Attorney General Schneiderman And Governor Cuomo Announce New York State Suing U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Over Eastern Long Island Sound Disposal Site Designation

Lawsuit Filed By New York State Cites Ocean Dumping Act And Coastal Zone Management Act Violations And EPA’s Failure To Address Environmental Impacts On The Long Island Sound

  Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that New York State has filed a lawsuit against the United States Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York challenging EPA’s decision to designate a permanent open water disposal site in eastern Long Island Sound for tens of millions of cubic yards of dredged sediments. The EPA’s site designation violates the Ocean Dumping Act and the Coastal Zone Management Act. 

“Our waters are not dumping grounds. EPA’s first job is to protect our natural resources – yet by designating this unneeded disposal site, EPA is allowing huge amounts of dredged waste to be poured into yet another area of the Long Island Sound. That’s unacceptable,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “We won’t hesitate to act when the federal government fails to uphold its obligation to protect New Yorkers’ health and environment.”

“We will continue to do everything in our power to protect New York’s environment, and with the EPA’s unfathomable and destructive decision to turn the eastern Long Island Sound into a dumping ground – now is the time for action,” Governor Cuomo said. “We will establish that this designation not only poses a major threat to a significant commercial and recreational resource, but that it also undermines New York’s long-standing efforts to end dumping in our treasured waters.”

Click here to read the lawsuit filed today.

In August 2016, the Governor announced New York's intention to fight the EPA's designation of the eastern Long Island Sound disposal site because of its adverse effects to the waterway. Subsequently, the New York Department of State objected the EPA’s proposed site designation as being inconsistent with the Long Island Sound Coastal Management Program policies. In December 2016, New York State filed a Notice of Intent to Sue immediately after the EPA finalized its designation.

“New York’s waters remain one of our State’s most valuable and cherished assets,” said New York Secretary of State Rossana Rosado. “This action directed by Governor Cuomo to protect Long Island Sound sends a clear message that he will utilize any and all legal means to prevent any use of the Eastern Site as we continue efforts to safeguard this and other natural resources throughout the state.”

“The Long Island Sound is a vital economic and ecological treasure that needs to be protected – not undermined by the U.S. EPA’s outdated dredging management decisions,” said Basil Seggos, Commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. “Governor Cuomo has made it clear that New York State will not tolerate the federal government gutting its commitment and denying its responsibility for reducing or eliminating the disposal of dredge spoils in the open waters of this irreplaceable ecosystem.”

In 2005, the states of New York and Connecticut called for, and EPA subsequently established by regulation, the important and long necessary goal of reducing or eliminating dredged material disposal in the estuarine waters of Long Island Sound. In contravention of the intent of that regulation, in 2016, EPA increased the number of permanent open water dump sites in Long Island Sound by designating a third one in eastern Long Island Sound.

The lawsuit charges that, in designating the dump site, EPA failed: to identify the navigational conflicts that will be caused by the dump site location, to examine the environmental impacts of dumping dredged materials under differing testing regimes, to designate historically used or ocean disposal sites and to properly quantify the existing capacity at already designated sites. Further, the EPA has been unresponsive to New York’s stated concerns about the reliability of sediment testing and has made insufficient assurances that the dredged material will not have a negative impact on the environment, as it has in the past.

New York also maintains that increasing the volume of open-water disposal of dredged materials, and the number and availability of open water disposal sites, is inconsistent with public investment and policies that are already in place aimed at restoring the Long Island Sound. This lawsuit underscores New York’s continuing commitment to pursue upland alternatives for beneficial reuse of the material to preserve and protect the integrity of Long Island Sound for future generations.

A.G. Schneiderman Announces Restitution For Hundreds Of Students Duped By Devry University

Restitution Comes After A.G. Schneiderman Investigation Found DeVry Misled Students Regarding Post-Graduation Employment And Salary Prospects

  Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced that hundreds of students will receive restitution following the Attorney General’s investigation into DeVry Education Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries DeVry University, Inc. and DeVry/New York, Inc. (collectively, “DeVry”). The Attorney General’s investigation found that DeVry lured students with ads that exaggerated graduates’ success in finding employment and contained inadequately substantiated claims about graduates’ salary success. The Attorney General reached a $2.25 million settlement with DeVry in January 2017.

