NEWS From the Office of the New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli

DiNapoli: Billions Needed for Repairs to Local Bridges

Repair Costs Are Major Fiscal Challenge for Local Governments
  Bridges owned by New York’s local governments need an estimated $27.4 billion in repairs, according to a report released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

While the cost for repairs is staggering, DiNapoli’s report found the number of "structurally deficient" locally-owned bridges has declined in recent years. But concerns about how local governments will find funding for repairs is growing as Washington considers changes to infrastructure aid.

"Local communities are facing a big price tag for maintaining and repairing bridges,” DiNapoli said. "These structures are aging and the cost for repairs will likely only increase over time. Many local governments understand the importance of long-term planning for their infrastructure needs but they will need help. While the state has taken steps to make funds for repairs available, the assistance of the federal government has also been critical. Difficult decisions lie ahead, but these infrastructure needs must be addressed."

Local governments, mostly counties, own 8,834 out of 17,462 bridges in the state. These bridges carry average daily traffic of nearly 33.4 million vehicles. DiNapoli’s report found local bridges are more likely to be structurally deficient than state-owned bridges (12.8 percent to 9 percent). “Structurally deficient” bridges that remain open are considered safe to drive on, but either have load-bearing elements in poor condition or are prone to repeated flooding.

The overall percentage of structurally deficient local bridges declined from 16.7 percent to 12.8 percent from 2002 to 2016, while the state’s percentage was relatively flat at around 9 percent.

Town-owned bridges are more likely to be structurally deficient (18.4 percent) than other local bridges. The highest number of structurally deficient local bridges are located in New York City (86), followed by the counties of Erie (52), Ulster (46) and Steuben (40). The counties with the highest percentage of structurally deficient local bridges are Seneca (34.6 percent), Cayuga (27.6 percent) and Hamilton (23.8 percent).

Regionally, New York City has the highest proportion of functionally obsolete bridges (75.9 percent), followed by Long Island (40.6 percent) and the Mid-Hudson Valley (26.9 percent). “Functionally obsolete” bridges, though not structurally unsound, fail to meet current design standards for the amount of traffic carried. Those structures may have inadequate lane or shoulder widths, low clearances or low load-carrying capacity. DiNapoli’s report notes the challenge of improving older infrastructure in developed areas, which have limited space to expand bridge structures to handle increased traffic flows or meet current design standards.

The total cost of needed repairs to all 17,462 highway bridges in the state was estimated at $75.4 billion in 2016 according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration National Bridge Inventory. For local bridges, those in New York City have the highest estimated costs at $20.4 billion, nearly three-quarters of the $27.4 billion estimated for all local bridges.

Municipalities are generally responsible for the costs of their locally owned bridges. However, they generally receive assistance from the state and federal government. Excluding assistance to address severe winter weather damage, funding levels for traditional state aid programs (Marchiselli Aid and CHIPs) have remained flat in recent years. In 2016, the state created the BRIDGE NY program to support local bridges and culverts. As of January 2017, the state Department of Transportation had awarded $200.4 million to fund 132 local bridge and culvert projects statewide.

The federal government also provides aid for local bridge projects, primarily through Federal Highway Administration programs. These grants generally can fund up to 80 percent of eligible costs with the state or local government coming up with the remainder. In addition, the Federal Emergency Management Agency provides grants for damage caused by natural disasters or emergencies, including repairs to damaged bridges.

Read the report or go to: http://www.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/pubs/research/local-bridges-by-the-numbers.pdf

An interactive online tool with county-level data on New York’s bridges is available at: http://wwe1.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/bridges/bridges.cfm

For access to state and local government spending, public authority financial data and information on 140,000 state contracts, visit Open Book New York. The easy-to-use website was created by DiNapoli to promote transparency in government and provide taxpayers with better access to financial data.

