City Council Speaker Julie Menin is doing an end-run on Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s veto of a school buffer zone bill by fast-tracking a new piece of legislation. 

The slightly tweaked bill — set to be introduced on Wednesday — is slated to sail through the council with an overwhelming majority in the coming weeks, avoiding a  standoff with the mayor, according to insiders.

The School Safe Access bill, sponsored by Councilwoman Elsie Encarnacion (D-Bronx/Manhattan), will narrow the scope of “buffer zones,” spelling out that the no-protest zones around schools are limited to elementary schools, high schools and nurseries. 

It will not cover colleges, such as Columbia University, which became a flashpoint for anti-Israel campus demonstrations in 2024.

Insiders said  the minor change will help garner support from council members who were previously on the fence.

“What our weeks of conversation also revealed is that there was a considerable number of members who fully support the intent of the legislation, but who have concerns about which educational facilities are included,” said Menin. 

“We’re taking steps that will result in a greater consensus among council members, as well as the community at large, that will focus the legislation more clearly on the sites that serve the most vulnerable students.”

Menin claimed that she had the votes secured to override Mamdani’s veto, but opted to make the changes to appease a greater majority of the legislative body. 

The full details of the bill were not immediately made public. 

The amendments drew praise from members of the Jewish community, who had been up in arms after Hizzoner nixed the first iteration of the law.

“We commend Speaker Menin for consistently advocating for the safety and well-being of Jewish families,” the UJA-Federation of New York said in a statement. “At a time when too few elected officials in New York City are willing to take meaningful action against antisemitism and hate, Speaker Menin has shown real courage and moral clarity.”

“By clarifying and refining the bill’s language, she helped keep the focus where it belongs: protecting students and ensuring safe access to schools while bringing more stakeholders together behind that goal,” said Moshe Spern of United Jewish Teachers.

Mamdani last month nixed the first law — sponsored by Councilman Eric Dinowitz (D-Bronx) and passed just short of a veto-proof majority — claiming the language was too vague and could stifle protests at universities, museums and teaching hospitals.

“This could impact workers protesting ICE, or college students demanding their school divest from fossil fuels or demonstrating in support of Palestinian rights,” he said last month.

The new amendments, which Dinowitz has signed on to as the second sponsor, are expected to address those issues.

The school zone bill was nearly identical to another that also created a no-protest zone outside of religious institutions.

The mayor had also been opposed to the religious buffer zone bill, however, that legislation passed with a veto-proof majority.

Mamdani notably did not sign it into law, but let it languish on his desk until it automatically went into law late last month.