Governor Cuomo Announces Launch of Excelsior Pass Plus to Support the Safe, Secure Return of Tourism and Business Travel

 

New York's Successful First-In-The-Nation Platform Now Offering a New Pass Option Recognized by Other States and Countries and Businesses Around the World

Builds on Success of Excelsior Pass -- More Than 3 Million Passes Retrieved to Date

In First-of-Its-Kind Partnership, VeriFLY Will Accept Uploads of Excelsior Pass Plus for Travel on American Airlines

Broadway Theaters, Public Theater's Free Shakespeare in the Park, and the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center Utilizing Excelsior Pass for Event Entry; Marriott Will Offer Excelsior Pass Solutions to Meeting Planners Hosting Events at its More Than 200 New York Properties

 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the launch of Excelsior Pass Plus to expand travel and commerce opportunities for New Yorkers by enabling compatibility between New York State's Excelsior Pass platform, which has generated 3 million passes and provides digital proof of vaccination or negative test result, and the highly secure, globally recognized SMART Health Cards Framework developed by an international consortium called VCI. This includes a first-in-the-nation partnership with VeriFLY by Daon, through which Excelsior Pass Plus users can securely upload their verified COVID-19 vaccination credentials to VeriFLY, and travel through American Airlines to Greece, France, Spain, Italy, and the Bahamas, and on indirect flights to El Salvador, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, and Puerto Rico. The list will continue to grow as partnerships facilitating access to more countries are in development.

New Yorkers will be able to display their Excelsior Pass Plus at hundreds of businesses and locations that require proof of vaccination, as well as when traveling to entities where SMART Health Cards are accepted. Excelsior Pass Plus, a result of the strategic partnership between New York State and VCI, will provide New Yorkers safe access to retrieve a secure, digital copy of their COVID-19 vaccination record using the SMART Health Cards Framework - making their interstate and international travel and commerce experiences safer, contact-less, and more seamless. 

"Excelsior Pass has enabled New Yorkers to get back to the people and things they love, helping drive our economic recovery in the process" Governor Cuomo said. "Excelsior Pass Plus will advance this even further, and is part of our broad commitment to securely take our vaccination verification efforts to the next level. From Day 1, we have said that the question of 'public health or the economy' is a false choice - it is and must always be both, and as we continue to follow the science to remain ahead of the pandemic, we will continue to innovate our tools to ensure that New Yorkers and New York businesses thrive."

Building off the State's successful Excelsior Pass solution, Excelsior Pass Plusexpands its usage, supporting the safe and secure return of tourism and business travel — major economic drivers for the State — and providing a Pass option that holds the same level of information and validity as a CDC Vaccination Card, with greater security than a physical card which can be misplaced or stolen, and verified by the State of New York. 

Excelsior Pass Plus was developed in partnership with VCI, a voluntary coalition of 570 public and private organizations—including The Mayo Clinic, MITRE, Boston Children's Hospital, Microsoft, and The Commons Project Foundation—that lead the development and implementation of the open-source SMART Health Cards Framework and specifications, which are already in use in states such as California, Louisiana, and Hawaii. Using two-factor authentication security, Excelsior Pass Plus expands on the State's commitment to empower individuals with access to a free, trustworthy, privacy-preserving, and verifiable copy of their own vaccination records in paper or digital form, and supports the harmonization of standards needed for the issuance of verifiable health credentials worldwide - signed clinical data bound to an individual identity. Currently, more than 50 countries globally are allowing U.S. travelers entry with proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

Excelsior Pass, launched by Governor Cuomo in March, was the first-of-its-kind to be available in the U.S., providing a free, fast, and secure way to present digital proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative test results to fast-track the State's reopening, including for hard-hit industries like food services, entertainment, and hospitality. Major tourist destinations and event venues including Broadway theaters, Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park, and the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center have recently announced using Excelsior Pass for proof of entry following successful adoption across many of New York's largest stadiums including Madison Square Garden, Barclays Center, and Yankee Stadium. Additionally, Marriott International will be making Excelsior Pass solutions available to meeting planners hosting events at its more than 200 New York properties.

Excelsior Pass Plus follows the Governor's July 28 announcement that all State workers—approximately 130,000—will be required to get vaccinated or be tested on a weekly basis. All patient-facing health care workers at state-run hospitals will be required to get vaccinated. Both Excelsior Pass and Pass Plus will be accepted as forms of proof. Over 75.7% of New York adults have received at least one vaccine dose, and more than 68.8% of adults are fully vaccinated (CDC) - and Excelsior Pass solutions will support reopening shared spaces, such as offices, while protecting the public health of those returning to these settings. 

