On Dec. 18, during the City Council’s last meeting of 2025, Councilmember and Veterans Committee Chairperson Bob Holden condemned the City Council and Speaker Adrienne Adams for “deliberately killing” a package of legislation dedicated to helping veterans via an “obscure procedural maneuver.”
The package included bills from Holden, and Councilmembers Vicky Paladino, Joann Ariola and Inna Vernikov that would assist veterans with housing access, homelessness prevention, mental health support and more. Now that the council is dismissed for 2025, the bills will have to be reintroduced next year. At the closing of the meeting, Holden said the City Council’s message to veterans was clear: “Drop Dead.”
“This confirms exactly what this City Council has become,” said Holden in a press release. “Veterans legislation was deliberately sacrificed to carry out a personal vendetta against me, and our veterans were collateral damage. The Speaker and Council leadership killed good policy out of spite, not principle, and chose petty retaliation over doing their jobs. That is not leadership, it is vindictive politics, and it was done on the backs of the men and women who served this country.”
Adams did not call a full City Council vote on the eight bills based on rule 9.10, which states “No public hearing or vote on a proposed local law shall be held unless such local law is accompanied by a fiscal impact statement prepared by the Finance Division of the Council.” However, fiscal impact statements by the City Council and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) were provided on all eight of the bills for the Fiscal Year of 2026 (FY26) earlier this year, leading to Holden’s criticism that every one of the bills had the necessary components for a vote on the floor.
A representative of Adams stated that the dismissal of the package was in no way personal towards Holden or the other bills’ sponsors or a slight on veterans. The representative noted Adams’ husband, late father, and father-in-law are all veterans themselves. Phase two of the Mental Health Roadmap, introduced by Adams in 2023, focused entirely on veterans and even included a resolution sponsored by Holden, enabling financial assistance for veterans to obtain service and emotional support dogs.
“Legislation isn’t advanced by blaming and complaining about everyone else, but rather working with your colleagues. Existing programs and services already provide much of the support outlined in the proposed legislation that was referred for fiscal considerations. Given that these bills carry cost estimates, it would be fiscally irresponsible to advance them without further review by the Finance Committee,” the representative stated.
According to Adams’ representative, the Speaker utilized rule 9.10 to halt the vote because many of the bills’ goals were already covered by the Council-led initiatives already in existence or included in the 2026 fiscal budget. Out of the $3.7 million dedicated to veterans in FY26, the council allocated $540,000 to Veterans Resource Centers that will provide assistance to veterans with submitting claims and navigating various benefit and support programs. As chairperson, Holden forced the last-minute committee vote the day before the meeting on Dec. 17, and the package still required “additional steps” to be ready for a floor vote.
“My love for veterans has been questioned today, and I take personal offence to that,” Adams said in her closing remarks, pulling out a photo of her late father who served in the Air Force and passed away during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I do my work for veterans because of this veteran, who was so proud of his child… this work I do is for our veterans. Veterans stood up for us and a veteran birthed this first black speaker of the City Council.”
Concluding his last council meeting due to term limits, Holden called it “bittersweet” and remains adamant that during his tenure he “stood on principle” and has no regrets.
Serving 8 years in the @NYCCouncil has been a dream come true. My family comes from this district for generations, and I’m proud to live here, raise my family here, and represent you. Yesterday was my final Stated Meeting, and it was bittersweet.
It was bittersweet because no… pic.twitter.com/jYcw4sjAUB
— Robert Holden (@BobHoldenNYC) December 19, 2025
