THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK, Thoughts of an older American on Constitutional Government in the USA Options

[Livyjr]

NY TIMES EMPIRE ZONE

May 3, 2007, 4:07 pm

"Proposed Building Code Overhaul"

By Sewell Chan

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and the buildings commissioner, Patricia J. Lancaster, today presented a comprehensive overhaul of the city’s building code to the City Council — the first since 1968.

The mayor said the rewriting of standards and rules would improve safety, efficiency and environmental sustainability.

The mayor, who had made a building-code overhaul one plank of his campaign platform when he ran for office in 2001, said in a statement, “The international competitiveness of our city will be increased with new, streamlined construction codes that allow for the cheaper construction of safer and more environmentally responsible buildings.”

He said the new codes were important elements of his plans to build more affordable housing and to make the city environmentally self-sustaining.

The city’s new construction codes will be organized like those of the International Code Council, a standard-setting body that drafts model codes that are widely used throughout the industry.

The proposed law would tie the city’s code to the council’s cycle of revising the model codes every three years, to reflect changes in materials and technology.

Under the proposal, the Department of Buildings will also allow online application filing and longer license durations.

A number of other provisions are intended to made buildings more environmentally responsible: offering fee rebates for “green” design, requiring more efficient heating and cooling systems, requiring white roofs, and encouraging plumbing systems that conserve water.

The proposal seeks to achieve a reduction in fuel use through more efficient ventilation designs and allowing for the intermittent operation of ventilation in kitchens, bathrooms, and showers.

Interestingly, the City Hall statement issued today made only a fleeting reference to 9/11.

In October 2005, the National Institute of Standards and Technology issued a wide-ranging report on the structural collapse of the World Trade Center, issuing a host of recommendations.

But experts quickly became divided about how practical the recommendations were.

As The Times reported last September, the 9/11 attacks did not result in a major rethinking of building codes in New York City or, for that matter, in other jurisdictions in the United States and abroad.

Proposals for more and wider stairwells in skyscrapers, for example, were set aside in part because of opposition from the real estate industry, while other ideas, like “hardening” building components to withstand major fires, are under discussion among experts who have expressed little consensus on how feasible such ideas are.

The new building code announced today does expand sprinkler requirements to include more building types and requires smoke detectors installed and connected in more occupancies.

Automatic sprinklers will be required in new types of buildings, including some one- and two-family homes; large meeting places; factories; and fuel storageareas.

Requirements for impact-resistant stairways and elevator shafts and for glow-in-the-dark markings in commercial high-rises — first instituted after the World Trade Center attack — will be expanded to more high-rises.

Comments

May 4th, 2007 8:57 am

Having been involved with building codes since the 1960’s, and being licensed to practice as a professional engineer in the State of NY, I can say that the article on “up-dating” the city’s building code looks like nothing but pure HYPE!

An empty political sound-bite, which should not be surprising, I suppose, since snappy and catchy political sound-bites are what careers are made out of in “public service” today, since generally, no one ever goes back and checks on the veracity or substance of these sound-bites and press-releases ….

From a “read” of that article, what it appears like is that NYC might finally get around to implementing what has been mandatory in NYS since the 1980’s with respect to fire alarms and plumbing fixtures, at the minimum, as well as energy-efficiency!

Which really is quite a statement about gross negligence in the NYC building department from that time, to this time ….

And that brings us to a statement made by the “STEAMROLLER” to the members of the NYS Business Council at posh and trendy Bolton Landing on sewage-laden Lake George in upstate NY on September 21, 2006, where the “STEAMROLLER” promised Ken Adams and the NYS Business Council that he was going to transform NYS into the best place to do business in the world:

“As Governor, I will ensure that the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform places renewed focus on breaking the regulatory logjam in the State’s permitting process for new development.”

As anyone upstate knows from long experience, the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform in NYS exists for the sole purpose of gutting regulations, to make them absolutely worthless, when it comes to protecting and safeguarding life, health and property in NYS, so as to make things cheaper and easier for developers, who can then make empty promises to the unsuspecting and unwitting members of the public that buy their sub-standard crap, that “Oh, yes, this meets all the applicable codes, rules and regulations”, which is true, in a sense, anyway, since the regulations are gutted by that office, to require nothing at all, which then makes it real easy for these developers to “comply” with them, and to make their empty promises to a public that just never seems to know better …..

