FACING UNPRECEDENTED CRISIS, MAYOR DE BLASIO UNVEILS BUDGET PLAN THAT PROTECTS NEW YORKERS BY PRIORITIZING HEALTH, SAFETY, SHELTER AND ACCESS TO FOOD

  Today, Mayor Bill de Blasio released New York City’s Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21). In these most adverse circumstances, the City must take significant action to preserve our ability to continue to fund life-saving measures. This Administration is committed to doing whatever it takes to keep New Yorkers protected.  

The budget, which addresses serious revenue shortfalls, prioritizes protecting health, safety, shelter and access to food for all New Yorkers.

“Our top priorities are simple: we will keep people safe, protect their health, make sure there is a roof over their head and that food is on their table,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “There is no cost too great to keeping New Yorkers protected, but Washington must also step up. New Yorkers deserve nothing less than the full support of our federal government in this time of crisis.”

  

The FY21 Executive Budget

The $89.3 billion Executive Budget is balanced and was crafted in light of immense fiscal hardship. Facing a $7.4 billion tax revenue hit across FY20 and FY21, the Administration achieved an unprecedented level of savings and took down reserves. These actions reduced the budget by $3.4 billion, or 3.7%, compared to the FY20 Budget that was adopted in June 2019.

Revenue: Substantial Reduction in the Tax Revenue Forecast

The Executive Budget Forecast has reduced tax revenue by 3.5% in FY20, or $2.2 billion, and 8.3% in FY21, or $5.2 billion compared to the Preliminary January Plan Budget. Losses in both years are primarily related to a decline in the Sales and Hotel Tax, Personal Income Tax, and Business Taxes, all due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Savings: Prioritizing the Fight against COVID-19 and the Health and Safety of New Yorkers

New Yorkers are at the epicenter of the nation’s COVID-19 pandemic. In the Executive Budget, the Administration has taken drastic action to preserve the City’s ability to meet critical health care, safety, shelter and food needs.

In order to balance the budget while prioritizing those critical needs, the Administration has achieved savings of  $2.7 billion across FY20 and FY21. This includes PEG savings of $2.1 billion ($600 million recurring annually) and $550 million in Citywide savings ($220 million recurring annually).

These are pauses and adjustments to critical programs that cannot operate during this time of crisis. We have adjusted operational programs to ensure there is no gap in necessary services and will reevaluate as soon as we have navigated through this pandemic.  

PEG savings over two years include: 

Education

Fair student funding reduction prioritizing schools that already have over 100% (DOE) - $100M in FY21

Operational savings in training, overtime, and materials at schools, central and field due to school building closures (DOE) - $100M in FY20

Professional Development reduction (DOE) - $67M in FY21 and outyears

Cuts to Summer in the City, Single Shepherd, College Access for All (DOE) $49M in FY21 and outyears

Delay in 3K Expansion to districts in 1, 12, 14, and 29 (DOE) - $43M in FY21

Reducing the ATR pool by implementing a non-ATR hiring freeze (DOE) - $40M in FY21 and outyears

Temporary reduction of School Allocation Memoranda, which provides schools with funding to implement programming (DOE) - $40M in FY21

Temporary delay of new cohort of freshmen for CUNY ASAP program (CUNY) $20M in FY21

Contract and supply reductions associated with arts programming in middle and high schools (DOE) - $15.5M in FY21 and outyears

Savings from delayed installation of air conditioners (DOE) - $10M in FY21

Monthly MetroCard underutilization for remaining 2 months of academic year (CUNY) - $6.8M in FY20

Eliminate District/Charter Partnerships program - $4.4M in FY21 and outyears

Eliminate supplies and materials used in Civics for All curriculum and programming (DOE) - $3.8M in FY21 and outyears

Adjustments to SONYC Afterschool budget (DOE) - $5M in FY21 and outyears

Savings achieved from anticipated low summer enrollment in CUNY Start Math program (CUNY) - $800K in FY20 and $1.6M in FY21

Scaling down contracts, technology curriculum and health education certification programming for teachers (DOE) - $1.8M in FY21 and outyears

Health and Social Services

Temporary suspension of Summer Youth Employment Program (DYCD) - $124M over FY20- 21

Fair Fares decline in ridership as a result of COVID-19 (DSS) - $65.5M in FY20

Suspend summer programming, including COMPASS, Beacons, and Cornerstones due to school closures (DYCD) - $55M in FY21

Reduction in price for hotel rooms due to decreased demand (DSS) - $35M in FY21 and outyears

Adjustments to DHS security budget to more accurately reflect need (DSS) - $25M in FY21 and outyears

Adjustments to Access to Counsel budget to more accurately reflect spending (DSS) - $20M over FY20-21

Re-estimate of funding needed to support City’s contracted non-profit administrative costs (multiple agencies) - $20M in FY20

Delayed ramp up on contracted mobile treatment teams due to State Medicaid cuts (Thrive/DOHMH) – $10M over FY20-21

School Mental Health Consultant Program – this need is covered by increased clinical capacity in schools added as part of FY20 Adoption (Thrive/DOHMH) - $1.2M FY20 and $1.2M in FY21

