Assemblymember John Zaccaro - May Newsletter

Dear Friends & Neighbors, 

We are in full summer mode here at our community office. My team has been hard at work with the NYC Parks Dept to get parks and playgrounds cleaned and curating an exciting calendar of summer events. 

Before I go into what we’ve done and what we have planned, I want to say a little something about some amazing people in our lives…our moms. 

May marks the month when we celebrate moms. Those special women in our lives who forever hold the secrets to the world.  The ones who welcome us with open arms and help to guide us. In that vein, I was honored to host a Mother’s Day luncheon at Bronx House on May 17^th. The afternoon was filled with amazing food thanks to our partners at Prime and great music.

As I mentioned, we have been hard at work getting our community ready for summer.  For all our students out there, I know the end of June may feel like it’s far away, but summer vacation is just around the corner. As part of my community beautification initiative, my team recently tackled Kossuth Playground where we put down mulch, planted rose bushes, and cleaned the playground and surrounding park areas. 

We also know how much our community depends on our FREE food giveaways and we were proud to hold events at Tracy Towers and outside Allerton Coops.  As your Assemblymember, nothing is more rewarding than meeting the wonderful members of our community during these events.  

Save money on your water bill with an Eco-friendly water barrel. We have a limited supply so sign up for yours today

Join us for a very exciting day at the Bronx Zoo on June 1st. Only a few tickets left…book yours today by calling my office 718-409-0109

Recently Introduced Bills

I have introduced A10248, which would permit a plaintiff to bring a civil action under the New York False Claims Act for violations of general prohibitions and restrictions of cannabis law. Illegal cannabis operators undermine the legal cannabis industry in New York, whose cannabis processors, cultivators, distributors and retail dispensary licensees followed the rules only to see their hard work damaged by those who violate the cannabis law. New York must lead when legitimate business is compromised by the conduct of bad actors. 

Allow for the sale certain non-cannabis products at premises licensed for adult-use on-premises consumption

As New York continues our fight against illegal cannabis operators we must also find ways to help the adult-use cannabis industry. One way is to allow for licensees that possess an on-premises consumption license to sell products that do not contain cannabis. Partnering with Senator Luis Sepulveda, I have introduced A10243, which permits the sale of food, non-alcoholic beverages and entertainment at these locations. This will give customers more options to purchase products and will provide licensees with additional revenue that allows for a broader range of economic activity. 

Prohibit fees for Certificates of Still Birth

I have introduced A9896, which prohibits fees associated with the cost of obtaining a certificate of still birth or fetal death. In March 2012, a law went into effect that that required New York to issue a certificate of still birth, a document that no parent ever desires to receive but this piece of paper provides grieving parents and family members with some degree of remembrance of their child. 

The law provides that a cost may be charged to obtain a certificate of still birth, and that if a cost was implemented it would be equal to the fee to obtain a certificate of birth or a certificate of death. However, there is no requirement that a mandatory fee be paid to obtain a certificate of still birth. 

Presently, it costs $30 to obtain a certificate of still birth from the Department of Health, per copy. Although the initial cost of a certificate of fetal death is free, additional copies of this certificate cost $30 each. These fees may seem inexpensive but it is important to remember why a certificate of still birth exists, to ease the pain of parents and family members in the healing process. I am proud to work with my colleague Senator Nathalia Fernandez, who has sponsored this bill in the Senate, S9149 and we will work hard to get this passed. 

More 2024-2025 State Budget Highlights 

Summer Youth Employment Program: The state budget includes $55 million for the Summer Youth Employment. This program connects youth across the state between the ages of 14 and 20 from low income families with summer employment and educational experiences with entry level positions, earning at least the minimum wage for their region. Between 2016 and 2016, the Summer Youth Employment Program has served approximately 100,000 youth across the state. 

Supplemental Empire State Child Credit: $350 million has been allocated to support the Supplemental Empire State Child Credit which will ease the tax burden on families with children, impacting 1.8 filers across New York. Last year, this credit was expanded to families with children under four years old. 