And so …

In closing, we upstate folks wonder at how much of the real estate holdings of the Spitzer clan themselves are “sub-standard”, with respect to such things as plumbing fixtures, and fire alarms …

And how much of an advantage the “STEAMROLLER” himself is giving the family BID-NESS by having the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform further gut the codes, so that as Governor, the “STEAMROLLER” will place “renewed focus on breaking the regulatory logjam in the State’s permitting process for new development”, which benefits the wealthy developers who “have a pump” into the “STEAMROLLER”, but don’t do doodly-squat for the unsuspecting members of the public who the original un-gutted regulations were intended to protect and safeguard ….

And so …

— Posted by Livyjr

http://empirezone.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/0...rhaul/#comments

[Livyjr]

"AMD sizes up location in Malta - Drawings only show potential for multiple factories at Luther Forest site"

By LARRY RULISON, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, May 5, 2007

SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Officials from Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and local political leaders sought to temper expectations Friday after the company unveiled drawings showing up to three computer chip factories being built in Saratoga County.

At the Saratoga Economic Development Corp.'s annual dinner Thursday, Terry Caudell, director of wafer manufacturing strategies, showed the nearly 900 people in attendance a conceptual drawing of AMD's $3.2 billion computer chip factory planned for the Luther Forest Technology Campus in Malta.

SEDC is the nonprofit that is developing the site.

Caudell then showed additional drawings with two and then three fabs built in phases.

Although AMD has publicly said the ability to expand at Luther Forest was a major reason for picking it, the company has never showcased any plans for an expansion -- even anything conceptual -- to the general public.

AMD spokesman Travis Bullard stressed Friday that the drawings are strictly to ensure other factories could fit on the 200-acre parcel AMD would acquire from SEDC.

He said similar conceptual designs showing three fabs were also done for Dresden, Germany, when the company was considering building there.

Ground was broken on AMD's first Dresden fab in 1996, and the second one was completed a decade later.

Dresden is home to AMD's only two fabs.

"Those are all conceptual drawings, and we have mapped it out so that we could potentially create multiple fabs at the Luther Forest site," Bullard said.

"But that in itself is simply a draft idea, so to speak, similar to Dresden."

"We take (each fab) one at a time, and even the first one in Luther Forest is still on the drawing board."

"Nothing's definite."

Thursday's drawings are so early-stage that officials at Empire State Development Corp., the state agency that arranged the financing package for AMD, say they have never discussed specifics about additional factories.

New York is already offering AMD a $1.2 billion package for the one fab that includes $650 million in cash as well as tax breaks and infrastructure improvements.

A.J. Carter, an Empire State Development spokesman, said semiconductor companies always need room to expand at sites they consider.

"It's a very common practice in the industry," he said.

"(But) it's not like there were any specific discussions about it."

"There's nothing they came to us about."

Malta Town Supervisor Paul Sausville, who attended Thursday's dinner, also downplayed the drawings, saying he has known all along AMD was interested in the possibility of adding additional factories at Luther Forest.

"That's always been in the plan," Sausville said.

"It's really not new information."

AMD has until July 2009 to decide whether to go ahead with the factory -- dubbed Fab 4X -- when New York's cash incentives expire.

Similar to the way AMD's other factories are named, the term Fab 4X is used because it would be built 40-some years after AMD was founded.

AMD is planning to release a potential project timeline in the second half of the year, although its board of directors must ultimately give the final go-ahead.

The factory, which would employ 1,200 people, would not be fully operational until 2012 at the earliest.

Complicating the picture is the fact that AMD lost $611 million during the first quarter and is planning to cut capital spending by $500 million this year.

Based in Sunnyvale, Calif., AMD is in a fierce battle with rival Intel Corp., which owns about 80 percent of the market for so-called x86 chips, used in most personal computers and servers.

Despite that, AMD officials are still upbeat about the potential of building in Saratoga County.

"AMD still believes that we need Luther Forest and we want to go forward with the project," Caudell said at Thursday's dinner.