Interested New Yorkers can learn more about Excelsior Pass Plus—including how to retrieve a Pass through the NYS Excelsior Wallet app—by visiting epass.ny.gov.

Facts About Excelsior Pass Plus

• Excelsior Pass Plus is a secure, digital copy of your COVID-19 vaccination record and users' data is kept confidential and secure. 
• Excelsior Pass Plus provides safe access to vaccination information, and includes vaccine type, site, and date of vaccination, just like your paper CDC Vaccination Card for a verifiable record of your COVID-19 vaccination history at your fingertips.
• Excelsior Pass Plus is built using the SMART Health Cards Framework and open, interoperable standards for New Yorkers to have safe, secure usage where SMART Health Cards are accepted.
• Excelsior Pass Plus is available to be retrieved for those who have received their COVID-19 vaccine in New York State or New York State residents who have provided their vaccination information to their New York State healthcare provider to enter into the secure New York State and New York City immunization databases. 
• Excelsior Pass Plus contains cryptographic signatures to prove to verifiers that it is a genuine credential issued by New York State and has not been tampered with or altered.
• Just like Excelsior Pass, Excelsior Pass Plus can be accessed via the Excelsior Pass Web Portal or through the free NYS Wallet App, but requires a valid phone number or email for 2-factor authentication.
• Excelsior Pass is accompanied by a Help Desk with extensive resources and is able to be printed for those who may not own smartphones. 
• Currently available in English, additional languages will be rolled out in in mid-August.
• The Excelsior Scanner App will be updated in mid-August to accept all Excelsior Pass types, including Excelsior Pass Plus.
• Individuals can retrieve and hold as many Passes as they may be eligible for, including the Excelsior Vaccination Pass, Antigen Pass, PCR Pass, and/or now, their Excelsior Pass Plus, and can visit epass.ny.gov to get started.
• Just like Excelsior Pass, you choose when, if, and how to present your Excelsior Pass Plus - you can think of presenting your Excelsior Pass Plus as sharing your CDC Vaccination Card. Individuals always have the option of using alternate forms of proof, such as their paper CDC Vaccination Card.

Statement by New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer on BQE Reconstruction

 

“The Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) has blighted New York City for decades, dividing and dehumanizing neighborhoods while spewing toxic pollution into our lungs and generating oppressive noise levels for all those who live and work in its vicinity. Today’s announcement to scale back the BQE, as I have long advocated, is a positive first step toward ending the harmful legacy of this roadway and finally creating the flexibility and space to comprehensively reimagine a pedestrian-friendly transit and infrastructure network for the future.

“I am also encouraged by the corridor-long community planning process that, if implemented meaningfully, will engage New Yorkers from Queens to Staten Island in re-envisioning how we move as a city. A real planning vision for the corridor, rather than a piecemeal rehabilitation, is the best hope we have to tap into the federal and state investment that our transit infrastructure so desperately needs.

“We must seize this opportunity to pave a green path forward for our city – one that puts people over cars and public space over pollution.”

153 Days and Counting

 

We are still the safest big city in the United States thanks to our great police force doing a hell of a job. We had to refocus our resources, and now I think you will see a reduction in crime, and quality of life issues as our police department adjusts to the new rules of the game.

Before I give out any hint that I am thinking of forming an exploratory committee to run for governor, I want to say  that my good friend Governor Andrew Cuomo seems to have both feet out the door, and if Speaker Heastie or Senator Stewart-Cousins need any more help, I am waiting for the call. Don't forget that I ran for President, and should be the favorite for governor, just like when Andrew Yang announced that he was running for my job.

I need a vacation, so I am taking off next week off to see some old friends and size up a run for governor. It is  those who helped me on my presidential campaign for strategy on my run for governor. Governor Bill de Blasio, I like that.

National Night Out in the 49th Precinct.

 

With the city and country rushing to reopen by July 4th, National Night out, the first Tuesday in August was also on the calendar. Comras Mall in Bronx Park East was the site of the 49th Precinct event. Tables were set up on both sides of the field for community organizations, groups, and government agencies. The stage was never completed, there was no band, the generator didn't work so there was no sound, but still there was lot's of fun to be had. 

The first table was that of Councilman Mark Gjonaj, with loyal aide Ardmir Malziu filling in for the vacationing Councilman, and free hot dogs courtesy of the councilman. 

