State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's Weekly News - Fiscal Stress Monitoring System Marks 10-Year Anniversary

 

Fiscal Stress Monitoring System

Marks 10-Year Anniversary

September marks the 10th anniversary of the Fiscal Stress Monitoring System for local governments and school districts. State Comptroller DiNapoli launched the system to evaluate local governments’ financial indicators and provide an early warning to local officials about potential fiscal issues and give the public insight into their communities’ financial health.

Thanks in part to federal aid and rising sales tax revenue, the number of local governments with a fiscal stress designation dropped from 20 a year ago to 14 for fiscal year end 2022.

“Our fiscal stress early warning system identifies potential financial problems for local governments so they can take corrective action to avoid problems down the road,” DiNapoli said. “Sales tax collections have leveled off in recent months and federal dollars are being spent down, so localities should plan their budgets cautiously and accordingly.”

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DiNapoli Urges Focus on Addressing Rural Challenges 

State Comptroller DiNapoli released a report examining demographic, economic and quality of living trends in 10 rural counties in New York State. Most of the counties had population losses, aging residents, a shrinking labor force, as well as challenges with housing availability and access to health care, food and broadband. The counties selected as representative of rural New York include Allegany, Chenango, Delaware, Essex, Greene, Hamilton, Lewis, Schuyler, Sullivan, and Wyoming. 

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Transparency Needed as NYC Moves Forward with Difficult Budget Choices 

New York City is planning significant steps to reduce City-funded spending by as much as 15% in response to substantial budget gaps fueled by escalating costs in the years ahead. However, the City’s ability to cut spending is limited to what it has discretion and control over, according to a report released by State Comptroller DiNapoli. The report urges the City to use greater transparency for nondiscretionary costs that it does not have direct control over to help the public, policymakers and its funding partners understand what’s at stake. 

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Former Medical Office Manager Arrested for Scheme to Defraud the New York State Health Insurance Plan 

State Comptroller DiNapoli announced the arrest of Gina Bradshaw, an office manager for numerous doctors’ offices in Manhattan, for her alleged role in a long-term scheme to defraud the New York State Health Insurance Plan out of over $12,000 by submitting fraudulent claims for reimbursement. The arrest was the result of a joint investigation between State Comptroller DiNapoli, Ulster County District Attorney Clegg, and the FBI Hudson Valley White Collar Crime Task Force. 

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Great Demand For NYS General Obligation Bonds Allows State to Reduce Costs to Taxpayers 

State Comptroller DiNapoli awarded through negotiated sale $572,715,000 of New York State General Obligation Bonds. After a one-day retail and institutional order period, the State received total orders of over $1.6 billion or 2.8 times the amount of bonds offered, which allowed the State to reduce yields in many maturities. Ultimately, retail orders supported over 55 percent of the total bond sale, of which 85 percent was from New York retail buyers. The true interest cost of the GO Bonds was 3.99 percent. 

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Municipal & School Audits

• Brighter Choice Charter School for Girls
• City of White Plains
• Germantown Central School District
• Rapids Fire Company
• Town of Amherst
• Town of Rodman
• Village of Lindenhurst
• Yates County

ALSO IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK Note: Some news links may require a paid subscription.  Only a handful of New York's local governments  face fiscal stresses DiNapoli highlights persistent struggles in New  York’s rural counties Editorial: Clearing the air New York Comptroller DiNapoli on government  shutdown Audit reveals Nourish New York program falling  short on supporting local farmers  Former chief in Border City Fire District in  Waterloo accused of stealing thousands from dept.

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Tom DiNapoli @NYSComptroller 

Permits Filed For 954 Rogers Place In Longwood, The Bronx

 

Permits have been filed for a four-story residential building at 954 Rogers Place in Longwood, The Bronx. Located between East 165th Street and Westchester Avenue, the lot is a two-minute walk from the Intervale Avenue subway station, serviced by the 2 and 5 trains. Gjek Popaj is listed as the owner behind the applications, who also filed permits for a similar structure at 950 Rogers Place.

The proposed 40-foot-tall development will yield 11,700 square feet designated for residential space. The building will have 11 residences, most likely condos based on the average unit scope of 1,063 square feet. The masonry-based structure will also have a cellar and a 31-foot-long rear yard.

Anthony Cucich Architect is listed as the architect of record.

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

Governor Hochul Celebrates Federal Funding Award for New York's First State Veterans Cemetery

New York State Veterans Cemetery - Finger Lakes Came Under State Ownership in February 2023

National Cemetery Administration to Provide $3.951 Million for Expansion and Improvements

Governor Kathy Hochul announced the award of nearly $4 million in federal funding to support expansion and improvement projects at the New York State Veterans Cemetery - Finger Lakes, the first veterans cemetery owned and operated by New York State. This builds on the Governor's announcement of the formal establishment of the State cemetery in February 2023, and marks an important milestone that will help ensure the State can provide dignified burial options for New York’s veterans and their families for generations to come.

“Our veterans give so much for us, it is only right they have a dedicated, dignified space to rest,” Governor Hochul said. “The establishment of this cemetery is a proud achievement of my administration, and I am thankful for my partners who have made this possible. This federal funding will ensure the cemetery is maintained to the highest standards as it so rightfully should.”

Overseen by the New York State Department of Veterans' Services, the New York State Veterans Cemetery – Finger Lakes occupies 162 acres along Seneca Lake in Romulus, Seneca County and is adjacent to Sampson State Park. The site has 147 acres of land available for development and construction projects to ensure it serves as an honored resting place for New York State’s heroes for generations to come. The Cemetery is located at the site of the former Sampson Naval Training Station and Sampson Air Force Base, where hundreds of thousands of service members trained during World War II and the Korean War. The site later functioned as a temporary college and a separation center for service members being discharged, and officially closed in 2000. The Cemetery is located near Waterloo, the community recognized as the birthplace of Memorial Day.

