DE BLASIO ADMINISTRATION OUTLINES NYCHA HEATING PROJECTS AWAITING STATE’S NEW $250 MILLION COMMITMENT

  Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen today issued a letter to New York State Budget Director Robert Mujicia urging the Governor to release the $250 million dedicated in the State’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget. The City outlined a list of priority projects that would improve heat and hot water systems at 14 NYCHA developments where 32,000 resident live. The City also urged the release of $200 million allocated to NYCHA but not yet spent from last year’s State budget. The letter is below and attached.

April 2, 2018

Budget Director Robert Mujica

NYS Division of the Budget

Capitol

Albany NY, 12224

Dear Budget Director Mujica,

Improving the lives of people living in public housing is the responsibility of every level of government—City, State and federal.

The State budget passed on Friday evening allocated a further $250 million to the New York City Housing Authority. Public housing tenants deserve that funding to be quickly applied to NYCHA’s most pressing needs. And that means this funding cannot be held hostage to the same delays and dynamics as in previous years.

NYCHA has developed a list of priority projects—replacing 63 poorly rated boilers and decoupling heat and hot water in 14 developments—on which it would spend $250 million provided by the State. These projects represent the heating plants most in need of replacement—the most urgent following those previously funded by HUD, NYCHA’s FEMA grant, the City’s $200 million announced in January (for which we have already begun design work) and last year’s State allocation.  The oldest heating plant on this list is 54 years old. All boilers on the list are rated Level 4 or 5—meaning they face chronic outages and there is little or no means of replacing individual parts as they fail. More than 32,000 residents live in these developments.

It is critical we begin design work this spring. With design-build authority granted to NYCHA in the State budget, combined with recent reforms across City agencies, we can deliver these projects in 18 to 24 months—an aggressive timeframe. The City has already initiated the required approval process with HUD. But the clock on actual design work can only begin once the State has released funding.

NYCHA tenants cannot afford business as usual.

It has been 357 days since the State allocated $200 million in its Fiscal Year 2018 budget. Not a dollar of that funding has yet been delivered to NYCHA’s tenants. The clock on those repairs--$100 million for elevator replacement and $100 million to replace boilers at 10 developments—has not even begun. It is time for the State to fulfill its promises and deliver that funding.

It has been 1076 days since the State allocated $100 million in it Fiscal Year 2016 for security and quality of life projects at NYCHA, to be spent and administered by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York. To date—three years later—fewer than 25 percent of those projects have been completed.

NYCHA’s spending on capital projects has averaged approximately $580 million annually over the past four years. All told, we have put more than $2.3 billion in capital to work for our residents under this administration.  Just as NYCHA has done with its FEMA work, it would contract with one or more private general contractors to do the construction enabled by the State’s funding.

It is time to make good on these previous commitments. And it is time to chart a better course with this year’s funding.

We are ready to work with the State today to expedite the delivery of this year’s $250 million and the vital repairs it can provide immediately.

We look forward to collaborating on this important shared priority.

Sincerely,

Alicia Glen

Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development

City of New York.

Statement From IDC Leader Jeff Klein on NYCHA

  For years, members of the Independent Democratic Conference demanded an Independent Monitor, transparency and funding to fix the deplorable conditions in New York City’s most affordable housing stock, NYCHA. Today, we put out the welcome mat to a new era for the 400,000 tenants who for too long suffered under management’s watch through subhuman conditions through an Emergency Declaration that installs an Independent Monitor, an additional $250 million that brings available funding to $550 million to remediate mold, lead, and to repair boilers and the most critical issues. I’m proud that through issuing reports over the years, the latest “The New Flint,” and “Break the Mold: Cleaning Up NYCHA’s Mess,” the members of the IDC will be able to make a profound difference in the living conditions for tenants.

1199SEIU Members Announce Endorsement of Nathalia Fernandez for the 80th Assembly Seat.

 Today, Assembly candidate Nathalia Fernandez received the endorsement of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East for the upcoming special election on April 24th.

“I am honored to have the backing of 1199 and its members, who sacrifice daily to ensure our most vulnerable citizens are taken care of,” said Assembly Candidate Nathalia Fernandez “In these trying times, we need leadership in Albany to stand for the values of hardworking New Yorkers.”

“Nathalia Fernandez is a strong advocate for good jobs and quality healthcare for all New Yorkers” said Helen Schaub, Vice President for Politics and Legislation at 1199SEIU “Her commitment to protecting and expanding the rights of working men and women will help ensure that the needs of our members are well represented in the 80^th Assembly District.”

1199SEIU is the largest union in New York and the largest healthcare worker union in the nation. The union represents over 400,000 members along the East Coast.             

REP. ADRIANO ESPAILLAT ANNOUNCES INCREASE IN FEDERAL PUBLIC HOUSING CAPITAL FUNDING TO BENEFIT NEW YORK’S 13TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

  Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) released the following statement regarding the increase to federal funding allocated for HUD, New York housing and NYCHA.

“Ensuring affordable housing for New York residents is one of the foremost pillars of my legislative agenda since being sworn into office. As Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Transportation, Housing, Infrastructure Task Force, I convened the first of its kind, national public housing summit, in the nation’s capital. The dire need for an increase in Public Housing Capital funds was a resounding issue expressed by Chairs representing Public Housing Authorities from the largest cities throughout the country. During my latest push in Congress to secure federal funding in the FY2018 Omnibus funding bill, I was glad to see an increase in the Public Housing Capital from $1.942 billion to $2.75 billion,” said Rep. Adriano Espaillat (NY-13).