Founder And Ceo Of Wright Time Capital Group Pleads Guilty To Commodities Fraud

  Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MICHAEL S. WRIGHT pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer to commodities fraud in connection with WRIGHT’s operation of an investment fund, Wright Time Capital Group (“WTCG”).  WRIGHT induced victims to invest in his fund by misrepresenting the historical trading performance of WTCG, and, after obtaining investor funds, misappropriated a large portion of them for his personal use and benefit.  Additionally, after losing most of the funds he actually invested in unsuccessful forex trades, WRIGHT hid those losses from investors by issuing fake account statements and began operating WTCG as a Ponzi scheme, obtaining funds from new investors and using those funds to make payments to earlier investors who were demanding the return of their investments. 

Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said:  “Michael Wright used WTCG as his personal piggy bank, issuing fraudulent account statements that covered up the losses WTCG incurred, and ultimately operating WTCG as a Ponzi scheme.  Thanks to the dedicated work of the FBI, Wright will now be held to account for his fraudulent scheme.” 

According to the Complaint, the Indictment, and other statements made in open court:

WRIGHT started WTCG in January 2011, and ultimately obtained more than $400,000 in investments from victims (the “Victims”).  In his pitch to potential investors, WRIGHT misrepresented WTCG’s investment performance, falsely claiming that he had achieved double-digit gains through forex trading in WTCG’s first six months of existence.  In fact, from the outset of WTCG, WRIGHT earned little to no money through his forex trading, and WRIGHT repeatedly falsified account statements to the Victims.  Additionally, after obtaining Victim funds, WRIGHT did initially purchase some forex trades on their behalf, but then began to steal their money, using investor funds to pay for personal expenses, including hotel stays, travel, and tattoos. 

Eventually, WRIGHT operated WTCG as a Ponzi scheme, soliciting funds from new investors in order to use their funds to make payments to other Victims who were demanding the return of their investments.  

WRIGHT, 30, of Rockville Centre, New York, pled guilty to one count of commodities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the Judge.

WRIGHT is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Engelmayer on January 25, 2018, at 10:00 a.m.

Mr. Kim praised the efforts of the FBI in this investigation. 

Leader Of “2Fly” Street Gang Sentenced To Over 16 Years In Prison On Racketeering And Firearms Charges

    Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that LAQUAN PARRISH, a/k/a “MadDog,” a/k/a “Quanzaa,” a leader of a violent street gang in the Bronx called the “2Fly YGz” (“2Fly”), was sentenced today to 195 months in prison on racketeering and firearms charges.  PARRISH was sentenced by United States District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan.  

Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said:  “Laquan Parrish led the violent 2Fly street gang, and participated in the gang’s violence.  In August 2012, Parrish and other 2Fly members opened gunfire at a group of rival gang members sitting in a playground.  By good fortune, no one was killed, but a bullet struck one rival gang member in the chest and another in the leg, and a 14-year-old girl was wounded in the crossfire.  Today’s sentence holds Parrish accountable for this senseless violence.”

According to the Indictment and other documents filed in the case, as well as statements made during the public proceedings in this case:

PARRISH was a leader of 2Fly, a subset of the “Young Gunnaz,” or “YGz” street gang, which operates throughout New York City.  2Fly is based in the Bronx, within and around the Eastchester Gardens public housing development (“ECG”) and in an area called the “Valley” or the “V,” which is in the vicinity of Gun Hill Road.  ECG is a rectangular complex of residential buildings bordered by Burke, Adee, Yates, and Bouck Avenues, in the middle of which is a playground.  The gang war between 2Fly and rival street gangs has led to an enormous amount of fatal and non-fatal violence between 2007 and 2016 in the Northern Bronx, including shootings, stabbings, slashings, beatings, and robberies.  Members and associates of 2Fly controlled the narcotics trade at ECG, which took place in the open air at the playground and in apartments at ECG.  2Fly primarily sold marijuana and crack cocaine, but also sold powder cocaine and prescription pills, such as oxycodone.  2Fly members and associates stored guns at the playground or in nearby apartments or cars in order to protect the narcotics business and for protection against rival gangs.

In addition to leading 2Fly, PARRISH personally participated in a number of acts of violence with the Gang, including a shootout with rival gang members on August 7, 2012, in a public park in the Bronx.  Three victims were shot, including a 14-year-old girl caught in the crossfire.

