State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's Weekly News - Saving for College With a NY 529 Accoun

 

Saving for College With a NY 529 Account

Get a head start on saving for higher education expenses. The 529 College Savings Program helps you do just that. Opening a 529 account  is not limited to  parents— grandparents, other relatives, and friends  may also— as long as they are a U.S. citizen or a resident alien. State Comptroller DiNapoli administers the Direct Plan component of the College Savings Program with the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation. 

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Greenburgh-Graham Union Free School District Superintendent and Former Security System Specialist Arrested on Corruption Charges for Stealing School Funds

State Comptroller DiNapoli and Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah announced that the former superintendent of schools and a former security system specialist of the Greenburgh-Graham Union Free School District were arrested on corruption charges for allegedly stealing school district funds earmarked for students and spending them on personal and luxury expenses between 2018 and 2022.

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NYC FY 2025 Budget Balanced With Strong Revenues and Cost Savings

Higher-than-projected revenue and cost-saving initiatives have helped New York City’s fiscal year (FY) 2024 budget generate a projected year-end surplus of $3.9 billion that will be used to prepay expenses for the next fiscal year, helping the City balance its FY 2025 executive budget, according to a report released by State Comptroller DiNapoli. Still, DiNapoli cautions that budget gaps are likely to be larger-than-anticipated by the City in the coming years, underlining the importance of adding to reserves now while revenues are strong and formalizing a policy for managing reserves in the future.

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Municipal Audits

• Eaton No. 1 Fire District
• Neptune Hose Company No. 1 of Dryden, Inc.
• City of Amsterdam – Budget Review

ALSO IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK

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• Comptroller DiNapoli tries to invest with purpose
  
  
• Two officials from Greenburgh-Graham district charged with stealing school funds
  
  
• Projects with tax breaks from industrial development agencies created 47,521 jobs on LI, report says

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Tom DiNapoli @NYSComptroller 

Housing Lottery Launches For 2093 Matthews Avenue In Pelham Parkway, The Bronx

 

The affordable housing lottery has launched for 2093 Matthews Avenue, a six-story residential building in Pelham Parkway, The Bronx. Designed by Anthony Cucich Architect and developed by David Pllumbi, the structure yields 38 residences. Available on NYC Housing Connect are 13 units for residents at 130 percent of the area median income (AMI), ranging in eligible income from $83,658 to $218,010.

Amenities include a garage, a shared laundry room, package lockers, elevator, and an on-site resident manager. Residences come with energy-efficient appliances and intercoms.

At 130 percent of the AMI, there are two studios with a monthly rent of $2,440 for incomes ranging from $83,658 to $161,590; nine one-bedrooms with a monthly rent of $2,484 for incomes ranging from $85,166 to $181,740; and two two-bedrooms with a monthly rent of $2,762 for incomes ranging from $94,698 to $218,010.

Prospective renters must meet income and household size requirements to apply for these apartments. Applications must be postmarked or submitted online no later than June 21, 2024.

Brooklyn Man Charged with Gunpoint Robbery of Postal Worker

 

Defendant Engaged in Robbery, Mail Theft and Identity Theft Schemes 

A ten-count indictment was unsealed charging the defendant Alfonso Forney with robbery of a postal worker, a related firearms offense, mail theft related offenses, wire fraud, bank fraud, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.  The defendant’s initial appearance is before United States Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn.

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and Daniel Brubaker, Inspector-in-Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, New York Division (USPIS) announced the charges.

“The safety of our mail carriers is essential to assuring the unobstructed flow of goods, checks and information through the United States Postal Service,” stated United States Attorney Breon Peace.  “The defendant’s pattern of violent behavior endeavored to turn this vital system into his own personal pipeline for theft and fraud.”

USPIS Inspector-in-Charge Daniel B. Brubaker said, “Our highest priority as postal inspectors is the safety of our employees, especially our letter carriers who are out on the streets every day delivering for the American public. They deserve to be protected from violent criminals who prey on these hardworking public servants that serve our communities. Today’s arrest of this alleged armed robber and mail thief is proof of this fact: postal inspectors working alongside our law enforcement partners in the NYPD, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, will relentlessly pursue violent criminals wherever they lurk. No matter how long it takes, no matter where they hide, we will find them and bring them to justice for their alleged crimes.”     

As alleged in the indictment and other court papers, the defendant engaged in both a robbery and mail theft scheme as well as an identity theft scheme. 

