Prior to becoming Speaker, Heastie - a lifelong advocate for workers' rights - served as chair of the Assembly Labor Committee. He was the principal negotiator in securing an increase in the minimum wage and in 2015, with the support of his Majority colleagues began the fight for $15 in the New York State Legislature. These efforts culminated in 2016 with the successful enactment of a graduated plan to raise the minimum wage across the state to provide workers at the lowest rungs of the economic ladder a fair chance to achieve financial independence and success. Before becoming Speaker he was also the prime sponsor of the Wage Theft Prevention Act that provided a framework for the State Department of Labor to root out incidences of wage theft and help aggrieved workers reclaim their illegally withheld earnings.

Education Speaker Heastie is a proud product of New York City's public schools and throughout his legislative career he has been a passionate advocate for the transformative power of education. He has joined his Majority colleagues in fighting for spending plans to provide funding for statewide universal pre-kindergarten programs and additional support for the state's neediest schools. Since he became Speaker in 2015, these efforts have secured more than $7.3 billion in additional school aid funding. During the SFY 2021-22 SFY Budget negotiations, Speaker Heastie helped secure a multi-year investment in prekindergarten, including $105 million for the 2021-22 academic year. These investments have not only provided an essential foundation for early childhood education, they help school districts afford the resources they need to provide a sound basic education to every child in New York. In 2016, this commitment was strengthened by the inclusion of additional support to establish community schools, a holistic approach to providing students with needs-based education that provides wraparound health, social services, mental health and afterschool programming to promote the well-being of students alongside their academic success.

In an especially poignant campaign to strengthen the achievement of all New York's students, Heastie championed efforts to secure the enactment of President Barack Obama's "My Brother's Keeper" initiative. This victory made New York the first state in the nation to commit to this innovative, multi-faceted agenda to overcome challenges and improve outcomes for boys and young men of color. Since its inception in 2016, New York has invested $108 million in My Brother's Keeper initiatives. During the 2021 New York State My Brother's Other Accomplishments Speaker Heastie represents the 83rd A.D. in the northeast Bronx and was first elected to the Assembly in 2000. Prior to becoming Assembly Speaker, he scored a victory for public health when he championed the passage of a law that prohibited the sale of water containing nicotine to children under 18 years old. He also authored a law to help victims of domestic violence by releasing them from lease obligations if it is found that remaining in the residence would keep the victim in a dangerous environment. He has been one of the state legislature's leading advocates for the construction of new schools and his vigilance led to the development of several new schools in his district. In addition, he secured significant funding for housing, education, after school programming, health and human services, jobs readiness and computer training for constituents. As a result of his decades-long mission to securing a safe, modern place for families and residents of the Bronx to enjoy, Speaker Heastie was instrumental in efforts that led to the New York City Economic Development Corporation's 2016 announcement that a new state-of-the-art YMCA facility would be constructed in the Edenwald neighborhood of the Bronx. In August 2018, the project officially broke ground and is expected to open in early 2020. The facility has brought 100 new construction jobs, with a 35 percent MWBE contracting goal for design and construction and will deliver 100 new permanent jobs. Once completed, the new YMCA will provide a wide array of family-friendly activities and recreational space for youth.

Prior to joining the Assembly, Speaker Heastie served as a budget analyst in the New York City Comptroller's office. He earned a master's degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from Baruch College of CUNY and a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics and statistics from Stony Brook University (SUNY).