STATE COMPTROLLER THOMAS P. DiNAPOLI STATEMENT ON NEW YORK CITY MAYOR's PROPOSED EXECUTIVE BUDGET

 

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli released the following statement on Mayor Adams' executive budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024:

“The city has laid its fiscal cards on the table, including budget risks my office has raised in recent years. The mayor’s executive budget provides a more transparent accounting for new costs associated with collective bargaining wage increases and asylum seekers. It also shows stronger than projected city revenues and additional savings from the Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG).

“While the budget is balanced for FY 2024, the city faces challenges in the future as outyear budget gaps have grown and projected savings from the PEG will not be enough to offset these new costs. This suggests it will become even more difficult for the city to find savings without affecting services over time. The budget gaps, which could reach $10 billion in FY 2027, also highlight the importance of further building up reserves, a missed opportunity in the current fiscal year.

“The cost of asylum seekers, unbudgeted at this time last year, is expected to reach $2.9 billion in FY 2024, larger than the Fire Department’s operating budget. The city then budgets $1 billion for migrants in FY 2025 and zero thereafter, creating some uncertainty and highlighting the difficulty with accounting for this cost. The city assumes the state will provide nearly a third of the funding support needed but federal funds are not there and greater clarity from the federal government is needed to manage the situation.

“The delay in the state budget has created additional fiscal uncertainty for the city, which will have to be remedied in the city’s adopted budget expected in June. A swift agreement by the legislature and Governor will provide New York City, and other localities whose fiscal year is set to begin, greater certainty in managing their budgets.”

NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE'S RESPONSE TO THE FY2024 EXECUTIVE BUDGET

 

"With over half of New York’s families unable to meet the minimum cost of living in our city amid an affordability crisis, we must not repeat the mistakes of the past by pushing austerity at times of greatest need.

"As I argued in Washington, D.C. last week, the necessity of state and federal funding to support the needs of asylum seekers is real and urgent. At the same time, so is the need to provide essential government services at their full capacity. These goals are part of the same moral and governing mandate, and one cannot be used as justification to impede the other. The issues highlighted during this surge in people seeking asylum also pre-dated it – the day before the first bus arrived at Port Authority, there were already 50,000 New Yorkers in shelters, many for years. Our city’s current budgetary challenges have certainly been exacerbated, but are rooted in years of government failure to address systemic problems.

"Our city has faced fiscal hardship many times in our history, and the prudent path has been investment, then and now. Not funding agencies and programs adequately, or worse, cutting them, has a real cost, and we must all agree to prevent them in the final budget.

"I know that there are areas of agreement with the administration on issues like preventing gun violence, creating deeply affordable housing, and supporting mental healthcare. Beyond agreeing on principles, we have to prioritize funding and implementation of programs to meet them. On gun violence, for example, we still await a long-promised report and plan to be put in place, and a previously funded anti-violence mentorship pilot to launch.

"As we continue to review the details of this executive budget proposal, we must be clear that in the coming fiscal year, it’s time for concrete action. We can neither retreat from past promises nor preserve the status quo - we must progress."

MAYOR ADAMS RELEASES EXECUTIVE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024, LARGEST EXECUTIVE BUDGET IN CITY HISTORY

 

Despite Fiscal Challenges, Budget Protects Critical Programs for Working New Yorkers While Realizing Significant Agency Savings

 

No Cuts to Budgets for Libraries and Cultural Institutions

 

New York City Still Faces $4.3 Billion in Costs Related to Asylum Seeker Crisis Through FY24

New York City Mayor Eric Adams today released New York City’s $106.7 billion Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Executive Budget. Mayor Adams unveiled the largest Executive Budget in city history to protect critical programs that support working New Yorkers, while simultaneously preparing for economic headwinds by continuing his strong track record of fiscal responsibility. The budget also includes strategic investments that improve New Yorkers’ quality of life, including investments that create sustainability and resiliency programs, strengthen the city’s mental health resources, build out the college-to-career pipeline, and uplift working people.

