Standing Up For The President’s Environmental Plan
This week a federal appeals court denied an attempt from multiple states and industry groups to block the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, which would regulate greenhouse gas emissions from existing fossil fuel power plants. Attorney General Schneiderman announced in November that his office was leading a coalition of 25 states, counties and municipalities in defense of the Clean Power Plan, and filed a motion to intervene responding to suits challenging the rules. The Attorney General applauds the court’s decision, and will continue to work with states and local governments to defend the Clean Power Plan as the litigation continues, and ensure that necessary progress is made in confronting climate change.
Leading The Fight Against Heroin Addiction
A highly effective heroin overdose antidote will continue to be sold at a discounted price to all New York State agencies, thanks to an agreement the Attorney General reached with Amphastar Pharmaceuticals. The drug Naloxone will continue to be sold to agencies at a reduced rate for another year—with the deal reducing the price of the drug by nearly 20 percent. Lowering the price of Naloxone will save lives and help agencies all across New York fight the scourge of heroin abuse. In addition to the price reduction for Naloxone negotiated by the Attorney General, the office launched the Community Overdose Prevention program in 2014, which made the antidote available to every state and local law enforcement officer in New York. The Attorney General remains committed to a comprehensive approach toward reducing heroin and prescription drug abuse in New York State.
Protecting New Yorkers Against Price Gouging During Winter Storms
With the threat of dangerous winter weather this weekend, the Attorney General issued a consumer alert warning consumers and businesses about price gouging. State law prohibits merchants from taking unfair advantage of consumers by selling goods or services at an excessive price during serious market disruptions, and the Attorney General wants any consumers who believe they have been the victim of price gouging to report their concerns to his office. The Attorney General has been successful in holding those who engage in price gouging accountable, including filing lawsuits against more than 50 gas stations for violations in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Inclement weather is not a time for business to exploit New Yorkers in order to line their pockets.
Creating Fair Access To Employment
The Attorney general announced settlement with Big Lots Stores and Marshalls to “Ban The Box” and eliminate inquiries into criminal history for potential applications on initial employment applications. The settlements follows an investigation finding that the two companies made inquiries in the criminal history of prospective applicants in their Buffalo stores after the City of Buffalo enacted “Ban The Box” legislation prohibiting such practices. In addition to agreeing to comply with the Buffalo law, both companies will remove such inquiries from any applications to any store in the state. The Attorney General believes that if we are serious about reducing recidivism, we must remove barriers to re-entry and create fair access to employment.
Continuing The Crackdown Against Deceptive Auto Dealerships
When consumers shop for a car, they should not be misled by deceptive auto dealerships looking to make a quick buck. Unfortunately, the Attorney General continues to uncover instances of dealerships selling “after sale” products and services without consumer knowledge, sometimes inflating the price of a car by more than $2,000. The latest instance of these alleged practices comes from Koeppel dealerships in Queens, which now face a lawsuit from the Attorney General. It is charged that the dealership sold these after-sale credit repair and identity theft protection services to 1,426 consumers, allowing Koeppel to collect more than $1 million over nearly two years. The Attorney General also announced settlements with dealerships in Nassau and Suffolk counties in Long Island for engaging in similar practices, which will result in more than $100,000 in refunds for consumers.
Improving Transparency In Government
The Attorney General announced a re-launch of his office’s online public data portal, NYOpenGovernment.com, which will now allow the public to look at lobbying disclosures in New York State. Users will also be able to track more easily what issues lobbyists and their clients are advocating, and how they result in specific legislation. Users will also be able search data to connect the business of a donor to the political contributions made to a candidate’s campaign. NYOpenGovernment.com is the only statewide resource that aggregates government data such as campaign finance, lobbying, charities, state contracts and corporate registrations.
Taking Down Identity Theft Schemes
A Manhattan man has been indicted by the Attorney General for the second time for allegedly perpetrating an identity theft scheme. Sharif King has been charged with pretending to run a bus company and stealing the identity of a prospective employee to purchase a $58,000 Mercedes Benz. This past June, King was indicted for allegedly purporting to have a record label company, which he used as a front to lure job candidates. It is then alleged that King stole the personal information of these individuals, which he then used to open credit cards and apply for a $29,000 loan. As thieves constantly come up with new and creative ways to target and take advantage of victims, the Attorney General wants all New Yorkers to exercise caution when disclosing personal information, and to immediately report if they believe they have been scammed.
Protecting Medicaid Against Fraud
CenterLight Healthcare will return more than $28 million to New York State following a settlement, which resolves allegations the company’s Select Medicaid Managed Long Term Care Plan (MLTCP) fraudulently billed Medicaid for services they did not provide to more than 1,200 Medicaid recipients. Under the settlement, CenterLight Healthcare admitted that it enrolled Medicaid beneficiaries who were referred by social adult day care centers even though the beneficiaries were not eligible to receive managed long-term care under the plan, and that the centers were providing services that did not qualify for reimbursement. It’s simple: CenterLight HealthCare did not play by the rules, and the Attorney General won’t tolerate companies which seek to exploit state resources for profit.
Safeguarding State Resources
Two New Rochelle residents have pleaded guilty to stealing more than $69,000 in unemployment benefits. Stephanie Vega and Dennis Broccolo were each charged with twice submitting false applications for unemployment insurance benefits by claiming to have worked at two different companies at which they were never employed.
In a separate case, the Attorney General announced the sentencing of a non-profit executive for pocketing taxpayer dollars intended for her non-profit corporation Agneldocs, Inc. It was alleged Ogundu took over $300,000 grants from the federal government, New York State and New York City by using the money to pay the mortgage and utilities on a commercial property she owned, make improvements to that property to increase its value, purchase and ship vehicles to Nigeria, and make other purchases for her personal benefit and for the benefit of her for-profit business.
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 at ag.ny.gov.