"The difficult part is to determine the timing."

Larry Rulison can be reached at 454-5504 or by e-mail at lrulison@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"State fund for private colleges stands still"]

By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

Last updated: 2:34 p.m., Saturday, May 5, 2007

ALBANY - Two years after a grant program for private college construction projects was set up in the state budget, all $150 million remains in the account.

Fifty applications are gathering dust at the Dormitory Authority and none of the schools can get the grants because the review board - not yet fully manned - must unanimously approve them.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute could get as much as $2.13 million, with Siena Colleges and the College of Saint Rose potentially in line for more than $1 million each.

Other area colleges would get hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"I always expected there would be a delay because it was a brand new program," said Abraham Lackman, president of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities.

"I told my presidents it would be at least a year."

Instead, it's been two years and counting.

The program, which requires $3 of private funds for each $1 of public grant money, would help pay for more than $800 million in building, much of it upstate.

Lackman said Gov. Eliot Spitzer put funds in the current budget to pay for the college grants and selected Ron Rock, a budget executive, to serve on the grant board.

Paul Burgdorf, an authority spokesman, said none of the funds will go out the door until the three members of the board are appointed.

Two of the board members were in place by last fall: the Senate's, Kenneth A. Jacoppi, and Gov. George Pataki's, John Cahill.

But their terms expired March 31, Burgdorf said.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver finally made his first nominee a few weeks ago: Assembly Higher Education Committee Chairwoman Deborah Glick, D-Manhattan.

[Livyjr]

"The price of power"

Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, April 28, 2007

About a year ago, the debate over New York's chronically high utility rates was reaching a tipping point.

The Public Service Commission had just come out with a report declaring that deregulation had been a boon to New York, but many critics, including many homeowners who were struggling to pay their monthly utility bills, disagreed.

So did Assemblyman Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, chairman of the Assembly's energy committee.

If the prices are going down, he wondered, "why are people just screaming about the effects of their home energy bills?"

This year, the debate is likely to be renewed as Governor Spitzer has made it a priority to lower energy costs in New York.

And now comes a national survey that puts the controversy into sharp focus.

An Associated Press analysis of federal data shows consumers in many states that adopted deregulation are paying more than customers in states with regulated utilities.

In 16 states and the District of Columbia, where deregulation is in effect, consumers paid an average of 30 percent more for power last year than customers paid in states where utility rates are still regulated.

In Maryland, rates skyrocketed 72 percent, and in Illinois, 50 percent.

It gets worse.

The price gap between deregulated and regulated states is getting wider.

In the late 1990s, prices were 22 percent higher under deregulation, compared with the most recent estimate of 30 percent.

"We said back then (when deregulation was enacted) it was a raw deal for consumers," Johanna Neumann of Maryland Public Interest Research Group told the AP.

"We now know it was a raw deal for consumers."

Not surprisingly, the utility industry continues to argue that high prices are the result of many factors, including the rising price for oil and natural gas, as well as the high cost of constructing power plants and the damage done to power delivery system by hurricanes and other forces of nature.

All true enough.

And granted, price competition has helped large energy consumers -- typically business customers -- save money.

But residential customers and small businesses haven't fared as well.

The PSC's 2006 report claimed that residential rates in New York declined by 15 percent from 1996 through 2004, while business rates dropped by 18 percent.

But as Mr. Tonko noted, downstate residential customers serviced by Con Edison, who make up more than half the New York state market, saw price increases during this period, while industrial bills rose by 20 percent.

In any case, the higher prices for natural gas and oil applied across the board in regulated and deregulated states.

So why should one group be higher than the other?

Mr. Spitzer should take a hard look at claims that competition is the way to lower energy bills in New York -- a long, hard look.

THE ISSUE: A national survey shows consumers aren't benefiting from energy deregulation.

THE STAKES: Governor Spitzer should look to these findings as he considers new ways to reduce utility bills throughout New York.

[Livyjr]

"Reforms should make IDAs more accountable"

By ADRIANNE SHROPSHIRE and JAMES PARROTT

Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Sunday, May 6, 2007

Things are changing for the better in Albany.