On average, each of the 809 students will receive approximately $2,800 in restitution. The Better Business Bureau, which is administering the restitution process, is expected to begin sending out checks to the students later this month.

“DeVry exploited students who were simply trying to further their education,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “We will not allow hardworking New Yorkers to be ripped off by greedy companies – which is why DeVry is now paying millions in restitution to hundreds of students. My office will not back down from policing unscrupulous for-profit colleges in New York State.” 

The Attorney General’s investigation found that many of DeVry’s advertisements centered on a claim that 90 percent of DeVry graduates who are actively seeking employment obtain employment in their field of study within six months of graduation.  The Attorney General’s investigation revealed that the 90 percent claim was misleading because a substantial number of the graduates included in the 90% figure were graduates who were already employed prior to graduating from DeVry. In fact, many of the graduates included in the 90 percent figure were employed before they even enrolled at DeVry. 

In addition, DeVry’s employment outcome statistics inaccurately classified a significant number of graduates as employed in their field of study, when in reality the graduates were not working in their field.  For example, DeVry counted graduates of DeVry’s Technical Management program as “employed in field” where the graduates were employed as retail salespersons, receptionists, bank tellers, and data entry workers.  In some cases, graduates were counted as employed in their field of study despite holding positions that did not require a college degree.

DeVry also mischaracterized certain unsuccessful job-seekers as “inactive,” despite evidence that the graduates had in fact carried out an active, though unsuccessful, job search.  Furthermore, DeVry’s 90 percent claim did not accurately reflect outcomes at all programs offered by DeVry.  Certain programs had employment outcomes that were significantly lower than 90 percent over consecutive years. 

DeVry also made inadequately substantiated claims in its advertisements concerning DeVry graduates’ salary outcomes.  For example, some DeVry ads touted that DeVry bachelor’s degree graduates earned 15 percent more one year after graduation than all graduates with bachelor’s degrees from all other colleges and universities.  This claim, which was based on commissioned studies carried out by a third-party entity, was inconsistent with other data DeVry had concerning graduates’ salaries. 

DeVry graduates eligible to participate in the claims process included:  (1) graduates of associates and bachelor’s degree programs at DeVry campuses in New York who began their program between July 2008 and September 2015; and (2) New York residents that graduated from DeVry online associates or bachelor’s programs and who began their program between July 2008 and September 2015.  To be eligible for restitution, graduates had to return a claim form indicating that they were not able to find employment in their field of study within six months of graduation, despite seeking such employment.  

The Attorney General has made cracking down on illegal activity by for-profit colleges a priority. The office reached a $10.25 million settlement with Career Education Corporation for fabricating placement rates, and was part of a settlement with Education Management Company to resolve allegations that the school misled prospective students on program costs, graduate rates, and placement rates. As part of the settlements, EDMC agreed to forgive over $100 million outstanding loan debt.

In July, the office was part of a coalition of Attorneys General that sued the U.S. Department of Education for abandoning critical student protections related to for-profit colleges.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Consent Decree With Accolade Construction Group Inc. For Violating Lead Paint Safety Rules

Defendant Admits Violations and Accepts Responsibility; Agrees to Injunctive Relief and to Pay $58,000 in Disgorgement

   Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Catherine R. McCabe, Acting Regional Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), Region 2, announced today that the United States entered into a Consent Decree settling a civil lawsuit against Accolade Construction Group Inc. (“Accolade”) for violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act (“TSCA”) and EPA’s Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule (“RRP Rule”).  The provisions of TSCA and the RRP Rule that Accolade violated are designed to protect public health by minimizing the risk of lead exposure during renovations of residential buildings.

Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim stated:  “Accolade repeatedly ignored rules designed to protect children and others from lead poisoning.  By requiring Accolade to turn over profits it made by evading these requirements, this Consent Decree ensures that Accolade will not benefit from its misdeeds.  And because Accolade’s future work will be subject to court oversight, the public health will be protected.”

EPA Acting Regional Administrator McCabe stated:  “Lead paint is very dangerous when it is being stripped or sanded during renovations. By not complying with EPA rules designed to ensure that the paint dust is properly handled by properly trained workers, Accolade put people, including its own workers, at risk. This Consent Decree protects the public by requiring company officials to get training to ensure that the company follows the rules in all future renovations.”