$2.4 million for 2-1-1 New York: The 2-1-1 hotline was created in 1999 and has helped connect New Yorkers with essential services across the state at no cost. The 2-1-1 hotline was added to the Disaster Preparedness Commission in 2022 and ensures the 2-1-1 services into New York's disaster response to get help to New Yorkers in need during a state of emergency. 

$500,000 to review and update curriculum on the Holocaust: This funding ensures that New York's Holocaust curriculum is fully reviewed and updated as antisemitism continues to rise across the state. Educating the next generation on the atrocities of the Holocaust ensures the stories of victims and survivors are never forgotten and the lessons taken from this horrible chapter in human history never happen again. 

Funding for the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) provides:

• $22.25 million for the Water Quality Improvement Program
• $20 million for Zoos, Botanical Gardens, and Aquaria (ZBGA)
• $26 million for municipal parks
• $21 million for farmland protection
• $19 million for municipal recycling
• $14.3 million for waterfront revitalization
• $18.5 million to combat invasive species. 

$30 million in tax credits to support local journalism: Will allow publishers to use the $30 million in tax credits over the next 3 years to cover half of the salaries of the journalists up to $50,000 each year. The credit can apply to current staff, but also provides an additional $5,000 to companies for each new employee hired to support local papers in expanding their newsroom. This will benefit our communities and allow residents to remain engaged and informed and while giving needed assistance to local journalists. 

Recently Co-Sponsored Bills 

A3759 – Provides for hazard pay of an additional $2,500 for essential work performed in accordance with a state emergency declaration. 

A3768 – Prohibits the diminution of health insurance benefits of public employee retirees or their dependents or reducing the state's employer's contribution for this insurance. 

A1303 – This bill would prohibit requiring parents or caretakers to earn a minimum wage to be eligible for child care assistance. 

A1885 – Requires the office of children and family services to utilize a cost estimation model when determining the actual cost providers incur when providing child care. 

A4099A – Requires social service districts utilize a presumptive eligibility standard for child care assistance. 

A2019 – Addresses the unintended consequences that child care providers who serve families and children on subsidies, experience in receiving market rate increases for the cost of care. 

A8886 – This bill promotes public health by establishing standards for operation, maintenance, and monitoring of indoor air quality at ice arenas in New York that use resurfacing equipment powered by combustible fuels which produce carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. 

A9834 – Prohibits any person or applicant from receiving a license from the office of cannabis management if they are found to be operating an illicit cannabis operation. 

A6114 – Enacts the “Effective Enforcement and Civil Rights Act” and provides for the enactment and enforcement of local human rights laws. 

A7353 – Establishes an online insurance verification system for motor vehicle insurance and requires insurers to provide necessary information.

Recently co-sponsored Resolutions

K2062 – Proclaim April 2024 as Sexual Assault Awareness Month in the State of New York. 

K2091 – Proclaim May 7th, 2024 as Police Memorial Day in the State of New York.

K2105 – Proclaim May 7th, 2024 as Fentanyl Awareness Day in State of New York. 

K2143 - Proclaim May 14th, 2024 as Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Day in the State of New York.

K2150 – Proclaim May 2024 as Maternal Depression Awareness Month in the State of New York. 

K2111 – Commemorate the 54th Anniversary of Earth Day in the State of New York

K2087 – Proclaim May 2024 as Be Kind to Animals Month in the State of New York.

Bronx Week Parade

 

Bronx Week Parade

By Robert Press

The Annual Bronx Week Parade which closed out Bronx Week, (running this year from May 6th to May 19th), returned to Mosholu Parkway after last year having been on the Grand Concourse. The Bronx Week Parade was hosted by Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson, and co-hosted this year by News 12 reporter and News Anchor Noelle Lillery.   

Marchers in the Bronx Week Parade had to arrive eairlier than the usual traditional 12 PM start, as this year the parade kicked of a little after 10 AM. The parade began with Bronx Community Board 7 marching, followed by community organizations, schools and marching bands, and many others in the category of community involvement including the Hare Krishna followers who were the last parade marchers, almost two hours later. 