Slow implementation of citywide crisis response teams – this need is covered in part by increasing mobile crisis teams and mobile treatment teams (Thrive/DOHMH) – $10M over FY20-21

Office of Labor Relations BeWell Program adjustment (Thrive/OLR) – $500K in FY20

Cancelation of upcoming Summer SONYC (DYCD) - $6M in FY21

Re-estimate of number of Close to Home beds due to underutilization (ACS) - $3.7M in FY20 and $4.5M in FY21 and outyears

Rightsizing Job Training Program due to COVID-19 (DSS) - $3.2M in FY20 and $6M in FY21 and outyears

Client carfare underspending due to low usage during COVID-19 (DSS) - $6M over FY20 and FY21

Law Enforcement and Training

Hiring delays of non-safety civilian titles (NYPD) - $6.8M in FY20 and $4M in FY21

Delay implementation of non-essential training (FDNY) - $3.25M in FY20 and $3.25M in FY21

Attrition of 100 traffic enforcement agent positions (non-moving violations only) dedicated to intersection control (NYPD) - $4M in FY20

Procurement delays tied to operational challenges from COVID-19 (MOCJ) - $420K in FY20 and $2.7M in FY21

Redeployment of training academy staff as a result of declining population at Rikers (DOC) - $400K in FY20 and $2.6M in FY21

Adjustment to support services budget due to decline in population at Rikers (DOC) - $400K in FY20 and $2.8M in FY21

Delayed April NYPD Cadet class until July due to training restrictions from COVID-19 (NYPD) - $1.1M IN FY20

Delayed April NYPD Officer class until July due to training restrictions from COVID-19 (NYPD) - $9.6M IN FY20

Facility closures, post reductions at Horizons and OT reductions (DOC) - $100M in FY21; $144M FY22 and outyears

Temporary Suspension of Fly Car Program to maximize transport capacity (FDNY) - $28M in FY21

         

Infrastructure and Transportation

One-time Water Authority cash infusion to stabilize City budget in light of COVID-19 crisis (DEP) - $128M in FY20

Delay implementation of parking meter upgrades for pay by plate (DOT) - $3.7M in FY20 and $3.2M in FY21

Postpone Placard Abuse Enforcement Team (DOT) - $400K in FY20 and $800K in FY21 and outyears

Delay in Rollout of Better Bus Initiative tied to COVID-19 operational restraints and traffic easing (DOT) - $2.7M in FY20 and $5.7M in FY21

Reduce overnight Staten Island ferry service because of reduced demand - $600K in FY20 and $4.9M in FY21

Reduce funding for Vision Zero public awareness campaign - $1M in FY20 and $2M in FY21

Delayed implementation of Green Wave plan - $1.5M in FY20 and $1.5M in FY21

Housing and Economic Development

Additional penalty revenue from hazardous violations (DOB) - $12M in FY21

Utilize Battery Park City Authority Housing Trust Fund proceeds for housing activities (HPD) - $3M in FY20 and $6M in FY21

Contract delays associated with waterfront and building codes - $4.3M in FY21

Postpone City-funded portion of the anti-Graffiti Program (EDC) - $3M in FY21 and outyears

Use EDC funding to support city planning studies - $3M in FY21

Sanitation

Snow Savings (DSNY) - $52M in FY20

Temporary Suspension of Organics Program and Organics Processing (DSNY) - $21M in FY21

Temporary suspension of community composting subsidy (DSNY) - $3.5M in FY21

Suspend E-Waste Collection (manufacturers still mandated to collect) (DSNY) - $3.4M in FY21 and outyears

Reduce dedicated weekday basket truck service (DSNY) - $2.5M in FY21 and outyears

Temporary suspension of SAFE Events and Special Waste sites (DSNY) - $2.2M in FY21

Reduction in funding for recycling outreach programs (DSNY) - $2.9M in FY21 and outyears

Eliminate 4th Day Curbside Collection in Rat Zones – utilization has been low on 4th days - $1.5M in FY21 and outyears

Reduce Brooklyn North Cleaning – no evidence this increase has improved cleanliness - $1.2M in FY21 and outyears

Reduce Sunday and Holiday Basket Service – reduced usage currently $1.7M in FY21 and outyears

Reduce Highway Cleaning - $133K in FY20

Parks

Delays in seasonal spending – $5M in FY20 and $6M in FY21

Closing all outdoor pools for the 2020 season (late June to Labor Day) given COVID-19 - $12M in FY21

Delay purchases of non-critical, non COVID-19 items - $10M in FY20 and $1.5M in FY21

Reductions to tree and sidewalks programs given delays to non-essential work - $6M in FY21

Reduction in Tree Pruning – contract reduction (retaining in-house emergency capacity) $3M in FY21

Reduction of Tree Stump Removal Program – contract reduction - $1M in FY21

Suspension of 1,000 summer camp slots run by Parks Department for the 2020 season- $0.6M in FY21

 Others/Administrative Agencies

Federal and State Reimbursements - $180M in FY20

Hiring Freeze and Vacancy Reductions across multiple agencies - $106M over FY20-21

Contract underspending, lease savings, IT and media savings across multiple agencies - $85M over FY20-21

Savings from delay in April Election (BOE) - $31M in FY20

Heat, Light and Power Savings - $20M over FY20-21

Personnel accruals, supplies and materials savings at Campaign Finance Board - $6M in FY20

Revenue from civil service exams fees, real property income expense statement filings, court fees, auction proceeds - $12M over FY20-21

Reserves: Funds Priorities and Saves Lives

This Administration has increased reserve levels in each financial plan. This cautious planning helped buffer the loss of tax revenue over FY20 and FY21 and will allow the City to continue saving lives and maintain critical functions. 

