When is
“affordable housing” not really affordable?
When homeowners in “affordable housing” are left with tens of thousands of dollars of repairs due to shoddy construction, substandard materials, and fly-by-night contractors looking to make a quick buck. When workers on publicly funded “affordable housing” projects are exploited, lied to, and robbed of their wages. When millions of taxpayer dollars earmarked for “affordable housing” wind up in the pockets of corrupt public officials and crooked contractors. NYC’s affordable housing program stands at the crossroads of a new day. We need true, comprehensive procurement reform. For too long our elected officials have danced around the edges of the systemic problems in Housing Preservation and Development (HPD). 200,000 new units should not make for more bad headlines. Join the fight to build it right!
Right MayoR. Right City CounCil. Right tiMe. Greater New York Laborers-Employers Cooperation & Education Trust 266 West 37th Street | Suite 1100 | New York, NY 10018 | P: (212) 452.9300 F: (212) 452.9318 | E: lecet@gnylecet.net | www.masontenders.org “A Partnership Committed to the Future”
#reformhPD
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NEW YORK CITY’S TEACHER EXODUS 516
Orange/
Former New York City Teachers
1,442
1,444
730
In addition to one of the highest percentages of needy children, New York City has the largest class sizes and the lowest teacher salaries in the region.
Westchester
Rockland
Suffolk District
Poverty Index
Class Size Grade 3
Mid-Career Salary
Top Salary
NYC
78%
26
$78,885
$100,049
East Ramapo
78%
21
$93,429
$125,173
New Rochelle
48%
23
$88,040
$124,603
Great Neck
10%
19
$100,455
$128,924
Hempstead
84%
24
$88,601
$114,469
Half Hollow Hills
11%
24
$87,344
$125,594
Nassau
N
ew York City is in the midst of a teacher exodus. More than 32,000 teachers walked away from jobs in New York City classrooms in the last eleven years, with more than one in eight leaving for jobs in nearby suburban systems that have higher pay, lower class sizes and better teaching conditions.
in the teeth of the recession. These are teachers who have honed their craft, know how to reach struggling students, and are invaluable as mentors for their newer colleagues.
The previous mayor claimed poverty while rolling up multi-billion-dollar surpluses. His Department of Education raised class sizes, focused instruction on test prep rather than real learning, and forced teachers to generate reams of unnecessary paperwork. Tens of thousands left, and more than 25 percent of all city teachers are now contemplating leaving within three years.
Attrition of Mid-Career Teachers is Growing
For me as an educator, the most troubling part of this teacher exodus is that the number of resignations among mid-career teachers (6-15 years of experience) nearly doubled between 2008 and 2013, even
But under the circumstances it’s hard to blame the thousands of teachers who left our classrooms for the suburbs – or the
---------------------- vs. ---------------------In 2008, mid-career resignations were 15% of the total. In 2013 they were 43%. 1000
900
800
2013
700
teachers who say they are now planning on leaving. Or the thousands of highly qualified graduates who will choose one of these districts rather than New York City for their first teaching job unless conditions improve. Obviously teachers have a personal stake in this. But so does every public school parent. If New York City is serious about having a first-class school system, it has got to find a way to slow the loss of teachers, particularly to the suburban areas where pay and working conditions are so much better. The city’s economy is steadily improving, and honest budgeting will show that new resources are available from the city and the state.
C
500
400
2008
200
100
0
Resignations ons off teachers h with h 6 to 15 years’’ exper experience. Source: NYC DOE payroll
United Federation of Teachers A Union of Professionals
Teacher
ritics keep saying that New York City cannot afford to treat its teachers and students fairly. But the real question is this — can we afford not to? — Michael Mulgrew
600
300
Teacher
• 52 Broadway, New York, NY 10004 • www.uft.org
Officers: Michael Mulgrew President, Emil Pietromonaco Secretary, Mel Aaronson Treasurer, LeRoy Barr Assistant Secretary, Mona Romain Assistant Treasurer Vice Presidents: Karen Alford, Carmen Alvarez, Catalina Fortino, Anne Goldman, Janella Hinds, Richard Mantell, Sterling Roberson
This ad was previously run in the Daily News
CONTENTS April 7, 2014
1. TED O’BRIEN, 2. RICH FUNKE, 3. TERRY GIPSON, 4. JOHN TKAZYIK , 5. JIM COUGHLAN, 6. GEORGE AMEDORE, 7. CECILIA TKACZYK, 8. MARK GRISANTI, 9. ANTHONY SENFT, 10. OLIVER KOPPELL, 11. KEMP HANNON, 12. JOE ADDABBO, 13. ADRIENNE ESPOSITO, 14. MICHAEL VENDITTO, 15. ROBERT ROLISON, 16. DAVE DENENBERG, 17. ADAM HABER, 18. ANDREA STEWART-COUSINS, 19. TOBY ANN STAVISKY, 20. DAVID CARLUCCI, 21. JOHN DEFRANCISCO, 22. PHIL BOYLE, 23. JACK MARTINS, 24. TIM KENNEDY, 25. JEFF KLEIN, 26. DEAN SKELOS, 27. MICHAEL GIANARIS, 28. DIANE SAVINO ,29. JAMES SANDERS, 30. JOHN SAMPSON, 31. JOSE SERRANO, 32. CARL MARCELLINO, 33. THOMAS O’MARA, 34. TOM LIBOUS, 35. BILL PERKINS, 36. BETTY LITTLE, 37. KATHY MARCHIONE, 38. GREG BALL, 39. JUSTIN WAGNER, 40. KENNETH LAVALLE, 41. NEIL BRESLIN, 42. MARTY GOLDEN, 43. HUGH FARLEY, 44. GUSTAVO RIVERA, 45. WILLIAM LARKIN, 46. GEORGE LATIMER, 47. SIMCHA FELDER, 48. LIZ KRUEGER, 49. KEVIN PARKER , 50. JOSEPH GRIFFO, 51. MARTIN DILAN, 52. JOHN BONACIC, 53. JOSE PERALTA, 54. RUTH HASSELL-THOMPSON, 55. RUBEN DIAZ, 56. PATRICK GALLIVAN, 57. MALCOLM SMITH, 58. ADRIENNE ESPOSITO, 59. BETTY JEAN GRANT, 60. BRAD HOYLMAN, 61. ANDREW LANZA, 62. DAVID VALESKY
Cover by Guillaume Federighi
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CITY
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FREEZING OUT IN CENTRAL NEW YORK
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STATE
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EDUCATION
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TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION
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ENERGY
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INFRASTRUCTURE
De Blasio scrambles to sort out Superstorm Sandy By Nick Powell By Susan Arbetter
Cuomo’s press release on the state budget, annotated By Jon Lentz A new course for charter schools By Geoff Decker Will Bloomberg’s tech boom continue? By Kristen Meriwether Catsimatidis’ biodiesel project By Claire Moses Tolls across New York City By Matthew Hamilton and Jon Lentz
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COVER STORY
24-34........
SPOTLIGHT: AFFORDABLE HOUSING
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PERSPECTIVES
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BACK & FORTH
The Battle for the State Senate By Matthew Hamilton and Jon Lentz The precedent-setting Domino deal….Affordable defined…. Astorino vs. HUD.…Q&As with Vicki Been, Jumaane Williams and Keith Wright Nicole Gelinas on Citi Bike’s profits….Bruce Gyory on contraception exemptions….Tony Avella on why he joined the IDC A Q&A with former NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik
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Columnists Alexis Grenell, Bruce Gyory, Nicole Gelinas, Michael Benjamin, Seth Barron, Steven M. Cohen, Susan Arbetter
City & State is published twice monthly. Copyright ©2014, City and State NY, LLC
city & state — April 7, 2014
Cover key:
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New York City’s Top Ten Lobbyists Revealed
March 10, 2014
By Morgan Pehme Editor-In-Chief
“P
city & state — April 7, 2014
4
SLEIGHT OF HAND
erception is reality,” the late notorious Republican operative Lee Atwater would sneer. While this observation was not directed at summing up Albany, it is nonetheless an apt characterization of the political philosophy of our leaders in the state Capitol. When it comes to good government reform in particular, what matters most to the four men in the room is not actually changing the culture of corruption in which they wallow, but merely appearing to do so—so they can pose as virtuous, and then go right back to rolling around in the mud. In recent years, our latter-day solons have heaped praise upon themselves for conjuring up a system of independent redistricting that can only be characterized as independent if you don’t read the fine print. They have dreamed up two rounds of ethics reform that artfully dance around any of the areas that actually need to be reformed. They have fashioned disclosure requirements deliberately riddled with loopholes and exemptions. As cynical as these slights of hand are, the way Albany finally relented to introducing the public financing of elections in New York State is an insidious new low. On paper, the budget adopted on March 31 creates a pilot to evaluate whether public financing can work on a statewide scale. Modeled upon the five boroughs’ campaign finance system, this test case will offer the candidates running for state comptroller in 2014 the chance to opt in to a program that will enable them to receive 6-to-1 matching funds for the first $175 raised per qualified donor, in exchange for agreeing to spending limits and disclosure requirements. In reality, this trial run was concocted deliberately so that it will fail. Why, you ask, would the governor and the Legislature go to such lengths? The illusion serves two purposes. First, it provides cover for Democrats to push back at the pesky activists clamoring for publicly financed elections. Second, it allows the legislators who abhor the concept of publicly financed elections, since there is no greater threat to their incumbency, to point to the fiasco that is all but inevitable to ensue in November as proof positive for why this experiment should never again be attempted. As if evidence for this theory were even necessary to affirm its veracity, one only needs to point out who our leaders have tasked with administering this pilot to discredit it: the state Board of Elections. If there is but one truth that The Moreland Commission on Public Corruption demonstrated beyond a shadow of a doubt it is that the state BoE is a disaster. As it stands, the Board lacks the competence to handle its current responsibilities. The notion that it can take on any new ones, particularly a complicated one in a tight time frame, is utterly laughable. The Campaign Finance Board, which runs New York City’s matching program, is imperfect—as Nick Powell’s cover story in the last issue of City & State detailed—and yet at its core it is a carefully constructed body populated by capable, thoughtful professionals. Nobody objective would venture the same appraisal of the state BoE. If all of the above is accurate, how do we unravel reality from the parallel universe perpetrated upon us? Perception only is reality if we allow it to be. The responsibility lies with everyone who sees through the mirage to reject it.
CITYANDSTATENY.COM
Letters to the
Editor
In the March 10 issue City & State Editor Morgan Pehme wrote in his monthly column that if the Democrats in the state Senate were really serious about passing their progressive agenda, they would mend fences with the Independent Democratic Conference, even if doing so meant accepting Jeff Klein as their leader. Klein and his ragtag collection of traitors need to be beaten in Democratic primaries. Their ranks are filled with fake Democrats—ambitious politicians too lazy to rise through the Democratic ranks. Bipartisan means to work with the other party, not to join the other party, sabotage your own party and defy the will of your constituents. These traitors have not decided to share power with Republicans; they have decided to remove from power all progressive voices in the state Senate and have it ruled by its most regressive members. While this is great for Rush Limbaugh and Fox News acolytes, it is a disaster for the majority of New York residents. I voted for Jeff Klein when he first ran for state Senate because his opponent, incumbent Stephen Kaufman, always voted with Republicans. Klein promised to be different. However, personal advancement has trumped doing what is right. Let’s go, [Oliver] Koppell for a better Senate for the people of New York. —James Lombardi (via cityandstateny.com) In “Wild, Wild North,” Matthew Hamilton previewed the NY-21 Congressional race, in which a number of candidates, including Republicans Matt Doheny and Elise Stefanik and Democrat Aaron Woolf, are squaring off in the hope of succeeding retiring Rep. Bill Owens. “Elise and Matt are not Dede [Scozzafava] or John McHugh.” Well, thank God for that. The last thing the Republican Party needs in these times are collaborationists like those two, one of whom is an actual traitor to the party and the other a creature of ACORN who supported Owens when her support collapsed. The Democrats’ candidate looks to be a total outsider to the district and could indeed be a foil to the issue of New York City domination of the state—someone with values upstate abjures, and rightfully so. The two Republican candidates are in the mainstream of the party, and that is what’s good for the nation, especially in these times! Let the contest go forth, and both should remember Ronald Reagan’s Eleventh Commandment. —David Levine (via cityandstateny.com) To have your letter to the editor considered for publication, leave a comment at www.cityandstateny.com, tweet us @CityAndStateNY, email editor@cityandstateny.com or write to 61 Broadway, Suite 2825, New York, NY 10006. Letters may be edited for clarity or length. cityandstateny.com
“A national model for training minority youth for middle class careers in the construction industry” — Columbia University School of — Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs International and Public Affairs
Jared Wilson Jared Wilson Journeyman
OrnamentalJourneyman Ironworkers Local 580 Ornamental Ironworkers Local 580 Completed apprenticeship in 2013 Completed apprenticeship in 2013 Queens resident Queens resident
Julio Acosta Julio Acosta 1st Year Apprentice
1st& Year ApprenticeLocal 8 Roofers Waterproofers Roofers &Bronx Waterproofers resident Local 8 Bronx resident
This is what a new report by the This is what a new report by the Columbia University School of International Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs says about The Edward and Public Affairs says about The Edward J. Malloy Initiative for Construction Skills, J. Malloy Initiative for Construction Skills, which prepares public high school youth and which prepares public high school youth and other New York City residents to make the other New York City residents to make the most out of union apprenticeships and 2-5 most out of union apprenticeships and 2-5 years of industry sponsored training. years of industry sponsored training.
Of the 1,485 individuals this program has Of the 1,485 individuals this program has placed into union apprenticeships, 89% are placed into union apprenticeships, 89% are minorities and 80% remain actively employed, minorities and 80% remain actively employed, including 570 who have gone on to become including 570 who have gone on to become journey persons and mechanics with the skills journey persons and mechanics with the skills to compete for the best jobs in the industry. to compete for the best jobs in the industry.
To download a full copy of the report and learn more about expanding middle To download a full copy of the report and learn more about expanding middle class opportunity in New York City, go to www.nycbuildingtrades.org. class opportunity in New York City, go to www.nycbuildingtrades.org.