Already this year, we've seen the long-overdue reform of the workers' compensation system, a state budget that makes giant strides in revamping school aid and renewed focus on government reform and accountability.

The state economy has gotten needed attention too, with Gov. Eliot Spitzer's appointment of both an upstate and a downstate economic czar.

Now, the governor and the Legislature have the opportunity to enact real reform of the state's 115 local industrial development agencies.

The existing law sunsets on June 30.

Will our political leaders rise to the occasion?

We hope so.

We can't afford to waste the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks that are handed out annually by IDAs.

Starting now, IDAs must be held accountable for the tax breaks they dispense.

We need safeguards in place to assure that these investments create quality jobs and help revitalize those parts of the state whose economies are lagging behind.

Real reform of the way economic development is done in New York won't be possible without changing the way IDAs work.

New York began establishing local IDAs in 1969 to issue tax-exempt bonds on behalf of manufacturers that were locating or expanding in the state.

Eligibility has expanded beyond manufacturing, and IDA-authorized tax breaks now total about $400 million a year.

The bulk of IDA tax breaks involve property taxes (particularly school property taxes), but also can include the state and local portions of the sales tax.

Unfortunately, not all IDA projects provide the economic boost or quality jobs that most of New York desperately needs.

A report to be released Tuesday by New York Jobs with Justice documents why.

For example, five upstate IDAs granted Wal-Mart more than $12 million in tax breaks between 2002 and 2005, draining school taxes from these areas in exchange for low-wage retail jobs.

Despite the desperate need in upstate areas for good-paying jobs for local residents, some upstate IDAs have subsidized projects that get built with out-of-state workers.

If taxpayer-subsidized IDA projects create poverty-wage jobs or just move jobs from one county to the next, honest taxpayers get fleeced.

And "economic revitalization" remains out of reach.

There's a better way.

In parts of New York and around the country, economic developers are coming around to the view that quality jobs and good wages are the foundation for local economic growth.

Some New York IDAs have been among the leaders on this score; all IDAs should be required to follow this sound principle.

How can we make sure that taxpayers are not subsidizing substandard, minimum-wage or nonexistent jobs?

Three basic reforms are needed to improve the returns from IDA-sponsored investments.

First, all IDAs should adhere to meaningful wage and benefit standards for companies receiving assistance.

All affected jobs should pay living wages, and construction jobs should have prevailing wages and apprenticeships.

New York's Empire Zones program is that it requires wages to be at least 135 percent of the minimum wage as a condition for receiving wage-related tax breaks.

That's not enough -- but it is a good start.

Second, IDAs should operate with much greater transparency.

IDAs should notify the public much sooner about pending deals and public hearings should provide real opportunities for community input and consideration of impacts on the community.

Third, IDAs must be held accountable for the tax dollars they give away.

IDA boards should include representation from local stakeholders.

There should be protections against IDAs attracting businesses away from other areas of New York, and there should be subsidy-recapture provisions for companies that fail to live up to their commitments.

According to the New York Jobs with Justice report, data from the state comptroller indicate that IDA-subsidized projects around the state have generated only 36 percent of the jobs promised.

Accountability also means that IDAs should encourage smart growth and stop subsidizing sprawl, which adds to public costs while subtracting from the regional tax base.

In defiance of common sense -- and 1993 legislative reforms -- a number of IDAs continue to subsidize retail projects despite the fact that these principally occur where consumer markets exist and don't need subsidies.

IDA reform is the place where New York's pressing job needs and accountability to taxpayers come together.

It is also the place where we have to strike the proper balance between local control and beneficial, uniform job development standards.

With the right IDA reforms, we'll have stronger local governments, more effective state-local partnerships, a brighter economic future and restored faith in government.

[Livyjr]

"State investigates home improvement scams"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 9:53 a.m., Sunday, May 6, 2007

ALBANY -- The state Consumer Protection Board is starting an investigation that it hopes will hit scammers where you live.

The home improvement investigation began with soliciting complaints and stories from New Yorkers in April and continued Friday in Brooklyn with the first of three public hearings as the board prepares cases and public education efforts.

Testimony is being taken from consumers, contractors who want to clean up the field and regulators.

