles

Dinowitz previously served as Democratic District Leader from 1986 to 1994, originally beating the preferred candidate of the Bronx Democratic Party machine at the time. He has also served as a Democratic State Committeeman (1978), and as a delegate to the
Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...
on multiple occasions. Dinowitz was first elected as a DNC delegate in 1980 as one of the youngest delegates, and was originally committed to the slate for former U.S. Senator
Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...
who was challenging
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
(the preferred candidate of the Bronx political machine at the time). He has also served as President of the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club three times in the past and remains an active member of the club to this day. Dinowitz is a former Chair of the Bronx Democratic County Committee and is the current Secretary of the Bronx Democratic Party. Dinowitz was a vociferous of opponent of the
Croton Water Filtration Plant The Croton Water Filtration Plant, is a drinking water treatment facility in New York City which began operation in 2015. The plant construction cost was over $3 billion, The facility was built under Van Cortlandt Park's Mosholu Golf Course in t ...
, due to the required alienation of 23 acres in
Van Cortlandt Park Van Cortlandt Park is a park located in the borough of the Bronx in New York City. Owned by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, it is managed with assistance from the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance. The park, the city's third-lar ...
and the expenditure of $3.2 billion, a project spearheaded by former NYC Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner
Christopher O. Ward Christopher Owen Ward (born 1954) is an American civil servant who served as executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey from May 22, 2008, until November 1, 2011, and as New York City Department of Environmental Protecti ...
.


References


External links


Official New York State Assembly Member Website

Gotham Gazette's Eye On Albany: New York State Assembly: District 81Project Vote Smart: Interest Group Ratings
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dinowitz, Jeffrey Living people Jewish American state legislators in New York (state) Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Brooklyn Law School alumni Lehman College alumni 1954 births 21st-century American politicians Politicians from the Bronx The Bronx High School of Science alumni 21st-century American Jews