 

FY23 and FY24 remain balanced, with outyear gaps of $4.2 billion, $6.0 billion, and $7.0 billion in fiscal years 2025 through 2027, respectively. Growth of $4.0 billion in FY24 over the Preliminary Budget is driven by asylum seeker costs and funding labor settlements with the city’s workforce.

 

“Our Fiscal Year 2024 Executive Budget prioritizes our working people’s agenda and keeps our city working for the benefit of all New Yorkers. But the challenges we face are real — including the costs of the asylum seeker crisis, the need to fund labor deals, and slowing tax revenue growth — and we must budget wisely,” said Mayor Adams. “The PEG was a success, achieving $1.6 billion in savings across the two fiscal years, and over $3 billion in the outyears without a single layoff or service reductions. Further, we did not cut a single penny from libraries or cultural institutions, and adjusted savings targets for agencies to avoid cutting critical needs. This budget also makes upstream investments to uplift working New Yorkers, makes our city more sustainable, strengthens mental health services, and builds out the college-to-career pipeline. We had to make tough choices in this budget and balance competing needs, but our administration always puts the well-being of New Yorkers first, second, and third.”

 

In the last year, more than 57,000 asylum seekers have arrived in New York City, and more than 35,000 still remain in the city’s care. The city anticipates that the cost of providing shelter, food, clothing, and other services for asylum seekers will be $4.3 billion through the end of FY24.

 

In the last few months, Mayor Adams also announced labor agreements with District Council 37 and the Police Benevolent Association, which set the economic framework for labor deals with the city’s workforce. The total additional cost of reaching agreements with the city’s remaining unionized workforce is expected to be approximately $16 billion over the duration of the financial plan.

 

In response to the dramatic growth in the cost of caring for asylum seekers and the need to add funds to support labor deals, Mayor Adams implemented a Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG) in the Executive Budget to reduce costs and promote efficiency. The PEG achieved $1.6 billion in savings across FY23 and FY24 without laying off a single employee or cutting any services. This PEG was applied strategically, and the Adams administration did not remove a single cent from the budgets of New York City’s public libraries or the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, which funds museums and other cultural institutions, out of concern that reductions in budgets at this time would negatively impact their ability to provide core services. Targets were also reduced for numerous other agencies — including the Fire Department of the City of New York, the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY), the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, the New York City Department of Youth & Community Development, the New York City Human Resources Administration, the New York City Department of Homeless Services, and more — that could not sustain full PEG cuts without jeopardizing public safety, health, or other critical services for New Yorkers. The administration continues to work with agencies to identify ways to operate more efficiently while delivering effective services to all New Yorkers.

 

Tax revenues increased by $2.1 billion in FY23 and $2.3 billion in FY24, driven by better-than-anticipated growth in personal income tax, business tax, and sales taxes, and helped maintain balance. Financial experts widely predict an economic slowdown later this year, which will in turn slow city tax revenue growth in the outyears.

 

The FY24 investments include:

 

Uplifting Working People

• Helping more New Yorkers claim the Earned Income Tax Credit and other tax benefits by expanding the NYC Free Tax Preparation program ($1.6 million).
• Increasing outreach to New Yorkers about cash assistance, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, Medicaid, and more with New York City benefits ($5.3 million).
• Adding more attorneys and specialists to the New York City Commission on Human Rights’ Source of Income Unit as part of “Housing Our Neighbors: A Blueprint for Housing and Homelessness” and the administration’s ongoing efforts to fight discrimination against New Yorkers who rely on housing vouchers ($1.3 million).
• Expanding free broadband access from 129 to 202 New York City Housing Authority developments through the Big Apple Connect program ($8.7 million).
• Adding child care, workforce, and business portals online, and increasing the capabilities of the MyCity platform ($19.3 million).

Improving Sustainability and Resiliency

• Supporting the tenets of “PlaNYC: Getting Sustainability Done,” including:
  • Expanding DSNY’s curbside organics program citywide ($23.2 million).
  • Supporting climate education in classrooms across all subjects and grade levels, as well as providing climate education training to teachers ($2.1 million).

