Attorney General James, HCR, And HPD Intervene In Federal Court To Stop Eviction Of NYC Rent-Stabilized Tenants

NY AG, NYS HCR, and NYC HPD seek to join U.S. Bankruptcy Court action to oppose a landlord-initiated motion to push out rent-stabilized tenants 

   Today, Attorney General Letitia James, New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (NYSHCR) Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas, and New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Maria Torres-Springer announced that the City and State sought to join in an action in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of tenants at 444 East 13th Street in Manhattan. Both the City and State are opposing the building owner’s application to reject tenants’ leases, an application that is a thinly-veiled attempt to flout rent regulation laws and displace tenants.  

“Bankruptcy Court should not be used as a tool to unjustly oust rent-stabilized New Yorkers from their homes,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “In filing this motion, my office is working to ensure that the tenants are not displaced. Housing is a right, and we will continue to use every legal tool available to stand up for tenants and to enforce their rights.”  

“New Yorkers have a right to live in safe homes free from harassment. We are proud to join our partners in standing up for these tenants against a landlord who is trying to take advantage of bankruptcy proceedings to cancel their regulated, affordable leases and dodge State law in the process,” said New York State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas. “We cannot allow these proceedings to set a precedent that would undermine the rights of millions of New Yorkers.”  

“This administration remains unwavering in its commitment to stop tenant harassment in its tracks, and today we’re letting bad landlords know that we will not tolerate any attempt to displace our city's hard-working families. This alarming and blatant end-run on the protections of our rent stabilization laws will not stand,” said HPD Commissioner Maria Torres-Springer. “I thank the New York State Attorney General and our colleagues at the City and State for standing strong against bad landlords and supporting this city’s tenants.” 

Tenants in the building have been withholding rent for months on the grounds that the landlord has failed to make necessary repairs. The building’s current violations include inadequate heat, broken or defective plumbing, an accumulation of garbage in the hall, and rodents. The building’s owner earlier filed for bankruptcy, and is trying to get the Court to permit it to reject the rent stabilized leases of the tenants. The City and State, in a joint motion, argue that the landlord is seeking to avoid state protections given to rent-stabilized tenants, who have a right to withhold rent if an apartment is uninhabitable.   

The building at 444 East 13th Street contains sixteen residential units, all of which were registered as rent-stabilized as of 2016, the last time the landlord registered rents with HCR. The landlord claims that it should be entitled to reject these tenants’ leases without going through the standard state procedures to address the tenants’ demands, seek rent or resolve these issues. The Attorney General and her partners are concerned that the use of the Bankruptcy Court to bypass state protections for tenants would set a bad precedent and would encourage other landlords to file bankruptcy solely to avoid state law and its protections.  

Attorney General Letitia James Joins Multistate Settlement To Cease Fast Food Usage Of No-Poach Agreements

Dunkin’, Arby’s, Five Guys, and Little Caesars will Drop Provisions that Limit Recruitment and Hiring of Fast Food Workers 

  In a multistate settlement with a coalition of 14 attorneys general, four national fast food franchisors will cease using “no-poach” agreements, which restrict the right of fast food workers to move from one franchise to another within the same restaurant chain.    

The agreements with Dunkin’, Arby’s, Five Guys, and Little Caesars settle an investigation announced by the states in July 2018 over concerns that no-poach agreements hurt low-wage workers by limiting their ability to secure better paying jobs.  

“Whether you’re making pizzas or making cars, everyone has the right to seek better opportunities. No-poach agreements are inherently unfair, and restrict the ability of low wage fast food workers to obtain higher-paying jobs,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “My office will continue to work with other state attorneys general to ensure the workers at other national chains are not unnecessarily barred from opportunities for career and financial growth.” 

Under the terms of the settlements, the franchisors have agreed to stop including no-poach provisions in any of their franchise agreements and to stop enforcing any franchise agreements already in place. The franchisors have also agreed to amend existing franchise agreements to remove no-poach provisions and to ask their franchisees to post notices in all locations to inform employees of the settlement. Finally, the franchisors will notify the attorneys general if one of their franchisees tries to restrict any employee from moving to another location under an existing no-poach provision. 

The attorneys general began their investigation last July by sending letters to Arby’s, Burger King, Dunkin’ Brands, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Little Caesars, Panera Bread, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Wendy’s requesting documents, including copies of franchise agreements and communications related to no-poach provisions. The attorneys general alleged that no-poach provisions make it difficult for workers to improve their earning potential by moving from one job to another or seeking a higher-paying job at another franchise location, and that many workers are unaware they are subject to these no-poach provisions.     

Since the investigation began, Wendy’s announced that it will no longer use no-poach provisions in their contracts with franchisees. Investigations into Burger King, Popeyes, and Panera continue. 