The Consent Decree, which is subject to public comment and approval by the court, will resolve a lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court in 2015, which alleged that Accolade repeatedly violated TSCA and the RRP Rule in the course of renovating six different Manhattan apartment buildings.  The lawsuit also alleged that Accolade violated TSCA and the RRP Rule by failing to provide EPA with records necessary to enable EPA to monitor Accolade’s compliance.  Accolade committed these violations despite a prior administrative settlement with the EPA for violations of the RRP Rule.

In the Consent Decree entered today, Accolade admits, acknowledges, and accepts responsibility for the fact that it “violated the RRP Rule and, consequently, TSCA” as a result of the following conduct at each of the six buildings at issue: 

• Failing to have a certified renovator direct the renovations and to ensure that all other persons performing the renovations received training on lead-safe work practices;

• Failing to post warning signs defining the work areas and cautioning occupants and other persons to keep out;

• Failing to provide the owner of the units being renovated with an EPA pamphlet on lead hazards, The Lead-Safe Certified Guide to Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools;

• Failing to contain the renovation work areas to minimize the risk of lead exposure;

• Failing to clean the work areas after the renovations were completed to ensure that no dust, debris, or residue remained in those areas; and

• Failing to make available to EPA the records necessary to demonstrate Accolade’s compliance with the RRP Rule.

Pursuant to the Consent Decree, Accolade will disgorge $58,000 in profits obtained from the conduct alleged in the lawsuit.  Further, the Consent Decree requires Accolade’s principal to receive training before Accolade conducts future RRP Rule-covered work and requires Accolade to comply with safe work practices and other RRP Rule requirements in the future.  Failure to comply with the Consent Decree will give rise to significant penalties. 

To provide public notice and to afford members of the public the opportunity to comment on the Consent Decree, the Consent Decree will be lodged with the District Court for a period of at least 30 days before it is submitted for the Court’s approval.

Acting U.S. Attorney Kim thanked the attorneys and enforcement staff at EPA Region 2 for their critical work in this matter.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Environmental Protection Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mónica P. Folch and Sharanya Mohan are in charge of the case.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

To view the entire 49 page Consent Decree go to https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/press-release/file/990836/download.

Notice at the end the address of 340 Canal Street Bronx N.Y. which is just north of East 141st Street. The question is how many Bronx buildings were done, and their safety now?

BRONX MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO PROMOTING CHILD PORN; HAD MORE THAN 500 VIDEOS OF CHILDREN AS YOUNG AS 3 IN SEX ACTS

  Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a Bronx man has pleaded guilty to promotion of child pornography that depicted children as young as 3 years old being sexually abused.  

  District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant promoted disturbing videos of young children—even toddlers—engaged in sexual acts. His actions are abhorrent and we will continue to prosecute anyone who causes irreparable harm to children while hiding behind a computer screen.” 

  District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Raymond Fontanez, 43, of 175 Alexander Avenue in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, pleaded guilty before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Robert Neary to Promoting an Obscene Sexual Performance by a Child. He will be sentenced to two to six years on Sept. 20th, 2017

  According to the investigation, a detective with the New York Police Department’s Vice/Major Case Squad saw that an Internet Protocol (IP) address was offering to share ten images and videos of child pornography. The address was traced to a computer in Fontanez’s apartment. Detectives obtained a search warrant and retrieved Fontanez’s laptop, which contained more than 500 videos and images of child pornography. The defendant did not participate in the sexual acts depicted. He was indicted for 1020 counts of child pornography promotion and possession in August 2016.

  District Attorney Clark thanked the Vice/Major Case Squad as well as Detective Phil Adaszewski and Detective Damon Gergar.

ECLIPSE TIPS: MAYOR DE BLASIO SHARES SAFETY TIPS AHEAD OF THE SOLAR ECLIPSE

New Yorkers should not look directly at the sun and should wear glasses or use hand-held solar viewers; motorists must be cautious about increased darkness.

