The Bill to Ban Carriage Horses Is Dead

A bill that would ban horse-drawn carriages in Central Park was defeated in committee on Friday, after the bill's main sponsor invoked an obscure City Council rule to force the committee to discuss it.

The City Council's Health Committee—which, because of the unusual way it was convened, did not include an opportunity for public comment—was called for by Queens Councilmember Bob Holden, the lead sponsor of Ryder's Law.

Holden, who does not sit on the Health Committee, opened his remarks with a quote from Mahatma Gandhi: "The greatness of a society can be judged by the way its animals are treated." He then lambasted his council colleagues for failing to consider his bill, which he first proposed in 2022. 

"This committee chose not to have a hearing on this bill for four years. That's a disgrace," Holden said. "There's discrimination going on here. We know it, and it's disgusting." Holden then motioned to schedule a public hearing—and when Queens Councilmember Lynn Schulman, the Health Committee chair, replied that committee members were going to give comment instead, Holden insisted he would file an injunction for discrimination.

Despite the best efforts of First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, the only councilmembers besides Holden who spoke favorably about Ryder's Law were Chris Marte and Eric Bottcher—neither of whom is on the Health Committee, and both of whom had appeared at a New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets (NYCLASS) rally outside City Hall on Wednesday.

"Look, we're in 2025. If it was a human pushing a horse carriage, we would call that inhumane. If it was any other living animal, whether it was dogs or cats, pushing a carriage, we would call that inhumane," Marte said. "Why do we have to put horses at a different level? That's why I support this bill."

But the Health Committee members who spoke at the meeting all expressed varying degrees of skepticism towards the legislation.