Total reserves for FY21 are now $2.18 billion. The City drew down $900 million from the General Reserve and $250 million from the Capital Stabilization fund. The Retiree Health Benefits Trust fund drew down $2.6 billion and has a balance of $2.08 billion. 

Filling State Budget Cuts

The City was forced to backfill $800 million in state cuts, including an Education Aid shortfall ($360 million), and a sales tax intercept for distressed hospitals ($250 million) which allows the State to take funding from City sales tax proceeds in order to pay a portion of costs related to hospitals the State considers to be distressed. The City also had to fill a cut in financial assistance for families in need (TANF), a critical source of funds for vulnerable New Yorkers, especially in this uncertain time ($123 million). On top of these budget hits, the City was required to make an additional contribution towards MTA’s Access-a-Ride ($63 million).

COVID-19 Spending: Keeping New Yorkers Safe, Healthy, Fed and Sheltered

At the inception of New York City’s COVID-19 crisis, Mayor de Blasio instructed City agencies to spend was necessary to protect City residents. To date, the City has spent more than $700 million to fight COVID-19, with the expectation of spending $3.5 billion by the end of the calendar year. This includes more than $170 million to make sure that no one goes hungry; this is in addition to food security investments the City traditionally makes. Health + Hospitals, the largest public health system in the country, has felt the full weight of the pandemic. We have added $100 million to increase staffing, and support their heroic efforts to save lives and prevent the virus from spreading further. To protect New Yorkers who are actively fighting this outbreak, we have spent almost $200 million in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). And to support small businesses, who are facing extreme economic hardship, we have allocated $50 million in grants and loans to help them get through these tough times. On top of these investments, we have invested millions of dollars in new technology, cleaning supplies, information campaigns, and medical testing.

DiNapoli Releases Bond Calendar for Second Quarter

Tentative Schedule Includes $3.68 Billion of New Money and Refunding Debt Sales

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced a tentative schedule for the planned bond sales for the state, New York City and their major public authorities during the second quarter of 2020.

The planned sales of $3.68 billion include $2.63 billion of new money and $1.05 billion of refundings and reofferings as follows:

• $366 million scheduled for April, of which $37.8 million is for new money and $328.5 million for refunding purposes;
• $2.90 billion scheduled for May, of which $2.31 billion is for new money purposes and $590 million is for refunding or reoffering purposes; and
• $410 million scheduled for June, of which $200 million is for new money purposes and $210 million is for refunding purposes.

The anticipated sales in the second quarter compare to past planned sales of $5.39 billion during the first quarter of 2020, and $3.54 billion during the second quarter of 2019.

The State Comptroller’s office chairs the Securities Coordinating Committee, which was created by Gubernatorial Executive Order primarily to coordinate the borrowing activities of the state, New York City and their respective public authorities.  All borrowings are scheduled at the request of the issuer and done pursuant to their borrowing programs.

A new schedule is released every quarter and updated as necessary. The schedule is released by the committee to assist participants in the municipal bond market. It is contingent upon execution of all project approvals required by law. The collection and release of this information by the Office of the State Comptroller is not intended as an endorsement of the proposed issuances it contains, many of which will be subject to approval by the Office of the State Comptroller.

The prospective second quarter calendar includes anticipated bond sales by the following issuers: the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, the Empire State Development Corp., the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, the New York State Housing Finance Agency, and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey.

The detailed forward issuance calendar can be obtained at: www.osc.state.ny.us/pension/scccalendar.pdf.

Find out how your government money is spent at Open Book New York. Track municipal spending, the state's 170,000 contracts, billions in state payments and public authority data. Visit the Reading Room for contract FOIL requests, bid protest decisions and commonly requested data.

AOC endorsed Samelys. Will you? - NOT US, AND HERE IS WHY - THERE ARE TO MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS.

This came in from Team AOC, and why we will not support Samely's Lopez for Congress - There are to many unanswered questions.

 

Alexandria has officially endorsed Samelys López as the progressive champion for New York’s 15th District. Today, we want your endorsement too.

Here’s the situation: Samelys is building a people-powered, progressive movement to defeat a series of moderate opponents. Her campaign is focused on a Housing for All Guarantee — because everyone has a basic right to a roof over their head.

New York’s 15th is the poorest district in the United States, despite being in one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Thousands of people live on the streets or in shelters as luxury apartment buildings have excessive vacancies. We need Samelys in the fight for social, racial, economic, and environmental justice.

Samelys spent part of her childhood on the streets — bouncing from shelter to shelter with her mother, not knowing what the future held.