"We want to get ideas and learn from experience with a goal of trying to enhance the protections and remedies consumers have and also to promote best practices," said board Executive Director Mindy Bockstein.

The topic was chosen because every year it draws the most complaints to consumer protection agencies.

"It's a bank book issue," she said after the Brooklyn hearing.

"It impacts affordable housing, it impacts the economy, it impacts the retail industry."

"We're talking about homeowners whether they are senior citizens who can't make repairs themselves any longer, or people who want to make renovations to stay in their house longer so they don't have to go into an assisted living facility."

She said families of every age and income level have reported that they lost thousands of dollars to contractors who take the money and never show up.

"They spent thousands of dollars for nothing and now they need money to address the defects or, worse, they are homeless," Bockstein said.

The board will also provide tips for homeowners, among them: don't pay cash, use a contract such as the one made available on the board Web site ( http://www.consumer.state.ny.us ), and check references.

Another tip: The law gives you three days to cancel a home improvement contract in writing.

Hearings are scheduled May 16 in Albany and May 30 in Syracuse.

[Livyjr]

"The law of campaign finance reform"

By MICHAEL WALDMAN

Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Friday, May 4, 2007

Gov. Eliot Spitzer was recently roasted by Republicans and journalists across the state for the sin of raising money while pushing for reform.

Spitzer is offering to have dinner twice a year with people who raise $1 million for his re-election campaign.

He and his aides will occasionally offer conference call briefings.

There will be a barbecue as well.

Here we go again.

There's a sickening cycle in campaign finance reform, one that plays out over and over again at the federal and state level.

Politicians show a little moxie and actually propose reform.

Some, like Spitzer, even fight for change.

Usually, incumbents or conservatives fight that change, as is happening in New York.

And then, unless the politician is living in a monastery, he or she has to continue to raise money while the system remains unchanged.

Horrors!

This is deemed hypocrisy.

Gleeful opponents of reform point to the gap between legislative goals and ongoing fundraising.

Lazy journalists, who understand that shouting "gotcha" is far easier than spelling out who really stands to gain from blocking reform, go for the cheap story.

And dismayingly, even some reformers reliably declare their outrage over the fact that politicians who support reform still have to fund raise, and that their supporters are not driven away with a stick but given the opportunity to meet with them.

Years ago, writing in The Washington Post, I called this the iron law of campaign finance reform: Flagrancy gets a free pass, hypocrisy gets you whacked.

Back then, I was steamed that Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., asked why he was raising soft money from lobbyists, shrugged and called it "the American way."

He got no real criticism from the media.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on the other hand, got creamed for raising funds while pushing for reform.

In an eerie echo of McConnell's brazenness, state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said that he blocked Spitzer's modest campaign reform proposals because of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

While the Times Union has been a vocal supporter of campaign finance reform and Spitzer's most recent proposals to lower contribution limits, it has joined news outlets and editorial pages across the state in giving ink and credence to Bruno's attack on the governor for refusing to unilaterally disarm.

Political reporters and editorial writers across the state have been gamely repeating Bruno's trope ad nauseam that Spitzer is somehow doing something underhanded by continuing to play by the rules of the game while actively seeking to change them.

Few of those stories have included even a sentence about Joe Bruno's own record raising special-interest dollars.

Rather they gamely quote Bruno like Claude Raines in Casablanca as being just shocked -- shocked! -- that Spitzer would offer access for contributors.

Of course, contributors are getting access.

That's the problem.

Too much access often leads to bad public policy.

That's why we want reform.

Bundling should be disclosed.

But it isn't illegal and it won't go away until we pass public financing.

For me, personally, this resembles a scene out of "Groundhog Day."

After a career working as a campaign finance reform advocate, I went to work in the White House for Bill Clinton in 1993.

We crafted a public financing plan that won support from reformers and the leaders of the House and Senate.

Opponents, however, played the media like a Wurlitzer.

There was far more coverage of loopholes than of the actual strong bill.

The media put far more pressure on supporters of the measure not to raise funds than on opponents to drop their filibuster.

And, sadly, reformers' knees jerked predictably, routinely denouncing hypocrisy as the people who blocked reform got off easy.