With respect to the robbery and mail theft scheme, between January 2023 and December 2023, the defendant and others committed gunpoint robberies of United States Postal Service mail carriers to obtain arrow keys, which are universal keys that allow mail carriers to access various postal boxes within a certain geographic area.  The defendant and others used the keys to steal mail, including checks from the mail, which were subsequently deposited into the defendant’s bank accounts or otherwise cashed.  

With respect to the identity theft scheme, between January 2024 and March 2024, the defendant misrepresented himself as another individual (the “Victim”) to fraudulently gain access to the Victim’s bank accounts.  He did so by changing the address on the Victim’s driver’s license to his own address, and then ordering a duplicate of that driver’s license to his residence.  After gaining access to the Victim’s bank accounts, the defendant withdrew at least $245,000 and deposited a portion of the funds into his own bank accounts.  The defendant also used the Victim’s identity to obtain an automobile loan for approximately $25,000, which the defendant used to purchase a vehicle in the Victim’s name.

The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.  If convicted, the defendant faces up to 39 years’ imprisonment.

Statement from Speaker Adams Calling for the Rent Guidelines Board to Protect the City’s Nearly One Million Rent-Stabilized Tenants from Unreasonable Rent Increases

Ahead of the Rent Guidelines Board’s Queens Public Hearing on May 30 at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center, Speaker Adrienne Adams called on the Rent Guidelines Board to limit rent increases for nearly one million rent-stabilized tenants. In addition to submitting written testimony, Speaker Adams released the following statement. 

“Amidst a severe housing shortage and affordability crisis, record-high homelessness and evictions, New Yorkers cannot afford a rent hike that will push more to lose their homes and face instability. The low housing vacancy rate, rising cost of living, and other expenses like childcare are all contributing to the departure of far too many working- and middle-class families from our city. While I believe that small building owners and landlords deserve targeted protections and support, the Rent Guidelines Board’s decision will impact a broad range of tenants who have already absorbed high rent increases over the past few years and cannot afford the compounded effect of additional ones. Even a modest rent increase would push New Yorkers to the brink of eviction and homelessness, which would exacerbate the challenges facing the city’s overburdened shelter system. Considering these dire circumstances, the Rent Guidelines Board should limit rent increases and safeguard housing security, which will help us ensure the stability of our neighborhoods and the well-being of all New Yorkers.”     

Final Defendant Sentenced for Federal Conspiracy Against Rights and Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act Convictions Related to 2020 D.C. Clinic Invasion and Blockade

 

Paulette Harlow was sentenced to 24 months in prison following her convictions for federal conspiracy against rights and Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act offenses in connection with the blockade of a Washington, D.C., area reproductive health clinic on Oct. 22, 2020.

Previously, Lauren Handy was sentenced to 57 months in prison, John Hinshaw was sentenced to 21 months in prison, William Goodman was sentenced to 27 months in prison, Jonathan Darnel was sentenced to 34 months in prison, Herb Geraghty was sentenced to 27 months in prison, Jean Marshall was sentenced to 24 months in prison, Joan Bell was sentenced to 27 months in prison and Heather Idoni was sentenced to 24 months in prison. A 10th defendant, Jay Smith, was sentenced to prison following his guilty plea to a felony FACE Act offense on March 1, 2023.

“These 10 defendants have been held accountable for using force, threatening to use force and physically obstructing access to reproductive health care in the District of Columbia,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to protect both patients seeking reproductive health services and providers of those services. We will hold accountable anyone who seeks to unlawfully obstruct or block access to reproductive health services in our country.”   

“The final defendant was sentenced in an elaborate conspiracy by 10 people to intentionally and forcibly block patients and workers from accessing a reproductive health clinic while streaming it live online,” said Assistant Director Michael Nordwall of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI will not stand for anyone who violates federal laws causing destruction, injury and violent attacks like this one. We are dedicated to protecting the rights of all Americans to safely access medical services and ensuring providers can perform their duties freely.”

These defendants were convicted following three separate trials in 2023. Idoni is scheduled to be sentenced in a separate matter on July 30, following conspiracy and FACE Act convictions in an unrelated clinic blockade from Tennessee.