The reason we trust her to fight with all her spirit for working people is because we know she has lived the struggle and understands that we have the power to change that reality.

Especially in a time of crisis like this, having Samelys in Congress is a critical priority. We need leaders who embody political courage and Samelys has shown that she’s not afraid to speak truth to power.

This is a highly contested primary. Samelys will need your help to win on her progressive platform of Medicare for All, a Green New Deal, and a Housing Guarantee for All.

Thanks for having political courage,

Team AOC

EDITOR'S NOTE:

We were assured by candidate Lopez's consultants on the day she announced her candidacy in 2019 that we would interview her. That never happened! We continued to ask for an interview of candidate Lopez, and that never happened! All we got was stonewalled by her boyfriend Michael Beltzer, a failed candidate in 2017 for city council, who was already setting up his 2021 city council campaign. 

Candidate Samely's Lopez and Michael Beltzer started the Local Democrats of New York (LDNY) to elect people to low level party positions such as County Committee members. They had these people sign a release form to allow LDNY to raise money in said candidates name to use for their campaigns, or for whatever use LDNY felt was needed. I asked Mr. Beltzer where the filings for LDNY were, to see how the money raised was spent. Mr. Beltzer said "we kept the amount under one thousand dollars so we didn't have to file." 

When Congresswoman Alexandria Ocassio-Cortez opened her Bronx campaign office Michael Beltzer was there asking AOC campaign workers to donate to his 2021 City Council campaign. 

Upon checking candidate Lopez's FEC filing as of March 31, 2020 we find no expense for rent of any office, and have to believe since Mr. Beltzer is working out of the AOC campaign headquarters that is also candidate Lopez's campaign office, but then again we have not been able to ask one question of candidate Lopez thanks to Mr. Beltzer. 

Another question from the March 31, 2020 Lopez FEC filing is that a total of $80,328 has been raised, including $5,000 listed as other committee contributions. What other committee contributions?

Then there is the listing of $34,261 spent with $30,138 on hand.  $80,328 minus $5,000, minus $34,261, minus $30,138 leaves $10,929 unaccounted for. Where did the $10,929 go?

When it comes to money we can not trust Samelys Lopez or Michael Beltzer, there are just to many unanswered questions.

We also have to question Congresswoman Ocaio-Cortez's blind support of Samelys Lopez, and the AOC PAC giving candidate Lopez what was reported as $20,000 that is no where to be found on the Lopez for Congress FEC filing. 

All parts of the Team AOC letter relating to donations were omitted.

BRONX WEEK 2020 CANCELLED IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC

 

Dear Friend, We are disappointed to share that we have made the difficult decision to cancel Bronx Week 2020 to help protect our borough from the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. Clearly this pandemic continues to be both unpredictable and unlike anything most of us have ever seen. While it certainly remains our sincere hope that we are all past the peak of this public health crisis by Bronx Week’s projected dates in mid-May, the severity of these circumstances, including the anticipated everyday challenges for our recovery, demands that we must take this step to prioritize the health, safety, and well-being of all Bronxites. Like so many other organizations impacted by this unprecedented situation, we are now working to recalibrate our plans for the future. Thank you to everyone for your continued patience, support and understanding. Sincerely,

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.

Mayor de Blasio COVID-19 April 15, 2020

  Mayor Bill de Blasio: Good morning, everybody. This time we're living in, it's causing us to experience so many challenges, so many painful realities, things we never could have imagined. There is such uncertainty. There's such confusion. There’s such a sense of insecurity. I want all New Yorkers to understand what all of us here in the City government are devoted to doing in this crisis for you and it's really basic. Our mission is to make sure we protect your health. Our mission is to keep you safe. Our mission is to make sure you have a roof over your head, and that your home is safe and secure. Our mission is to make sure you have enough food to eat, and that's what I want to focus on today. That last point, because what is more fundamental than being able to put food on the table for your family. And for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers, that is now a question. That is not a certainty, and that's because somewhere in the neighborhood of a half-million New Yorkers have lost their livelihood in just the last few weeks, and money's running out. Whatever savings people have is running low. A lot of people already have run out of money. And yes, there's some help that's coming in. We all appreciate that for sure, but we all know it's not enough to sustain people. So, for more and more New Yorkers, we're hearing this all the time, people are literally asking, where's my next meal coming from? That's something painful to consider in the greatest city in the world, but it's what's happening. More and more people are experiencing that kind of insecurity. That's one of the most basic, and particularly for families, parents worrying about how they're going to feed their children. That's a reality that's now gotten sharper and sharper.

So, I want to affirm to everyone out there who is feeling that fear, everyone who's dealing with this problem, even if they couldn't have imagined just weeks ago, they'd be dealing with it. Here is the simple mission of your city government, and I pledge to you, I'm very confident in making this pledge, we will not allow any New Yorker to go hungry. This is not only a mission we are devoted to because it is the right thing to do, it is the moral thing to do, we must do it. And we must do it as your City government. We must do it working with all those at the community level who for years and years have helped to make sure that people are fed. The food banks, the soup kitchens, houses of worship, the nonprofit organizations. So many people have been devoted to making sure that New Yorkers had enough to eat. We're going to need them more than ever. We're going to help them more than ever. But the city government is going to take the lead, because we will not allow anyone to go hungry.