Politicians who thought they were proposing something against their own electoral self interest, only to see little political gain and much political pain, shrugged and moved on to the next issue.

So here are some heartfelt pleas.

To the media, stop being so easily manipulated, and start focusing on those who are blocking reform, and why they do it.

To my fellow reformers, when a reporter calls demanding what's known in the trade as an outrage quote, why not try "no comment"?

And to those incumbents and power brokers who are scrambling madly to block reform, please set aside pious worries about hypocrisy and stand ready to explain your defense of an indefensible corrupt system.

Michael Waldman is executive director of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.

[Livyjr]

Spitzer is offering to have dinner twice a year with people who raise $1 million for his re-election campaign.

He and his aides will occasionally offer conference call briefings.

There will be a barbecue as well.

Here we go again.

Of course, contributors are getting access.

That's the problem.

Too much access often leads to bad public policy.

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"'Mod'-el of bad biz? - Actress Lipton key element of pay-to-play probe"

By ELIZABETH BENJAMIN

DAILY NEWS COLUMNIST

Monday, May 7th 2007, 4:00 AM

The Albany County district attorney is investigating a potential pay-to-play scam at the state controller's office whose key players include the former top lieutenant to ousted Controller Alan Hevesi and ex-"Mod Squad" star Peggy Lipton.

Sources familiar with District Attorney David Soares' probe say it focuses on whether people seeking to do business with the $150 billion state pension fund, of which the controller is the sole trustee, showered Lipton with gifts in hopes of currying favor with Hevesi's ex-chief of staff, Jack Chartier.

Chartier, who left the controller's office after Hevesi resigned in disgrace last December for using state workers as drivers for his wife, was deeply enamored with the actress and arranged for her to be chauffeured by a state-employed driver in 2003 and 2004, according to published reports.

Investigators want to know whether Chartier urged his boss to invest pension fund cash based on who was providing favors to Lipton, sources said.

At least one subpoena has been issued to the controller's office seeking all of Chartier's correspondence during his tenure there, sources said.

People of interest in the case include Hevesi's longtime political consultant, Hank Morris, who has earned hundreds of thousands of dollars off Hevesi's career in public office, and Elliot Broidy, a California-based venture capitalist and major Republican fund-raiser.

Both Morris and Broidy have benefited from pension investments made under Hevesi, according to research conducted by Daily News reporter Celeste Katz.

Six months after taking office in 2003, Hevesi committed to placing $250 million in Markstone Capital Group, a private equity fund co-founded by Broidy that makes investments in Israel.

Prior to making this deal, Hevesi flew to Israel with Broidy to meet with government officials and business leaders.

According to the most recent numbers available, as of last November the state had paid Markstone $4 million in fees but had not yet earned any money from its investment.

Dennis Tompkins, a spokesman for new state Controller Thomas DiNapoli, said Markstone is on track to bring in a 22% return at the end of 10 years.

Also in 2003, Hevesi attended a meeting with Broidy and officials of the California Public Retirement System, which later committed to invest $50 million in Markstone.

Broidy's wife, Robin Rosenzweig, contributed $80,000 to the Democratic Hevesi's political campaigns between 2002 and 2004 - $25,000 of which came within months of his decision to invest in Markstone and the California trip, according to state election documents.

Hevesi also received $406,000 in contributions from associates of Broidy and his wife.

In addition, Robin Rosenzweig and her husband each donated $3,400 in 2005 to Hevesi's son Andrew, who holds his father's old Queens Assembly seat.

Morris has also benefited from New York investments.

A veteran of every one of Hevesi's political campaigns, Morris is an independent director and board member of eSpeed Inc., an electronic trading operation of which the state pension fund owned 90,900 shares as recently as March 2006.

A controller's office spokesman said the eSpeed shares were bought through an index fund over which Hevesi had no direct control.

The fund has since divested itself of eSpeed, the spokesman said.

DiNapoli, who was elected by the Legislature in February to replace Hevesi, is cooperating with Soares' investigation, according to Tompkins.

DiNapoli has hired a Manhattan law firm to audit and review all of Chartier's activities during his time at the controller's office.