Evidence presented at trial established that the defendants used force and physical obstruction to execute a clinic blockade that was organized by the group’s leaders, Handy and Darnel. The defendants planned and organized the clinic invasion using social media, text messages and telephone calls, and several co-conspirators, including defendants Hinshaw, Goodman, Geraghty, Marshall, Bell, Harlow, Idoni and Smith traveled from northeast and midwestern states to participate in the blockade. Prior to the clinic incursion, the defendants met with other co-conspirators to plan their crime, which included making a fake patient appointment to ensure the group’s entry into the clinic, using chains and locks to barricade the facility and passively resisting their anticipated arrests to prolong the blockade. The clinic invasion was advertised on social media as a “historic” event that was live-streamed on Facebook. The defendants’ forced entry into the clinic at the outset of the invasion resulted in injury to a clinic nurse. During the blockade, one patient had to climb through a receptionist window to access the clinic, while another laid in the hallway outside of the clinic in physical distress, unable to gain access to the clinic.

The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case.

Attorney General James Announces Agreement Requiring NCAA to End Transfer Eligibility Rule

AG James and Multistate Coalition Sued NCAA for Preventing College Athletes from Immediately Competing in Sports When they Transfer Schools, NCAA Agrees to Drop Rule

New York Attorney General Letitia James, the U.S. Department of Justice, and a multistate coalition of 10 attorneys general  announced that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has agreed to permanently end its transfer eligibility rule, which prohibited Division I college athletes from competing for one year if they transferred schools twice. The NCAA’s transfer eligibility rule forced college athletes to either stay in colleges they wanted to leave or miss out on athletic opportunities, limiting their career potential. The settlement resolves the lawsuit filed by Attorney General James and the multistate coalition, and requires the NCAA to stop enforcing its transfer eligibility rule.

“The end of the NCAA’s unfair transfer eligibility rule will be a game changer for student athletes who wish to transfer schools and still compete in top-tier sports programs,” said Attorney General James. “This settlement will ensure that student athletes don’t have to choose between their academic goals and their athletic pursuits. I am proud to stand with my colleagues to support college athletes.”

The agreement, which must be approved by U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey, removes what the coalition views as an illegal restraint on the athletes’ ability to market their labor and control their education. In addition to ensuring athletes’ autonomy, the agreement:

• Prevents retaliation from the NCAA against member institutions and athletes who challenge the rule or support those who do. This includes safeguarding student athletes' rights to compete during legal proceedings without fear of punitive actions from the NCAA. 
• Requires the NCAA to grant an additional year of eligibility to Division I athletes who for any reason were previously deemed ineligible under the transfer eligibility rule since the 2019-20 academic year. 
• Prohibits the NCAA from undermining or circumventing its provisions through future actions, rules, or policies, thereby ensuring college athletes' rights and freedoms. 
• Establishes the court's continuing jurisdiction to enforce its terms and resolve any disputes that may arise.

In December 2023, Attorney General James and a multistate coalition sued the NCAA over its anticompetitive transfer eligibility rule that restricted student athletes’ careers and their ability to choose which university they wanted to attend. An athlete who transferred to the University of Buffalo was initially prohibited from competing on the university’s basketball team because of the NCAA’s transfer eligibility rule. However, Attorney General James and the multistate coalition secured a temporary restraining order, temporarily blocking the NCAA from enforcing the transfer eligibility rule and allowing the student athlete to compete in the University of Buffalo’s basketball team. Today’s settlement requires the NCAA to completely stop enforcing the rule and prevents the Association from adopting any similar restrictions on college athletes.

Joining Attorney General James and the U.S. Department of Justice in this settlement are the attorneys general of Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.

Attorney General James has been a national leader on efforts to protect the rights of student and professional athletes and ensure sports regulation authorities are held accountable for illegal policies. Earlier this month, Attorney General James and a multistate coalition sued the NCAA for preventing student athletes from reviewing NIL compensation offers before enrolling in a school. In October 2023, Attorney General James and a bipartisan coalition urged the U.S. Supreme Court to protect baseball minor leagues throughout the country.

Partnerships for Parks - Congratulations NYC Green Fund Grassroots Grant Awardees

NYC Green Fund Grassroots Grant Program Awardees Announced

We’re excited to announce that we have just awarded $343,900 in grants to 58 community groups across the five boroughs through the NYC Green Fund Grassroots grant program. Part of the NYC Green Fund, a pooled grant program supporting an equitable and resilient network of parks and open spaces to benefit the well-being of all New Yorkers, the NYC Green Fund Grassroots grant program supports community-led initiatives specifically, prioritizing Environmental Justice Areas, majority BIPOC-led community groups, and groups with budgets under $50,000. The program targets communities that are most vulnerable to environmental injustices and advances the viability of grassroots initiatives across parks and open spaces in all five boroughs. Some highlights for the coming season include:

• Liminal in collaboration with the Brownsville Community Justice Center will create “Beyond Memorial,” a youth-led art and healing justice response to gun violence and loss through temporary light installations as an alternative to NYPD light towers in Brooklyn

• La Finca del Sur will lead monthly learning circles in the Bronx facilitated by the South Bronx Farmers around the rewards of growing and eating healthy, organic foods, with a focus on special needs community members and intergenerational knowledge sharing

• Seed Healing Network will host a holistic clinic for community members at and near the NYCHA Queensbridge Houses, providing acudetox and reiki therapy, Narcan supplies, and a multilingual zine and local resource guide highlighting shelters, primary care, food pantries, and affordable holistic services

• Uptown Soccer, Inc. will expand a youth soccer program by hiring new coaching staff and providing material resources to children of newly arrived immigrants in Manhattan 

• Friends of Olmsted Beil House  in Staten Island will create a lecture series to educate community members around Olmsted Beil House, a 324-year-old historic site, to galvanize restoration of the house 

For more information about the awardees, click here. The next round of NYC Green Fund Grassroots grant applications will open in July 2024. For the latest updates, check our site or sign up for our mailing list. 

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PfP Grantee Owl's Head Park Volunteers

NYC Green Fund Crowdfunding Challenge

Looking for funding to support your local park, community garden, green street, or street trees? There's still time to apply to the NYC Green Fund Crowdfunding Challenge, which provides up to $3,000 in matching funds to approved community projects that are hosted through an ioby crowdfunding campaign. If approved, the NYC Green Fund contributes one dollar for every dollar raised-up to $2,500 ($3,000 for organizations based in Environmental Justice Areas)! Learn more here.

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We're Hiring

PfP is a joint community engagement program of City Parks Foundation and NYC Parks working to sustain local parks and green spaces across New York City. We’re currently hiring a fiscal sponsorship manager. Apply now and become part of the PfP family!

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Partnerships for Parks is a joint program of City Parks Foundation and NYC Parks that supports and champions a growing network of leaders caring and advocating for neighborhood parks and green spaces. We equip people and organizations with the skills and tools needed to transform these spaces into dynamic community assets. 

Line Workers Recruit Apprentices

 

The Northeastern Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee for the Outside Electrical Industry will conduct a recruitment from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025 for 50-70 Electrical (Outside) Line Worker apprentices, the New York State Department of Labor announced today.

Please note that the 50-70 openings listed for apprentices represent the total number for all regions of the state.

Applications are available and accepted the 1st Monday of every month during the recruitment period from http://www.NEAT1968.org, with a maximum of 30 applications per area, per month. All applications must be submitted on the website. Please note, there is a $25.00 test processing fee required with all completed applications. Applicants may request that this fee be waived. Fee waivers will be approved upon showing verifiable proof of financial need. Applicants who do not have internet access should visit their local library or their nearest New York State Department of Labor Career Center (see: dol.ny.gov/career-centers). All applications must be received no later than June 30, 2025.

The Committee requires that applicants:

• Must be at least 18 years old.
• Must have a High School diploma or High School equivalency diploma (such as TASC or GED).
• Must pass DOT physical, at the expense of the sponsor, after an offer of employment.
• Must take and obtain a qualifying score on the NJATC aptitude test (3 or higher).
• Must pass a drug test, at the expense of the sponsor, after selection and prior to enrollment in apprenticeship.
• Must pass a background check, at the expense of the sponsor, after selection and prior to enrollment in apprenticeship.
• Must attend all the related classroom training at the approved school.
• Must have a valid driver’s license and a commercial driver’s permit or license (class A or B, with the air brake restriction removed) in order to operate commercial vehicles.
• Must be able to read, hear, and understand instructions and warnings given in English.
• Must be able to crawl and work in confined spaces such as attics and manholes.
• Must be able to climb and work from ladders, scaffolds, poles, and towers of various heights.
• Must be willing and able to travel to worksites anywhere within 11 Northeastern states such as Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland (eastern shore), Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

For further information, applicants should contact Northeastern Joint Apprenticeship & Training Committee at (610) 326-2860. Additional job search assistance can be obtained at your local New York State Department of Labor Career Center (see: dol.ny.gov/career-centers).

Apprentice programs registered with the Department of Labor must meet standards established by the Commissioner. Under state law, sponsors of programs cannot discriminate against applicants because of race, creed, color, national origin, age, sex, disability, or marital status. Women and minorities are encouraged to submit applications for apprenticeship programs. Sponsors of programs are required to adopt affirmative action plans for the recruitment of women and minorities.