This This is is what what union union construction construction looks looks like. like. Shouldn’t it it be be what what all all construction construction looks looks like? like? Shouldn’t
CIT Y
AFTER PRE-K VICTORY, FOCUS SHOULD SHIFT TO SANDY News Analysis By NICK POWELL
P
city & state — April 7, 2014
6
art of being mayor is walking the tightrope between pushing a long-term agenda while also focusing on the urgency of the present. For Mayor Bill de Blasio, that balancing act is exemplified through his public campaign for universal preschool, and his intermittent focus on the protracted Superstorm Sandy recovery effort. De Blasio campaigned last year on a proposal to raise taxes on New York City’s high-income earners to pay for a $340 million universal pre-K program, and delivered a partial victory by securing $300 million from the state for preschool—albeit without the tax hike or the additional funds he had requested for an expanded after-school program. The mayor wisely took the money the city did receive in stride and wasted no time touting the accomplishment publicly, first at an assembly on affordable housing hosted by the Metro Industrial Areas Foundation in Brooklyn on March 30, and again the day after prior to throwing out the first pitch on Opening Day for the Mets. “I can tell you one thing: This really is a historic moment for the children and families of New York City,” de Blasio said. “This is a huge step forward. It’s going to have lasting benefits. It’s going to have a huge multiplier effect. This is an investment. This is the kind of investment that will actually turn around our public schools and make them work for everyone.” Meanwhile, as the mayor kicked off his pre-K victory lap at Citi Field, in the City Council chambers a group of homeowners were giving testimony detailing the hoops through which they have had to jump in order to receive help through the city’s Build It Back program—a disaster recovery initiative started by the Bloomberg administration to help homeowners, owners of rental buildings and low-income tenants rebuild and repair their storm-ravaged homes. The fact that de Blasio had only just announced his Sandy recovery team two days before the Council oversight hearing on housing recovery in the aftermath of the storm, underscored the perception, unwarranted or not, that his administration is having difficulty grasping some of the fundamentals of
governance. “I thought there should have been a Sandy czar appointed very early on in the administration, given that the mayor was elected in November,” said the Council’s Minority Leader Vincent Ignizio, who represents the south shore of Staten Island, an area hit hard by Sandy. De Blasio has been in office nearly three months, after all, and during that time, over 20,000 applicants to the Build It Back program—which serves homeowners and renters whose homes were damaged or destroyed— continued to be unable to break ground on new homes or receive reimbursement money for repairs from the city. To be fair, a large part of that delay could be attributed to the mechanics of the program put in place by the previous administration. Sources familiar with the structure of Build It Back under Bloomberg, who requested anonymity so as not to anger the former mayor, say that an overwhelming level of bureaucracy has plagued the program. These sources suggested that the housing recovery aspect of the program should have been administered by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development instead of the newly created Housing Recovery Office, which has been run out of City Hall, and requires a complicated coordination between HPD and other agencies like the Department of Environmental Protection. Amy Peterson, Mayor de Blasio’s new director of the Housing Recovery Office and the former president of Nontraditional Employment for Women, addressed some of the challenges the agency has encountered to date during her testimony at the oversight hearing, citing specifically the coordination complications and the frustrations the city has had in collecting the proper documentation from Build It Back applicants as two major areas of concern. To Peterson’s credit, she sat through nearly the entire 7-hour hearing and displayed a comfortable familiarity with the program, presenting a host of facts and figures—perhaps allaying any concerns about her lack of experience in emergency management.
Some of those figures, however, reflected poorly on both the previous and current administrations. And while nobody explicitly accused de Blasio’s team of passing the buck on the failures of the recovery effort, at times emotions ran high during the Council hearing as some members clamored for an increased level of accountability. “The problem is, it’s been about 10 months, and Build It Back hasn’t actually built anything back yet,” said Councilman Jumaane Williams during the hearing. “This administration may not have made the mess, but this administration has to clean it up.” Of the 22,000 Build It Back applicants, only six have broken ground on new homes. Moreover, only $100,000 of the committed reimbursement money for repairs has been distributed—and that amount had only gone out a week earlier, to three different applicants. Another $700,000 is slated to be allotted soon, but still those are harrowing numbers considering it has been nearly 18 months since Sandy. Peterson and city officials maintain they have been largely hamstrung by the funding source for much of the Sandy aid: Community Development Block Grants. The city is required to spend at least 51 percent of its CBDG funds on low- and moderate-income (LMI) populations, households that are at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income for the New York City region, a metric defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which disburses the federal money. “Ensuring [LMI] compliance has … necessitated a time-consuming process to collect and verify income information for all applicants, including homeowners and tenants who live in buildings that have registered [for Build It Back],” Peterson said in her testimony before the Council. The city also has to ensure that in the process of disbursing CBDG money it is not duplicating benefits individuals have already received, such as FEMA awards or private insurance payouts. Poking a hole in the city’s argument that HUD requirements have been a deterrent to Build It Back, however, is the relative success of the state’s New
York Rising Community Reconstruction Program, which by comparison is a model of efficiency in administering storm recovery assistance. According to a recent press release, NY Rising has distributed more than $280 million in payments to 6,388 homeowners affected by Sandy, tapping funds from the same CBDG fount as the city while adhering to the same stringent federal compliance requirements. There is an argument to be made that getting displaced New Yorkers back on their feet as quickly as possible should have been prioritized over (or at least pursued contemporaneously with) de Blasio’s big picture issues, such as universal pre-K—which, while certainly a worthy cause in its own right, does not carry the same urgency. In the press release announcing de Blasio’s Sandy team, the administration touted the progress the city has made in addressing the needs of storm victims, highlighting its reallocating $100 million in federal aid toward housing recovery; increasing the staff of the Housing Recovery Office by 35 percent; accelerating the design process for home repairs and rebuilds; and eliminating such permit and procedural bottlenecks as the requirement to clear outstanding Department of Building permits that prevent scheduled repairs from moving forward. All of these steps are admirable, but hardly demonstrate the claim advanced by the release that the mayor has “prioritized the fast and efficient delivery of relief to affected families” from day one, especially given the astonishingly low number of people the city’s rebuilding program has actually helped. By contrast, the mayor’s universal pre-K plan has been promoted to the general public and media with a barrage of white papers, progress reports on the hiring of qualified teachers, public lobbying of the state Legislature and now an extended victory lap. If these improvements to Build It Back were undertaken from day one, then why roll them out nearly three months into de Blasio’s tenure in office? At the very least, an earlier announcement would have demonstrated a commitment to Sandy recovery, rather than making the mayor’s efforts to date come across as little more than lip service. cityandstateny.com
Sharing is revolutionizing the way New Yorkers participate in the economy, creating new opportunities for our families, our communities, and our state. But outdated laws treat law-abiding New Yorkers like slumlords.
Do we look like slumlords to you?
“As a cancer survivor who lost disability insurance, sharing my home gave me the bandwidth I needed to pay rent. The best part was the families, who had a home close to the hospital—my home.” WENDY NEW YORK, NEW YORK
“We were afraid we’d have to leave our farm, our animals, our home. We started sharing our home to make a little extra, and it has saved us from losing our farm!” LAURA ITHACA, NEW YORK
We are Peers. We’re asking lawmakers for more sharing, not less. We want to play by the rules, but New York needs laws that are safe, fair, and clear.
“I worked at a company that declared bankruptcy before paying me. Sharing my home made it possible for me to keep my house.” EVELYN NEW YORK, NEW YORK
This ad was paid for by over 700 Peers who crowdfunded this message to ask lawmakers to support sharing
Support sharing. Fix the Law.w. peers.org/fixthelaw
FREEZING OUT IN CENTRAL NEW YORK
SUSAN ARBETTER
T
city & state — April 7, 2014
8
he village of Homer, the birthplace of 19th century women’s rights’ advocate Amelia Jenks Bloomer, has an exciting, vibrant past, but faces an uncertain future. “Things are going to be really tight,” Mayor Genevieve Suits says of the new state budget. “Last year we blew through our tax cap.” Blowing through the tax cap in Homer meant the village had to raise a total of $30,000, an amount not that far from what a single taxpaying McMansion owner in Westchester could conceivably pay in property taxes in a single year. But Central New York is not Westchester. Homer (pop. 3,291 at the 2010 Census) has an annual budget of $3.5 million. It is located smack in the middle of New York State in rural Cortland County. It receives about $32,000 in Aid and Incentives for Municipalities [AIM] money from the state. “Next year my hands are tied, because now I have no choice because of what the governor just did with the tax freeze,” says Mayor Suits. “I don’t have a lot of room to move.” I don’t recommend thinking about this image and the attire of Homer’s most famous resident at the same time. Mayor Suits’ fears about the new tax freeze are being echoed in many of Central New York’s villages, towns and cities. “I’m not comfortable with it,” says City of Auburn Mayor Mike Quill. “Probably my biggest concern is, when you break it down between the city, the county and the school district, it doesn’t leave our residents a lot of
money that they will be getting back from the government.” In other words, residents of Central New York shouldn’t expect much. Whether a taxpayer sees a substantial rebate check depends on where she lives. If the local government and school district keep tax growth under the 2 percent cap, then a resident could be issued a check worth up to 2 percent of his property tax bill. According to State Budget Director Robert Megna, the rebates will be amortized among all county residents. While Megna expects that the average check for Cortland County taxpayers will be between $150 and $200, his claim faces serious skepticism. One the most vocal naysayers is Dick Donovan, the president of the New York Conference of Mayors (NYCOM) and mayor of the Onondaga County village of Minoa (pop. 3,450). “The money that potentially my taxpayers are gonna get, the bulk of it is going to come out of the school system, if they participate,” says Donovan. “In my village it might amount to 10 or 15 dollars. So from where I sit, it’s just—and I probably shouldn’t say this on tape—but it’s just political rhetoric. It’s not going to benefit the local government at all.” Megna says while there may be confusion among local officials about the tax rebates now, it will become clearer as they begin implementing the system. Again, Donovan disagrees. He expects even more confusion, especially when local governments realize they have to share services and/ or consolidate while at the same time
honoring previously negotiated union contracts. “The Wicks Law, the Triborough Amendment. And you throw in prevailing wage? Oh, my God, it gets ugly,” says Donovan. “I would like to go hide.” Not everyone has the same grim reaction to the tax freeze plan. Supporters include Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney, who backs the governor’s primary goal: to reduce the number of local governments, and therefore save taxpayers money. According to Mahoney, Onondaga County alone has a lot of work to do, with 15 police departments, 57 fire departments, 19 towns and 15 villages. “Why does everyone need their own snow removal?” she asked, rhetorically, on The Capitol Pressroom. While the tax freeze has its proponents and detractors, the addition of $40 million to the budget for upstate infrastructure repair has been greeted with almost universal approval. “I am eternally grateful for the CHIPs funding,” Suits said with audible relief. The Consolidated Local Highway Improvement Program (or CHIPs) is a budget line for transportation funding. $40 million was added this year in light of the especially hard winter. It’s not yet clear how much each locality will receive. “I got guys going out right now because of a water main break,” Suits says. “Every time they go out I cringe. Is it going to be a little thing or a big thing? Our infrastructure is just so outdated.” “We have potholes that we could lose a small vehicle in,” says Auburn mayor Mike Quill. “It’s very hard to
patch them.” In the first three months of this year alone, the City of Syracuse had 155 water main breaks. “As we say here,” Mayor Stephanie Miner confides, “it’s old and it’s been cold.” Because the winter has been so rough on the city’s infrastructure, the Syracuse mayor requested $16.4 million dollars in emergency infrastructure repair money from Albany. She didn’t get it, which is why any part of that additional $40 million will be so welcome. “We haven’t done as [many] repairs on our infrastructure. We’ve been begging, borrowing and stealing to be fiscally responsible,” says Miner. Much of the water and sewer infrastructure in Central New York, including the Syracuse water system, is over 100 years old. But, says Miner, “Any extra money we have we use to pay off our pensions and healthcare bills.” It’s not surprising that Miner did not receive her earmark. She has been at odds with the governor in the past over this very issue, questioning his tax freeze strategy as well as his priorities in light of a proposed $30 million amphitheater slated for the shores of Onondaga Lake. It should be noted that at both Syracuse-area events touting these proposals, Mayor Miner was conspicuously absent while County Executive Joanie Mahoney was featured alongside the governor. On March 31, just as the budget was drawing to a conclusion, Mahoney sent a letter to Miner offering $5 million in county resources to help repair five miles of the city’s most potholepocked streets. This is not the first time the county has come to the aid of the city. Several years ago the county Legislature voted to share additional sales tax income with Syracuse. Mahoney references that decision in her letter, writing, “It is clear that despite the increase in revenue, the city is still not able to address its basic infrastructure needs and more must be done.” Miner’s response to Mahoney’s letter was just as pointed. “City taxpayers pay county taxes as well,” Miner told the Syracuse Post-Standard. “I welcome the participation of the county in this.’’
Susan Arbetter (@sarbetter on Twitter) is the Emmy award-winning news director for WCNY Syracuse PBS/NPR, and producer/host of the Capitol Pressroom syndicated public radio program. cityandstateny.com
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LOOK WHO’S READING
S TAT E
THE FOOTNOTE
A REAL PRESS RELEASE, ANNOTATED SENT 11:28 P.M. ON MONDAY, MARCH 31 FROM GOV. ANDREW CUOMO’S PRESS OFFICE By JON LENTZ
GOVERNOR CUOMO AND LEGISLATIVE LEADERS ANNOUNCE PASSAGE OF 2014–15 BUDGET
The Assembly was unsuccessful in its push to include the DREAM Act in the budget, despite Cuomo saying it was a priority.
All three men were Republicans.
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This release does not mention the defunding of the Moreland Commission on Public Corruption, a body legislative leaders opposed.
city & state — April 7, 2014
The limited public financing pilot program for the state comptroller election was widely criticized.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, Senate Majority Coalition Co-Leaders Dean Skelos and Jeff Klein, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver today announced the historic passage of the State’s fourth consecutive on-time budget. With today’s passage, this State’s administration has delivered four on-time budgets in a row – under the same governor and legislative leadership – for the first time in more than forty years, not since Gov. Nelson Rockefeller, Assembly Speaker Perry Duryea, and Majority Leader Earl Brydges. The budget holds spending growth below two percent for the fourth consecutive year, continuing a record of fiscal discipline that has reversed decades where state spending increased at a higher rate than inflation and personal income growth. Along with other targeted investments that will grow the economy and strengthen New York’s communities, the budget contains $1.5 billion in property tax cuts to aid New York’s homeowners and encourage local governments to increase efficiencies, as well as a major five percent increase in State education aid. “This budget builds on the State’s progress over the past three years in order to grow the economy and create new opportunities for New Yorkers and their families,” Governor Cuomo said. “This budget maintains the fiscal discipline that has characterized the last three years of progress by holding the growth in spending below two percent, while also making broad tax cuts that will help homeowners and businesses thrive. It also contains targeted investments that will transform our schools, ensure safer, cleaner, and fairer communities, and restore the public’s trust in government. This budget contains the framework that will allow us to build a new New York, and I commend the members of the Senate and the Assembly who have joined us to continue that progress.” Senate Majority Coalition Co-Leader Dean Skelos said, “I am pleased that we are acting today on a bipartisan budget that delivers property tax relief to hardworking families, reduces taxes for businesses so they can create new jobs and gives every student the resources they need to be successful. Our enacted budget includes a new property tax rebate program, a reduction in the Gap Elimination Adjustment for schools, expansion of the EPIC program for seniors, and elimination of the corporate tax for manufacturers. I congratulate Governor Cuomo for achieving comprehensive, bipartisan ethics and election reforms that will increase transparency and restore confidence in government. Working together, we will pass the state’s 4th consecutive on-time budget, a symbol that state government is functioning and getting results. I thank the Governor for his strong leadership and our partners in the Legislature, Senator Klein and Speaker Silver, for their hard work and commitment to the people of this state.” Senate Majority Coalition Co-Leader Jeffrey D. Klein said, “This budget delivers on our promise to provide highquality, full-time, universal pre-k to tens of thousands of New York City four-year-olds starting this September. I am very proud of the fact that this budget fulfills the Independent Democratic Conference’s pledge to make New York more affordable for working families, by expanding prescription drug coverage for seniors, increasing state funding for day care programs, and providing much needed relief to renters and homeowners across our state. By working with all of our colleagues, we can and must continue to make New York more affordable for the families and small businesses who need us most. Our work on campaign finance reform has just begun, and I look forward to passing a more comprehensive system of public financing before the end of this year’s legislative session. All of us agree that we must do more to restore the integrity and fairness of our electoral process.” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said, “Throughout the negotiations leading to this budget agreement, the Assembly Majority put working families first and endeavored to address the myriad challenges facing them today. We are proud that the 2014-15 enacted state budget makes a strong commitment to the education of our children through dramatic investments in school aid and universal pre-K, and much-needed increases in TAP, community college base-aid, and higher education opportunity programs – all historic Assembly initiatives and priorities. Equally important, this budget keeps our promise to provide working families with tax relief, to create jobs in every region of the state, to alleviate the child-care crisis, and to honor our longstanding obligation to provide affordable housing, to protect public health and to care for our most vulnerable citizens. In addition, this budget puts New York on the path to fair elections, a goal we have pursued for nearly 30 years.”