Strengthening the City’s Mental Health Resources

• Baselining funding and continuing the expansion of the Behavioral Health Emergency Assistance Response Division (B-HEARD) program into the remainder of the Bronx, as well as additional high-need neighborhoods in other boroughs ($27 million).
• Supporting mental health services for children in family shelters via telehealth as part of the “Housing Our Neighbors” blueprint ($1 million).
• Developing digital access to mental health support, in collaboration with New York state, to consolidate and streamline how New Yorkers with serious mental illness access services ($1 million).
• Increasing the capacity of clubhouses that provide peer-led support in high-need areas citywide ($2 million).
• Launching the School Tele-Mental Health program that gives high school students access to telehealth services ($9 million).

Building Out the College-to-Career Pipeline

• Supporting the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Inclusive Economy Initiative programs ($4.8 million), including:
  • Supporting its Industry-Campus Backbone Initiative, in which staff engage with employers to secure industry-specific internships and job opportunities for students and help update curriculum to match current trends.
  • Investing in the Boosting CUNY Career Capacity program, which links students with industry experts who give academic and career advice.
• Investing in the Medgar Evers College Brooklyn Recovery Corps, which connects 200 students a year with nonprofits and small businesses in Brooklyn to work on projects that spur economic recovery and growth ($1 million).
• Funding and expanding the CUNY Reconnect program, which helps students who left CUNY because of extenuating circumstances return and earn their degree ($5.8 million).
• Supporting the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities’ plan to promote workforce development for people living with disabilities, as announced in second “State of the City” address ($1.2 million).

Leader Of Miami Crew Pleads Guilty To Defrauding Banks And Cryptocurrency Exchange Of More Than $4 Million

 

 Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ESTEBAN CABRERA DA CORTE, a/k/a “Esteban Cabrera,” a/k/a “Esteban Da Corte,” a/k/a “Steban,” pled guilty today to participating in a scheme to steal millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency and trick U.S. banks into refunding the millions used to purchase that cryptocurrency, in part by using personal identifying information stolen from other people. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Esteban Cabrera Da Corte orchestrated a scheme to steal millions of dollars by buying cryptocurrency using false and stolen identities and then deceiving U.S. banks regarding those transactions.  As a result of his guilty plea, Cabrera Da Corte is now being held to account.  Our Office will continue to work vigorously with our law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of U.S. banks and financial markets to the full extent of the law from those who seek to enrich themselves through fraud and deceit, including those who attempt to shroud themselves in the anonymity of digital transactions.”

According to the Indictment and statements made in court:

From at least in or about 2020 through at least in or about March 2020, CABRERA DA CORTE and his co-conspirators engaged in a scheme to deceive U.S. banks and a leading cryptocurrency exchange platform (the “Cryptocurrency Exchange”) by purchasing more than $4 million in cryptocurrency and then falsely claiming that the cryptocurrency purchase transactions were unauthorized, deceiving the U.S. banks and the Cryptocurrency Exchange into reversing those transactions and redepositing the money into the bank accounts that the Defendants controlled.  The Defendants then withdrew the money from the bank accounts.

To carry out this scheme, the Defendants opened accounts with the Cryptocurrency Exchange, frequently using photos of fake U.S. passports, fake drivers’ licenses, and stolen personal identifying information.  The Cryptocurrency Exchange accounts were linked to bank accounts that the Defendants controlled.  The Defendants used money that had been deposited into the linked bank accounts, frequently through a series of cash deposits made using ATMs, to purchase cryptocurrency.  That cryptocurrency was then quickly transferred to other cryptocurrency wallets outside of the Cryptocurrency Exchange that were controlled by the Defendants and their co-conspirators.  After the cryptocurrency was transferred, the Defendants made telephone calls to the U.S. banks during which they falsely represented that the cryptocurrency purchases were unauthorized, leading the banks to reverse the transactions. 

The operation of this scheme by the Defendants resulted in U.S. banks processing more than $4 million in fraudulent reversals and the Cryptocurrency Exchange losing more than $3.5 million worth of cryptocurrency. 