Those who stopped by the stage to perform for Bronx Borough President Gibson and the community standing across the street from the stage included the Bronx Gems, Bronx Giants, MS 80 Tigers, St. Raymond's Academy, PS 94, PS/MS 5, MS/HS 223, IS 584, 40+ Double Dutch, and more. It was a great parade. 

Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson and News 12 reporter and anchor Noelle Lillery co hosted the duties of announcing the marchers in the Bronx week Parade.

Bronx Community Board 7 was at the front of the parade since the parade was being held in CB 7.

The Bronx Gems.  

Bronx District  75 schools were well represented.

The PS/MS 5 Tigers from Port Morris.

The Bronx Giants gave a demonstration of strength to the Borough President.

Chief of Staff Justin Cortes joined Borough President Gibson and Noelle Lillery of News 12 on stage.

In Tech Academy, MS/HS 368 performed.

The MS 80 Hawks performed.

The St. Raymond's Elementary School Marching Band with their Mascot.

The Bronx Youth Empowerment Program with former City Councilman Andy King.

Bronx Borough President Vanessa L.Gibson came down from the stage to celebrate the borough president's African Advisory Council. 

Zeta Phi Beta was one of several Sororities and Fraternities who marched.

The 40+ Double Dutch Club showed their expertise at Duble Dutch and Hula Hooping. Those numbers on the back of their shirts are their ages.

The Bangladesh Academy of Fine Arts.

MAYOR ADAMS, CUNY CHANCELLOR MATOS RODRIGUEZ ANNOUNCE NEAR $12 MILLION EXPANSION OF CUNY INCLUSIVE ECONOMY INITIATIVE

 

Launched in 2022, Initiative Has Served Over 3,000 Students and Built Connections to More Than 2,000 Industry Partners 

Expansion to Create Career Opportunities for 1,200 CUNY Students, Thanks to Investment From Adams Administration and Private Partners

Effort Builds on Mayor Adams’ “Spring Jobs Sprint” to Advance Opportunities for Thousands of Jobs Over Coming Weeks 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and The City University of New York (CUNY) Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez today announced a nearly $12 million expansion towards the CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative, which leverages CUNY campus resources to create college-to-career pipelines for CUNY students. To date, the initiative — which first launched in 2022 — has served over 3,100 students and worked with more than 2,000 industry partners, advancing the city’s goal to connect 80 percent of CUNY graduates with careers following graduation by 2030. The $11.8 million expansion — comprised of a $4.8 million investment in the Fiscal Year 2025 Executive Budget and $7 million from private partners, including Blackstone Charitable Foundation, Bank of New York Mellon Foundation, Centerbridge, Bloomberg LP, and Goldman Sachs — will bring industry engagement, career advising, internship, and full-time opportunities to an additional 1,200 students annually across over 20 new academic departments. As the city reaches a new private-sector jobs high, with the lowest unemployment since August 2022 and the lowest Black unemployment in half a decade, Mayor Adams has kicked off a “Spring Jobs Sprint” to advance opportunities for thousands of new jobs over the coming weeks. 

“Our city’s future depends on being able to help our young people to grow, fulfill their potential, and thrive in an ever-changing economy — and that means investing in the future of CUNY students,” said Mayor Adams. “In our first year, we launched the CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative to prepare young people for the economy of tomorrow by investing in them today. Now, we are building on that success with a near-$12 million expansion that will serve 1,200 additional students. Today’s investment and what we have done over the last two years by building equitable career pathways is about sending a clear message to our young people: New York City is still the place where anything is possible.”

“The CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative is a critical component of CUNY’s mission to serve as an engine of upward mobility. By connecting students to careers in fast-growing industries like tech, health care, and green jobs, we’re working to build a truly sustainable economic model for New York City,” said CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodríguez. “I’m grateful for Mayor Adams’ leadership and the continued support of our private partners. Thanks to their generous support, we will connect even more CUNY students to paid internships, apprenticeships, and jobs, and make our campuses a magnet for businesses looking to hire talent.”