Cuomo issued a “message of necessity” for part of the budget to bypass the constitutional three-day aging period.
Cuomo issued a “message of necessity” for part of the budget to bypass the constitutional three-day aging period.
New York had the highest local-state tax burden in the country in 2011, according to the Tax Foundation. According to budget expert E.J. McMahon, the governor’s tax cut package would still leave New York ranked first or second.
Cuomo originally proposed an $807 million increase, but ended up with a $1.1 billion bump. The state Board of Regents called for $1.3 billion, and advocates said $1.9 billion was needed.
The New York Times called the budget “unfinished,” saying: “[Cuomo’s] proposals would appear to toughen some state anti-bribery laws and enforce the state’s notoriously weak campaign finance laws, but they really don’t come close to attacking the root of the corruption problem.”
Property Tax Reform •
$1.5 Billion in Property Tax Relief: The Budget agreement includes a new Property Tax Credit to New York homeowners and address one of the primary drivers of the State’s high property taxes – the outsized number of local governments. The property tax relief package is designed to incentivize local governments and school districts to share services and reduce their financial burden on the taxpayer. provide relief to
cityandstateny.com
CHARTING A COURSE FOR CHARTERS NEW SITING PROCESS PAVES WAY FOR MORE NYC CHARTER SCHOOLS
Then Mayor Michael Bloomberg visited Kings Collegiate Charter School with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in May 2010.
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he state budget includes several dramatic education policy shifts for the city, but perhaps none have been more fiercely debated than new provisions for providing new city charter schools with free or subsidized space. Now that the dust has settled, the process those charter schools will have to go through moving forward to gain access to that space is under fresh scrutiny, as lawmakers and advocacy groups work to make sense of the provisions pertaining to charter schools written into the budget.
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The provisions do not dig into the city’s mayoral control law, but it does dictate, quite specifically, what New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio can and cannot do when apportioning public school space. Here’s what we know about how the process will work. From now on, New York City is required to provide new charter schools with “access to facilities,” which is enshrined in law as either a free colocation plan or a rent subsidy for private space. After 2016, the state will cover some of the private costs. Under the provision, eligible
schools will need to submit a “written request” for public space, which state officials said could be done as part of their charter application. It is then up to the city to respond with an offer of city-owned space or pay a school extra to find its own facility. But if de Blasio chooses the co-location route, he will be limited as to where he can place the schools. The provision states that a school must get space in the district that its charter was approved for, meaning de Blasio could have trouble putting a school approved for the South Bronx in another highneeds area, such as East New York or Brownsville. The law makes it clear that the plans must also follow the same rules governing the current co-location process. For some lawmakers, the outlines were not clear enough to understand how the space-allocation process—a fraught topic in New York City—will play out. “No one can actually explain how this will actually work,” Manhattan state Sen. Liz Krueger said on the Senate floor while stating her opposition to the charter school provisions. Harlem Assemblyman Keith Wright, who sponsored a bill to curtail mayoral control because he disagreed with the Bloomberg administration’s handling of its space-sharing authority, said he was more supportive of the deal. “I don’t know if I’m optimistic,” said Wright, whose district encompasses many of the charter school co-locations that have stoked the most controversy. “I’ll say I’m hopeful that we can at least stop the tension.” Nonetheless, the law does appear to anticipate potential discord between the city and future charter schools by laying out a process for settling disputes over assigned space. Charter schools have 30 days after receiving the city’s offer to appeal, which can be done through a court lawsuit, a direct appeal to the state education commissioner or an independent arbitrator. The teachers’ union and parents have often taken such legal action against the city in the past as a way to challenge Bloomberg’s charter school co-locations. Some suits were initially successful, but few if any resulted in
reversing co-locations purely through litigation. It is not clear how much these new provisions will cost the city, state officials said. But de Blasio won’t have to pay much next year, because most of the new charter schools are already sited for public school space. And the three schools whose co-location plans were nixed by de Blasio in February are likely to get their space back as a result of the state legislation. The city will incur more significant costs in the 2015–16 school year, and in subsequent years. In addition to the 24 schools approved to open next year and in 2015, the city is permitted to open an additional 52 schools under the state’s charter cap. Most of those schools have already been approved for public space, and the de Blasio administration has said the 2015 plans are pending. One school, the Charter High School for Law and Social Justice, is planning to open in 2015 in a building owned by New York Law School. That school could be in line to be reimbursed for the cost of its rent or receive an extra 20 percent in per-pupil funding— about $2,775—in 2015–16. The 120 students expected to attend Law and Social Justice in 2015 could cost the city $333,000. That expense could rise to $1.2 million if the school reaches its full capacity of 450 students. Under the new law, the city would be allowed to pay whatever is cheaper: the 20 percent extra in per-pupil money, or the cost of rent that a private landlord is charging. After 2016 the city will have to pay only for rent. Once it spends $40 million of its own money, the city will begin splitting costs with the state.
Chalkbeat New York is a nonprofit news organization covering educational change efforts in the communities where improvement matters most. The Chalkbeat network has bureaus in New York, Colorado, Indiana and Tennessee. Its mission is to inform the decisions and actions that lead to better outcomes for children and families by providing deep, local coverage of education policy and practice. Visit ny.chalkbeat.org for more information.
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city & state — April 7, 2014
SPENCER T. TUCKER/NYC MAYOR’S OFFICE PHOTOSTREAM
By GEOFF DECKER from CHALKBEAT NEW YORK
EXPERTS SAY DE BLASIO MAKING PROGRESS ON EMBRACING TECH SECTOR By KRISTEN MERIWETHER
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city & state — April 7, 2014
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ew York City’s tech sector has boomed over the last five years, in large part because of former Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s efforts. His wooing of the industry brought big-name firms like Google and Facebook to the city’s newly created Silicon Alley, now the second largest tech hub in the country. But with Bloomberg’s departure from the mayoralty, many in the tech community were left wondering if his successor, Bill de Blasio, who did not focus heavily on the interests of the industry during his campaign, would continue to cultivate a relationship with the sector. Three months into de Blasio’s tenure that uncertainty still lingers to a degree. The mayor still has yet to name a commissioner for the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT), although other pieces are falling into place. When she was appointed in mid-February, Counsel to the Mayor Maya Wiley was tasked with spearheading efforts to invest in New York’s technology infrastructure and expand broadband access to all five boroughs. De Blasio also tapped Jeff Merritt, who led his open government and technology initiatives in the public advocate’s office, as a senior advisor to the mayor. “I think it is fair to say I would not be working for the mayor if I did not believe strongly in his vision, not only broadly for the city of New York but also his vision for tech,” Merritt said at City & State’s “On Technology” forum held on March 20 at 7 World Trade Center. “[Technology] is an area where we definitely want to double down.” Growing the tech industry is not just about attracting more big-name start-ups or more venture capital dollars. The mayor will need to target multiple areas: increasing broadband access and speeds, expanding education efforts to ensure that the next generation of New York City public school children are ready for the knowledge economy, and continuing
to open government data to the public. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, who led the charge to get the city’s Open Data law passed, said at City & State’s forum that it is time to take the next step with open data by getting the most out of it. She is currently working with her borough’s 12 community boards to show them how to use data to solve many issues in their districts. Brewer has brought in members of the tech community, including a group of civically minded hackers called BetaNYC. The civic hackers work with the community boards to identify problems that can be addressed with technology and to create solutions— usually maps—using information already found on the open data portal. But not all of the necessary data from the city is available yet, or in a usable format, leaving some issues unresolved. “What we really need to be doing as a government is changing the culture, which goes back decades and decades, where government has always felt they have to guard their information,” Merritt said. “We do need to move toward a culture in government that realizes information is not something to be scared of. In fact, we need to be proactively p ushing out information into the world. That is when it becomes beneficial.” De Blasio, who fought for greater data transparency when he was public advocate, has begun to pry open the New York City Police Department’s data. As part of his Vision Zero initiative, he directed the historically secretive department to share TrafficStat data with multiple agencies—a first for the NYPD. How that push for transparency will play out in other departments remains to be seen. On the education front, de Blasio had focused a great deal of his efforts so far on finding the money for his universal pre-K and after-school initiatives. According to Merritt, at least some of the after-school programs
envisioned would have a focus on tech. “We will definitely be looking, as we expand after-school programs, to be introducing more computer science opportunities,” Merritt said. While much remains unknown about the mayor’s tech goals, that uncertainty will likely not last too
much longer. On May 19, as part of Internet Week, de Blasio is scheduled to unveil his tech plans in a keynote address. City & State’s “On Technology” forum, co-sponsored by Verizon, IBM and SAP, was held at 7 WTC on March 20.
Jonathan Bowles
Reshma Saujani
Q: Do you think Mayor de Blasio will take the tech baton and run with it? JB: It is too early to say. Understandably, the mayor has had other priorities that he is trying to figure out right now. We heard some pretty good proposals during the campaign, though they were mostly focused on creating more pipeline to make sure more New Yorkers develop the skills. I think that is really helpful. But I think it would be silly if Mayor de Blasio did not continue to try and support the tech sector. He needs to create jobs. We still have an unemployment rate near 8 percent, and the tech sector has been a catalyst for job growth over the last five years.
Q: 1.4 million jobs are opening up in America in the computing and technology industry. To what degree will women be filling those positions? RS: Less than 20 percent of them, at the current rate, will be filled by women, even though women make up 56 percent of the labor force. We have had an 80 percent decline in the amount of female engineers. We had more engineers in the 1970s that were women than today … As women, we own the Internet. We make 85 percent of all consumer purchases. We Facebook more, we tweet more, but we are not on the other end.
A panel discussion from City & State’s recent On Technology forum, featuring (from left to right) City & State City Hall Bureau Chief Nick Powell, Beta NYC’s Ariel Kennan, Jeff Merritt, senior advisor to Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Andrew Nicklin, director of Open NY for New York State cityandstateny.com
TURNING GREASE INTO GOLD CATSIMATIDIS SEEKING PERMIT FOR BROOKLYN BIODIESEL PLANT THAT WOULD TRANSFORM FOOD OIL INTO VEHICLE FUEL
John Catsimatidis, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor of New York City last year, is now focusing on his business interests, including a biodiesel plant.
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ew York City’s first largescale biodiesel fuel production facility is slated to come to Brooklyn, courtesy of former Republican mayoral candidate and Gristedes grocery store magnate John Catsimatidis. The Catsimatidis-owned United Biofuels is seeking approval from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for a permit to convert an existing fuelstorage facility on Newtown Creek in Greenpoint to take vegetable oil and turn it into fuel that can power dieselburning vehicles. Catsimatidis seized the opportunity to acquire the biodiesel operation in the middle of his 2013 campaign, buying it from the bankrupt Metro Fuel Oil Corporation and promising to preserve 130 employees’ jobs. “We wanted to buy a piece of it,” Catsimatidis said in a phone interview. “Before we knew it, we owned the entire thing. By accident, we bought it.” In 2007 Metro Fuel Oil was granted $10 million in bond financing, among
cityandstateny.com
other benefits, from the New York City Industrial Development Agency, in order to construct the biodiesel facility but went bust before it could finish the job. Catsimatidis, who serves as the chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the recently formed United Metro Energy Corp., said the facility—set to produce between 40 and 50 million gallons of biodiesel per year—would be one of the largest in the country. The Brooklyn outpost is just part of Catsimatidis’ growing energy empire. Metro also has a biodiesel facility in Calverton, Long Island, and his United Refining owns and operates an oil refinery in Warren, Penn., that produces about 70,000 barrels a day. The company sells its fuel in about 400 retail outlets in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. “Hopefully it’ll be finished before the end of the year,” Catsimatidis said of the New York City biodiesel plant. “The community is all for it.” As initially proposed in 2007, the biodiesel plant would have produced
almost twice the amount of biodiesel as currently planned. But the basic operation remains the same: turning biological feedstock—which can include used vegetable oil, soybeans or corn—into fuel via a catalyzed chemical reaction between the oil and methanol. Because the production facility is located in an industrial neighborhood next to the busy Greenpoint Avenue Bridge over the creek, community members said they expect it will not add too much truck traffic. “This facility is essentially taking industrial wasteland and turning it into a productive use of the land,” said Richard Mazur, executive director of the North Brooklyn Development Corporation, a community improvement group. Mazur, who has lived in Greenpoint since 1950, remembers a “most horrible smell” emanating from Newtown Creek during his childhood, when oil refineries lined its banks. “I can tell you that my nose is happier today than it was when I was a child,” Mazur said. Members of several Greenpoint community groups—including the Newtown Creek Alliance, Newtown Creek Monitoring Committee and Greenpoint Waterfront Association for Parks and Planning—said they weren’t aware of the pending permit and were still determining what it could mean for their community. Catsimatidis said he received positive feedback from area residents about the proposal during his campaign. “Don’t forget, I was running for mayor,” he said, “I was all over Brooklyn.” Not every stakeholder in the community is sold, however. Michael Heimbinder, who sits on the board of the Newtown Creek Alliance but spoke in his role as executive director of the Brooklyn environmental nonprofit HabitatMap, said he is skeptical about the biodiesel industry. “I’m concerned about this facility,” Heimbinder said, adding that emissions from both the plant and added trucks to the area would be bad
for air quality. “Is it a clean fuel? I’d say unequivocally: no.” Biodiesel, when used by motorized vehicles, is about half as polluting as petroleum diesel, said Prof. Richard Parnas of the Biofuel Consortium at the University of Connecticut. “Emissions are very, very low,” he said. Parnas added that residents in the area do not have to fear that the biodiesel plant will emit a smell. “If the facility is well designed and well run, there should be very little if any odor,” he said. “They don’t have to worry about clouds of noxious fumes. That’s not what biodiesel refineries do.” While the end product is better for the environment than conventional diesel, the process of making the fuel still uses chemicals that can be dangerous, such as methanol. “It should be permitted and handled like any industrial facility is handled,” Parnas said. “Biodiesel production is among the less hazardous types. That doesn’t mean it’s perfect.” The permit—which is open for public review until April 4—will allow the company to “install equipment for biodiesel fuel purification, methanol recovery, wastewater treatment and vapor control.” The facility sits on the former location of an ExxonMobil refinery and adjoins the Newtown Creek Superfund hazardous waste cleanup project supervised by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Leah Archibald, the executive director of the East Williamsburg Valley Industrial Development Corporation, said she welcomes the facility to the area, and called it a “win-win.” “There’s so much food production here,” she said. “It makes sense to have a facility in New York City.” TheNewYorkWorldproduces accountability journalism devoted to deepening public understanding of the ways city and state government shape life in New York City. The project, which is published by Columbia Journalism School, is online at www.thenewyorkworld.com.
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city & state — April 7, 2014
JOHN CATSIMATIDIS FOR MAYOR OF NEW YORK VIA FACEBOOK
By CLAIRE MOSES from THE NEW YORK WORLD
THE COSTS OF CROSSING Driving into, out of or around New York City often comes at a cost. The bridge and tunnel tolls paid by motorists, in turn, can result in political costs for elected officials. So it’s little surprise that in February the cash-strapped Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved a controversial toll reduction for Staten Islanders using the VerrazanoNarrows Bridge. Under the plan, touted by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, nonresidents still pay $10.66 with E-ZPass, but locals will pay $5.50, down from $6. Meanwhile, the city’s East River bridges have no tolls, a fact advocates have long sought to change, only to be stymied by local elected officials. And up the Hudson River, it is unclear whether the Thruway Authority can raise tolls on the new Tappan Zee Bridge enough to cover construction costs. For an overview of the landscape, here are the costs of the city’s major crossings, for a nonresident in a car using E-ZPass during peak hours.