Today’s coalition is led by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, and includes state attorneys general from California, District of Columbia, Iowa, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.   

MAN SENTENCED TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON FOR STRANGLING BOYFRIEND TO DEATH IN THE BRONX

Defendant Pleaded Guilty to Manslaughter 

  Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 2016 strangulation of a 27-year-old man with whom he was living in the Bronx.

 Bronx. District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant killed his boyfriend, whom he had been in a relationship with for several months. We hope today’s sentence brings some peace to the victim’s family.” 

 District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Marcus Bellamy, 35, who was living with the victim at 104 West 174th Street at the time of the killing, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison and 5 years post-release supervision by Bronx Supreme Court Justice John Carter. Bellamy pleaded guilty to first-degree Manslaughter on February 20, 2019. 

 According to the investigation, in the late afternoon of August 19, 2016, inside the victim’s apartment at 101 West 174th Street, the defendant, a Broadway dancer, beat and strangled Bernardo Almonte, causing his death. After the murder, the defendant wrote a post on social media related to the crime in which he asked for forgiveness. Bellamy then told a neighbor that he had killed Almonte. The neighbor called the NYPD and the defendant was arrested shortly afterwards.

 The victim sustained injuries to his larynx, fractures to his hyoid bone and had bite marks in the area between his shoulder and chest. Almonte was also found with signs of struggle and bruises around his body.

 District Attorney Clark thanked Detective Christine Reyes of the Bronx Homicide Squad for her assistance in the investigation.

Engel, Dinowitz, Biaggi, Cohen Statement on Student Protest at Ethical Culture Fieldston School

  “The students of the Ethical Culture Fieldston School have very real concerns that must be heard by school administrators and the community. We cannot bury our heads in the sand—the rise in racism, anti-Semitism, and extremism is real and must be confronted all fronts. Accountability is key. Students of color shouldn’t be made to feel unsafe or uncomfortable, period. We will continue to monitor this peaceful demonstration, which can hopefully bring about some lasting, positive changes.”  

EDITOR'S NOTE:

All one has to do is watch the parade of school buses leaving the school to see that the students are not from the local Riverdale area.

Pelham Parkway Neighborhood Association Meeting

(L - R) Front Row - PPNA Executive Board Members Lewis Lutnick, Debbie Kawalick, (Guest Speaker) Judge Robert Torres, Steve Glosser, and President Edith Blitzer. Back Row Lance Zavin, Ruth Birenberg, Oscar Ruiz, and Andrea Siegel.

  Judge Torres spoke about the Criminal Court system, the recently passed Raise the Age legislation, the much lower population of inmates at Rikers Island, and took questions from the audience. He began with saying that judges are human, there are many great judges, but there are some who need retraining. He said that it costs Three Thousand dollars per year to house an inmate in prison, and that four to six people can get programs for that cost. 

  When questions came as to how repeat offenders are released again and again Judge Torres said that people can not be kept in jail for low level crimes. He said that the system is not perfect, and must be done on an individual case by case trial. When it came to the new Raise the Age Legislation taking sixteen and seventeen year olds out of the criminal system Judge Torres said that for major crimes they will still be tried in the criminal court system. The court system is defining just which crimes are to be sent to other areas of the court system, and that judges need to learn that. 

  Representatives of the Comptrollers office, Councilman Gjonaj, Assemblywoman Fernandez, and Councilman Torres's office were on hand with information, and 49th Precinct Sector NCO officers Mcdowell and Grossett answered some questions.

Above - Judge Torres answering one of the questions asked of him.

Below - 49th Precinct Sector NCO officers Mcdowell and Grossett.

HISTORIC ELEPHANT PROTECTION INITIATIVE LAUNCHED IN MYANMAR

  The Elephant Project, a leader in innovative wildlife protection strategies, announced today that it has entered into a formal agreement with the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to relocate elephants from high human-elephant conflict areas to safe zones around the country. Human-elephant conflict is one of the biggest contributors to elephant deaths around the world.

 

U Win Naing Thaw, Director of the Nature and Wildlife Conservation Division, Forest Department Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation of The Republic of the Union of Myanmar stated upon the signing of the agreement, “We must find a long-term solution to protecting Myanmar’s critically threatened elephant population and we are optimistic that by working with The Elephant Project we will find that solution.” 

  

The Elephant Project Founder and President Dane Waters stated, “We must take aggressive protective action because extensive deforestation in Myanmar due to historic unsustainable levels of logging has resulted in the reduction of elephants’ natural habitat. This has produced a desperate search by elephants for food in villages and an increase in deadly human-elephant conflicts. Our joint effort will add a layer of protection for Myanmar’s elephants that doesn’t currently exist.”