Bronx Jewish Center Rabbi Pewzner and his wife show people and children how to make little Challah breads to cook at home. The giant Challah was given away to the person who guessed the weight of it. 

Aleander Nilaj  (2nd from the left) of the Albanian American Open Hands Society is given a City Council Citation for his charity work of giving out free food to the community in the 49th Precinct.

The Albanian American Open Hands Association presents a hand woven quilt to Deputy Inspector Natiw and Community Affairs officer Graham.

Congressman Ritchie Torres stopped by the Pelham Parkway Neighborhood Association table to say hello to friends President Edith Blitzer and VP Steve Glosser.

State Senator Jamaal Bailey is with Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark.

The big event was the tug of war between the officers of the 49th Precinct, and the 49th Precinct Explorers. The explorers wound up pulling the officers over the line. 

There were even retired FBI agents at a recruitment and FBI information table.

Former NYPD Sergeant Pleads Guilty To 9/11 Benefits Fraud

 

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that SALLY SPINOSA pled guilty in Manhattan federal court to one count of theft of public money related to her false application for benefits related to the attack on New York on September 11, 2001.  SPINOSA pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer.

U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:  “As she has now admitted, Sally Spinosa stole money for programs intended to benefit the brave men and women of the NYPD, and first-responders across the city, who were injured in the rescue and recovery efforts following September 11, 2001.  She did so by repeatedly lying about the time she spent in the rescue and recovery effort, and will now face the consequences of such brazen lies.”

According to the allegations in the Complaint, court filings, and statements during court proceedings:

Following the attacks on New York and Washington, D.C., on September 11, 2001, Congress created certain programs to provide monetary compensation and medical treatment for victims of the attacks.  Specifically, Congress created the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (the “VCF”) to provide compensation for any individual who suffered physical harm or was killed as a result of either the September 11th attacks or the debris removal and recovery efforts that took place in the immediate aftermath of the attacks.  Congress also created the World Trade Center Health Program (“WTCHP”) to provide, among other things, monitoring and medical treatment benefits for individuals who have or may develop health conditions due to exposure at disaster or recovery sites tied to the September 11th attacks.  Both the VCF and the WTCHP are funded by Congress.  An individual can be deemed eligible for a VCF award either by submitting medical documents and proof-of-presence documents directly to the VCF, or by going through the WTCHP’s process for having a medical condition certified.

SALLY SPINOSA served as an NYPD officer from in or about July 1986 until July 2019, and was a sergeant in the investigations unit of the NYPD’s Patrol Services Bureau of Staten Island (the “Staten Island Investigations Unit”) on September 11, 2001.  In 2010, SPINOSA participated in a screening interview with the WTCHP in which she falsely stated that she worked for hundreds of hours at the Fresh Kills Landfill in Staten Island, New York (the “Landfill”), from September 2001 to June 2002.  Similarly, in 2014, SPINOSA applied for a monetary award from the VCF, falsely claiming that she was at the Landfill for two hours each day for 62 straight days from September 20, 2001, to November 20, 2001.  In support of her application, SPINOSA submitted proof-of-presence documents, including an affidavit purportedly signed by one of her supervisors at the Staten Island Investigations Unit (“Officer-1”) stating that Officer-1 frequently visited the Landfill with SPINOSA to supervise subordinates (the “Officer-1 Affidavit”).

However, contrary to SPINOSA’s representations to the WTCHP and the VCF, in fact SPINOSA spent little to no time at the Landfill.  Indeed, during much of the time SPINOSA claimed to be working at the Landfill, SPINOSA was pregnant and doing limited work outside the Staten Island Investigations Unit’s offices, or was out of the office entirely on parental leave. Moreover, the Officer-1 Affidavit that SPINOSA submitted in support of her VCF application was fraudulent and was never signed by Officer-1.  

Nevertheless, and based on her false and fraudulent misrepresentations, in or around 2017 the WTCHP granted her benefits.  The WTCHP has since paid for certain medical visits and prescription drugs for SPINOSA.  While SPINOSA’s original fraudulent application to the VCF was denied in 2014, she reapplied in 2017 and 2018 relying on the same false and fraudulent information.  SPINOSA’s VCF claim remains pending.

SPINOSA, 55, of Freehold, New Jersey, pled guilty to one count of theft of public money, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the judge.

SPINOSA is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Engelmayer on December 1, 2021, at 10:30 a.m.