Now, yesterday I was out in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, and I saw something moving and remarkable, but also it was a warning sign. I was with the wonderful people who are part of the campaign against hunger. It's an organization that's been around for decades. Started at the grassroots to feed people, help people. I want to thank Dr. Melanie Samuels and her whole team. Devoted people from the community who keep coming out, and they know that they're taking a risk doing it, but they keep coming out with the proper protection on, to feed the residents of their community who need help. Melanie told me that even just a few weeks ago, typically 250 families per day would come to their food pantry to get help. She said now it's more like 500 families a day. Doubled in just a few weeks. And this is just the beginning, because when we look at this coronavirus crisis, we understand we're trying to make sense of something brand new, a disease that didn't even exist for human being six months ago. But we're also trying to understand the huge negative impact it’s had on the rest of our lives. And we know when it comes to something like unemployment, the effects get felt more deeply week after week. It doesn't all happen at once. It actually gets tougher as we go along. So, I think what's coming up is going to be even more of a challenge. And that's why we're preparing right now to feed everyone. And as you hear this presentation from me today and from our new Food Czar, Kathryn Garcia, I hope everyone listening will understand, literally, we will not let anyone go hungry. And if anybody in your life needs food, we will get it to them. We have to make sure that word is spread. We have to make sure that no one thinks they're alone. We will not let anyone go without food. We need to make sure everyone gets that message.

Now, I was in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, but this challenge is literally in every neighborhood, because if you have no money, how do you get food? And we know that the massive unemployment that we're experiencing is literally every zip code, every part of the city. So, whoever you are, wherever you are, if you need food, we're here for you, and there should be no shame. I want to emphasize this. There's no one's fault that we're dealing with this horrible crisis. Anyone needs food? We're here for you. You don't have to think twice. Of course, it's for free. Just pick up the phone or go online. And if you need information, you can go to nyc.gov/getfood. You can call 311. You can find all the places, all the ways we'll get you food. Please do not hesitate and spread the word to everyone you know.

Now, this is an unprecedented moment. This is something beyond even our imagination in some ways, but we have to fight back. That's what New Yorkers do. We're going to find a way. Yesterday I talked about the amazing work that's being done right here in our own city, to do what our nation's not been able to do, to create our own test kits, to create our own PPE’s, that’s the New York City way. If no one else is finding a way, we'll find a way ourselves. We'll take care of ourselves. We'll support each other. Well, this is the same idea. We are dealing with an unprecedented challenge, in terms of people needing food. So, we're going to create an unprecedented response. Today I'm announcing $170 million initiative to make sure every New Yorker gets what they need, and no New Yorker goes hungry. Now, thank God we have a strong foundation to build on. All those food pantries, and soup kitchens, all the amazing organizations out there that have been doing work all over the city for years and years. Meals on wheels, all the things that we know that are part of the compassionate approach that we take as New Yorkers to those in need. We'll be building on all of that, and we will be adding many new components, because the situation we're in now calls for a whole different strategy and approach, and one that will grow with every passing week.

So, let's talk about the sheer scale. Before this crisis, before we ever heard of coronavirus, there are about 1.2 million New Yorkers who were food insecure, who didn't regularly have the ability to get all the food they needed. And that very, very painfully included about one in every five children in this city. This crisis is now adding to that number of people who are food insecure every day, because literally people are running out of money every single day. So, we expect it to grow. And yet there is some relief coming and we're happy for sure to see the relief that's coming from the stimulus, from the unemployment benefits, this is all very, very important. But we know not everyone's going to get that money right away. We know there's a lot of red tape that some people have to navigate. We know there'll be time lags. We know some people don't qualify, and whether that's fair or not, we know there are lots of people in this city who will never get that kind of support. And I would say it's not fair, but it's the reality. So, we know that the food crisis will grow, and that's why we had to do something different.

So, I'm going talk to you about four things that will be the essence of how we go about this new strategy. And then you'll hear from our food czar who will go over more of the details. So, first, this has to be done on a grand scale, a really massive scale to reach everyone who needs it, and even more people up ahead. Since March 16th, when we really got in the thick of this crisis, there have been 4.5 million meals served to New Yorkers through all of these approaches we're now taking, and that's just the beginning. We're scaling this up very fast. You know, we've talked about the operation through our school sites. We've talked about what our senior centers are doing. So, the Department of Education, Department for the Aging. We’ve talked about the operation that's been set up through Emergency Management, led by our food czar. All of these efforts together during the month of April, will account for 10 million meals being provided to New Yorkers who need them. All for free. Now, I don't like having to tell you that number, because it says how big the problem is, but it also says how big our response is. That's April, we're ready to do even more in May.