“As one of the very first commitments of the Adams administration in 2022, the CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative creates college to career pipelines that are integral to our administration’s priorities. This historic $12 million expansion underscores our investment in young people, and the jobs of the future” said First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright. “This significant public-private partnership expands on the initial work connecting students with jobs and advances the city’s goal to connect 80 percent of CUNY graduates with careers by 2030. This initiative is core to our priority of ensuring equitable access to education and career opportunities, and reaffirms that New York City can work for every New Yorker.”

“CUNY students and alumni are the lifeblood of New York City’s booming economy. They become the teachers, executives, entrepreneurs, and health care workers who nurture and grow this city, generation after generation,” said Deputy Mayor for Strategic Initiatives Ana J. Almanzar. “This additional investment in the CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative reflects the private sector’s increasing recognition that New York City’s greatest resource is our home-grown talent, which CUNY has in abundance. I want to thank our private sector partners for their commitment to investing in CUNY and the city’s next generation of leaders across various industries.”

“Today's announcement is a testament to this administration's commitment to New York City's public institutions and to positioning New Yorkers to launch successfully into fulfilling, economically-secure careers," said Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development, and Workforce Maria Torres-Springer. “The CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative exemplifies this administration's vision for successful workforce development, including coordination with private-sector partners to develop and match talent to opportunity and aligning education, career preparation, and skills training to position New Yorkers for career success. Thank you to our private-sector partners for standing with the city as we create career pathways for over 1,000 more CUNY students.”

“CUNY is an engine of economic mobility that has served generations of New Yorkers and helped drive the city’s prosperity. Today’s announcement doubles down on an initiative with a proven track record of building the infrastructure and pathways to position students for career success,” said New York City Mayor’s Office of Talent and Workforce Development Executive Director Abby Jo Sigal. “This initiative embeds career success in the classroom from day one, allowing students to explore their career interests, build their professional networks, and develop their skills through apprenticeships, internships, career advising, and other career-connected learning opportunities. This initiative benefits both students in helping them achieve their dream career and employers who can tap well-prepared CUNY talent to fill their in-demand jobs.”

The CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative is designed to bolster student career outcomes by creating connections with employers, and providing students with hybrid academic and career advisors to ensure they have the support needed to achieve their academic goals and professional aspirations. The initiative currently serves 17 departments across nine campuses on sectors ranging from tech to health care and to the green economy. Today’s new investment will expand departments and offerings, growing the capacity of colleges to prepare students for these in-demand fields and others. The CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative will also support CUNY students in entrepreneurial and innovation skill-building by folding in the Blackstone LaunchPad program and its over 100 paid internship opportunities.

As part of this expansion, the initiative will begin offering students career opportunities in the financial industry for the first time by incorporating CUNY Futures in Finance. Launched in 2021 in collaboration with Centerbridge Partners, Bloomberg LP, and Goldman Sachs, Futures in Finance has exposed over 3,000 students at Brooklyn College, City College, and Lehman College to opportunities in the financial sector. As part of CUNY Inclusive Economy, Futures in Finance will continue to provide talented CUNY students with training, mentorship, and access to the financial services industry.

Additional enhancements to the CUNY Inclusive Economy Initiative include:

• Expanding CUNY's groundbreaking Degree-to-Career Mapping program to create employee connections that best match student interests and integrate career milestones directly into academic degree maps. 
• Offering stronger academic advising with career coaching that aligns classroom learning with career readiness exercises and employer-vetted skills, ensuring students are better prepared to enter the workforce.
• Engaging more faculty by embedding industry specialists into an academic department faculty that will receive current and real-time industry insights via the industry specialist, which ensures they can best prepare students.
• Simplifying navigation by making it easier for industry partners to connect both to the industry specialists on campuses and the Industry Support Hub.

The Adams administration has made continued investments towards CUNY to prepare young people to enter and thrive in the workforce. Last year, Mayor Adams announced “Pathways to an Inclusive Economy: An Action Plan for Young Adult Career Success,” a $600 million, forward-thinking roadmap to build inclusive pathways for the city's young people to discover their passion, receive hands-on career experience, and, ultimately, enter the workforce. As part of the action plan, the city invested $10 million to expand the CUNY 2x Tech to five new campuses, the first time the program served CUNY's community colleges.