 

As part of the agreement, the Forest Department and The Elephant Project agree to the following to collaborate on elephant relocation efforts in Myanmar:

1. Identify elephants that need relocation
2. Identify mutually agreeable areas to relocate the elephants
3. Agree to best practices to ensure the health and safety of the elephants during relocation
4. Create a timeline and cost analysis for full implementation of project  

Adam Roberts, Senior Advisor to The Elephant Project stated, “We are excited about this opportunity to launch a vital collaboration with the Forest Department. Our paramount concern is for the welfare of the elephants and every precaution will be taken to ensure the safety, protection and humane care of the elephants during the relocation process.”

 

“This agreement is great news for Myanmar's elephants thanks to The Elephant Project’s commitment to elephant protection in our country. This will save countless elephants in Myanmar which are on the run for survival due to deforestation and poaching,” added U Win Aung, The Elephant Project’s Myanmar based Advisory Board member.

 

In the coming months, The Elephant Project will finalize the relocation plan with the Forest Department and begin this unprecedented effort in Myanmar.

 

In addition to the relocation efforts in Myanmar, The Elephant Project is also funding the building of electric fences in the country that will help keep elephants out of the crops of local villagers. This preventive measure reduces the chance that villagers, whose livelihoods are threatened by elephants searching for food, will either kill the elephants themselves or call in poachers to do it for them.

 

“Helping to end human-elephant conflicts in Myanmar is the first step in our long-term commitment to Myanmar’s elephants. We are extremely optimistic that The Elephant Project, working together with the Government of Myanmar, will help ensure the nation’s elephants will survive, and that our joint efforts will serve as a strong testament to what public-private partnerships can accomplish,” continued Waters.

 

As part of The Elephant Project’s long-term commitment to the country, we propose to establish an elephant sanctuary or a system of sanctuaries in Myanmar that would provide a fully funded model for domestic elephant protection and long-term care. To underwrite the costs of operating the sanctuary in perpetuity, The Elephant Project will develop significant residential and commercial real estate investment opportunities in the country. This development will be located adjacent to the sanctuary and permit non-intrusive viewing of elephants for “ecotourism” and “voluntourism”. This unprecedented effort will inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the Myanmar economy, creating a perpetual and powerful funding source for the sanctuary established to protect the country’s elephant population. It is a win for the government, donors, the Burmese people, and most importantly the elephants.”

Statement from Senator Rivera on PBM Investigations Update

  "In an effort to protect the health and financial stability of New Yorkers, the Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations, with the assistance of the Senate Committee on Health, opened an investigation into the practices of pharmacy benefit managers in New York. For the past two months, our teams have been working on this ongoing investigation.

"In an attempt to address some of the serious issues that pharmacists and consumers face, investigators participated in good faith conversations with three major pharmacy benefit managers operating within New York State. Unfortunately, two of the three pharmacy benefit managers have completely halted any further good faith discussions, and as a result, our Committees have jointly submitted a number of proposals to be included in the New York State Senate one-house budget resolution.

"The proposals seek to maximize accountability amid concerns that some or all pharmacy benefit managers are engaged in price manipulation, causing significant harm to local pharmacists and consumers alike."

Below are the relevant Senate one-house budget proposals:

• Limit how much pharmacy benefit managers can charge Medicaid managed care plans by prohibiting the use of spread pricing in Medicaid managed care; 

• Prohibit pharmacy benefit managers from passing along other fees to Medicaid managed care plans;

• Require the registration and licensing of pharmacy benefit managers operating in New York State with the New York State Department of Financial Services. Addition of increased penalties for noncompliance;

• Require pharmacy benefit managers to disclose information to the Department of Financial Services including any financial incentive received by the pharmacy benefit manager for promoting the use of certain drugs, other financial arrangements affecting insurance plans, and other quarterly reports, as the Department requires;

• Authorizes the Department of Financial Services to revoke a pharmacy benefit manager's license if they violate New York State laws or regulations;

• Mandates increased penalties on pharmacy benefit managers for violating New York State laws or regulations;

• Language creating a fiduciary duty between a pharmacy benefit manager and its clients, including that the pharmacy benefit manager must hold funds in trust for its clients;

• Language requiring the pharmacy benefit manager to disclose financial incentives to its customers and/or clients;

• Require pharmacy benefit managers to disclose any potential conflict of interest to customers and/or clients;

• Language prohibiting a pharmacy benefit manager from requiring the substitution of one prescription drug for another in dispensing a prescription drug unless the prescriber approves.
   

"The Committee on Investigations and Government Operations is continuing to examine pharmacy benefit manager practices and will release a report upon the inquiry's conclusion with findings and additional recommendations."