So, the second piece of the equation is making sure that as we're providing food, we're also putting people to work, because so many people need a paycheck. So many people want to help. So, three weeks ago we launched emergency deliveries, and this means getting food to people who can't get out. Who literally can't get out physically, maybe they're disabled or seniors who can't get out and get food, and don't have anyone to get it for them. Folks who are scared to go out, because they have one of those preexisting conditions or they're immunocompromised. A lot of our residents in public housing, lot of people who if they don't get a delivery, it's not clear if they're going to get food. What we've done is we've reached out to drivers in the for-hire vehicle industry, so many of whom have seen their livelihoods upended by this crisis. We've now registered 11,000 drivers who are TLC, licensed taxi and limousine commission licensed, and they are all taking on shifts to deliver food directly to people in the greatest need who can't get out of their house, who need that delivery right to their door. These drivers are doing that, helping us feed people, they're being paid by the shift, show the game money back in their pockets to feed their families in turn. This is something that's going to have a huge positive effect on the people doing the work, but even more they're doing something absolutely crucial to help the vulnerable, most vulnerable amongst us.

Third point, we have to make sure knowing that, as I said in April, we think we will have served 10 million meals by the end of April, that's going to go up in May and it's easily going to be somewhere between 10 million and 15 million meals in May at the rate we're going, we have to make sure there's enough food to ensure we can make those deliveries, keep our food supply strong and stable. Even a small disruption in the food supply would have a huge negative effect on New Yorkers we won't let that happen. So, in our $170 million plan is a $50 million investment in an emergency food reserve for New York City this will allow us to purchase and store 18 million shelf stable meals. This means we'll have a failsafe, we'll have a reserve that's just for New York City to protect us no matter what else happens 18 million meals ready at all times. Keeping that in reserve while continuing all our regular programs to feed New Yorkers it's important to have that backstop so we can keep everyone safe.

And then fourth, protecting the people who we depend on for so many other millions of New Yorkers to get their food that's our grocery store workers, our supermarket workers. I want to just say thank you to them first, you know, they are among the groups of unsung heroes in this fight. We talk and we rightfully talk about the heroism of our health care workers, our first responders they've been absolutely amazing battling through this crisis, keeping the health system going, keeping us safe. But let's give a lot of appreciation, a lot of respect to the people who make sure we get fed those grocery store workers, those supermarket workers, they get up every day, they go to work it's a tough job we need them and they keep coming through for us. So, first of all, anytime you go to the supermarket, you go to the grocery please say thank you to them because it's not easy for them or their families, we appreciate them. But also remember this is not what they expected, these are folks just trying to make a living for their families they did not expect to be on the front lines of an international crisis, but they're acting with the same resolve and the same spirit as all our other heroes. Now we have to protect them, so we've been working with the different companies, supermarket companies and the grocery stores to make sure that their workers get the PPEs they need of one kind or another, there's all different kinds of PPEs, different kinds are needed for different situations. We're working to make sure those supplies continue to get to those supermarket workers and grocery workers so they can be safe and confident. And finally want to mention in this category we're giving some new guidance today and it— about when you go to the store, when you go shopping for food what makes sense to do. So, I'm giving the guidance to all supermarkets and groceries require customers, require customers to wear face coverings when they come in. Put up a sign at the entrance around the store making clear that that's the right way to do things and that's a requirement of your particular store that is legal and appropriate, the City will back you up. This will help everyone to remember when they're in that kind of space, it's so important to protect each other, to protect the whole community that face covering is a smart thing to do. Every store has the right to put up that guidance and make it a requirement in terms of entry into the store and anybody who will not, any customer who says, no, I refuse, I should not be allowed in. And again, we will back up those stores; we will help you to enforce the rules. You have a right to have those rules in place, it's the smart thing to do for the health of all New Yorkers, and the City of New York will back you up. We need to keep each other safe, we need to keep these groceries and supermarket workers safe so they can keep serving us, this is the smart thing to do. So, that's the big picture and I think you hear throughout that big picture, our resolute commitment to feed all New Yorkers and to make sure it happens.

Now, this brings us to the bigger picture again, which is if we're going to make sure that we work our way back to something normal, it's going to take a lot of work, but we can do it. New Yorkers have proven what an impact you can make and if we want to get people back to work, if we want to restart people's livelihoods, if we want people to have more and more money so they can afford food again, we have to get this part right, we have to get the social distancing right, we have to get the shelter in place right, we have to keep doing what we're doing. In fact, double down on it, tighten it up every way we can to keep ensuring that we get out of this current phase. Right now, again, we're in this widespread transmission of the coronavirus. None of us wants to stay in this reality; we got to work our way to the next reality – low-level transmission. And what we've said is back to these three key indicators, when we can get the three indicators I'll talk about now to all go down in unison, all in the right direction together for 10 days to 14 days – that’s when we'll be able to talk about some other changes we can make, hopefully a little bit of loosening the restrictions. But, if we can't get them to go down together, it will tell us a lot. It’ll tell us that we have to stay tough and also make sure in some cases that are things we do even better. So, let's keep talking every day about these numbers and what they mean and we'll again always post them publicly so all New Yorkers can follow along together.