ESTEBAN CABRERA DA CORTE, 26, of Miami, Florida, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, which carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison, and agreed to pay restitution of $3,578,786.69 and forfeiture of $1,200,000. 

The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by a judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of Homeland Security Investigations’ El Dorado Task Force. 

Housing Lottery Launches For 2441 Crotona Avenue In Belmont, The Bronx

The affordable housing lottery has launched for 2441 Crotona Avenue, a seven-story residential building in Belmont, The Bronx. Designed by Marin Architect and developed by Stagg Group, the structure yields 51 residences. Available on NYC Housing Connect are 25 units for residents at 130 percent of the area median income (AMI), ranging in eligible income from $75,395 to $215,150.

 

At 130 percent of the AMI, there are five studios with a monthly rent of $2,199 for incomes ranging from $75,395 to $138,840; 18 one-bedrooms with a monthly rent of $2,239 for incomes ranging from $76,766 to $156,130; one two-bedroom with a monthly rent of $2,566 for incomes ranging from $87,978 to $187,330; and one three-bedroom with a monthly rent of $3,200 for incomes ranging from $109,715 to $215,150.

Prospective renters must meet income and household size requirements to apply for these apartments. Applications must be postmarked or submitted online no later than June 20, 2023.

Permits Filed For 2065 Valentine Avenue In Tremont, The Bronx

 

Permits have been filed for a seven-story residential building at 2065 Valentine Avenue in Tremont, The Bronx. Located between East Burnside Avenue and East 180th Street, the lot is near the 182-183 Streets subway station, serviced by the B and D trains. Alaudin Kolenovic of AK Premier Contracting Corp. is listed as the owner behind the applications.

The proposed 66-foot-tall development will yield 9,562 square feet designated for residential space. The building will have 13 residences, most likely rentals based on the average unit scope of 735 square feet. The masonry-based structure will also have a 30-foot-long rear yard but no accessory parking.

Badaly Engineering is listed as the architect of record.

Demolition permits have not been filed yet. An estimated completion date has not been announced.

State Senator Gustavo Rivera - Legislators Call on Governor Hochul to Fully Fund Safety Net Hospitals

 

Pictured left to right: State Senators Nathalia Fernandez, Jessica Salazar, Gustavo Rivera, and Zellnor Myrie

New York State Senators Gustavo Rivera and Zellnor Myrie were joined by several colleagues in holding a press conference in Albany calling on Governor Kathy Hochul to fully fund safety net hospitals. Specifically, the legislators urged Governor Hochul to reinstate the $700 million in funding for safety net hospitals that was cut from the Governor’s FY 2024 proposed budget and allocate an additional $600 million to allow these anchor institutions to make sustainable investments for the patients they serve.

 

Safety net hospitals primarily serve uninsured and/or low-income individuals residing in most underserved communities that suffer from disproportionate rates of chronic disease, poor social determinants of health, and experienced significantly worse health outcomes during the pandemic. Medicaid rates have not been meaningfully increased in New York since 2008 and because safety net hospitals largely care for Medicaid-dependent or uninsured patients, these hospitals are unable to offset the low reimbursement, forcing them to run deep negative operating margins.

 

To solve this problem, NYS Senator Rivera, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, introduced the Health Equity Stabilization and Transformation Act, which would allow the State to leverage a larger share of Federal Medicaid funds and ensure safety net hospitals are reimbursed appropriately. If the FY 2024 budget includes the $1.3 billion for safety net hospitals, this Act would unlock an additional $2.6 billion in unused federal government dollars for the State and free up roughly $2 billion in Disproportionate Share Hospital funding to use for other priorities.

 

“Safety net hospitals are a lifeline for the communities they serve,” said

State Senator Gustavo Rivera. “It is critical that Governor Hochul follows through on her commitment to improve health equity by fully funding safety net hospitals in this year’s budget and passing the Health Equity Stabilization and Transformation Act – millions of New Yorkers are counting on it.”