Ms. Strauss praised the investigative work of the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau and DOJ-OIG.

Governor Cuomo Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress During COVID-19 Pandemic - AUGUST 4, 2021

 

42,973 Vaccine Doses Administered Over Last 24 Hours

7 COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Yesterday 

 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combatting COVID-19.

"We cannot go back to where we were with COVID when the pandemic first struck - with the vaccine readily available and proven effective, there is no reason we should have to," Governor Cuomo said. "If you haven't already, get your vaccination. It's safe, free and easily accessible."

Today's data is summarized briefly below:

• Test Results Reported - 121,015 
• Total Positive - 3,115 
• Percent Positive - 2.57% 
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 2.70% 
• Patient Hospitalization - 902 (+50) 
• Patients Newly Admitted - 171 
• Patients in ICU - 186 (+14) 
• Patients in ICU with Intubation - 61 (-1) 
• Total Discharges - 187, 185 (+122) 
• Deaths - 7 
• Total Deaths - 43,105 
• Total vaccine doses administered - 22,399,586 
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours - 42,973 
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days - 289,875 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose - 72.9% 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series - 67.1%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 75.7%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 68.8%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 61.0% 
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 55.9%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 63.4%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 57.3%

Attorney General James and State Police Superintendent Bruen Announce Sentencing in Billion-Dollar Money Laundering Scheme

 

Owner of Shuttered Payroll Service Companies MyPayrollHR and

ValueWise Ordered to Pay More Than $100 Million in Restitution to Victims

Michael Mann Sentenced to 8 to 24 Years in State Prison for Scheme That Defrauded Thousands of Employers in New York and Across the Country

  New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York State Police Superintendent Kevin Bruen today announced the sentencing of Michael T. Mann (51, of Northville) for laundering more than $1 billion in stolen funds from employers, employees, financial institutions, and financing companies between 2016 and 2019. During those three years, Mann diverted tens of millions of dollars in payroll funds he held on behalf of client-employers to pay their employees paychecks and taxes, ultimately leaving thousands of employees in New York and across the country in financial distress. Mann was sentenced today, before the Honorable James A. Murphy, III in Saratoga County Court — upon his guilty plea to Money Laundering in the First Degree, a class B felony — to 8 to 24 years in state prison. 

“Over the course of just a few years, Michael Mann laundered more than $1 billion on the backs of thousands of employees and businesses in New York and across the nation,” said Attorney General James. “While his unlawful and heartless Ponzi-like scheme left his innocent victims devastated, let this man’s sentence serve as a warning that this kind of mass deception and fraud will not be tolerated. My office remains committed to holding accountable anyone who greedily exploits New Yorkers and sows financial chaos for their personal profit. I thank the state police for their partnership in holding accountable this criminal.”

“Michael Mann put together a fraudulent scheme that had a terrible impact on hundreds of small businesses and thousands of employees nationwide,” said State Police Superintendent Bruen. “I want to thank our members and commend the attorney general and her office for holding Michael Mann accountable for his actions.”

Last August, Attorney General James filed a felony complaint against Mann that detailed his elaborate money laundering scheme. As part of a resolution negotiated by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York, Mann was ordered to pay more than $100 million in restitution to his victims, including distribution of more than $47 million to Mann’s victims at the time of his federal sentencing last year. Earlier today, Mann was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his earlier federal guilty pleas to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, one count of Aggravated Identity Theft, nine counts of Bank Fraud, and one count of Filing a False Tax Return. These sentences will run concurrent to each other.  

Today’s sentencing is the result of a year-long investigation conducted by the OAG in conjunction with the New York State Police, with assistance from the New York state Department of Labor and the New York state Department of Financial Services. The joint investigation — captioned “Operation: ValueWise, Dollar Foolish” — revealed that Mann engaged in a sophisticated money laundering scheme over the course of three years in order to defraud employers, employees, financial institutions, and financing companies out of tens of millions of dollars.

Mann owned or otherwise operated more than a dozen entities, including payroll service companies — such as ValueWise Corporation and MyPayrollHR.com, LLC — which were primarily based in Clifton Park, Saratoga County, New York. Mann admitted during his plea that — from at least January 2016 to September 2019 — he laundered monies embezzled from these payroll companies by diverting the stolen monies through numerous business accounts that he controlled. He committed this fraud in an effort to repay millions of dollars in fraudulently obtained loans and in an effort to continue defrauding employers, financial institutions, and financing companies by stealing additional funds.