So, today, we have a mixed bag. The first day things were moving in the right direction; the second day, not so much. Today, we have a mixed bag and again don't get discouraged because it's going to not be a perfect, clean line the way forward. There'll be good days and bad days, but we got get to the point where we string together a bunch of good days so we can get to the next phase. Here's what we have today; first indicator daily number of people admitted to hospitals for suspected COVID-19 cases – and again, this is a two-day lag in the data – so on April 12th that number was 326 on April 13th, it went to 370. Unfortunately, that number went up. On the second indicator, daily number of people in ICUs across our public hospitals for suspected COVID-19 cases – again, unfortunately this number has gone up from 850 to 868. On the third category, the numbers have gone in the good direction. When it comes to testing positive for COVID-19 – the percentage of people that tested positive – this went down – April 12th, 60 percent; April 13th, 53 percent. So, that's a good sign. The public health lab, the specific tests they do on some of the folks with the toughest conditions, April 12th, 84 percent; went down April 13th to 76 percent. That's going in the right direction. So, mixed bag today, this'll be a day-by-day fight. But the fact that we can show you every day that there continue to be signs of progress - these indicators and others - is a testament to what all of you have done and it's just a reminder; keep doing it. Don't let up on the gas. Hang tough with these standards, with these restrictions, with these approaches, because they're working.

Now, I talked about how New Yorkers, we're all helping ourselves and New Yorkers doing amazing things to create what we need to protect ourselves and I thank everyone who's a part of those efforts. But I also want to always note when we get help from outside and a lot of people care deeply about New York City and are stepping up. I mentioned Apple, I talked to the CEO, Tim Cook again and they've been amazing getting us the iPads we needed for distance learning for our kids, but Tim said they wanted to go farther and they wanted to help New York City directly with PPEs. And so, not only did he say he'd get us what we needed, but he got it to us in 24 hours, which is deeply appreciated; 100,000 N95 masks, 127,000 face shields, that's one of the items we needed the most this week - those face shields. So great effort by everyone at Apple, thank you, Tim Cook, we really, really appreciate this donation to New York City. And I want to thank my predecessor, Michael Bloomberg. We're really appreciative that Bloomberg Philanthropies made a $6 million donation to World Central Kitchen, specifically to provide meals for our extraordinary healthcare workers in our public hospitals who have gone through so much who have borne the brunt; great donation to help make sure that our heroes have the food they need and it also shows, you know, real appreciation and support for them at the same time. So thanks Mike, that that really helps a lot.

I'll wrap up and then of course a few words in Spanish before we take questions from the media. But, when you look at this plan, here's the bottom line – you look at this plan - one, I want all New Yorkers to recognize that Kathryn and her team and all the folks who are doing this work at all the agencies, they are resolute. They are not giving up and they've created a plan to feed people on a huge scale that few cities have ever attempted in history. This is something really powerful and I commend them all, but it comes down to that basic promise; we are going to feed every New Yorker. We're not going to let anyone fall through the cracks. We have to do it; it's the right thing to do and we will do it. 

Florida-Based Laboratory, Pain Clinic, and Two Former Executives Agree to Pay $41 Million to Resolve Allegations of Unnecessary Drug Testing

   United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Logan Laboratories, Inc. (Logan Labs), a reference laboratory in Tampa, Florida, Tampa Pain Relief Centers, Inc. (Tampa Pain), a pain clinic also based in Tampa, Florida, and two of their former executives, Michael T. Doyle and Christopher Utz Toepke, have agreed to pay a total of $41 million to resolve alleged violations of the False Claims Act for billing Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and other federal health care programs for medically unnecessary Urine Drug Testing (UDT). Both Logan Labs and Tampa Pain are subsidiaries of Surgery Partners, Inc.  Doyle is the former CEO of Surgery Partners and Logan Labs. Toepke is the former Group President for Ancillary Services at Surgery Partners, with oversight of Logan Labs, and a former Vice President at Tampa Pain.

The government alleged that defendants knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to federal health care programs for presumptive and definitive UDT, in circumstances where such testing was not medically reasonable or necessary. Presumptive UDT are tests that screen for the presence of drugs, while definitive UDT are tests that identify the amounts of those drugs in a patient’s system. The government alleged that defendants developed and implemented a policy and practice of automatically ordering both presumptive and definitive UDT for all patients at every visit, without any physician making an individualized determination that either test was medically necessary for the particular patients for whom the tests were ordered.  According to the government’s allegations, from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2017, the medically unreasonable and unnecessary definitive UDT were performed at Logan Labs, the medically unreasonable and unnecessary presumptive UDT were performed at Tampa Pain, and the respective resulting false claims were submitted by both Tampa Pain and Logan Labs to federal health care programs. The settlement resolves allegations brought in two separate lawsuits, one in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the other in the Middle District of Florida.

“The indiscriminate and unnecessary testing alleged here increased medical costs to the government without serving patients’ real medical needs,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “A laboratory that promotes and knowingly conducts medically unnecessary drug testing -- prioritizing profits over objective medical decision-making -- operates unlawfully and wastes limited federal health care resources. That is unfair to both patients and taxpayers and is the type of conduct that must be rooted out of our health care system.”