  Mayor Bill de Blasio today recommended safety tips to New Yorkers viewing the solar eclipse on Monday, August 21. In New York City, a partial solar eclipse will occur between 1pm and 4pm – and peak at 2:44 pm, when more than 70 percent of the sun will be covered by the moon. City officials are urging New Yorkers to take proper safety precautions when enjoying this event, especially to prevent permanent damage to the eyes.

“Solar eclipses are extraordinary and beautiful cosmic events, and we want to make sure New Yorkers enjoy next Monday’s eclipse safely,” said Mayor de Blasio. “New York City is hundreds of miles from the total solar eclipse that will be experienced in the Carolinas, but a partial eclipse can also do serious and permanent damage to the eyes. Even if it’s a cloudy day, we are asking that anybody who is outside Mondayafternoon make special preparations and drive safely.”

To prepare for the eclipse, City officials recommend purchasing eclipse glasses or hand-held solar viewers that comply with the international safety standard ISO 12312-2. High-quality or dark sunglasses and homemade filters are not safe. Visit the American Astronomical Society website for a list of manufacturers and authorized dealers of glasses and solar viewers.

Before looking at the sun, check the solar viewer or eclipse glasses carefully. If they are scratched, ripped, or have holes, do not use them. Read and follow any instructions from the filter’s packaging. Do not look at the sun through a camera, a telescope, binoculars, or any other optical device while using eclipse glasses or hand-held solar viewer – the concentrated solar rays will damage the camera’s filter and serious injury to the eye.

If driving, carefully guard against direct sunlight exposure to the eyes. Also, during the 2 p.m. hour, drivers should turn on headlights.

“New Yorkers have a rare opportunity to enjoy a partial solar eclipse, one of the most awe-inspiring events in nature,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett. “Looking directly at a partial solar eclipse can permanently damage the eyes. It is best to enjoy this phenomenon safely by using proper eye protection. We ask New Yorkers to take safety precautions like using proper eclipse glasses or solar viewers.”

“When the moon blocks the sun, a solar eclipse creates one of Mother Nature’s rarest and most beautiful events,” said DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg.  “New Yorkers should of course enjoy this unique event, but should do so safely – with proper eye protection.  New Yorkers who have to drive on Monday should know it will be a very unusual day, with dusk-like darkness in the middle of the afternoon.  We are urging extra caution – especially in the 2pm hour, when we strongly recommend you drive with headlights.”

“New Yorkers should be able to enjoy this beautiful and rare act of nature without fear of damaging their eyes,” said Consumer Affairs Commissioner Lorelei Salas. “We want to remind consumers to only purchase solar viewers or eclipse glasses from reputable vendors and to be wary of scammers selling fake lenses. Vendors should be able to provide certification that their product complies with the International‎ Organization for Standardization's safety requirements for eye protection.” 

“Although a solar eclipse is a rare and magnificent phenomenon, viewing it without appropriate eye protection can result in a potentially blinding condition called solar retinopathy,” said Dr. Mrinali Gupta, a retina specialist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and an assistant professor of ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medicine. “Light rays can damage the retina—the light-sensing tissue that lines the back of the eye and acts like the ‘film of the camera’ of the eye.  While solar retinopathy can occur any time someone looks directly at the sun for too long, the risk is higher during an eclipse because the partially blocked sun is easier to look at for prolonged periods of time, and because so many people are looking directly at the sun.”

On August 21, the Great American Solar Eclipse will occur as a total eclipse in a band about 70 miles wide through the American states of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Total solar eclipses are exceedingly rare events, with New York City last experiencing one on January 24, 1925. The next major partial solar eclipse visible in New York City will be on April 8, 2024 (90 percent obscuration), while the next total solar eclipse visible in New York City will be on May 1, 2079.

JOINT STATEMENT FROM SENATOR KLEIN, ASSEMBLYMAN MARK GJONAJ AND ASSEMBLYMAN MICHAEL BENEDETTO REGARDING 2800 BRUCKNER BOULEVARD

Last night, it came to our attention that Michael Fernades, the "owner" of 2800 Bruckner Blvd, indicated that he would be opening social service offices with reimbursement coming through his partnership with ACP, a Medicaid Service Provider. Since Medicaid is a state-run program, we immediately looked into his claims. Upon further discussion with both Advantage Care Physicians (ACPNY) and Advocate Community Partners (ACP), neither of these providers are working with Michael Fernades, or his company Steward Redevelopment to bring services to 2800 Bruckner Blvd. So we ask again Mr. Fernades -- what are you planning to do with 2800 Bruckner and why won't you come before Community Board 10 with your real plans?

