No Accountability in NYC School System, Cuomo to Set Up Commission as to Why

   That has been what we have said for the past eight and one-half years when as a member of the Chancellor's Parent Advisory Council I saw first hand the lack of experience that then new schools chancellor Joel Klein had. In his first six months there were no answers, and nine years later there still are no answers now from the man who was the real chancellor Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott. Chancellor Klein finally left as test scores plummeted  Then another person who never should have been appointed chancellor was thrown under the bus in less than four months as she was dragging Mayor Bloomberg down in his approval ratings. This time Bloomberg had to have a real person as chancellor, and the man who really was running the school system was also given the title of chancellor that being Dennis Walcott.

   Mayor Bloomberg pushed hard for mayoral control of the schools that did away with the old Board of education. Bloomberg promised accountability and to streamline the education budget, as he said the old system was wasteful and inefficient. The education budget exploded and there were no answers as to where the money was going. No bid contracts and outside consultants were now common place at the Department of Education, and year after year parents were treated as outsiders when their questions came up. 

    This past week seems to have been the straw that broke the governors back however as New York City (and other large cities) failed to reach a year end agreement with the teachers union over a new teacher evaluation contract that will cost $60 million dollars in school funding to be lost, some monies of which certain schools have already started to spend. 

   It is reported that in his State of the State speech on Tuesday Governor Cuomo will blast the New York City and other city school districts of not performing up to standards and for a lack accountability, and then announce that he is forming a commission to find out why and to reform the school system. We are sure this will be a black eye to Mayor Bloomberg, and we hope it is the end to mayoral control which has failed everyone.

    

Assemblyman Dinowitz Opposes Single Payment Fees by Verizon

 

Assemblyman Dinowitz Calls on Verizon to Reverse Increase

Consumer Affairs Committee Chair Calls $2 Fee “Outrageous”

Assembly Consumer Affairs and Protection Committee Chair Jeffrey Dinowitz announced his opposition to Verizon Wireless charging single payment fees to consumers who pay their bills online or over the phone each billing cycle as opposed to enrolling in automatic bill pay. Single payment fees generate numerous complaints and inquiries from customers because they unfairly target low-income consumers.  He called on Verizon to reverse the $2 fee Verizon intends to impose on some of its customers. 

“During these tough economic times, many consumers are struggling to pay their bills and must budget very carefully,” said Dinowitz. “Consumers who pay their bills at the last minute are often living paycheck to paycheck. These people should not be forced to bear the burden of an additional monthly charge. Businesses looking to increase regular and timely payments through automatic bill pay need to look at other ways to achieve this goal, such as incentive-based programs, that do not penalize low- and middle-income consumers.”

“In 2011 we prohibited companies from charging additional fees to customers who pay their bills by mail.  No company should charge some customers additional fees based on how they pay their bills.  It just amazes me that, at a time when Verizon has already been harshly criticized for its efforts to cut back on the benefits of its workers, it would take additional steps that negatively impact on middle class and poor people.  I hope Verizon takes back this bag-of-coal holiday present to its subscribers.  Their bad timing is truly amazing,” stated Assemblyman Dinowitz.

UPDATE:

Verizon has decided to drop this plan to add the $2.00 additional fee. 

We wonder if it was Assemblyman Dinowits'a strong letter, or the flack that Verizon was getting from its customers who said they would leave Verizon if the fee was instituted.