New York State Department of Veterans’ Services Commissioner Viviana DeCohen said, “There is no higher honor than to ensure that each New Yorker who has served in our nation’s military is laid to rest in the dignified manner that their service and sacrifice merits. The New York State Veterans Cemetery – Finger Lakes guarantees that all New Yorkers who have served will have a place where they can receive their final honors on hallowed ground with a rich legacy of military service. We are immensely grateful to Governor Hochul, to all who have maintained this cemetery in Seneca County throughout its years of existence, and to our partners at the National Cemetery Administration in all of their efforts to reach this important moment.”

The federal funding announced today is the culmination of a process that began in 2022, when the National Cemetery Administration awarded New York State a $2.8 million grant opportunity for projects associated with the New York State Veterans Cemetery - Finger Lakes. Following a design and planning phase during which NYS DVS worked closely with Seneca County and the NCA to ensure the project would meet federal specifications, the NCA increased New York State's final grant award by more than 40 percent to $3.951 million. This funding will allow for upgrades, including a columbarium, maintenance building, maintenance yard, and supporting infrastructure.

New York State is home to more than 688,000 veterans, and until Governor Hochul's administration established the New York State Veterans Cemetery - Finger Lakes, New York was one of just a handful of states across the country that did not have a federally recognized state-owned and operated veterans’ cemetery. The New York State Veterans Cemetery – Finger Lakes is open for internments of all eligible veterans (as defined by federal law) and eligible family members.

About the Department of Veterans’ Services

The New York State Department of Veterans’ Services, which has served as the state’s advocacy agency for veterans, service members, and military families since 1945, maintains an agencywide commitment of serving all veterans, service members, and military families in a wide range of practice areas, including claims and appeals for benefits from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, discharge upgrade appeals to the United States Department of Defense, and claims for New York State benefits. Veterans, service members, and military families are encouraged to contact the Department at 888-838-7697 or its website veterans.ny.gov to meet — in person or virtually — with an accredited Veterans Benefits Advisor to address their needs and gain the full measure of benefits that they have earned. Follow DVS on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

SMC Systems Inc. to Pay $2.35 Million to Resolve Allegations of False Statements Relating to Energy Star Program

 

SMC Systems Inc., dba Skyetec, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, has agreed to pay $2.35 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA), between 2014 and 2021, by knowingly and intentionally making false statements to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other entities about the results of inspections it was performing under the EPA’s Energy Star Program. FIRREA imposes civil penalties on any person or entity that violates certain predicate federal statutes involving false statements and financial fraud. On July 15, 2021, Skyetec was acquired by Quality Built, LLC, and re-organized as SMC Systems LLC.

“EPA’s Energy Star program is an important vehicle for promoting energy efficiency and improving energy security,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “We will hold accountable those who undermine these critical objectives and seek to profit by knowingly failing to comply with the program’s requirements.

“The strength and integrity of the Energy Star program depends on accurate information provided by those who inspect and certify homes as energy efficient,” said U.S. Attorney Handberg for the Middle District of Florida. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to ensuring integrity in that process for both home buyers and financial institutions that assist borrowers in financing their homes, as well as holding accountable those who falsely certify Energy Star homes.”

“The integrity of the Energy Star program relies on an honest and transparent public-private partnership,” said Special Agent in Charge Nic Evans of the EPA Office of Inspector General (EPA-OIG). “These allegations and subsequent penalties send a clear message that oversight is imperative to bring to light partners that diminish the value of the Energy Star program.”

The Energy Star Program is a voluntary public-private partnership to identify and promote energy-efficient products and buildings, to reduce energy consumption, to improve energy security and to reduce pollution through labeling of, or other communication about, products and buildings that meet the highest energy conservation standards. As part of the Energy Star Program, the EPA oversees the Energy Star Home Certification Program along with RESNET, a private Home Certification Organization that accredits and audits rating providers. Under the Home Certification Program, newly constructed homes receive energy inspections and obtain Energy Star Certificates reflecting that the home meets the required energy efficiency standards. An essential feature of this program is third-party verification that the home meets energy efficiency standards set by EPA. EPA relies on rating providers, like Skyetec, to ensure that all homes certified as Energy Star meet all Energy Star requirements. The rating provider must sign a partnership agreement with the EPA and must report all homes certified as Energy Star to the EPA. 

An essential component of the Energy Star Home Certification Program is a pre-drywall inspection to verify the presence and installation quality of a home’s insulation, alignment of air barriers, presence of prescribed framing and proper overall seal of a home. This is known as a “thermal bypass inspection.” The United States alleged that between 2014 and 2021, Skyetec knowingly and intentionally made false statements to the EPA, RESNET and others that it had properly performed these thermal bypass inspections when, in fact, it had failed to do so. Skyetec obtained both payment from a third party for a thermal bypass inspection and an Energy Star certificate from EPA based on the material misrepresentation that a thermal bypass inspection occurred. Skyetec reported information about these homes through internet platforms to both the EPA and RESNET as having satisfied Energy Star requirements when in fact they had not verified this through a thermal bypass inspection.  

The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, with assistance from EPA-OIG.

The matter was investigated by Senior Trial Counsel Don Williamson and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsay Griffin, Charles Harden and Soma Nwokolo for the Middle District of Florida.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.