In June 2023, together with CUNY and the New York City Department of Education, Mayor Adams announced a partnership with Google as the first tech-anchor employer partner for the FutureReadyNYC initiative that provides meaningful career-connected learning opportunities, including career discovery programming, paid work-based learning experiences, and mentorship from tech professionals. Google is also serving as an inaugural partner for the CUNY Tech Equity initiative, which expands tech-focused career awareness from the first day on campus, advances curriculum innovation, increases the number of paid internships, and grows employer engagement with campuses.

Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, the city expanded College Choice, which provides college students in foster care with greater support systems, including financial support so they can attend the college of their dreams without having to worry about a hefty price tag. Through the program, foster care students can attend any college of their choice, including CUNY universities.

The Adams administration has made historic investments towards creating job opportunities for working-class New Yorkers. Just last week, Mayor Adams was joined by New York Governor Kathy Hochul and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to announce an agreement to transform the Brooklyn Marine Terminal into a modern maritime port and vibrant mixed-use community hub, with the potential to create thousands of jobs. The project also builds on generational and forward-looking projects across all five boroughs that Mayor Adams has advanced over the past year, including Willets Point in Queens, Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx, the Climate Innovation Hub in Brooklyn, the SPARC Kips Bay life sciences hub in Manhattan, and the New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island, among others.

Additionally, Mayor Adams launched "Run This Town," a multi-media advertising campaign to engage diverse New Yorkers and help them apply for thousands of available city government jobs. The announcement followed the launch of "Jobs NYC," a multi-pronged citywide effort to reduce barriers to economic opportunities and deliver workforce development services directly to communities across the five boroughs that are experiencing high unemployment. Both campaigns are expected to further reduce the unacceptable disparities in employment between Black, Latino, and white communities.

The Adams administration also continues to host hiring halls to bring both public- and private-sector job opportunities to neighborhoods across the five boroughs on a monthly basis.

Arizona Tax Preparer Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Returns as Part of a Nationwide Abusive-Trust Tax Shelter Scheme

 

Defendant Filed Over 500 False Returns that Concealed More than $60M in Income from IRS

An Arizona man pleaded guilty on Friday to two counts of assisting in the preparation of false tax returns for individuals who used an abusive-trust tax shelter to underreport their income and tax liabilities.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2017 to 2023, Kent Ellsworth operated Ellsworth Stauffer P.C., a return preparation business. During that time, Ellsworth participated in a scheme to defraud the IRS that involved the promotion, sale and implementation of a fraudulent tax shelter. Ellsworth participated by preparing and filing over 500 false tax returns for approximately 60 clients nationwide who used the tax shelter to conceal income from the IRS and not pay tax. Ellsworth intentionally caused more than $60 million in income to be fraudulently sheltered from the IRS, which resulted in a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $17 million.

Ellsworth prepared the false tax returns to further the abusive-trust tax shelter scheme carried out by others. Clients who purchased the tax shelter – most of whom were successful business owners – were directed to assign or “donate” nearly all of their income to sham trusts and a so-called “private family foundation” to create the illusion that the income was not theirs. However, the sham trusts and foundations were nothing more than bank accounts designed to hold funds the clients earned and continued to control.

To carry out the scheme, Ellsworth was taught how to prepare tax returns utilizing the scheme’s fraudulent methods. He was instructed to report all income assigned to a sham trust as income of the trust and to offset that income by deducting all expenses paid for by the trust, including the clients’ personal living expenses. Ellsworth was paid fees for preparing the returns by the clients participating in the tax shelter.

Ellsworth is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 14. He faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of preparing and filing false tax returns. Ellsworth also faces a maximum fine of $250,000, a period of supervised release and the costs of prosecution for each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Special Agent in Charge Andy Tsui of IRS Criminal Investigation’s (IRS-CI) Denver Field Office made the announcement.

IRS-CI is investigating the case.