 

"Safety net hospitals have been there for our communities when we needed them most,” said State Senator Zellnor Myrie. “By passing the Health Equity Stabilization and Transformation Act, we can end the two-tiered system of care in our state and leverage additional federal dollars to make sure our safety nets have the resources they need to continue providing care to the New Yorkers who depend on them."

 

“There are millions of people in New York State who depend on safety net hospitals for care,” said Assemblymember Latrice M. Walker. “They predominantly serve low-income patients who are often dependent on Medicaid or don’t have insurance. The governor’s proposed budget cuts will have an adverse impact on patient care and the financial stability of hospitals that serve some of the most vulnerable among us. These are hospitals that were on the frontlines during the peak of the COVID pandemic. Now it’s time for the state to step up for them, not only with proper funding, but also by passing the Health Equity Stabilization and Transformation Act, which will change the way hospitals are reimbursed for Medicaid patients.”

 

"Safety Net hospitals are important for my district and there should be an increase in funding, not a decrease in funding,” said Assemblymember Nikki Lucas. “At a time when everyone talks about equity and fairness, how is it that decisions that are being made about healthcare funding in areas that have been underserved for so many years, can be so unequitable and unfair. New York's safety net hospitals are essential community healthcare providers that have been chronically underfunded and overlooked for decades. This is a perfect opportunity for everyone who raises the equity flag to stand up for what is right. I am standing with my colleagues to call on Governor Hochul to reinstate the $700 million from last year’s budget and provide an additional $600 million that will allow these safety net hospitals to invest in critical services and programs.”

 

JOSE GONZALEZ SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR 2017 MURDER OF FDNY EMT YADIRA ARROYO

 

Gonzalez Was Convicted of First-Degree Murder in March; Defendant Ran Victim Over with Her Ambulance

 Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that Jose Gonzalez has been sentenced to life in prison without parole today for the murder of FDNY Emergency Medical Technician Yadira Arroyo, who he ran over with her ambulance in March 2017.

 District Attorney Clark said, “Today, Jose Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the horrific and senseless death of Yadira Arroyo, a mother of five. It closes a long and difficult chapter for the victim’s family and her FDNY colleagues, who have waited for justice for six years. Despite the sentencing, Yadi will forever be missed by her loved ones, and the pain will always be there. We take comfort in knowing that her memory will live on through her loved ones and the communities she served while working as an EMT for 14 years.”

 District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Jose Gonzalez, 31, last of 2388 Creston Avenue, was sentenced today to life in prison without parole by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Martin Marcus. Gonzalez was found guilty of first-degree Murder on March 8, 2023, after a nearly a one-month long jury trial. The trial against Gonzalez was delayed after multiple court hearings on the defendant’s mental fitness to stand trial. He was deemed unfit in May 2022 and was sent to a psychiatric facility and was then deemed fit to stand trial in September 2022.

 According to the investigation, on the evening of March 16, 2017 in the vicinity of Watson Avenue and White Plains Road, the defendant grabbed on to the back of the victim’s ambulance and rode on it, then jumped off and stole a backpack from a young man. The robbery victim flagged down Arroyo’s ambulance and she got out of the vehicle and spoke briefly to Gonzalez. The defendant then jumped into the driver’s seat of the ambulance, and Arroyo and her partner, who was in the passenger seat, told him to get out. Gonzalez put the car in reverse, striking Arroyo, then drove forward, pinning her under the vehicle and dragging her across the intersection. He crashed the vehicle into a snowbank and exited the ambulance.

 An on-duty MTA Police Officer, Daniel McDade, was nearby and saw the defendant drag the victim with the ambulance and confronted him. When Gonzalez tried to run away, the Officer tackled the defendant and handcuffed him, with the help of several civilians.

 Arroyo sustained multiple injuries and was taken to Jacobi Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

 District Attorney Clark thanked former MTA Police Officer Daniel McDade; the 43rd Precinct Detective Squad, specifically NYPD Detective Robert Rentas; and NYPD Detective Christopher Skulsky of Bronx Homicide for their work in the investigation.