ROOSE BR
GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE: $11 ED KOCH QUEENS BOROUGH BRIDGE: $0
By JON LENTZ and MATTHEW HAMILTON
WILLIAMSBURG BRIDGE: $0
MANHATTAN BRIDGE: $0
14 LINCOLN TUNNEL: $11
BROOKLYN BRIDGE: $0
GOETHALS BRIDGE: $11*
city & state — April 7, 2014
HOLLAND TUNNEL: $11
VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE: $10.66*** * The toll for the Bayonne and Goethals bridges is $5.50 for locals ** The toll for the Cross Bay and Marine Parkway bridges is $1.31 for locals *** The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is $5.50 for locals
BAYONNE BRIDGE: $11*
NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION = (GREEN) METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY = (DARK BLUE) PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY = (LIGHT BLUE) cityandstateny.com
HENRY HUDSON BRIDGE: $2.44 ROOSEVELT ISLAND BRIDGE: $0
BRONX-WHITESTONE BRIDGE: $5.33 ROBERT F. KENNEDY BRIDGE: $5.33
THROGS NECK BRIDGE: $5.33
15 QUEENS MIDTOWN TUNNEL: $5.33
CROSS BAY BRIDGE: $2** MARINE PARKWAY BRIDGE: $2** SOURCES: NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY, PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK STATE THRUWAY AUTHORITY, GOOGLE MAPS
cityandstateny.com
city & state — April 7, 2014
HUGH L. CAREY TUNNEL: $5.33
63 SEATS 3 CONFERENCES 6 TOSS-UPS WHO WINS?
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Democrats constitute a majority in the state Senate, but the Republican-IDC coalition holds power. Will the balance change in the 2014 elections? By MATTHEW HAMILTON and JON LENTZ
city & state — April 7, 2014
Cecilia Tkacyzk was sworn in as a state Senator on January 23, 2013 after a court certified her as the winner of the 46th District.
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eorge Amedore had won. In the battle for the 46th state Senate District, the photogenic and well funded assemblyman had fended off a spirited attack from Cecilia Tkacyzk, an unknown Democrat from rural Duanesburg who showed up late and with little money. The upstate district, which stretches from rural Montgomery County down the western banks of the Hudson and along back roads snaking through sleepy villages and towns, was tailormade for Amedore by the Republican
Senate majority in the last round of redistricting. But the 2012 campaign her turned the sleepy district into a battlefield, amid the bloody, bareknuckle fight for control of the prized seat. On Election Day Amedore, the Republican nominee, held a razor-thin margin of 139 votes. By the end of the month, after additional ballots were counted, his lead grew to around 700. Then in mid-December, following the opening of roughly 2,500 absentee and affidavit ballots, a state Supreme Court
judge decided the fate of the district: Amedore was certified the winner by 37 votes. Although Tkacyzk refused to concede, the former assemblyman took the oath of office and readied himself to join the Senate. A legal challenge from Tkacyzk ensued, but Republicans held fast to the seat. However, in mid-January, an appellate court authorized the vote count to resume, and as a small number of outstanding ballots were opened, Amedore’s minute lead vanished. Ultimately it was Tkacyzk who was
proclaimed the winner, by a mere 18 votes, and Democrats across the state rejoiced in stealing a critical victory from the GOP. The party had picked up three other Republican seats, giving it the 32 seats mathematically needed to regain control of the 63-seat chamber, but there was more to the equation. A newly formed coalition between the Republicans and a cohort of breakaway Democrats, which dubbed itself the Independent Democratic Conference, upended the numerical majority. While the Democrats had cityandstateny.com
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s uphill a battle 2012 was for the Senate Democrats, 2014 will be even steeper. The 29 current Republican senators share control of the upper house thanks to the five rogue IDC members who caucus with them. Another Democrat, who is unaffiliated with the IDC— Simcha Felder of Brooklyn—also caucuses with the Republicans, giving the coalition a 35-member voting majority. The arithmetic gets more complicated when Sens. Malcolm Smith and John Sampson are added to the equation. While technically Democrats who vote with the minority conference, both men are under indictment. The Democrats booted Sampson, and Smith was dropped by the IDC, which he had briefly joined, leaving them essentially in the wilderness. Each major party has also lost one member to resignation: Eric Adams, a Democrat, gave up his seat after being elected Brooklyn borough president, and Charles Fuschillo, a Long Island Republican, stepped down at the end of 2013 to head the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. Unless Gov. Andrew Cuomo changes his mind and calls for special elections—a move that appears virtually out of the question at this point—those vacancies will remain unfilled until the fall election. As a result, at the moment the number of Senate Democrats comes out to 24—26 including Sampson and Smith, and 27 assuming a Democrat wins Adams’ former seat, which is all but certain to occur given the Democrats practically insurmountable registration advantage in the district. Thus, to get to the 32 seats needed for a majority, Democrats need a net gain of five seats, provided none of the IDC’s members returns to the fold. A number of experts say the Democrats will have a hard time adding even three or four seats, which would leave them with no more than 31 in total—although one insider suggested that Felder would consider rejoining their conference if they were in position to retake the majority. On the other side of the aisle, some Albany politicos project that Republicans could pick up two or three seats, swelling the majority coalition to as many as 38 members, assuming Felder and the IDC stay on board. Senate Democrats have trumpeted their success in erasing the debt from their
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campaign account, which wound up deep in the red after the 2012 election cycle, but broader trends—including the fact that there is no presidential race this year, which should decrease turnout among Democratic voters— suggest better odds for the GOP. And with Democrats likely at this point to retain their hold on all three statewide offices—governor, attorney general, comptroller—as well as the majority in the Assembly, the Republican Party is certain to fight tooth and nail to preserve control over the Senate— their last bastion of statewide influence. “For the Republicans this race is existential. They’re in a fight for their lives. They can’t afford to lose anything,” said Larry Levy, the dean of Hofstra’s National Center for Suburban Studies. “That adds a level of energy and effort on the Republican side that you may not see on the Democrats’ side. Even if they pick up seats, there is still no guarantee that they will control the house on the possibility that they would lose the Independent Caucus to the Democrats.” The IDC, which funded Democratic primary challengers in 2012 and has openly discussed taking on incumbent Democrats again, further complicates the landscape. The regular Democrats, under attack from both the Republicans and the IDC, are going on the offensive too: Senate IDC Leader Jeff Klein could face a primary challenge from Oliver Koppell, the former state attorney general, assemblyman and New York City councilman. There have also been rumors that IDC senators David Valesky and Tony Avella could have primaries. The IDC is not expected to back challengers against their Republican coalition partners, but they too could find themselves marginalized if the Republicans win an outright majority and no longer need to share power with them. “You’re going to have Republicans trying to pick up Democratic seats. You may have the IDC trying to, in primaries, pick up Democratic seats. And you have the regular Democrats who want to win Republican seats or IDC seats. So in a sense you have a three-way competition this year,” said Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg. “The key for Jeff Klein and the IDC members is to ensure that neither the regular Democrats nor the Republicans get to 32 seats, and therefore they need Jeff Klein and the IDC. It makes for a very interesting dynamic.”
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t the center of the Republicans’ power base in the state Senate is the so-called Long Island Nine. Republicans currently hold all nine of the island’s
seats, and they vote together as a unified bloc. State Sen. Dean Skelos, the leader of the Senate Republicans, hails from Nassau County—one of the island’s two counties, along with Suffolk— and his party has catered to local demands on education, transportation and taxes. Demographic shifts—more immigrants and minorities, and a growing Democratic enrollment— have made Long Island an increasingly competitive landscape, but the Republicans have held on. Democrats aggressively targeted Republican senators like Kemp Hannon and Jack Martins in 2012, through they failed to pick up any seats. Then, at the end of 2013, with the resignation of Fuschillo, the nine became eight. Shortly thereafter that number fell to seven when state Sen. Lee Zeldin announced a run for Congress. The seat formerly held by Fuschillo may represent the best opportunity for a Democratic pickup not only on Long Island but statewide. David Denenberg, the early favorite to be the Democrat’s nominee, has the on-paper advantage over the Republican’s candidate Michael Venditto because of his party’s 52 percent to 48 percent voter registration advantage in the district. Both Denenberg and Venditto are county legislators, though for Town of Oyster Bay residents the name Venditto bolsters his case. Venditto’s father, John, is the town’s longtime supervisor, which could persuade some voters to support him and motivate the local Republican machine to rally behind his candidacy. Zeldin’s seat is technically open, but he could re-emerge as a Senate candidate if he fails to defeat lawyer George Demos in the Republican primary to challenge Rep. Tim Bishop. If Zeldin ends up seeking reelection, he would have a considerable advantage as an incumbent. If he moves on, the Republican vying to replace him could benefit from having Zeldin at the top of the ticket. Democrat Adrienne Esposito, who has made a name for herself as an environmental activist, has filed to run, while the GOP is putting its weight behind Islip Town Councilman Anthony Senft, a registered Conservative. If nothing else, Senft will have history on his side: Brian Foley—Zeldin’s predecessor— is the only Democratic state senator from Suffolk county since 1902. Republicans will have to play defense elsewhere in the state, too, especially in Erie County, where state Sen. Mark Grisanti has managed to stay in office despite attacks from the right and the left. In a three-way race during the last election cycle, Grisanti won with 50.1 percent of the vote.
Several Republicans, including 2012 rival Kevin Stocker, are looking to run, while Laura Palisano Hackathorn, a Hamburg village trustee, has met with Senate Democrats about a bid. Grisanti recently picked up the Independence Party’s backing, but is unlikely to win the Conservative Party line, which could be pivotal this fall. “I think that’s a vulnerable seat,” said Mike Long, the head of the state Conservative Party. “I think that’s going to be a very tough election. He’s had a couple bad votes. He not only voted for same-sex marriage but he voted up there in that neck of the woods for the SAFE Act. For his race, some of those issues are going to be discussed up there.”
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hen New York passed a landmark same-sex marriage law in 2011, Grisanti was one of four Republican senators to cross the aisle and vote in favor of the legislation. Another senator, Roy McDonald, was knocked out by a fellow Republican, Kathy Marchione, in 2012. Democratic newcomers replaced the other two GOP senators who voted “yes”— Hudson Valley’s Stephen Saland and James Alesi of Rochester—and Republicans now see those two seats as prime targets for pick-ups in 2014, along with Tkaczyk’s seat, which Amedore is expected to make another bid for this fall. In what was Saland’s district, Terry Gipson slipped into office in 2012 with less than 50 percent of the vote in a three-way race against Saland and the Conservative Party’s Neil DiCarlo, who was unhappy with Saland’s same-sex marriage vote. This year Robert Rolison, the chair of the Dutchess County Legislature, already has the support of local Republican county committees, although he will have to beat at least two other Republicans in a primary. In another remarkable pickup for Democrats in 2012, Ted O’Brien won Alesi’s seat by beating former Republican assemblyman Sean Hanna with just 52 percent of the vote. This year Republicans say they are excited about the candidacy of Richard Funke, a popular retired television newscaster in Rochester who recently entered the race. Add to these promising challenges the expected candidacy of Amedore and Republicans are in a strong position this cycle to expand their conference. “Should George Amedore be the candidate, if he decides to run, he will win that seat,” said John McArdle, a former Senate Republican spokesman. “They will win in Rochester, and as long
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city & state — April 7, 2014
won several key fights, they had not won the war. Instead they would have to endure another two years in the minority, anxiously waiting until 2014 for another chance to tip the balance of power in their favor.
GAGE SKIDMORE
city & state — April 7, 2014
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State Sen. Lee Zeldin’s decision to run for Congress could create a rare open seat in the GOP stronghold of Long Island.
as the Republicans and Conservatives and independents are united in the Hudson Valley, they will pick up that seat. I believe they will hold any of the open seats that are there now, at least with Fuschillo’s seat—and assuming Lee Zeldin is a congressional candidate, they will hold that seat as well.” Across the aisle, Democrats will have the additional test of trying to fortify some of their incumbents against rivals from within their own party, too. In Buffalo, Sen. Tim Kennedy faces a primary challenge from a candidate the IDC is pushing hard to back. Erie County Legislature Minority Leader Betty Jean Grant, who lost to Kennedy by just 156 votes in the 2012 Democratic Primary, is likely to take him on again, and she has already met with Klein about getting the IDC’s support. Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins is another potential IDC target, with Westchester County Legislator Virginia Perez reportedly eyeing a challenge. The Senate Democrat regulars, who are quick to dismiss the potential threat to Stewart-Cousins as toothless, are targeting an IDC member of their own: Co-Majority Leader Klein. Oliver
Koppell has not officially announced his candidacy, but he has repeatedly blasted the IDC and Klein over issues like the failure of the state Senate to pass the DREAM Act, a top priority for immigrant groups. Operatives seem keen on backing Koppell if he declares, though some observers doubt that he can defeat Klein. Nonetheless, a close race could rattle the IDC, especially if the conference suffers a loss elsewhere. IDC insiders have repeatedly called Koppell a nonthreat, and they seem ready to focus attention elsewhere to challenge Democrats.
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he common wisdom about the biennial battle for the State Senate is that Republicans will have the upper hand this time around. In 2012 large turnout for the presidential race boosted Democratic candidates across the state, giving them a fleeting majority. The same dynamic was at play in 2008, when Democrats briefly won control of the Senate. In 2010, however, the Republicans recovered and took back the chamber. If this pattern holds, Republicans could extend their power—possibly even winning enough seats to no longer
need to share power with the IDC. “Historically, gubernatorial election years tend to be better for Republicans, while presidential election years tend to be better for Democrats—and that’s just a reflection of turnout,” Greenberg noted. “While the overall statewide enrollment is 2–1 D, in presidential election years the turnout tends to be 2–1 or actually a little bit better than 2–1 D, whereas in gubernatorial years the statewide turnout tends to be several points below 2–1. Republicans close the gap a little bit. And in marginal districts or tightly contested districts, that can make a big difference.” While President Obama is not on the ballot this cycle, he could still be a factor in some races. Distaste for Obamacare could motivate Republicans to go to the polls in greater number to vote for GOP candidates down the ballot, although the Affordable Care Act’s implementation has gone relatively smoothly in New York. After six years with Obama in the White House, the president’s declining popularity and Democratic fatigue could also be an Election Day boost for Republicans. “The other factor which is beyond the control of all of these candidates
is: What’s the mood?” said John Faso, a former Republican nominee for governor. “What are the voters feeling? Are they unhappy with Obama? Do they like the trend in the state and the nation? That’s going to influence a lot of people in terms of whether they decide to come out or not.” While national issues and voter trends likely will play a major role in determining congressional races around the state, those contests could in turn have a tangible effect on the outcome of the Senate fights. Democratic strategist Bruce Gyory pointed to the last election cycle, when Rep. Louise Slaughter held her seat by 14 points over challenger Maggie Brooks. That victory, he said, helped Ted O’Brien squeak past Republican challenger Sean Hanna 52–48. The coattail effects are not limited to congressional candidates and federal politics. Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s race against Rob Astorino, the likely Republican nominee, could have an impact as well. Despite being the state’s top elected Democrat, Cuomo has a track record of largely staying out of Senate races, especially in the early going. In upstate New York the cityandstateny.com
Republicans both publicly and privately express optimism about their prospects of holding the Senate in 2014. “The key to electoral success is recruiting excellent candidates, and very shortly our contenders will be announced. These community leaders have accomplished records of professional achievements and compassionate caring in their neighborhoods and regions,” wrote state Sen. Catharine Young, who heads the Senate Republicans’ re-election efforts, in a recent op-ed in City & State. “I look forward to great success in 2014.” Another probable plus for Republicans is campaign fundraising, an area where the GOP has traditionally outmatched their opponents. “Our fundraising is going extremely well, and we have a lot of support across the state,” Young said. “I expect we’ll have the resources we need to be victorious.” But state Sen. Michael Gianaris, who leads the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, pushes back against the significance of the Republicans’ likely financial advantage by pointing to the last election, when Democrats picked up four seats despite being roughly $1.78 million in debt.