PARRISH, 27, of the Bronx, New York, was arrested in this case as a result of a multi-year investigation by the New York City Police Department’s Bronx Gang Squad (the “Bronx Gang Squad”), the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Violent Gang Unit (“HSI”), the New York Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), and the Joint Firearms Task Force of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”) into gang violence in the Northern Bronx.  On April 27, 2016, the Indictment captioned United States v. Laquan Parrish et al., 16 Cr. 212 (LAK) was unsealed, charging 57 members and associates of 2Fly with racketeering conspiracy, narcotics conspiracy, narcotics distribution, and/or firearms charges.  To date, 54 of these defendants have pled guilty.

Mr. Kim praised the outstanding work of NYPD’s Bronx Gang Squad, HSI, DEA, and ATF.  He also thanked the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office, the Department of Investigation, NYCHA Inspector General’s Office, and the New York State Department of Parole for their ongoing support in this investigation.

A.G. Schneiderman Announces $375,000 Settlement With Flatiron Computer Coding School For Operating Without A License And For Its Employment And Salary Claims

A.G. Schneiderman Encourages New Yorkers To Report Deceptive Conduct At For-Profit Schools To His Office

  Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced a $375,000 settlement with Flatiron School, Inc. (“Flatiron”), a New York city-based coding school that operated without a license from the New York State Education Department (“SED”) and improperly marketed and promoted its job placement rate and the average starting salary of its graduates. Today’s settlement follows a series of groundbreaking actions taken by the Attorney General’s Office hold for-profit colleges accountable and to provide relief to victimized students. 

Under today’s agreement, Flatiron will pay $375,000 in restitution to eligible graduates who file complaints against the coding school with the Attorney General’s Office within three months of the effective date. Affected Flatiron students and consumers who wish to report deceptive conduct at for-profit schools can file a complaint online at ag.ny.gov or by calling 1-800-771-7755.

“Coding boot camps have become popular as students seek careers in the tech industry, but for-profit coding schools must comply with state requirements, including obtaining a license before operating,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “Schools must also provide clear explanations of advertised job placement rates and salary claims of their graduates.” 

Flatiron, a for-profit career school doing business in New York City, offers web applications and computer coding classes at its Broadway location and online. The school, which has taught approximately 1,000 students, charges students between $12,000 and $15,000 for a 12 to 16 week in-person class and approximately $1,500 a month for online coding classes.

According to the Attorney General’s investigation, Flatiron operated without a license from SED and without authorization to provide online classes between October 2013 and September 2017.

The Attorney General’s investigation also uncovered that Flatiron made inflated claims on its website concerning the percentage of its graduates who obtained employment after completing their courses and the average salaries of their graduates. For example, between January and June 2017, Flatiron claimed that 98.5% of its students received employment less than 180 days after graduation and that Flatiron graduates had an average salary of $74,447. However, Flatiron did not disclose clearly and conspicuously that the 98.5% employment rate included not only full time salaried employees but also apprentices, contract employees and self-employed freelance workers, some who were employed for less than twelve weeks. Similarly, Flatiron failed to clearly and conspicuously disclose that its $74,447 average salary claim included full time employed graduates only, which represent only 58% of classroom graduates and 39% of online graduates. 

In order to obtain a SED license, a non-degree granting career school must meet a number of criteria, including using an approved curriculum and employing a licensed director and teachers. The school must also demonstrate financial viability. These requirements help safeguard students who attend licensed schools.

The Attorney General’s settlement provides that Flatiron:

• Not operate any educational institution without obtaining necessary licenses and complying with SED laws, rules and regulations
• Clearly and conspicuously disclose the method and categories by which its employment rate and average salaries were calculated in any advertising or oral or written disclosure to students
• Clearly and conspicuously disclose the population comprising the average salary, as well as the population comprising the employment rate calculation wherever it discloses both its employment rate and average starting salary of its graduates
• Not count nonpermanent graduates as employed unless they (1) receive compensation in return for services provided; (2) are anticipated to be employed for at least three months and (3) the position requires that the individual work at least 20 hours a week  

Students can check whether a school is licensed on the SED website at http://eservices.nysed.gov/bpss/bpsspublic/BPSSPublicSearch.do. 