In September 2019, one of Mann’s banks became suspicious and froze a number of his accounts, ultimately exposing his fraudulent conduct. Hundreds of businesses that entrusted their payroll to Mann’s entities, along with thousands of employees, were left in the lurch. Some businesses were forced to cease operations as a result. In August 2019, over 800 employers paid more than $28 million in payroll that Mann diverted for his own benefit. This money was intended for employees, including those working at ambulance corps, health care providers, religious institutions, pre-schools, restaurants, and hotels. 

The OAG alleged that Mann laundered more than $1 billion in the month leading up to the collapse of his scheme, and admitted similar conduct dating back to January 2016. An audit of more than 35 accounts controlled by Mann revealed that he conducted hundreds of transactions on a near-daily basis in order to move stolen funds through shell and shelf companies — in addition to legitimate or quasi-legitimate businesses he ran — in order to continue his criminal activity and fraudulently obtain millions of dollars from employers, financial institutions, and financing companies. Several so-called ‘shell companies’ provided Mann with a vehicle for business transactions without having any significant legitimate assets or operations. Shelf companies are created and left with no business activity, and subsequently used at a later point in time without the need for overhead costs or the creation of a new company.

Mann’s conviction and sentencing resolve additional crimes uncovered by the OAG investigation for which he could have been charged, including Grand Larceny, Falsifying Business Records, and Scheme to Defraud, related to Mann’s role as an owner and operator of various businesses, including: ValueWise Corporation d/b/a Apogee, d/b/a Optix Consulting, d/b/a Primacy Search Group, and d/b/a Lincoln Academy; MyPayrollHR, LLC a/k/a MyPayrollHR.com LLC; Cloud Payroll, LLC; Pro Data Payroll Services, Inc.; Southwestern Payroll Service, Inc.; Ross Personnel Consultants, Inc.; Weitz & Associates, Inc.; Viverant, LLC; Kaningo, LLC; Hire Flux Holdings, LLC; TrueConsulting Corp.; TrueHR, LLC; Create Force, LLC; Always Live Holdings; Heutmaker Business Advisors, LLC; and FocalPointe Group, LLC. These crimes include:

• Stealing payroll funds held in trusts for client employers in order to fraudulently inflate company assets and to repay stolen funds from other clients,
• Providing materially false information and/or concealed material information in order to secure millions of dollars in commercial financing,
• Providing fictitious invoices to financial institutions to fraudulently inflate assets as collateral for his entities and to repay stolen funds from client employers, and
• Wrongfully withholding millions of dollars from at least two Automated Clearing Houses (ACH) by redirecting ACH payments to accounts controlled by Mann.

The OAG wishes to thank the New York State Police and its Financial Crimes Unit for their invaluable assistance in investigating this case. The OAG also thanks the New York state Department of Labor and the Department of Financial Services for their assistance on this case.

Get Out in Van Cortlandt Park in August

 

The goats are very excited about all the upcoming activities in the park!  Make sure to stop by the Van Cortlandt House Museum Grounds and say hello to Leo, Sophia, and Taffy who will be here until mid-September.

Youth Run Farmstand  Wednesdays, 2pm to 7pm August 4 to October 27 Celebrate 10 years of our Youth Run Farmstand! Purchase locally grown produce at affordable prices every Wednesday through the end of October. Yummy features include Bronx Hot Sauce, coffee, fresh bread, and more. Click here to sign up for our Farmstand eblast. Located in the Train Park at Gale Place and Orloff Ave. Trail Work Wednesdays Wednesdays, 9am to 12pm August 11 to August 25 Volunteers will be working on maintenance of the XC trail and other nature trails in the northern end of the park. Wear closed-toe shoes and long pants, bring along water and a snack. No pre-registration required. Meet at the VCPA Garden & Compost Site- enter the Park at Broadway and Mosholu Ave. Forest Restoration Fridays Fridays, 9am to 12pm August 13 to August 27 Join VCPA in our active restoration sites, removing non-indigenous plant species, planting, seeding, and prepping sites. Wear closed-toe shoes and long pants, bring along water and a snack. No pre-registration required. Meet at the VCPA Garden & Compost Site- enter the Park at Broadway and Mosholu Ave. Click here to learn about more upcoming events. Share Tweet Follow Van Cortlandt Park Alliance 80 Van Cortlandt Park South, Ste. E1 Bronx, NY 10463 www.vancortlandt.org