A
s predictive as past races can be, and as important as it is to understand the current dynamics at play, elections always pose the possibility of surprise. Tkacyzk’s razor-thin victory was perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2012 election, particularly given her late entry into the race. Shockers go back further, too. In 2004 Stewart-Cousins lost by just 18 votes to incumbent Nick Spano, then came back in 2006 to defeat him. In 2008 Democrat Brian Foley took Caesar Trunzo’s Long Island seat. In 2007 when Michael Balboni left the Senate to become deputy secretary for public safety under Gov. Eliot Spitzer, Democrat Craig Johnson won over Republican Maureen O’Connell. In 2010 Grisanti beat Democratic Sen. Antoine Thompson in a stunning upset. “If surprises were the norm in the last five election cycles,” Gyory said, “why should we be shocked if there are surprises this year?” For Gianaris and the Democrats, a few surprises that go their way could make their long-shot bid to reclaim the majority successful. Still, Gianaris sounded cautious when asked what were the Democrats’ odds of taking over, focusing instead on smaller gains
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that could convince the IDC to rejoin the larger Democratic Conference. “We will move in a positive direction,” Gianaris said. “How many? I don’t know. But we expect to have more seats after Election Day than we have today.” “If we’re making progress, I think everyone who follows state government knows that in 2016 this is all over,” he continued. “That will be a presidential year with a very strong top of the ticket, whoever that might be. We’ll have a full two-year cycle of being debt-free, so we’ll have several million more dollars in 2016 than we have this year.” For Levy, the 2016 strategy makes the most sense because 2014 stands be a good year for Senate Republicans. “That’s really the only strategy they have,” he said. “Look at what Republicans have going for them: a Democratic governor who has shown no interest in promoting the Democratic caucus; a national dynamic that is now trending against Democrats at every level; and a funding and organizational advantage over their opponents. That’s not a scenario for a party to make big gains. They basically need to focus on places where they can pick up a seat or two and make as much progress as they can until they have another opportunity.”
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city & state — April 7, 2014
GAGE SKIDMORE
governor’s controversial gun control law, the SAFE Act, could propel conservatives to the polls looking to punish Democrats. Even if he loses to Cuomo, Astorino, who has performed well in a swing district, could potentially boost Republican Senate contenders as a credible candidate at the top of the ticket. Of course, if polls consistently show Cuomo crushing Astorino, they could dampen Republican morale and keep down turnout. Conversely, Hofstra’s Larry Levy said local elections are essential for New York’s Republican Party to rebuild itself, and a string of regional victories in 2013 could represent “a realistic glimmer of hope for Republicans in statewide races.” On Long Island, Nassau County reelected Republican county executive Ed Mangano, despite the Democrats’ voter registration advantage. In Westchester County Astorino overcame a 2-to-1 Democratic majority to keep his hold on the county executive’s seat. Elsewhere, Republicans took control of the Erie County Legislature and won the mayor’s office in Binghamton with Richard David. While the state’s overwhelming majority of Democrats always poses a daunting challenge to the GOP,
THE C&S POLITICAL REPORT
T
he balance of power in the New York State Senate is about as complicated as it can get for a legislative body, and it could get even more confusing come election season when not two but three conferences will square off for at least a share of control of the state’s upper house. In a handful of Senate districts that went down to the wire in 2012, incumbents and challengers—some old, some new—are already preparing for a repeat of those hard-fought battles. Meanwhile, several vacancies are shaking things up, and there is still time for more senators to retire or resign. To make sense of it all, City & State mapped out the current landscape, identified the key electoral contests in 2014 and compiled an early update on where each race stands.
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Current Landscape
Republicans: 29 Vacant (formerly Republican): 1 Democrat caucusing with Republicans: 1 Independent Democratic Conference (IDC): 5 Nonaligned Democrats: 2 Vacant (formerly Democrat): 1 Democrats: 24
city & state — April 7, 2014
Election Landscape
Solid Republican/IDC: 24 Likely Republican/IDC: 4 Lean Republican/IDC: 5 Toss-ups: 6 Lean Democrat: 2 Likely Democrat: 4 Solid Democrat: 18 THE INDEPENDENT DEMOCRATIC CONFERENCE (IDC) IS GROUPED TOGETHER WITH THE SENATE REPUBLICANS, WITH WHOM THEY CURRENTLY SHARE POWER.
cityandstateny.com
THE REPUBLICANS AND THE IDC MARTIN GOLDEN (R)
LIKELY REPUBLICAN/IDC
JOHN BONACIC JOHN DeFRANCISCO HUGH FARLEY
JEFFREY KLEIN (IDC)
JOHN FLANAGAN PATRICK GALLIVAN JOSEPH GRIFFO ANDREW LANZA KENNETH LaVALLE TOM LIBOUS ELIZABETH LITTLE CARL MARCELLINO KATHLEEN MARCHIONE GEORGE MAZIARZ MICHAEL NOZZOLIO THOMAS O’MARA MICHAEL RANZENHOFER
TONY AVELLA (IDC) The state senator from northeast Queens has a reputation as a maverick, and in February he lived up to that label by leaving the regular Democrats to join the IDC. His move quickly met with criticism and calls to recruit a primary challenger. Although he has only $2,776 in his campaign account, Avella is popular in his district and has portrayed his conference switching as a boon for his constituents.
The IDC leader faces a potential primary challenge from Oliver Koppell, the former attorney general, assemblyman and New York City councilman. Koppell’s attacks on Klein this year reflect broader Democratic disillusionment with the IDC’s coalition with the GOP. Yet Klein is a prodigious fundraiser and a strong campaigner, and his push for prekindergarten funding and other progressive priorities may give him a boost despite a failure to pass other bills, such as the DREAM Act. At the same time, the Working Families Party and others on the left have blasted Klein’s record, and could pour their resources into supporting a challenge to the Senate majority co-leader.
PATTY RITCHIE JOSEPH ROBACH
DEAN SKELOS CATHARINE YOUNG DAVID CARLUCCI (IDC) DIANE SAVINO (IDC) DAVID VALESKY (IDC)
PHILIP BOYLE (R) Senate Democrats have been eyeing potential pickups on Long Island, where shifting demographics favor the party, but Republicans have held them at bay. Boyle, who represents part of Suffolk County, won re-election with 52.6 percent of the vote in 2012. This year he was conspicuously absent from an unsuccessful vote on the DREAM Act, an issue that could energize Latinos in his district. cityandstateny.com
SIMCHA FELDER (D/R) The Brooklyn Democrat defected to the GOP shortly after getting elected in 2012. He is in a strong position to win re-election this year, although some observers speculate that he will join whichever conference gives him more power. With the Senate Republicans likely to rebound from a disappointing 2012 performance at the polls and extend or even expand their majority coalition, look for Felder to stay where he’s at—at least for now.
GREG BALL (R)
WILLIAM LARKIN (R)
Ball has flirted with a run for Putnam County executive; however, even if he runs for re-election to the Senate, the Republicans could have a tough time holding onto his seat. In 2012 he beat Democrat Justin Wagner with just 51 percent of the vote, and Wagner has already announced his plans to challenge him again. As for campaign funds, Ball has $136,500; Wagner has over $97,000. Ball can be unpredictable, but he knows how to make headlines and is a spirited campaigner.
Larkin’s district, which includes parts of Orange, Rockland and Ulster counties, has more active Democratic voters than Republican and Conservative voters combined. Nonetheless, the incumbent, who has been in office since 1990, was re-elected again in 2012 with 52.3 percent of the vote.
LEAN REPUBLICAN/IDC
JAMES SEWARD
State Sen. Marty Golden is a member of a rare breed: a New York City Republican in elected office. More than half of the voters in his South Brooklyn district are Democrats, but Golden has proven popular, beating his Democratic opponent in 2012 with 57.7 percent of the vote. His strong fundraising could also be a deterrent to potential challengers: In January he reported close to half a million dollars in his campaign treasury.
KEMP HANNON (R)
Hannon, a longtime incumbent who won with 52 percent of the vote in 2012, is also among the Long Island lawmakers who have been targeted as changes in area demographics offer potential pickup opportunities for Democrats. Like Boyle, Hannon has a significant number of Hispanic voters in his district and was absent from the recent Senate vote on the DREAM Act.
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JACK MARTINS (R) Martins will face businessman Adam Haber, a Democrat who last fall lost the Democratic primary for Nassau County executive. Four in ten active voters in the district are Democrats, while Republicans number just 31 percent. But Martins, who won re-election in 2012 with 51.8 percent of the vote, has $285,000 in campaign funds, and Republicans say he is a strong campaigner. Haber, who loaned himself $1 million for his county executive run, is expected to be able to self-fund his challenge.
city & state — April 7, 2014
SAFE REPUBLICAN/IDC
THE TOSS-UPS
8TH SENATE DISTRICT (R)
CECILIA TKACZYK (D)
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After two court rulings and a recount, Tkaczyk beat then Assemblyman George Amedore by just 18 votes in a surprise come-from-behind victory. Amedore, a Republican, is widely expected to run against the Democratic incumbent again in the Capital Region–Hudson Valley district, which was added in the last round of redistricting and was seen as custommade for an Amedore candidacy. In January Tkaczyk had $119,000 in campaign funds, while Amedore reported far less—but Amedore easily outpaced Tkaczyk in dollars raised the last time around.
city & state — April 7, 2014
TERRY GIPSON (D) Gipson was one of several Democrats to win a close contest in 2012, coming out on top in a three-way race with just 43.8 percent of the vote. The Republican incumbent, Stephen Saland, was hurt by his vote for same-sex marriage and by the Conservative Party candidacy of Neil DiCarlo in the general election. Now Republicans are eager to win back the seat: Dutchess County Legislature Chairman Robert Rolison won local party backing, while Dutchess County Comptroller Jim Coughlan and Poughkeepsie Mayor John Tkazyik are also in the mix. Gipson reported nearly $223,000 in campaign funds in January. So far only Tkazyik has reported a similar fundraising amount on the GOP side, with $227,270 in the bank.
TED O’BRIEN (D) In 2012 O’Brien won the seat that had been held by veteran Republican state Sen. James Alesi, who declined to run for re-election after his vote for same-sex marriage—although the real reason for his retirement may have been an ill-advised lawsuit he filed after injuring himself while trespassing. O’Brien beat former Republican assemblyman Sean Hanna in 2012 with 52 percent of the vote. Hanna recently loaned himself $200,000 for another potential run; however, Republicans expect the nominee to be Richard Funke, a retired television newscaster in Rochester with high name recognition. Still, Funke’s campaign got off to a rough start when he fired a communications aide who was exposed for having been convicted of soliciting a prostitute.
MARK GRISANTI (R) Despite his controversial vote for same-sex marriage, Grisanti eked out a re-election win in 2012 with 50.2 percent of the vote in a three-way race against a Democrat and a Conservative Party candidate. This year he is under attack for his vote in favor of the SAFE Act. The race could again be crowded: Erie County Legislator Kevin Hardwick and attorney Kevin Stocker may challenge him in a Republican primary. Democrat Laura Palisano Hackathorn, a Hamburg village trustee, and the Tea Party’s Rus Thompson are also eyeing the contest. While Grisanti will have a hard time securing Conservative Party support, he did line up backing from the Independence Party. Some have speculated that Grisanti could even switch parties, given the district’s sizable Democratic enrollment advantage, his own status as a former Democrat, and a report that he had sought the Democratic line for 2014 in addition to the Republican line.
When Republican state Sen. Charles Fuschillo (pictured above) resigned at the end of 2013, he created an open seat in a district straddling Nassau and Suffolk counties that will be a fiercely contested battleground. The popular Fuschillo—he won with 59 percent of the vote in 2012— made things easy for Republicans despite a registration disadvantage, but now Nassau County Legislator Michael Venditto will have his hands full fending off the Democratic nominee, whether it is fellow Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg or Freeport Deputy Mayor Carmen Piñeyro. Venditto, 32, is the son of Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto.
3RD SENATE DISTRICT (R) Republican state Sen. Lee Zeldin’s decision to challenge Democrat Rep. Tim Bishop opened up a second Republican-held district on Long Island—assuming that Zeldin wins the GOP primary for Congress. Zeldin’s Suffolk County seat may be slightly less vulnerable for Republicans than Fuschillo’s, but it is still a toss-up. Anthony Senft, a councilman on the Islip Town Board and a registered member of the Conservative Party, is the Suffolk Republicans’ designated candidate for the seat. He will likely face Democrat Adrienne Esposito, an environmentalist and the executive director of the Citizens Campaign for the Environment. cityandstateny.com
THE DEMOCRATS SAFE DEMOCRAT
LIKELY DEMOCRAT
20TH SENATE DISTRICT (ADAMS) NEIL BRESLIN RUBÉN DÍAZ SR. MARTIN MALAVÉ DILAN ADRIANO ESPAILLAT MICHAEL GIANARIS RUTH HASSELL-THOMPSON BRAD HOYLMAN LIZ KRUEGER VELMANETTE MONTGOMERY KEVIN PARKER JOSÉ PERALTA BILL PERKINS JOHN SAMPSON
JOSEPH ADDABBO (D)
GUSTAVO RIVERA (D)
TOBY ANN STAVISKY (D)
Addabbo held onto his Queens district with a surprisingly large 57.6 percent share of the vote in 2012 after a spirited challenge from Republican Eric Ulrich, who has since been re-elected to the New York City Council. Although Ulrich still has $52,000 in his Senate campaign account (compared with Addabbo’s $30,000), insiders expect Ulrich to take a pass and for Addabbo to have an even easier race this year.
Rivera easily won his primary and general election races in 2012, but he could face a primary challenge in his Bronx district this year from New York City Councilman Fernando Cabrera. It is unclear whether the IDC would support Cabrera, but the conference looked at supporting a Rivera challenger in 2012 and might do so again this year.
Stavisky has been rumored as another target of the IDC, although it is unclear who might run against her this year. In 2012 she won a primary against John Messer with 54.5 percent of the vote. The senator reported $40,796.97 in campaign funds in January.
