Embedded — costs buried in shared lines
The Civic Issue
E-bike and moped delivery riders going the wrong way on streets, riding on sidewalks, and running red lights have become a top quality-of-life complaint. The city created a new Department of Sustainable Delivery with 45 peace officers to enforce regulations, and sidewalk riding fines can reach $500. A proposed law would penalize delivery apps for setting unrealistic delivery times that incentivize dangerous riding.
Headline Spending
$4.4M
identifiable in budget
Budget Lines (Adopted)
$8.8M
4 lines
| Line | Adopted | Spent |
|---|---|---|
Office of Labor Policy and Standards (PS) LICENSING/ENFORCEMENT | $3.9M | $2.7M |
Office of Labor Policy and Standards (OTPS) OTHER THAN PERSONAL SERVICE | $510.2K | $6.6K |
ENFORCEMENT (PS) LICENSING/ENFORCEMENT | $4.5M | $2.9M |
E-Bike Exchange Program OTPS-EXEC AND ADMINISTRATION (DOT) | $0 | $19.5K |
Total Identifiable Spending
~$4.4M in DCWP Office of Labor Policy and Standards (shared line covering delivery worker minimum pay, gig worker protections, and other labor standards); $19K in DOT E-Bike Exchange Program. The Dept of Sustainable Delivery does not appear as a separate agency in FY2026 budget data.
DCWP's Office of Labor Policy and Standards ($4.4M adopted) is the primary enforcement home for delivery worker regulations, including the $21.44/hr minimum pay, deactivation protections, and safety rules. DCWP's total enforcement budget is $4.5M adopted. DOT has an "E-Bike Exchange Program" budget line with $0 adopted and $0 modified, but $19K in cash expense — indicating a very small, unfunded program running on prior-year money. The Department of Sustainable Delivery — announced in 2025 with 45 peace officers — does not appear anywhere in the FY2026 budget, spending, or payroll tables as a separate agency. DCWP's total budget is $75.1M.
The Department of Sustainable Delivery was announced in 2025 but may not have its own budget line yet — it could be embedded within DCWP or DOT, or its funding may appear in a future fiscal year. The 45 peace officers' salaries and operational costs are not identifiable in current data. NYPD traffic enforcement also handles e-bike violations but those costs are buried within the broader traffic enforcement and patrol budgets. The proposed legislation to penalize delivery apps for unrealistic delivery times (which incentivize reckless riding) is not yet law and has no associated spending.
Key Context
The Department of Sustainable Delivery was created to specifically address e-bike and moped safety, with 45 dedicated peace officers empowered to issue violations. Sidewalk riding fines reach $500 for repeat offenses. DCWP enforces the delivery worker minimum pay ($21.44/hr effective January 2026, rising to $22.13/hr in April 2026) and the "just cause" deactivation protections approved in December 2025. The E-Bike Exchange Program at DOT ($19K spent) provides trade-ins for unsafe batteries, overlapping with the battery fire concern. A Council bill would penalize apps like DoorDash and Uber Eats for imposing delivery time windows that encourage dangerous riding behavior. The tension is between rider safety (enforcement) and rider economic protection (minimum pay, deactivation rules) — both handled by DCWP but with very different budget implications.