AUGUST 26, 2019 VOL. 55, No. 34
westfaironline.com
The college held its graduation Aug. 20. Photo by Peter Katz.
INSIDE
Last hurrah
OVERTIME SPENDING BY CT STATE AGENCIES UP IN FISCAL 2019
AS THE COLLEGE OF NEW ROCHELLE HOLDS ITS LAST GRADUATION, CONVICTED CONTROLLER BLAMES OTHER OFFICIALS FOR SCHOOL’S DEMISE
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BEER HERE
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CANNED MULE
BY BILL HELTZEL bheltzel@westfairinc.com If there was ever anyone who wanted The College of New Rochelle to succeed, says Keith Borge, it was he, yet the former controller was not seated among the dignitaries on stage when the 115-year-old Catholic college came to a close with its final graduation ceremony on Aug. 20. Borge was facing anoth-
er deadline: an Aug. 28 sentencing on federal charges of securities fraud, for inflating financial statement assets by $33.8 million, and failure to pay $20.4 million in payroll taxes. Yet, as the college is liquidating its assets and trying to sell the 15.5-acre New Rochelle campus, Borge has made it clear that he bears no blame for CNR’s closing. In his account of events, detailed in a sen-
tencing memorandum and letter to a federal judge, other administrators and the board of directors were responsible for the demise of the college. He asked for no jail time and no fine when he is sentenced. “Yes, Mr. Borge played a role in the demise of CNR, and he deeply regrets his actions,” his attorney, Lee David Auerbach states in » » COLLEGE
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‘HUGE PROBLEM,” SAYS CBIA STATE WORKERS MADE $234.3 MILLION in overtime for fiscal year 2019, a $6.1 million (2.7%) increase over 2018, according to the Connecticut Office of Fiscal Analysis. In its report, five agencies accounted for more than 93% of general fund overtime expenditures in both FY 2018 and 2019, the departments of: • Correction • Mental Health & Addiction
Services • Developmental Services • Emergency Services & Public Protection • Children & Families. The largest yearover-year increase was at Emergency Services & Public Protection, whose total overtime rose by $6.5 million — 33.1% — to nearly $26.3 million. Registering overtime decreases in fiscal 2019 » » FISCAL
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