A.G. Schneiderman Statement On Pres. Trump's Health Care Executive Order

New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman released the following statement in response to President Trump’s executive order today:

“Having failed to persuade a Republican Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), President Trump now appears to be trying to accomplish by executive fiat what he could not through Congress — treating New Yorkers as political pawns in his effort to sabotage the health care market.

“Let me be clear: if the Trump Administration takes any action that violates the law — or tramples on New Yorkers’ constitutional rights — we will take them to court.

“In the meantime, my office will continue to defend the vital ACA subsidies in federal court for the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and millions of Americans who rely on the quality, affordable health care they provide.”

In May, Attorney General Schneiderman and California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, leading a coalition of 18 Attorneys General, moved to intervene House v. Price, in defense of the Affordable Care Act’s cost-sharing subsidies. In August, the D.C. Circuit granted their intervention. In New York alone, 730,000 New Yorkers rely on $900 million in cost-sharing reduction payments.

Croton Filter Plant - Croton FMC Meeting on Monday, October 30 at 6:30pm

  The next Croton Facility Monitoring Committee meeting will be on Monday, October 30 at 6:30pm at the DEP office, 3660 Jerome Ave Bronx NY 10467.  

The agenda will be placed here when it is finalized.

NEWS FROM CONGRESSMAN ELIOT ENGEL

Engel: Repealing Clean Power Plan Will Take Our Country Backwards

  Congressman Eliot L. Engel, a top member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, released the following statement today in response to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s announcement that he will take formal steps to repeal President Obama’s Clean Power Plan:

“The Trump Administration has been trying to gut the Affordable Care Act. Now, they’re going after another lifesaving health protection: America’s first and only federal limit on pollution from existing power plants. Repealing pollution limits for power plants will take our country backward. It will expose millions of Americans to more dangerous pollutants that contribute significantly to asthma and respiratory illness—two health issues that are already a big problem in the Bronx and Westchester region. It will also hinder our economic growth and exacerbate the growing threat of climate change.

“The hurricanes and wildfires that have gripped our country over the past few months demonstrate that extreme weather can cause horrific human devastation and grind local economies to a halt. The world’s climate scientists agree; we will see more events like these if we don’t take measures to transition to clean energy and cut pollution.

“This is nothing but a thinly veiled attempt to please the polluters of yesterday while undermining clean-energy jobs of today and tomorrow. The future lies with clean, renewable energy and will belong to whichever nation prioritizes it. With this move, the Trump Administration is leaving the door open for countries like China to become global leaders in energy.” 

Engel Calls President's Decision to Cut-Off ACA Payments "Outrageous"

   Congressman Eliot L. Engel, a top Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, made the following statement on President Trump’s continued actions to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA):

“The President’s decision to cut off cost-sharing reduction payments is his most outrageous act of sabotage against our health care system yet.

“These payments enable insurers to keep consumers’ out-of-pocket costs down. Per the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), ending them will cause premiums to rise and spur insurers to leave markets, in turn leaving Americans with fewer choices – the exact opposite of what the President has promised for months.

“If the President truly believed that action was needed on Congress’s part, he would have called on Congress to act. I have cosponsored the Marketplace Certainty Act, along with dozens of my colleagues, to appropriate funding for the cost-sharing reduction payments and remove any ambiguity on this issue. But, instead, the President chose to put millions of Americans’ health care at risk.

“Just yesterday, the President signed an Executive Order that could bring back the junk insurance policies that, before the ACA, offered little value for your money and punished sick people for their health status. Now, he’s doubled-down with a move that will hike up premiums and limit consumer choice. All of this amounts to the same ‘pay more, get less’ plan that the American people rejected in Trumpcare.

“Make no mistake: any instability in our health care system going forward will be a direct consequence of the President’s actions over the past two days. There is no reason for the President to make this move other than to hurt Americans. I am deeply saddened that in his desperation to see the ACA fail, he has made this egregious decision.”