The positions Eric Adams hasn’t filled yet

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been filling out his government, appointing more than 50 top officials ranging from deputy mayors to the school chancellor and transportation commissioner. But he’s still got a long, long way to go. Based on the city’s list of agency and office officials, Adams still has more than 80 positions to either fill or reappoint.

It isn’t clear if the mayor actually plans to fill all these positions – will he have a chief democracy officer like former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio did? Or a chief privacy officer?Other positions, it wasn’t even clear if it was the mayor’s responsibility to appoint. Does Adams have to name an administrative justice coordinator? Commissioner David Goldin, who has held the job since 2006, didn’t immediately respond. And the mayor’s office declined to comment on whether the mayor – who appointed a chief efficiency officer and has talked extensively about eliminating waste in government – would be filling rarely heard-of positions such as executive director of the New York City Children’s Cabinet. 

Politico New York reported that Adams has slowed his appointment process after some picks received criticism, such as his brother Bernard Adams as senior advisor for mayoral security, Carlo Scissura as president of the Economic Development Corporation and Phil Banks as deputy mayor for public safety. But Adams hasn’t been particularly slow, from a historical perspective. De Blasio didn’t appoint a buildings commissioner until mid-July, more than six months into his mayoralty. 

Still, high profile positions have yet to be filled, such as parks commissioner, fire commissioner and buildings commissioner. 

Leadership of some agencies has been limbo, even as they dealt with emergencies. Edward Grayson was appointed sanitation commissioner by de Blasio in 2020, and Adams hasn’t made an announcement yet about whether he will remain in that position, or whether somebody else will take over. And Christina Farrell has served as acting emergency management commissioner since the beginning of the year after Andrew D’Amora, who had served as commissioner for just a couple months, retired. Both Grayson and Farrell were on hand with Adams Friday at a salt shed in Manhattan as the city prepared for a snow emergency. When the mayor was asked if he had communicated with them about whether they would remain in their leadership positions, he praised them for not asking questions.

“Professionals, they do their jobs. They don’t spend time asking if they will have a job or not have a job,” he said. When they’re on the job, they do the job.” He added that private conversations he has had with his commissioners would remain private.

The mayor’s press office was similarly tight-lipped, saying that they wouldn’t comment on pending appointments, and additional appointments will be announced when they’re finalized and vetted. “Mayor Adams is choosing the best people for the best jobs in the best city in the world,” read a statement from the press office. “He has already assembled a stellar team of public servants to deliver for New Yorkers, and looks forward to continuing to make announcements about new appointments to his administration in the days and weeks ahead.”

That’s good news for the countless Adams supporters still hoping to get jobs in the fledgling administration. And while specific appointments have been criticized, major appointments have been well received by the city’s political class. 

“The mayor still has a number of important agencies to address, including Buildings, Fire (and) Parks, but at this point he’s appointed incredibly qualified people to senior positions and agencies,” said George Fontas, a consultant who has been tracking appointments on his website. “I’m eager to see all that talent begin putting in place strategies to achieve the mayor’s vision. “

• Office of the Actuary chief actuary
• Office of the Administrative Justice Coordinator
• Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings commissioner and chief administrative law judge
• Department for the Aging
• Mayor's Office of Appointments
• Department of Buildings
• Business Integrity Commission
• Campaign Finance Board chair
• Center for Innovation through Data Intelligence executive director
• Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
• Office of the City Clerk clerk of the council
• Office of Citywide Event Coordination and Management executive director
• Civic Engagement Commission chair and executive director
• Civil Service Commission chair
• Civilian Complaint Review Board executive director
• Commission on Gender Equity executive director
• Commission to Combat Police Corruption chair
• Conflicts of Interest Board executive director
• Department of Consumer and Worker Protection commissioner
• Board of Correction executive director
• Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice director
• Department of Cultural Affairs commissioner
• Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics chief analytics officer
• DemocracyNYC chief democracy officer
• Emergency Management commissioner
• Equal Employment Practices Commission executive director
• Fire Department commissioner
• Office of Food Policy director
• GreeNYC director
• New York City Housing Authority chair and CEO
• Housing Recovery Operations director
• Hudson Yards Infrastructure Corporation president
• City Commission on Human Rights commissioner
• Mayor’s Office of Information Privacy chief privacy officer
• Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary members and executive director
• Office of Labor Relations commissioner
• Landmarks Preservation Commission chair
• Loft Board executive director
• Mayor's Committee on City Marshals chair
• Mayor's Fund to Advance NYC executive director
• Mayor's Office for Economic Opportunity executive director
• Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities commissioner
• Mayor's Office of Environmental Remediation director
• Mayor's Office of Special Projects & Community Events director
• Mayor's Public Engagement Unit director
• Mayor’s Office of Climate Resiliency director
• Mayor’s Office of Climate and Sustainability director
• Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health director
• Mayor’s Office of Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises director
• Mayor’s Office of Strategic Partnerships executive director
• Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence commissioner
• Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment commissioner
• NYC Media general manager
• NYC Children's Cabinet executive director
• NYC Cyber Command citywide chief information security officer
• NYC Economic Development Corporation president and CEO
• NYC Employees' Retirement System executive director
• NYC Health + Hospitals president and CEO
• NYC Service chief service officer
• NYC Young Men’s Initiative executive director
• New York City Transitional Finance Authority executive director
• Department of Parks and Recreation commissioner
• Office of Payroll Administration executive director
• Police Pension Fund executive director
• Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes executive director
• Department of Probation commissioner
• Procurement Policy Board chair
• Advisory Commission on Property Tax Reform chair
• Public Design Commission executive director
• Department of Records and Information Services commissioner
• Rent Guidelines Board executive director
• Sales Tax Asset Receivable Corporation president
• Department of Sanitation commissioner
• Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement executive director
• Board of Standards and Appeals chair
• TSASC, Inc president
• Office of Administrative Tax Appeals director
• Tax Appeals Tribunal president and commissioner
• Tax Commission president
• Teachers' Retirement System of the City of New York executive director
• Department of Veterans' Services commissioner
• Water Board chair
• Municipal Water Finance Authority chief executive officer
• Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development executive director
• Department of Youth and Community Development commissioner