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JAMES SANDERS JOSÉ M. SERRANO DANIEL SQUADRON MALCOLM SMITH LEAN DEMOCRAT
GEORGE LATIMER (D) Latimer gave up his Assembly seat to run for the state Senate in 2012 and beat Republican businessman Bob Cohen in a closely watched race with a comfortable 54.1 percent of the vote. Cohen, who had come close to knocking out Latimer’s predecessor Suzi Oppenheimer in 2010, still has an active campaign account, but there is no indication that he is planning to run again this year. cityandstateny.com
The 63rd Senate District is likely to stay in the hands of a Democrat, given the party’s large enrollment advantage in and around Buffalo. But Kennedy will have to fend off a primary rematch from Erie County Legislature Minority Leader Betty Jean Grant, who lost to him by just 156 votes in 2012. And since the Independent Democratic Conference has pledged to support Grant, a victory could move the seat to the IDC’s column. One key issue in this race could be abortion rights, with the IDC’s Jeff Klein claiming that Grant would better support a pro-choice agenda than Kennedy. In January Kennedy had over $215,000 in campaign funds, while Grant has yet to report this year how much she has raised.
city & state — April 7, 2014
TIMOTHY KENNEDY (D)
city & state — April 7, 2014
AFFORDABLE HOUSING SHUTTERSTOCK- POLA DAMONTE
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SPOTLIGHT:
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ASTORINO FUELS HUD STANDOFF OVER HOUSING SEGREGATION By EMMANUEL FELTON from THE NEW YORK WORLD
city & state — April 7, 2014
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HUD vowed to withhold three years’ worth of block grant funding, totaling $17.4 million, until the county submitted a version it found acceptable. In September 2013 HUD permanently pulled $7.4 million of those funds, and the remainder of the block grant money remains in jeopardy. In the past Westchester has spent the block grant funds—which must primarily benefit lower-income communities—on street repair, parks and other community improvements. Faced with the prospect of losing $17.4 million in federal funds, in the lead-up to his 2013 re-election as county executive Astorino dug in with a Wall Street Journal op-ed that began: “Do you think it is a good idea to give the Department of Housing and Urban Development unchecked power to put an apartment building in your neighborhood?” He argued that Westchester was ahead of schedule on the timeline set in the agreement, with 400 units in the pipeline and 124 already occupied, and that the county had completed the necessary zoning analysis. Astorino opined that despite the county’s adherence to the 2009 agreement, “HUD isn’t satisfied because it wants to control local zoning and remake communities.” The court-appointed monitor, James Johnson of the firm Debevoise & Plimpton, has not contested Astorino’s 400-unit count. But Craig Gurian, the lawyer who originally brought the suit, disputes both the housing tally and the zoning analysis. According to Gurian, several of the affordable units counted toward the 750 total were initially approved before the agreement went into effect, and thus should be excluded under the terms of the consent decree. In addition, Gurian argues that many of the affordable developments are in nonresidential areas. The consent decree requires that the county maximize development in census blocks with the lowest concentration of African-Americans and Hispanics. In its filings with the monitor Westchester points to several
developments on blocks without any black or Hispanic residents. Gurian noted that these are often in commercial strips with few residents at all, or else are on unpopulated tracts of land. “Concentration is a relative term,” Gurian said. “This doesn’t help reduce residential segregation.” Ned McCormack, the county’s communications director, said that all of the developments are in line with the settlement. “There is a set of benchmarks in this settlement, and we are almost a year ahead of schedule,” McCormack said. “We will do what is in the settlement, but we will not bow to the federal government and change zoning where we don’t have to.” Just a day after Astorino announced
his bid for governor, the developer of a proposed complex in Chappaqua, which is slated to include 28 of the required affordable units, filed a housing discrimination complaint with HUD alleging that Westchester and the town of New Castle sought to block the development after the county’s board of legislators turned down funding for the project. Astorino’s office said he supports the Chappaqua development. The New York World produces accountability journalism devoted to deepening public understanding of the ways city and state government shape life in New York City. The project, which is published by Columbia Journalism School, is online at www.thenewyorkworld. com.
Gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino has battled HUD during his tenure as Westchester County executive.
ROB ASTORINO FOR GOVERNOR VIA FACEBOOK
W
hile campaigning to be the next governor, Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino is continuing to wage a separate campaign—this one against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Astorino’s fight is costing Westchester millions of dollars in federal funds, with no sign of the candidate backing down as he enters the spotlight as a small-government conservative. The county executive has been sparring with HUD over a 2009 agreement signed by his predecessor, Andrew Spano, a Democrat. The consent decree, which settled a 2006 lawsuit brought by the AntiDiscrimination Center, requires Westchester to build 750 affordable housing units by 2016 in neighborhoods with few black or Hispanic residents. The decree also ordered the county to set aside $51.5 million for the construction of affordable housing. Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said that the showdown over housing segregation in his county is not likely to affect Astorino’s prospects in his race for governor. “I don’t think it is an issue that people outside of Westchester have heard of,” Greenberg said. “Three quarters of New Yorkers say they don’t know enough about Astorino.” Both Astorino and Spano have battled HUD over the terms of the settlement, including fights over timetables and obligations of landlords to accept Section 8 vouchers and other forms of government rent aid. But so far the biggest standoff has been over Westchester’s claim that the county’s development rules do not prohibit the creation of apartment complexes alongside single-family homes. The county has submitted an analysis to HUD showing that no such “exclusionary” zoning exists. The county’s conclusion was supported by a study from the Pace University Land Use Law Center. Finding that Westchester’s zoning analysis was “lacking in substance,”
cityandstateny.com
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A ‘DOMINO’ EFFECT? DEVELOPERS AND ADVOCATES EYE THE BROOKLYN PROPERTY AS A POTENTIAL PRECEDENT FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING POLICY By AZURE GILMAN
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hat a difference a new administration makes. At the end of last year developer Jed Walentas had a deal in place to turn the waterfront Domino Sugar Refinery into high-end Williamsburg apartments, including 660 units of affordable housing— roughly 30 percent of the building’s capacity. Walentas’ company, Two Trees, had already played an integral role in transforming formerly downand-out Brooklyn neighborhoods like DUMBO into glossy, expensive new locales for the rich and hip—and the Domino project appeared set to be the next outpost in Walentas’ empire. Then Mayor Bill de Blasio coasted into office in January touting his campaign promise to create or preserve 200,000 units of affordable housing. Rather than abiding by the deal Walentas had struck with the Bloomberg administration, de Blasio let the developer know that Two Trees’ plans for Domino were in jeopardy because its affordable housing allocation was insufficient. In March the de Blasio administration announced that Two Trees had essentially bowed to its demands, agreeing to add 110,000 square feet of affordable housing to reach a total of 537,000 square feet. The revised Domino project is slated to create 700 affordable apartments covering a range of incomes, and there will be a significant number of twoand three-bedroom units sized for families. The affordable apartments will be integrated throughout the complex with the aim of creating a dynamic mixed-income community— and unlike in prior proposals, all of those units will remain at affordable rates in perpetuity. In return, Two Trees was allowed to increase the height of the project to 55 stories, which, according to The New York Times is “20 stories higher than the current regulations permit.” Despite the new agreement, at a City Council hearing on April 1 focusing on the latest version of the Domino project, some advocates and elected officials expressed concerns.
“Many times these kinds of [inclusionary zoning] deals [have been] done on negotiated understandings with developers that were not necessarily legally binding. It’s important to have it actually legally codified,” said Moses Gates of the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development (ANHD). “To Two Trees’ credit, they were always open to that paradigm. The next step is to really write these affordability restrictions into the zoning code across the board, and not have to rely on ad hoc negotiations on affordability for each new development.” The fungibility of affordable
housing requirements was reinforced when Steve Levin, one of two Council members who represent Williamsburg, pressed Walentas about the specific number of affordable housing units the project would ultimately include. Walentas admitted that the number might actually end up being fewer than the 700 units agreed to with the de Blasio administration. “We’ll be building a guaranteed minimum … As a developer with a billion and a half [dollar] project over many years before us, there’s a good chance that we build fewer than we build more,” Walentas said. “My best guess would be somewhere between
660 and 700 affordable units.” The vagueness of that number highlights a deficiency in what has become one of the city’s chief tools to create new affordable housing: “inclusionary zoning”—the requirement that a developer include a certain percentage of affordable housing units in exchange for being allowed to build. The percentage of affordable housing is measured in square feet, not by the number of units, meaning that housing advocates’ push for larger apartments could wind up bringing about a diminution in the total number of units ultimately made available when the project is
The former Domino Sugar factory in Greenpoint, Brooklyn will likely soon be turned into luxury housing.
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Aaron Sirulnick, Chairman of the Board, Rent Stabilization Association
Affordable Housing Doesn’t Come Cheap
A F FO R DA B L E H O U S I N G
expect that the de Blasio administration and City Council’s increased demands for affordable housing will constitute a new normal for the industry. At the Domino hearing Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley, addressing Walentas, seemed to sum up the general feeling among her Council colleagues. “This is a different Council today than it was a few months back. We have much more progressive leaders that care about workers and families. And your project is going to set a precedent for the rest of the city,” said Crowley. “You’re going to receive a significant amount of funding through tax abatements and government bonds … and overall it looks like it could be a gain for our city, [but] we need to be sure. So us acting for an MOU [Memorandum of Understanding], even though it may not be binding, we’re going to trust that agreement, because you’re going to be back here asking for zoning changes in the future.” If the affordable housing goals promised by Two Trees are met— and met in a timely fashion—the Domino project could provide a shot at redemption for de Blasio, who has endured criticism for his support as public advocate of the Atlantic Yards project, where the agreed-upon units of affordable housing have been built at a much slower pace than promised. After talking tough about enforcing the affordable housing agreement struck between ACORN and Forest City Ratner, the developer of the project, de Blasio’s commitment to holding Forest City’s feet to the fire came into question when Bruce Ratner, the company’s CEO, co-chaired the mayor’s 50th birthday fundraiser. When she was still the City Council member representing Atlantic Yards, Public Advocate Letitia James said of Forest City’s failure to meet the affordable housing goal on schedule, “New Yorkers and taxpayers were basically duped.” To guard against a scenario like the one playing out at Atlantic Yards, Benjamin Dulchin, the executive director of the ANHD, suggested in his testimony before the Council that the city mandate inclusionary zoning to give it better leverage in the future. “Domino is a good start, but just a start,” Dulchin said. “The last administration gave away the store. This administration should do better. That probably starts with a baseline of a strong and mandatory inclusionary zoning policy so the city starts from a strong position in every negotiation like Domino.”
New York City needs more affordable housing. But creating or preserving affordable housing is costly and difficult. That’s why some people are advocating the easy way out. They want to freeze rents, or make it more difficult to raise rents, in rent stabilized apartments, the largest pool of existing affordable housing in New York City. Sounds like a simple solution, but it will only make things worse. There are nearly one million rent stabilized apartments in New York City and most are at least 70 years old. These buildings need constant maintenance and are in need of major upgrading. Property owners spent more than $10 billion in 2013 to maintain and improve these rental buildings. About a third of that was spent on City taxes and charges which pay for police, firemen and sanitation workers and other municipal services. The rest was spent locally, hiring neighborhood supers, plumbers and electricians and purchasing hardware, supplies and appliances from local shops.
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Altogether, spending by rental property owners supported more than 160,000 jobs and generated more than $16 billion in economic activity in 2013. But now, New York State regulators are trying to roll back rents and make it much more difficult for rental owners to upgrade and improve their properties. And Mayor Bill de Blasio is on record calling for a freeze on stabilized rents, even though property tax assessments are scheduled to increase by another 10% this year. Without rent increases to meet the constantly rising cost of City real estate taxes, water charges and other operating cost increases, rental owners will not be able to maintain, much less improve, their properties, resulting in sub-standard living conditions. Zero rent increase will shut down the economic engine that supports thousands of local jobs and businesses in neighborhoods throughout the City. And zero rent increase will cut down the tax revenue that supports about 25% of the City’s budget. In a perfect world there would be no increases in taxes, water & sewer rates, fuel, labor or insurance for buildings. Unfortunately that’s not realistic in New York City. To preserve our existing affordable housing, everyone must shoulder these increases and only the truly needy should be insulated from high cost of housing in New York City.
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city & state — April 7. 2014
completed. In his testimony before the Council, Walentas made clear his displeasure about the sudden left turn the Domino deal had taken after the de Blasio administration got involved. “We have spent the better part of one and a half years listening to our and your community and their concerns, and until six weeks ago, we believed that we were headed down a road where on that first building there would be a significant amount of city subsidy made available, and when we got to this point in the process … there would be a three-party agreement that would lock in the amount of city subsidy, the specific AMIs [Average Median Incomes] on that project, and it would be benchmarked to certain unit size,” Walentas said. “It made economic sense to us, or at least made for a project that we know we could finance … The administration went in a different direction, so we had a whole economic framework in place for this entire project that basically went out of the window. Our internal financial assumptions have been reeling since then.” Developers like Walentas should
WHETHER DE BLASIO ACHIEVES HIS AMBITIOUS HOUSING GOAL COULD DEPEND UPON HOW HE MEASURES ‘AFFORDABLE’ By NICK POWELL
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ayor Bill de Blasio stood before a capacity crowd at the downtown Brooklyn Marriott in late March for an assembly hosted by the housing organizing group Metro Industrial Areas Foundation. Many of the audience members had come to hear the mayor lay out his strategy to achieve his stated goal of creating or preserving 200,000 units of affordable housing over the next 10 years, but de Blasio instead spent most of his brief speaking time recapping highlights from the first three months of his administration. Still, in the course of his speech the mayor did hint at part of what his approach may be. “We respect the real estate industry, but we need more from the real estate industry for the people of this city … by adding affordable housing into the plans we’ve made with the real estate industry,” de Blasio said. While the mayor, to the disappointment of some, did not detail those “plans,” his mention of tipping the scales of real estate in favor of the people, while hardly an original notion, was consistent with de Blasio’s central campaign pledge of taking aim at bridging the city’s yawning income disparity. Perhaps the most important factor yet to be addressed by the administration in determining how it will tackle its goal of 200,000 units is how it will define affordable—a critical understanding, yet one upon which housing experts, advocates and real estate developers do not necessarily agree. To elucidate the de Blasio administration’s understanding of affordable, it may prove instructive to consider the first—and so far only— major real estate deal it has brokered: the redevelopment of the Domino Sugar refinery on the Williamsburg waterfront in Brooklyn. After pressure from the mayor, Two Trees, the firm that manages the project, agreed to increase the number of affordable housing units in the development in exchange for the permission to build taller towers—a fairly straightforward trade that reflects a model for
structuring deals for residential buildings that de Blasio hinted in a closed door meeting with real estate executives several weeks ago would be the norm under his administration. The threshold for affordability, as it pertains to Domino and all of the city’s new housing developments, is determined largely by the Area Median Income (AMI) of the New York City region, a metric defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. For the Domino
project, 15 percent of the affordable housing units will be set at 40 percent of the AMI, and 85 percent of the units will be set at 60 percent of the AMI. The problem with AMI, however, according to experts, is that it can be a misleading figure for allocating housing to those who need it the most—i.e., low-income New Yorkers—because of the wide range of income levels across the city’s five boroughs. “You have a lot of sets and subsets in Manhattan. For example, you have the
neighborhood I represent, Harlem, and Manhattan is categorized with all the five boroughs, but in addition to all the five boroughs it’s categorized with Rockland and Westchester County, very high-income counties,” said Keith Wright, the chair of the state Assembly Housing Committee. “Let’s say the average income in Westchester is much higher than the average income in Harlem is, so all of those numbers get lumped in together—so the area median income is lifted up
Mayor de Blasio addresses the crowd at a Metro Industrial Areas Foundation assembly in Brooklyn on March 30.
Rob Bennett
A F FO R DA B L E H O U S I N G city & state — April 7, 2014
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DEFINING AFFORDABILITY
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year for a family of four—would have great difficulty affording even staples such as groceries in that neighborhood, where the median income, according to the 2011 Census, is $171,000. Building in areas of the city that are affordable for this population presents its own difficulties, namely profitability. Several real estate developers, who were reluctant to speak on the record on the subject until Mayor de Blasio has released the details of his housing plan, indicated that while they are willing to upzone their building proposals in return for increasing affordable housing density, the cost of land in New York City is still prohibitive, meaning it will be difficult for the mayor to meet his 200,000-unit goal with the type of 80/20 developments—80 percent market rate, 20 percent affordable— that are currently the norm in the city. “It’s not like building on a sprawling flat suburb where land is cheap and building is cheap,” said Ed Wallace, a former real estate developer and current co-chair of the law firm Greenberg Traurig’s New York office. “You can cut profit a little bit for a developer, but if you eliminate profit, they’re not going to want to build.” Of course, keeping real estate companies profitable is hardly the concern of housing advocates, nor does it seem to be the paramount priority of some members of the city’s newly elected, more progressive government, who will likely be less amenable to “giving away the store” to developers—the perception that many hold of the Bloomberg administration’s record. “Profitability can’t be the only thing we are doing here,” said Jumaane Williams, chair of the City Council Housing and Buildings Committee. “I want people to make money, I just don’t want them to make all of the money on the backs of people who also need assistance in living here. So a lot of developers get a lot of assistance to build what they are building, but they have a problem when they want to trickle some of that assistance down to people who really need it.” These competing views are an indication of the tightrope that de Blasio will have to walk as he and his Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen determine the evolving definition of affordable housing. Their ambitious 200,000-unit goal will likely depend on it.