“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that federally-funded laboratory tests are ordered based on each patient’s medical needs and not for the purpose of increasing laboratory profits,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “We do not tolerate practices that are not based on patient medial needs and that lead to unnecessary costs for federal health care programs.”

“Medical providers seeking profits at the expense of individualized patient care will be held accountable in our district,” said the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Maria Chapa Lopez. “We will protect our district’s residents from providers whose concern for their bottom line overrides medical decision-making.”

Contemporaneous with the False Claims Act settlement, Logan Labs and Tampa Pain have also entered into a “Corporate Integrity Agreement” with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. 

“Increasing the profits of a sister-company by referring patients for testing services that are not medically reasonable and necessary and then having that sister-company submit claims to government health insurance programs for those needless services drains resources from legitimate patient care,” said Omar Pérez Aybar, Special Agent in Charge, Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Those scheming to enrich themselves at the expense of taxpayer-funded programs must be held accountable for their actions.”

“It is offensive when medical providers choose to bilk our healthcare billing system for personal enrichment,” said Special Agent in Charge Cynthia A. Bruce, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) for the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Southeast Field Office. “DCIS and our investigative partners are dedicated to fully investigating and bringing to justice those who deprive the DoD of limited resources needed for the healthcare of our military, veterans and their families.”

“The Department of Labor appreciates the efforts of the OIG community and the Department of Justice in identifying and pursuing cases where unnecessary testing has resulted in excessive charges to our federal workers’ compensation program,” said Antonio Rios, Director of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs Division of Federal Employees’ Compensation. “Healthcare fraud detection efforts are a high priority for us.”

The allegations that are the subject of today’s settlement were originally alleged in two cases filed under the whistleblower, or qui tam, provision of the False Claims Act. The Act permits private parties to sue for fraud on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery. The Act also permits the government to intervene in such actions, as the government previously did in the two whistleblower cases. The whistleblowers will receive approximately $7.79 million of the settlement.   

The government’s pursuit of these matters illustrates its emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services, at 1-800‑HHS‑TIPS (1-800-447-8477). 

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

Attorney General William P. Barr’s Statement on Religious Practice and Social Distancing; Department Of Justice Files Statement Of Interest In Mississippi Church Case

  "In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the President has issued guidelines calling on all Americans to do their part to slow the spread of a dangerous and highly contagious virus.  Those measures are important because the virus is transmitted so easily from person to person, and because it all too often has life-threatening consequences for its victims, it has the potential to overwhelm health care systems when it surges.    

                       

To contain the virus and protect the most vulnerable among us, Americans have been asked, for a limited period of time, to practice rigorous social distancing.  The President has also asked Americans to listen to and follow directions issued by state and local authorities regarding social distancing.  Social distancing, while difficult and unfamiliar for a nation that has long prided itself on the strength of its voluntary associations, has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of American lives from an imminent threat.  Scrupulously observing these guidelines is the best path to swiftly ending COVID-19’s profound disruptions to our national life and resuming the normal economic life of our country.  Citizens who seek to do otherwise are not merely assuming risk with respect to themselves, but are exposing others to danger.  In exigent circumstances, when the community as a whole faces an impending harm of this magnitude, and where the measures are tailored to meeting the imminent danger, the constitution does allow some temporary restriction on our liberties that would not be tolerated in normal circumstances. 

But even in times of emergency, when reasonable and temporary restrictions are placed on rights, the First Amendment and federal statutory law prohibit discrimination against religious institutions and religious believers.  Thus, government may not impose special restrictions on religious activity that do not also apply to similar nonreligious activity. For example, if a government allows movie theaters, restaurants, concert halls, and other comparable places of assembly to remain open and unrestricted, it may not order houses of worship to close, limit their congregation size, or otherwise impede religious gatherings.  Religious institutions must not be singled out for special burdens.  

Today, the Department filed a Statement of Interest in support of a church in Mississippi that allegedly sought to hold parking lot worship services, in which congregants listened to their pastor preach over their car radios, while sitting in their cars in the church parking lot with their windows rolled up.  The City of Greenville fined congregants $500 per person for attending these parking lot services – while permitting citizens to attend nearby drive-in restaurants, even with their windows open. The City appears to have thereby singled churches out as the only essential service (as designated by the state of Mississippi) that may not operate despite following all CDC and state recommendations regarding social distancing.

As we explain in the Statement of Interest, where a state has not acted evenhandedly, it must have a compelling reason to impose restrictions on places of worship and must ensure that those restrictions are narrowly tailored to advance its compelling interest.  While we believe that during this period there is a sufficient basis for the social distancing rules that have been put in place, the scope and justification of restrictions beyond that will have to be assessed based on the circumstances as they evolve.

Religion and religious worship continue to be central to the lives of millions of Americans.  This is true more so than ever during this difficult time.  The pandemic has changed the ways Americans live their lives.  Religious communities have rallied to the critical need to protect the community from the spread of this disease by making services available online and in ways that otherwise comply with social distancing guidelines. 

The United States Department of Justice will continue to ensure that religious freedom remains protected if any state or local government, in their response to COVID-19, singles out, targets, or discriminates against any house of worship for special restrictions."

The City has since stated it will drop the fines, but will continue to enforce the order.