Antonio Reynoso

The Right to Know Act

The Right to Know Act, passed during Reynoso's first council term, was a package of policing reforms responding to the disproportionate stop-and-frisk of Black and Latino New Yorkers 2. The measures required NYPD officers to:

Identify themselves and provide a business card when stopping people.

Inform individuals of their right to refuse a search when there is no probable cause, and obtain proof of consent.

Reynoso, who has said he was himself stopped and frisked as a young man in Williamsburg, was a leading champion of the act and frequently cites it as evidence that he can pass controversial reform legislation 3. The act was one of the most significant policing-accountability measures of its era, though its implementation and effectiveness have been debated by both police-reform advocates and the NYPD.

The Waste Equity Law (2018)

As Chair of the Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste Management, Reynoso introduced the Waste Equity Law in 2018 to address a stark geographic imbalance: three neighborhoods (North Brooklyn, southeast Queens, and the South Bronx) handled roughly three-quarters of the city's trash processing, with North Brooklyn alone handling about 40 percent 4. The daily garbage-truck traffic drove up air pollution and asthma rates in those communities.

The law limited the amount of waste that could be processed in overburdened districts, distributing the burden more evenly across the city. It was a foundational environmental-justice achievement of his council tenure 4.

The Commercial Waste Zone law (2019)

Reynoso's most consequential legislation was the Commercial Waste Zone (CWZ) reform, signed into law by Mayor Bill de Blasio in November 2019 5. The bill responded to a private carting industry in which more than 90 companies served over 100,000 businesses with overlapping, inefficient, and dangerous routes. The industry had been responsible for multiple deaths, including fatal crashes involving the company Sanitation Salvage 6.

The law authorized dividing the city into 20 commercial waste zones, each served by a capped number of carters (no more than three per zone), with companies required to meet standards on safety, recycling, pollution, and job quality 7. Supporters projected major reductions in truck mileage and greenhouse-gas emissions 8.

The CWZ law was genuinely contested. Industry critics called it a "recipe for corruption" and warned it could drive family-run carters out of business 7. Implementation was also slow: after roughly five years of delay, the city launched its first commercial waste zone in Queens in 2024, with full citywide rollout still in progress 4. The episode illustrates both the ambition of the reform and the long gap that can separate passage from implementation.

Other council legislation

Beyond the three landmarks, Reynoso's council record included the Tenant Safety Act, which strengthened protections for tenants, and a leading role in passing outdoor dining legislation 1,9. He also championed the Bushwick Community Plan, a community-led rezoning proposal that the de Blasio administration blocked from advancing, meaning it did not become binding policy despite the years of community work behind it 10.

The Borough President's years: Advisory power

Since becoming Brooklyn Borough President in January 2022, Reynoso has held an office without direct legislative power. The borough president's formal role in lawmaking is advisory: issuing recommendations on land-use and rezoning applications (which carry weight but are ultimately decided by the City Planning Commission and City Council), appointing members to community boards and planning bodies, and allocating a discretionary budget 11.

Within those constraints, Reynoso's signature initiative was the Comprehensive Plan for Brooklyn, released in Fall 2023, described by his office as the first borough-specific large-scale planning effort in city history 12,13. The plan was a framework and advocacy document rather than binding legislation, but it reflected an attempt to use the advisory office to shape the city's planning conversation. His land-use recommendations have been notable for their technical engagement with development finance 14.

Assessing his claim of passing controversial bills

Reynoso's central 2026 campaign argument is that his council record proves he can pass difficult legislation, distinguishing him from less experienced opponents 1. The record largely supports this: the Right to Know Act, the Waste Equity Law, and the Commercial Waste Zone reform were all genuinely contested measures that he, as the prime sponsor or a leading champion, moved into law. The Bushwick Community Plan is the notable exception, an effort that was blocked rather than enacted.

The honest qualifications are two. First, several of his marquee achievements faced long implementation lags (the CWZ rollout in particular), so passage did not immediately translate into on-the-ground change. Second, since 2022, he has held an advisory office without lawmaking power, so his most recent years are measured in planning frameworks and recommendations rather than enacted laws. Supporters point to the council record as proof of effectiveness; skeptics note the implementation gaps and the limits of his current office. Both observations are accurate and together describe a legislator with a stronger record of passing contested bills than most, tempered by the realities of enforcement and of the borough presidency.