News From Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman

A.G. Awards $12.6 Million in Local Grants to Help Communities Combat Zombie Homes

This week Attorney General Schneiderman awarded $12.6 million in grants to 76 New York cities, towns and villages to address the problem of vacant “zombie” homes that invite crime and reduce property values. The Attorney General’s Zombie Remediation and Prevention Initiative has already helped dozens of communities remediate these homes statewide. This new funding will give municipalities the resources they need to track and remediate these homes, while ensuring that bank-owned properties are maintained in accordance with NY law. 

Enforcing State Diversity Laws in Major Rochester Construction Project

The Attorney General reached settlements with five Rochester construction firms that lied about meeting state diversity requirements in order to win contracts on the $1.2 billion Rochester Schools Modernization Program – the largest public project in the city’s history. State and local law require contractors to meet certain diversity standards to level the playing field for women and minority owned businesses that have been historically shut out of government contracts. Due to their false claims of hiring minority and women-owned subcontractors, the firms will pay a total of $825,000 in fines.

Have a question, comment, or complaint? Click here. You can also learn more about the various initiatives of the Attorney General's office by visiting our website atag.ny.gov. You can also call our General Hotline: 800-771-7755.