The Agency You’ll Join:
The New York City Mayor’s Office is responsible for overseeing city services throughout the five boroughs, coordinating public agencies and departments, and managing public property. The administration is leading the fight in making the city more affordable, reducing inequality, improving public safety, ensuring delivery of efficient and effective services, and working to make New York City’s economy stronger. We value leadership, transparency, fairness, and efficiency as we actively seek diverse talents from various sectors to join our team. For current job opportunities, visit our careers page.

The Team You’ll Work With:
The Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) is a team of architects, lawyers, data and climate scientists, engineers, policy advisors, geologists, and city planners working to create a city where our 8.8 million New Yorkers can live, work, learn, and play in healthy, resilient, and sustainable neighborhoods. MOCEJ integrates sustainability, resiliency, and environmental justice into one coordinated approach across several climate and environmental offices, all working to make our buildings efficient and resilient; our infrastructure climate-ready; our streets, open spaces, and public realm active, safe, and healthy; and our energy clean and resilient. All New Yorkers deserve safe, healthy, resilient, and sustainable environments, even as the climate changes.

MOCEJ is committed to improving environmental quality for all, prioritizing front-line communities, seeking to redress current and past injustices and inequities while creating economic opportunities for all. Through science-based analysis, policy and program development, and capacity building, MOCEJ leads the City’s efforts to ensure that New York City is minimizing its contributions to climate change, preparing to adapt and protect New Yorkers from extreme weather and multiple climate hazards, and giving every New Yorker a meaningful voice in our city’s future.

The Problems You’ll Solve:
As part of MOCEJ’s Clean Energy Team, the Senior Advisor will provide legal and policy expertise to support the City’s clean energy initiatives, regulatory engagement, and legislative priorities.

Under the supervision of the Deputy Director of Clean Energy, the Senior Advisor will work closely with MOCEJ teams and the NYC Law Department to provide legal and policy guidance on a range of complex environmental and energy matters. This role will support the development and implementation of City priorities related to clean energy, climate policy, and regulatory strategy, and will liaise with the Law Department and attorneys for the City and Mayoral offices on complex environmental and energy issues.

The Senior Advisor will help ensure that MOCEJ’s policies, programs, and initiatives comply with applicable laws and regulations while advancing the City’s climate and clean energy goals.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Ensure that policies, projects, and programs implemented by MOCEJ are compliant with Federal, State, and local laws.
- Review and draft agreements with City, State, Federal, and private entities, including grant agreements, procurement contracts, Project Partnership Agreements, MOUs, and NDAs.
- Conduct research and analysis of specific legal questions and prepare memoranda and opinions setting forth research results, recommendations, and conclusions across a variety of environmental and energy law areas.
- Administer the City’s participation in energy regulatory proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the New York State Public Service Commission, coordinating across City agencies to inform priorities, managing submission of deliverables with the City’s outside energy counsel and Law Department, and reviewing City submissions for legal and substantive content.
- Review new legislation and regulations and support the development of City comments on Federal and State proposed regulations that impact MOCEJ projects, policies, or initiatives.
- Lead legislative initiatives, including drafting legislative proposals, drafting legislation, and memoranda in support or opposition to introduced legislation.
- Provide legal and policy analysis to support the City’s clean energy transition, including renewable energy deployment, grid modernization, and regulatory strategy.
- Support officewide efforts to ensure compliance with the City’s Information Privacy Law.
- Support the development of protocols needed to manage legal risk and support the effective functioning of MOCEJ programs and initiatives.
- Support the NYC Law Department with the legal and administrative aspects of litigation, including the litigation process.
- Provide legal expertise and support officewide efforts to ensure compliance with the City’s Conflicts of Interest Board rules, including drafting gift, travel, and board memoranda.
- Perform other duties as needed.

About You:
- You can demonstrate familiarity with New York City procurement laws and processes, including procurement policy board rules.
- You can demonstrate familiarity with environmental or energy laws and regulations at a federal, state, or local level.
- You can demonstrate familiarity with federal and state grant funding processes and compliance requirements.

Special Assistant (MA)-MGRL - 0668A

- A graduate of an ABA-approved law school, admitted and a member in good standing of the NYS Bar.
- 2+ years of relevant legal experience subsequent to admission to any state bar. Legal experience should include drafting contracts, legislation, and other legal documents; analyzing complex legal issues; preparing legal memos; researching statutes, opinions, etc.; and providing legal advice to high-level managers and executives.

- You can maintain working relationships with staff, city officials, government agencies, the public, and all other internal and external constituencies at all levels with utmost professionalism. - You are familiar with Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from HUD or FEMA assistance programs, a plus. - You have excellent organizational, research, analytical, and problem-solving skills. - You have outstanding written and spoken communication skills. - You can work independently. - You can work calmly and proficiently under pressure and to adhere to strict deadlines. - You can navigate the City government and communicate effectively with administrative and technical leaders, particularly on technically complex topics. - You are resourceful and flexible, while being organized and detail-oriented.

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.