Engel, House Dems Introduce Resolution to Censure President

  Congressman Eliot L. Engel issued the following statement after cosponsoring a resolution to censure President Trump for his response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia:

“President Trump’s response to the violence in Charlottesville was a disgrace to the office of the President. In equating the actions of counter protesters to those of white supremacists and Nazis, he displayed a callousness that cannot be ignored or trivialized. His defense of individuals who stood on the side of white nationalists, saying some of them were ‘very fine people,’ was outrageous. His words were an affront to our shared American values and deserve our condemnation, which is why my colleagues and I have taken this extraordinary step to introduce a resolution to censure. We must send a clear message to the President that this type of rhetoric is not acceptable from the Commander-in-Chief.”   

RESOLUTION

Censuring and condemning President Donald Trump.

Whereas on August 11, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia, a gathering of white supremacists, including neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan (KKK) members, and other white nationalist groups, marched through the streets with torches as part of a coordinated ‘Unite the Right’ rally spewing racism, anti-Semitism, bigotry and hatred;

Whereas on August 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia, a car driven by James Alex Fields, Jr. rammed into a crowd of counter-protestors, killing Heather Heyer and injuring 20 others;

Whereas President Donald Trump’s immediate public comments rebuked “many sides” for the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, and failed to specifically condemn the ‘Unite the Right’ rally or cite the white supremacist, neo-Nazi gathering as responsible for actions of domestic terrorism;

Whereas on August 15, 2017 President Donald Trump held a press conference at Trump Tower where he re-asserted that “both sides” were to blame for the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, and attempted to create a moral equivalency between white supremacist, KKK, neo-Nazi groups and those counter-protesting the ‘Unite the Right’ rally;

Whereas President Donald Trump has surrounded himself with, and cultivated the influence of, senior advisors and spokespeople who have long histories of promoting white nationalist, racist and anti-Semitic principles and policies within the country;

Whereas President Donald Trump has provided encouragement and little to no denunciation of white supremacist groups and individuals who promote their bigoted, nationalist ideology and policies;

Whereas President Donald Trump has failed to provide adequate condemnation and assure the American people of his resolve to opposing domestic terrorism: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1)   does hereby censure and condemn President Donald Trump for his inadequate response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia on August 12, 2017, his failure to immediately and specifically name and condemn the white supremacist groups responsible for actions of domestic terrorism, for re-asserting that “both sides” were to blame and excusing the violent behavior of participants in the ‘Unite the Right’ rally, and for employing people with ties to white supremacist movements in the White House, such as Steve Bannon and Sebastian Gorka; and

(2)   does hereby urge President Donald Trump to fire any and all White House advisors who have urged him to cater to the white supremacist movement in the United States.

Members have signed on as cosponsors:  Joe Crowley (D-NY), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Bill Foster (D-IL), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Scott Peters (D-CA), Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ), Marcia Fudge (D-OH), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Paul Tonko (D-NY), Al Lawson (D-FL), Rick Larsen (D-WA), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Greg Meeks (D-NY), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Tim Walz (D-MN), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Eliot Engel (D-NY), David Loebsack (D-IA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Anthony Brown (D-MD), David Cicilline (D-RI), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Hank Johnson (D-GA), Jose Serrano (D-NY), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Al Green (D-TX), Mark Takano (D-CA), Grace Meng (D-NY), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Maxine Waters (D-CA), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Don Beyer (D-VA), Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Karen Bass (D-CA), Adam Smith (D-WA), William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA), Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Norma Torres (D-CA), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Albio Sires (D-NJ), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Donald McEachin (D-VA), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ), Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), James Langevin (D-RI), Dan Lipinski (D-IL), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Nita Lowey (D-NY), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Ruben Kihuen (D-NV), Louise Slaughter (D-NY), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Alma Adams (D-NC), Robin Kelly (D-IL), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), Jim McGovern (D-MA), Michael Capuano (D-MA).