A Tale of Two Construction Industries On March 25, 2014 – the 103rd Anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire -- the NY County District Attorney published a Grand Jury investigaation into premium fraud in the purchase of Workers’ Compensation Insurance (WC). The report provides a window into the multiple schemes in which dishonest employers, mainly in the construction business, game the system to reduce their premium costs or avoid insurance altogether. WC is intended to financially protect injured workers who may have to pay out of pocket and may be out of work for months. The Grand Jury estimates that premium fraud costs NY taxpayers $500 million per year (equal to Mayor de Blasio’s estimate for the annual cost of quality pre-k for every 4 year old in NYC) and drives cost-shifting to responsible businesses which, in-turn, forces real WC premiums higher and higher. The report illustrates the tale of two construction industries: one segment that pays its share and more of WC premiums and payroll taxes and, in addition, provides construction workers with middle class incomes, health insurance, retirement plans and extensive training through state certified apprenticeship programs; and another segment that does not. As a city and a state, we must summon the political will to demand accountability from this segment of the construction industry that continues to operate in the 19th Century. Unfortunately, the tendency is to look the other way. The developers, the banks, the professionals and the bureaucrats that operate in this segment insulate themselves from accountability through layers of subcontractors that obscure the routine exploitation of construction workers. Most of the workers are over a barrel – they will agree to almost any demand in order to keep their jobs mainly due to their immigration status or their personal level of desperation. Worker exploitation here takes many forms and degrees: paying workers subsistence wages without health insurance, benefits or training to perform what is generally considered dangerous and back-breaking work; blatantly cheating workers out of wages and overtime; and paying workers off-the-books or misclassifying them as independent contractors to avoid taxes and insurance premiums. A 2007 Report by the Fiscal Policy Institute estimated almost 30,000 residential construction workers in NYC (1/3 of the residential construction workforce) are misclassified or employed off-the-books and, in the affordable housing segment where developers also reap the benefits of generous government subsidies, 2/3 of the workers are paid off-the-books. Since that report, multiple investigations and prosecutions of construction companies and their owners by law enforcement have borne out that these deplorable conditions are an everyday reality.
A F FO R DA B L E H O U S I N G
because of the Westchester-Rockland numbers.” The broad sweep of the AMI scale is why some advocates say that the thresholds for measuring affordability should be set much lower in order to take into account the growing number of low-wage workers in the city, such as those who work in food service and retail. “The minimum wage is $16,000 a year—so, forget it, we’re not even building for people that get paid minimum wage,” said Ismene Speliotis, the executive director of the Mutual Housing Association of New York. “You have to have two minimum wage jobs to pay for an apartment. So when I talk about affordability, it incorporates the need for units down to 30 percent of [AMI].” Speliotis’ concerns echo a criticism leveled against former mayor Michael Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan. Critics of that plan—which created and (mostly) preserved over 165,000 units of affordable housing over 10 years—say that the administration focused primarily on the number of housing units produced as the measure of its success. In other words, the administration made no distinction between the value of a unit targeting a family of four earning a household income of 30 percent of AMI, and one aimed at a family of four earning 165 percent of the AMI. Furthermore, a study commissioned by the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development on Bloomberg’s housing plan found that between fiscal years 2009 and 2011, the city developed a mere 3,049 units for households earning less than 40 percent of the AMI, a demographic that encompasses around a third of all city households. But satisfying the housing needs of the city’s lower-income population becomes more complicated depending on where the new housing developments are located, since neighborhood cost of living factors come into play. For example, the real estate developer TF Cornerstone is planning a 1.9 acre residential complex on the far West Side of Manhattan, which would include 1,189 units of housing, 237 of which would be permanently affordable. It is unclear what percentage of AMI the city has determined will be utilized for those affordable units. If the city goes by the Domino standard, those who make 40 percent of AMI—roughly $35,000 a
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The Grand Jury report makes several important recommendations to reduce WC fraud that are a step in the right direction to addressing this tale of two construction industries. Current penalties for premium fraud are inadequate and need to be enhanced and graduated. We need an electronic data base that integrates all the available agency (federal, state & city) information and includes the real time reports of commercial check cashing operations which are used to facilitate cash payrolls. We need increased transparency and revised certificates of insurance which include the employment category and the number of workers covered. Finally, we can facilitate field investigations by requiring insurers to issue individual WC id cards for each covered employee on an employer’s policy. As things stand, we know that there is ample evidence that the current system is far too easy to game and the chances of getting caught are remote. In the long term, we hope to help enact new legislation to make the structural changes necessary to make it more difficult to cheat. In the short term, the government agencies that provide generous subsidies for economic development and affordable housing should be on notice. We can demand that those agencies stop looking the other way (as they have for the last 12 years) and, instead, take the lead in digging down through the layers of subcontractors on a project to ensure that the coverage is real, the premiums are accurate and the workers and taxpayers are protected. Tom Lane, President Chris Guy, Secretary- Treasurer Tile, marble marble & & Terrazzo Union Terrazzo Union
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city & state — April 7. 2014
Rob Bennett
Workers’ Compensation:
A FO R DA B L E H O U S I N G
THE ROUNDTABLE
VICKI BEEN Commissioner, New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development
city & state — April 7, 2014
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Q: Is the city winding down the previous administration’s New Housing Marketplace Plan? VB: While the NHMP has been winding down by design, development projects have long life spans, and there may naturally be some initial overlap. We have learned many lessons from the NHMP and housing efforts of past administrations. We’ve seen the importance of setting ambitious objectives but recognize that we must not lose focus on goals beyond a unit target, because it is people, not units, that matter. A housing plan must be nimble—market conditions change and a successful plan must be able to shift resources to take advantage of a window of favorable conditions, or to find the silver lining when markets are less robust. Q: Will HPD review the city’s 421a property tax abatement program? VB: We are reviewing the tax incentives traditionally used to spur development to see if they can be put to use in new ways to further encourage the private market to produce affordable housing. We also are examining whether the subsidies are working as efficiently as possible and whether the city is getting enough affordable housing in return for the benefit provided. We’ll be looking at whether the periods of affordability required should be longer, how we are weighing the costs and benefits of on-site affordable housing, and whether there are any circumstances in which multiple subsidies are needed to encourage the production of affordable housing.
Q: Will HPD request an increase in the federal volume cap allocation to spur creating more affordable housing? VB: The NYC Housing Development Corporation negotiates with the state for the volume cap we receive, and intends to request an increase in the city’s volume cap allocation. Both HDC and the New York State Housing Finance Agency have moved to a bifurcated financing structure for 80/20 and 50/30/20 projects, a practice that preserves volume cap and the accompanying lowincome housing tax credits by applying it only to the percentage of the units that are affordable. We believe that as a result there will be more volume cap available to finance affordable housing in the city.
KEITH WRIGHT Chair, New York State Assembly Housing Committee Q: What do you think about New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to build or preserve 200,000 units of affordable housing? What can the state Legislature do to help out? KW: My thoughts on the plan are Hip, hip, hooray! I love it. Now I finally get a mayor who’s talking my language, someone that I can communicate with. I think it’s fabulous. I want to be helpful. Whatever we can do in the state Legislature to make that happen is something that I certainly want to do. Certainly we have to define what he wants to do and how he wants to do it, because there are a number of different ways you can go about it. We could probably preserve a lot of
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Emily Lloyd Commissioner, NYC Dept. of Environmental Protection
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State Sen. Mark Grisanti Chair, Senate Environmental Conservation Committee
Councilman Donovan Richards Chair, NYC Council Environmental Protection Committee
Assemblyman Robert Sweeney Chair, Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee (Public Officials pending confirmation)
THE ROUNDTABLE the affordable housing if we’re able to get an influx of capital money to help our New York City Housing Authority properties, because they’ve been neglected with capital money and in terms of repairs and the infrastructure throughout the city. Now, in terms of where I live, back in the late 1990s and early 2000s we needed to redevelop, but I think we’ve gone condo-crazy. We really need to look at building low- and moderateincome housing, especially in the five boroughs. Neighborhoods are made up of an economic mix. It’s not all rich people or poor people. When I was growing up in Harlem—and I lived in the same old rent-stabilized apartment that I grew up in, which not a lot of people can say—we had an economic mix of people. We had folks that were well off, doctors and lawyers, we had folks that were middle income, police officers or teachers, and we had folks on public assistance. It made for the best childhood and the best neighborhood that anybody could ever, ever want. I loved my upbringing so much I decided to stay. Every neighborhood, whether you live in Westchester or Bedford-Stuyvesant, it’s good to have an economic mix, because we can all learn from each other, and it makes for a better neighborhood.
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Mayor de Blasio’s Environmental Course:
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Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg left a strong legacy on environmental and sustainability issues, including his groundbreaking PlaNYC initiative. What path will Mayor Bill de Blasio follow on the environmental front, and to what degree will he continue Bloomberg’s programs or take the city in a different direction?
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JUMAANE WILLIAMS Chair, New York City Council Committee on Housing and Buildings Q: You have said in the past you hope the city refocuses on housing preservation more than creation. Why is that? JW: We have to prioritize preservation because there is no way
to build our way out of the affordable housing crisis at the rate at which we are losing affordable units, in particular income-targeted units. The prior administration learned this in its New Housing Market Plan, which was aimed at creating 165,000 new units. Eventually, preservation was added, and in the end almost two-thirds of the units that the prior administration claimed were actually preserved, not created. Q: Should inclusionary zoning be made mandatory to satisfy the mayor’s affordable housing goals? JW: There is no question that inclusionary zoning should be mandated. At the same time, it is not a panacea. Mandatory inclusionary zoning must always be mentioned in the context of a larger plan to create and preserve income-targeted housing. Q: Will the Council make a push for home rule control over local rent laws and a repeal of the Urstadt Law? JW: This is actually my number one housing priority. My hope is to use whatever influence the city has to repeal Urstadt. It is crucial that New York City elected officials, not politicians from upstate New York who have different housing structures than we do, be able to control the affordable rent programs that we oversee. Over the past decade there have been changes to the rentregulation laws that resulted in an estimated loss of over 150,000 rentregulated apartments. These units are permanently lost. These units don’t only represent affordability but also protection against eviction that benefits all. Home rule on housing and local rent laws would allow New York City to shape its housing destiny and define affordability. Q: Are you in favor of the 80/20 rent subsidy for real estate developers? JW: The 80/20 rent subsidy is outdated and does not produce the units needed to deal with the issue of affordable and income-based housing. This formula has to be reviewed and probably completely reworked.
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THE SCORECARD THE PLAYERS
THE CITY Mayor Bill de Blasio campaigned on and continues to call for the creation or preservation of 200,000 units of affordable housing over the next 10 years, an ambitious goal that exceeds the efforts of his predecessor, Michael
Bloomberg. De Blasio’s overall goal has the support of many in the city, from the Real Estate Board of New York to progressive City Council members like Housing Chair Jumaane Williams, but there is a divide on how best to achieve that goal. REBNY officials argue for more density in profitable development ventures in exchange for new affordable housing projects. Progressive leaders like Williams want to focus on preserving affordable housing in existing neighborhoods, which would be less disruptive. THE STATE The final budget deal included an increase in funding for several housing programs including the Low-Income Housing Trust Fund and the Homes for Working Families programs, as well as a $14.4 million increase in funding to help repair Mitchell-Lama developments that have fallen into disrepair. In total, the state added roughly $100 million in initiatives with the goal of creating or preserving 3,000 affordable housing units. This money comes on top of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s $1 billion commitment over five years to preserve and create 14,300 affordable housing units statewide.
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CPC believes that stable & sustainable affordable housing is
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
the foundation of strong communities throughout NYS.
We strive to contribute to comprehensive neighborhood revitalization through our lending and partnerships. www.communityp.com
city & state — April 7, 2014
For nearly four decades, CPC has contributed to the preservation or creation of over 157,000 units of affordable housing.
Construction Financing Permanent Financing
HUD’s Capital Fund Program announced $347.5 million in funds for various housing authorities across the state, including $298.5 million for NYCHA and $8.3 million for the Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, former head of New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, is also pushing the Rental Assistance Demonstration plan—known as RAD—which gives at-risk public and assisted housing facilities more financing options to help preserve units. THE ADVOCATES
Green Financing Initiative Small Building Loan Program Freddie Mac Supportive Housing Financing
How affordable housing is done is a big point of contention between groups such as the Landmarks Preservation Commission, which advocates for saving historic buildings, and groups like the Real Estate Board of New York, which argues that historic preservation is making it difficult for developers to build more affordable housing.
THE ISSUES MITCHELL-LAMA HOUSING The state Senate’s Independent Democratic Conference put forth a plan to invest $750 million over five years to restart the middle class housing plan that was first implemented in the 1950s. In Mitchell-Lama housing projects, a family of four on federal assistance cannot have an income exceeding $68,700. A family of four that is not on federal assistance must have an annual income below $107,343. UPZONING Mayor Michael Bloomberg gained a reputation for development through rezoning large sections of the city, but his administration was not always in favor of allowing taller buildings when it rezoned areas. In fact, many neighborhoods in the outer boroughs were downzoned under his administration. Every section of the city has a limit on the height a building can be, which has become a problem in places like Midtown East, where older buildings that are taller than zoning regulations have been grandfathered in, giving developers no incentive to tear them down. Opponents of the idea fear that allowing upzoning would take away natural light for residents. Advocates say they could make more money and be able to develop more affordable housing, helping Mayor Bill de Blasio reach his goal of 200,000 units preserved or created. NYCHA REPAIRS In January of 2013 Mayor Michael Bloomberg vowed to eliminate the backlog of NYCHA repairs—420,000 at the time—before he left office. He earmarked $40 million in city funds to expedite the process. More than a year later the backlog still exists. Mayor Bill de Blasio has put aside $52.5 million in his preliminary budget to handle the repairs. To pay for it, he has stopped the practice of NYCHA facilities paying the NYPD for protection at their facilities. cityandstateny.com
NICOLE GELINAS
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iti Bike should be gearing up for a spectacular second summer. Instead, the bikeshare program is in trouble. The problem has little to do with bicycles. The problem is confusion over Citi Bike’s public social goals versus its private profit-making goals. Mayor Bill de Blasio should make clear that the former trump the latter. The point of the bikes is to encourage New Yorkers to ride to work, to the supermarket or to visit friends without having to worry about having a bike stolen or bringing a bike into a high-rise building. New Yorkers can sign up for $95 a year to rent a bike at any “dock”—below 60th Street and
THE RISKS OF CHOICE
BRUCE N. GYORY
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nited States Supreme Court cases rarely have an immediate impact on political campaigns, but when they do, it is often an outsize impact. On March 25, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the Hobby Lobby case. This case could reshuffle the political deck. The question before the court is whether corporations are entitled to a religious exemption from providing contraception coverage to their employees. A decision is expected by June, leaving plenty of time for a sharp political reaction to set in before November’s elections. I will leave it to others to parse the case’s legal implications. For example,
cityandstateny.com
in parts of Brooklyn—and return it to any dock within 45 minutes. The Bloomberg administration heavily encouraged the program, but it is a private, for-profit venture. Citi Bike is supposed to pay for itself from user fees as well as sponsorships by Citibank and MasterCard. Citi Bike is a success. Bike share has attracted 100,000 annual members— multiples of what its managers initially projected. On a good day, 40,000 people use the blue bikes. Citi Bike’s warm-weather usage— each bike gets to go on six or seven “rides” a day—rivals the similarly heavy usage that Paris’ stellar Vélib’ system sees. Even on a bad day, 5,000 to 15,000 New Yorkers who don’t mind braving the cold, wind and snow use the bikes. Most important, New Yorkers have stayed safe on Citi Bikes, incurring only minor injuries. Riders can’t grow complacent, of course. But the Bloomberg administration was smart in introducing bike share to areas of the city where protected bike lanes and naturally congested traffic help riders. The problem with the program is that the company that runs Citi Bike— Alta Bicycle Share—is a small fiveyear-old company with the challenges that come with being a small fiveyear-old company. Alta runs other
American bike-share systems, including Boston and Washington. But Alta has never run a system of New York’s scale and demand. There is no such system in America. Chicago, which comes closest, does less than a tenth of New York’s annual rides with the same number of bikes and more docks. Alta has found itself overwhelmed—having to spend more than it expected in “redistributing” bikes to meet time-of-day demand. Alta has also made mistakes. Everyone has noticed that bad software makes it hard for tourists to rent bicycles by the day. But that’s not the biggest problem. Tourists may be foregoing the bikes because there are no bikes at popular stations, and because the bike docks don’t extend to Museum Mile and other popular destinations. The bigger problem is that bad software has increased labor costs. People cannot dock bikes properly, so they call customer service. Alta is losing single digits of millions of dollars a year on Citi Bike. Can the company turn itself around, writing off these start-up costs, hiking its membership price and convincing new investors that it’s learned from its mistakes sufficiently to run a bigger program? If so, great. The problem is what happens if it can’t. Citi Bike is not Candy Crush.