“New York’s 13^th congressional district has the largest concentration of public housing within the entire state. The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), which serves more than 400,000 families within each of the City’s five boroughs, will receive a significant increase above the FY2017 Capital Fund level of $346,326,398 from this federal funding package to continue its work to provide safe and affordable housing for residents, including an increase to Section 8 housing by 8.5% which will create more than 5,000 vouchers for residents.

“This funding is long overdue. During my affordable housing tours throughout my district, I have noticed several areas in need of repair. This funding will be put to great use, from replacing boilers to sealing roofs. This long overdue federal budget increase will continue to help residents of New York’s 13^th congressional district. I will continue my fight to ensuring and preserving affordable housing for New Yorkers and residents throughout our communities,” He concluded.

“The Omnibus bill is a significant step forward for public housing nationwide. The 46% increase in next year’s capital funding will allow us to more aggressively address critical repair needs. While a move in the right direction, we need Congress to make this the start of a permanent investment in public housing,” said NYCHA Chair and CEO Shola Olatoye. “I am grateful to all of our allies who pushed to make this happen. The 1 in 14 New Yorkers who rely on us for housing deserve consistent and adequate funding so we can achieve our NextGeneration NYCHA goal to provide safe, clean and connected communities.”

The FY2018 Omnibus funding package includes critical funding for priorities that matter most to working families. Investments in child care, infrastructure and housing, medical research and treatment to combat the opioid crisis, veterans’ health services and so much more will have a tremendous impact on the health, stability and wellbeing of individuals and families in communities around the nation.

Click here to view budget allocations for select HUD programs in the FY 2018 Omnibus.

New York State Comptroller DiNAPOLI RELEASES BOND CALENDAR FOR SECOND QUARTER

Tentative Schedule Includes $4.29 Billion of New Money, Refunding and Reoffering 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 2018. 

The planned sales of $4.29 billion include $3.06 billion of new money and $1.23 billion of refundings or reofferings as follows:

· $2.32 billion scheduled for April, of which $1.29 billion is new money and $1.03 billion is refundings or reofferings; 

·  $1.95 billion scheduled for May, of which $1.75 billion is new money and $200 million is refundings; and

·  $25 million scheduled for June, all of which is new money.

The anticipated sales in the second quarter compare to past planned sales of $3.12 billion during the first quarter of 2018, and $4.68 billion during the second quarter of 2018. 

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 City of New York, the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, New York City Housing Development Corp., New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority, New York City Transitional Finance 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

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FORMER OFFICIALS OF CENTRAL UNITED TALMUDIC ACADEMY IN BROOKLYN PLEAD GUILTY TO $3 MILLION FRAUD SCHEME

Defendants Submitted Fraudulent Reimbursement Claims for School Meals That Were Never Served

  Elozer Porges and Joel Lowy plead guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud relating to their participation in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme. Porges and Lowy committed this fraud while serving in the administrative offices of Central United Talmudic Academy (“Central UTA”), a school system located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Porges served as Central UTA’s Executive Director, and Lowy served as Porges’s assistant. The pleas were entered before United States District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis. 

 Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Mark Peters, Commissioner, New York City Department of Investigation, and Bethanne M. Dinkins, Special Agent-in-Charge, United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, announced the guilty pleas. 

 According to the indictment, court filings and facts presented during the guilty plea, from between approximately 2013 and 2015, Porges and Lowy submitted documents to the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) specifically falsely claiming that its school children had received meals which, in fact, had never been served. The defendants fraudulently inflated the number of meals served at various Central UTA schools in order to obtain larger reimbursement payments from the federal government’s Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), a program funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and administered by the NYSDOH that is designed to assist schools and other institutions in providing meals to, among others, at-risk children. In total, Porges and Lowy, fraudulently obtained more than $3 million in reimbursement payments to CUTA.

 At their guilty plea proceedings, Porges and Lowy admitted to submitting the inflated meal counts on behalf of Central UTA. As part of their plea agreements, Porges and Lowy are required to reimburse $3,256,338.68 to the USDA in restitution. Lowy is also required to pay restitution in the amount of $98,407.21 for food stamp and child care benefits he improperly obtained from New York City agencies.

 When sentenced, Porges and Lowy each face a statutory maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment.

The Defendants: 

ELOZER PORGES Age: 43 Brooklyn, NY 

JOEL LOWY Age: 29 Brooklyn, NY 

DOI STATEMENT ON NYPD’S RESPONSE TO OUR FINDINGS ON NYPD’S SPECIAL VICTIMS DIVISION – ADULT SEX CRIMES

The City of New York Department of Investigation 
MARK G. PETERS COMMISSIONER

  DOI’s Report on NYPD’s Special Victims Division (SVD) is evidence based. It relies on the NYPD’s own documents, which are attached to the report, as well as interviews with the most senior person in charge of SVD, Deputy Chief Michael Osgood, Commanding Officer of SVD, who has been running the unit since 2011. In addition, DOI spoke with other SVD supervisors, senior sex crimes prosecutors in all five District Attorney’s offices, numerous recent retirees of SVD and all major victim advocates in New York City. Furthermore, we shared the report with and requested comment from Commissioner O’Neill nearly two weeks ago. 

  NYPD’s statement inaccurately notes two numbers: 

1: In 2017, the average caseload of an SVD investigator was 77 (not 62). The 77 number is based on NYPD’s own documentation. (Homicide detectives average two cases per year). 

2: The number of detectives assigned to actively investigate adult sex crimes is 67 (not 85) and the NYPD did not dispute that number last Friday when we discussed the report with NYPD officials. (NYPD has a total of 3,000 detectives).

The report does not dispute the survivor-centered model or FETI. In fact, we commend these initiatives in our report.

DOI’s report demonstrates this: more needs to be done to properly respond to victims of adult sex crimes. The NYPD’s refusal to recognize this presents additional barriers to sex crimes victims in their pursuit of justice.