Attorney General James Secures Settlement Worth $2 Billion from Crypto Firm Genesis Global Capital for Defrauded Victims

 

Genesis Banned from Operating in New York

New York Attorney General Letitia James secured a settlement worth $2 billion with bankrupt cryptocurrency firms Genesis Global Capital, LLC, Genesis Asia Pacific PTE, LTD., and Genesis Global Holdco, LLC (Genesis) that will help maximize recoveries for investors who were defrauded. The settlement, which required review and approval by a bankruptcy court due to Genesis’ previous bankruptcy declaration, will establish a victims fund to help defrauded investors, including at least 29,000 New Yorkers, who contributed more than $1.1 billion to Genesis through the Gemini Earn investment program. Additionally, the settlement bans Genesis from operating in New York. The settlement, the largest against a cryptocurrency company in state history, continues Attorney General James’ work to increase oversight and regulation in this industry and protect New York investors, which has secured more than $2.5 billion from predatory cryptocurrency platforms to date.

“When investors suffer losses because of fraud and manipulation, they deserve to be made whole,” said Attorney General James. “This historic settlement is a major step toward ensuring the victims who invested in Genesis have a semblance of justice. Once again, we see the real-world consequences and detrimental losses that can happen because of a lack of oversight and regulation within the cryptocurrency industry. New York investors deserve the peace of mind that comes from a properly regulated marketplace, and that is something my office will always act to achieve.”

The settlement, which required bankruptcy court approval, will create a “Victims’ Fund” for Genesis’ creditors and resolves Attorney General James’ claims against Genesis for defrauding hundreds of thousands of investors nationwide, including at least 29,000 New Yorkers. In October 2023, Attorney General James filed a lawsuit alleging that Genesis, along with other defendants, concealed more than $1.1 billion in losses from investors that provided digital assets through an investment program called “Gemini Earn.” That lawsuit was expanded in February against Digital Currency Group, Inc. (DCG), Genesis, DCG’s CEO, Barry Silbert, and Genesis’ former CEO, Soichiro Moro, for defrauding additional individuals and institutions of an additional $2 billion. Under this settlement, Genesis neither admits nor denies the allegations of this lawsuit, and the suit will continue against the remaining defendants, as well as Genesis’ former business partner, Gemini Trust Company, LLC.

The Victims’ Fund established through this settlement between the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and Genesis will receive distributions from the assets remaining in Genesis’ estate after initial bankruptcy distributions to creditors. If those creditors are not made whole based on today’s digital asset values, the Victims’ Fund will receive up to $2 billion from Genesis’ remaining assets. The Victims’ Fund will then make distributions to compensate Genesis’ creditors for the full and fair amounts of their actual losses until the Victims’ Fund is depleted.

Attorney General James urges New Yorkers who have been affected by deceptive conduct in virtual assets markets to report these issues to OAG. Attorney General James also encourages workers in the cryptocurrency industry who may have witnessed misconduct or fraud to file an online whistleblower complaint with her office, which can be done anonymously.

Attorney General James has been a nationwide leader in the effort to protect investors and rein in the cryptocurrency industry. Attorney General James announced sweeping cryptocurrency legislation that would increase regulations of the cryptocurrency industry to protect New York investors. In December 2023, Attorney General James secured more than $22 million from KuCoin, one of the largest cryptocurrency trading platforms, for failing to register as a securities and commodities broker-dealer and for falsely representing itself as a crypto exchange. In May 2023, Attorney General James secured $4.3 million from Coin Cafe for failing to register as a commodity broker-dealer and defrauding investors. In January 2023, Attorney General James and a multistate coalition recovered $24 million from the cryptocurrency platform Nexo for operating illegally. Attorney General James also sued the former CEO of Celsius for defrauding investors and concealing the company’s dire financial condition. In March 2022, Attorney General James issued a taxpayer notice to virtual currency investors and their tax advisors to accurately declare and pay taxes on their virtual investments.

In October 2021, Attorney General James directed unregistered crypto lending platforms to cease operations for not registering with the state. In September 2021, Attorney General James and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recovered $479.9 million from GTV Media for failing to register cryptocurrency sales. Also in September 2021, Attorney General James secured a $3 million court judgment against Coinseed. In February 2021, Attorney General James required Bitfinex and Tether to end all trading activity in New York and required iFinex and Tether and their related companies to pay $18.5 million in penalties.