Bike share has social benefits. It keeps people off overcrowded trains and buses, making life better for people who ride trains and buses. It protects pedestrians by slowing motor traffic. A bigger program—in Queens the Bronx and Staten Island—could give poorer New Yorkers a new, healthier way to get to work and school. Mayor de Blasio should make it clear that a better, bigger bikeshare program is a city priority. He should establish goals and deadlines for program expansion. He should commit to bringing bike share to the Upper West Side, Upper East Side and Harlem this year, giving his DOT another reason to improve street safety at the same time. And he should explore offering city-paid bike-share vouchers for people who make under a certain income. If a bigger, better program makes a profit, fine. If not, that’s fine too. Almost no urban transportation makes a profit. The purpose of the MTA is not to make money but to bring workers into and around New York so that they and their employers make money. Bike share is no different.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s query as to whether granting the religious exemption would allow an employer to deny a blood transfusion. Or whether knocking out the contraceptive mandate would open the door for white supremacist groups to form religious sects and then open restaurants seeking to deny public accommodation service based upon race. Justice Anthony Kennedy, who appears to be the swing vote in this case, posed difficult questions to both sides. He asked Hobby Lobby’s attorney whether it was proper for the employer’s religious views to trump the employee’s healthcare options. Kennedy asked the government if the law could mandate paying for an abortion. The court’s answers to all those questions will fascinate legal scholars. Meanwhile, the politics underlying the likely response of voters is quite predictable. In 2012 exit polls showed that the contraception debate helped to generate an 11 percent edge for Obama (55–44 percent) among the 53 percent of the nation’s voters who are women. Polling data just before that election also revealed that in swing states a high percentage of women saw contraception as a top-tier issue.
Women could have a sharp reaction if contraceptive services were negated by their employer’s religious beliefs. A backlash is probable, leading married suburban women who practice contraception to turn against the Republicans they voted for in 2010, while also serving to spur higher turnout among the many single women who voted Democratic in 2012 but did not turn out to vote in 2010. Protecting a women’s right to make her own choices on contraception unites blue collar, minority, single and highly educated married women like almost no other issue. Overturning the contraception mandate could also morph into a major issue in New York’s gubernatorial contest. Gov. Andrew Cuomo strongly supports the codification of Roe v. Wade in his Women’s Equality Agenda. His likely Republican opponent, Rob Astorino, opposes that codification, arguing that Roe v. Wade is settled law. The dispositive reaction will be that of New York’s pro-choice majority; in May of 2012 a Quinnipiac poll showed that two-thirds of New Yorkers felt abortion should be legal in most or all cases, and in June of 2013 Quinnipiac’s polling showed New Yorkers in favor of late-term abortions when a women’s health was at risk by a margin of
68–22 percent. New York’s female majority will likely rally to Cuomo’s side if the court’s ruling on contraception puts doubts in their minds as to whether Roe v. Wade is truly settled law. After all, exit polls found 67 percent of women voted for Cuomo in 2010 and 73 percent of women voted for Gillibrand when she ran against a “pro-life” woman, Wendy Long, in 2012. In both elections women cast 53 percent of the state’s overall vote. Today we remember the Dred Scott decision mostly because of Lincoln’s Cooper Union speech. But in the late 1850s the sustained reaction against Dred Scott’s pro-slavery holdings enabled Lincoln to knit disparate political threads into a new Republican quilt. The Dred Scott case literally galvanized a new majority in American politics. A broad court-imposed prohibition on contraceptive rights could become another fireball on a hot summer night that wreaks cold political havoc for many Novembers to come.
Nicole Gelinas is a contributing editor to the Manhattan Institute’s City Journal.
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Bruce N. Gyory is a political and strategic consultant at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP and an adjunct professor of political science at SUNY Albany.
city & state — April 7, 2014
A GREATER GOOD
NECESSARY MEASURES
TONY AVELLA
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ost people already know this about me: I hate politics. Always have. I got into politics to serve the public by helping cut through bureaucratic red tape and provide positive results, to be a true advocate for the people who elected me. I pride myself on my good-government record, and that is why most of those who know my values are not shocked or upset by my recent move to join the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC). Yes, I was skeptical at first, to say the least. In fact, I was one of the more outspoken opponents of the IDC after they broke away from the Democratic minority conference and established a power-sharing agreement with the Senate Republicans in 2012. I did not
understand the logic and was extremely uncertain of the outcome. Yet two years later, here we are. Albany is working for the people again, and under state Sen. Jeff Klein’s leadership the IDC has developed a clear, progressive agenda for New York’s middle class and working families. They have shown an ability to get things done, something I struggled to achieve within my former conference. The IDC has worked in a collaborative, bipartisan way to pass new gun control laws, increase the minimum wage, extend low middle class tax rates, provide universal prekindergarten to thousands of New York children and control the everincreasing medical costs endured by
city & state — April 7, 2014
Print. Mail. Win.
our senior citizens. Those are not just big victories for New Yorkers—those are big Democratic victories. In addition to their accomplishments, I also appreciated the IDC’s vision as to where we need to take New York. At the very start of the year, they laid out a robust plan focused on making New York more affordable for working families and senior citizens, which is always crucial. The IDC, now with myself included, continues to fight for education funding, new programs for middle class housing, child-care subsidies, environmental funding and tuition assistance, just to name a few. Those are all things I always thought were vital and wanted to accomplish. By having a bigger role in policy making, I am able to do more for my constituents and accomplish these goals—there is no better justification than that. It is worth mentioning that I have never shied away from bipartisanship and continually worked with my Republican colleagues on issues of importance to my constituents prior to joining the IDC. My constituents did not send me to Albany to work in a partisan stalemate. They sent me to Albany to affect progress and change by working with my colleagues across the aisle. That is why the move simply made sense. There have been rumors and
assumptions that I had to compromise my values to join the IDC. Well, there is a reason they are called rumors and assumptions. I have every intention of continuing to fight for issues that are important to my constituents and New Yorkers as a whole, such as a statewide ban on hydrofracking, expanded senior center programs, good-government legislation, animal welfare, additional higher education funding, tax relief for middle class property owners and stronger renters’ rights. I do not believe that voters judge me by how closely I stick to the status quo. I think my constituents already know how tireless an advocate I am, and my colleagues may soon realize that civic advocacy is my only motivator. Strained relations with the Democratic Conference may be a by-product of my decision, but the bottom line is that my constituents did not elect me to get along with every lawmaker in the Senate. They elected me to provide results for my district, something I am accomplishing at a much higher rate as the newest member of the IDC. State Sen. Tony Avella, a Democrat whose district encompasses part of northeast Queens, joined the Independent Democratic Conference in February.
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Penthouse at Taste Restaurant, Albany, NY
Panel 1: Bringing Business and Development to New York!
From Niagara to the North Country, and New York City to the North Fork, development, transportation infrastructure and tourism go hand in hand in creating local jobs that fuel the economy. City & State brings together legislative leaders, developers and other experts to find out what major development projects and initiatives are under way, including transportation improvements increasing access to new developments.
Panel 2: New York Jobs!
A major focus of Governor Cuomo has been job growth in upstate New York. City & State moderates a panel of government officials and business leaders to discuss the Stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s current jobs climate, provide updates on Startup NY and other job initiatives spearheaded by Governor Cuomo, and make suggestions on how best to grow the entire New York Economy.
Enjoy cocktails during Power 100 Reception immediately following the forum.
www.soospower100.splashthat.com
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CITY & STATE’S ABOVE AND BEYOND RECEPTION At a reception at Léman Manhattan on March 24 co-sponsored by AlliedBarton, City & State honored 25 exceptional women of “public and civic mind” at its third annual Above & Beyond Awards. In recognition of her exemplary achievements in the field of labor advocacy over the past year, Susan Kent, the president of the Public Employees Federation, received the evening’s Chairperson’s Award. As part of Kent’s award, City & State will donate $2,500 in her name to a charity of her choice.
Donn
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Joann
Jill Eisenhard
Deborah Lynn Williams
Laur
city & state — April 7, 2014
Caress Kennedy, Deborah Lynn Williams, Susan Birnbaum, Lucy Friedman, Jill Eisenhard, Morgan Pehme
Deborah Henley
Ann Kirschner cityandstateny.com
Janella Hinds
Joanne Fernandez
Becca Rutkoff, Joanne Fernandez, Irene Baker, Lindsey Boylan, Rachel Amar
Laura Walker
Donna Williams
Laura Walker, Jeanine Ramirez, Sukanya Krishnan, Deborah Henley, Sally Garner
Vilma Huertas cityandstateny.com
Susan Kent
The Public Employees Federationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s table
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Becca Rutkoff
Bhairavi Desai
Caress Kennedy, Heidi Springer, Morgan Pehme
city & state â&#x20AC;&#x201D; April 7, 2014
Donna Williams, Heidi Springer, Ann Kirschner, Dr. Karen Nelson, Vilma Huertas
The View From Inside I
n December of 2004 President George W. Bush nominated Bernard Kerik, a former NYPD commissioner and one of the heroes of 9/11, to be his Secretary of Homeland Security. A week later Kerik would withdraw from consideration, after a host of troubling revelations about his professional and personal life surfaced. That abrupt turnaround in his public image would be the start of a downward spiral that would climax in Kerik pleading guilty in 2009 to eight felonies. Released from incarceration in 2013, Kerik, who was also once New York City’s corrections commissioner, has now become an advocate for prison reform in the United States. City & State Editor Morgan Pehme asked Kerik about his experience as an inmate, what can be done to reduce recidivism, and why anyone should believe his efforts to change the system are sincere. The following is an edited transcript.
city & state — April 7, 2014
42 City & State: Specifically what are the foremost problems you see with the prison system? Bernard Kerik: I think first and foremost, the mandatory minimums and sentencing guidelines are draconian. We are taking first-time nonviolent drug offenders: We are putting them in prison for years, in some cases 10 to 15 years—they get no real education or rehabilitation when they are in the system. And then we release them, and by some delusion we believe that is going to benefit society, when in fact it’s a detriment. And it does not in any way help recidivism, because these young men and women go back into society as a convicted felon. They have nowhere to go; they have no job, no real job—they can’t get a job because they are now a felon, and so they have to revert back to crime, some criminal activity. Thus they are going to come back to the system. In most cases they come back to society far worse than when they come in, because prison is really—as I have tried to explain to some people who don’t understand it—it is nothing but a training ground for criminal activity and thuggery. So they learn how to steal, cheat, lie, manipulate, con, gamble, fight—and then we send them home. There is no benefit to society in doing that.
C&S: You have said you didn’t have a conception of how bad conditions were in prisons prior to being an inmate. Yet you were the commissioner of the New York City Department of Corrections, and the Tombs were renamed in your honor. BK: Here is the problem. A law enforcement executive, a prison
administrator, you see the system from one perspective, you don’t get to see the system from the inside out, you see it from the outside looking in. When I ran Rikers, we had probably the greatest achievements in U.S. history when it comes to violence reduction and overall efficiencies within the system. I was recognized by the John F. Kennedy School of Government, recognized by the American Correctional Association, unparalleled achievements in running Rikers— but then you go into the system and live as an inmate and you realize there [are] a number of things that I couldn’t see from the outside looking in. The collateral damage to men and women, and most importantly, their families and their children—I didn’t know—there is no way I would have known. C&S: This past month an inmate died at Rikers. Do you have any regrets about the conditions that people were subjected to under your watch as the head of the Department of Corrections? BK: If you look back and remember back to 1994—I remember the cover of New York magazine: “Is Rikers About to Explode?” We averaged almost 150 stabbings a month, with 133,000 admissions a year. I took that number of stabbings and slashings and over a six-year period reduced it 93 percent—a more substantial reduction in violence than anyone in the country. Over the last six to eight years Rikers has begun to return to its old ways. You have had this recent incident with this former Marine that died. You had an incident where you had corrections officers actually overseeing the beating death of another inmate. You have had riots in some of the dormitories. That violence comes from a lack of leadership and a lack of accountability. And I can’t say what is going on; I can only judge from the outside looking at the activity
A Q&A WITH BERNARD KERIK
that has happened—and somebody has to get on top of it. I know that Mayor de Blasio just appointed a new commissioner, who I am sure is going to look at this and take some action, because if he doesn’t, the violence is going to continue to grow. And they have less inmates today, they have far less inmates than I did, so it has to change. C&S: Last year I interviewed Jack Abramoff who has since become an advocate for reforming our lobbying practices, and a frequent criticism of him in his post-prison work has been that he is now trying to profiteer off his experience because he has no other options, he can’t go back to his old life. I feel like that is a criticism that could be leveled against you as well. How would you respond? BK: Take it for what it is worth. I get no benefit out of this. I am not getting paid to talk to you and I am not getting paid to do any speeches concerning this. It has all been done on my own time. It doesn’t benefit my sentence. It is not helping me at all. I am not looking to make money off of prison reform. If I could, that would be nice. I heard someone talk about Jack Abramoff one time and they said he wrote a book and he is going to sell his book to pay off his restitution. He would have to sell more books than the Bible. It’s not the case. And I can’t speak for him, but what I can say is, in the area of criminal justice reform nobody in this country, as it stands today, has ever been in the system with my background and experience—no one. That gives me a very unique perspective. Take it or leave it. Listen or don’t listen. I know how the system works. I know what it is supposed to accomplish. And I know how to fix it. The system can be fixed. You can listen to me or not listen to me, but eventually, you are going to fix the system because it is unsustainable the way it is. So, if I can help accomplish that, fine. If not, go figure out another way to do it, but eventually you are going to do it because it is going to erupt and explode.
To view the video of this interview in its entirety, go to cityandstateny.com. cityandstateny.com