That project will be headed up by Bridget Rohde, the former chief of the Criminal Division in the Brooklyn U.S. attorney's office.

DiNapoli will announce today that he is appointing George King, the counsel to the state retirement system, to serve as the controller's inspector general.

In addition, DiNapoli plans to institute tighter internal controls over executive employees in his office that would prevent misuse of state resources and employee time, Tompkins said.

ebenjamin@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/05/07...of_bad_biz.html

[Livyjr]

"Prosecutor probes N.Y. pension fund conflict, `Mod Squad' link"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 6:04 p.m., Monday, May 7, 2007

ALBANY -- Albany County District Attorney David Soares is investigating a report of conflicts of interest in the state Comptroller's Office that may have affected the state's massive pension fund, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Monday.

Soares didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cuomo said he's looking into civil violations in the case in which people sought to do business with the state's $150 billion pension fund.

That wide-ranging investigation could include claims that the former chief of staff of the comptroller's office arranged for rides using state employees for the actress who played Peggy on TV's "Mod Squad."

"It's not about any one person," Cuomo said.

"It's about systemic conflicts of interests that we believe may exist in the comptroller's office involving the pension fund, which is a precious New York asset."

Cuomo wouldn't comment Monday on whether the state's $150 billion pension fund has been hurt because of what he claims to be conflicts of interest.

He began his investigation in January, before Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli took office, he said.

The comptroller is the sole trustee of the state pension fund that provides the public pensions of state and many local workers.

DiNapoli was chosen by the Legislature to replace fellow Democrat Alan Hevesi who resigned in December following a scandal.

Hevesi pleaded guilty to a felony for using state employees as drivers and companions for his wife.

The plea resulted in no jail time for Hevesi, but a $5,000 fine.

Hevesi also agreed not to take office Jan. 1 for the second term he won in the November election despite the scandal.

DiNapoli on Monday said his office is cooperating with Soars in his investigation of Hevesi's former chief of staff, Jack Chartier, "and persons with business dealings with" the Office of the State Comptroller.

"The Hevesi scandal cast a cloud over thousands of honest, hard-working OSC employees," DiNapoli said.

"More tragically, it has violated the trust of every New Yorker."

Chartier's role in the comptroller's office was questioned as early as October, when The Buffalo News reported that a state car and state worker were used to drive a friend of Chartier's, actress Peggy Lipton of TV's "Mod Squad," to appointments.

Chartier accompanied Lipton on the infrequent trips, said Hevesi's spokesman at the time, David Neustadt.

The New York Daily News had a similar report in Monday's editions.

"It's not about one person," Cuomo said.

"That's the tip of the iceberg in some ways and it is about very troubling, serious systemic conflicts of interest in the comptroller's office."

[Livyjr]

Liv - I hope you will broaden this topic beyond New York.

Good for you, Livyjr.

I have felt for a long, long time that you have the talent to sponsor and contribute to subjects such as this one.

I do not know how much time you have, but if you do have the time, I feel certain that eventually you ought to consider Snuffy Smith's suggestion to expand this thread beyond New York.

A.B.

And by way of comparison, anyway, between what is going on in NYS, where the Office of the U.S. Attorney in Albany seems to be "non-existent" when it comes to alleged government corruption here in NYS, versus other states in the union ....

"Execs plead guilty to bribing lawmakers"

By RACHEL D'ORO, Associated Press Writer

May 7, 2007

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Two top officers of an oil services company pleaded guilty Monday to bribing Alaska lawmakers with cash and the promise of jobs, contracts and favors for their backing on bills supported by the multinational firm.

Bill J. Allen, chief executive of Anchorage-based VECO Corp., and Rick Smith, a vice president, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to extortion, bribery, and conspiracy to impede the Internal Revenue Service.

Their attorneys did not immediately return calls for comment Monday.

Prosecutors say Smith, Allen and five state lawmakers conspired to buy the lawmakers' support with money and other financial benefits, according to court documents.

Allen also pleaded guilty to issuing company bonuses to VECO executives to repay them for campaign contributions they made to politicians, then claiming those bonuses as legitimate company expenses.

Sentencing was not immediately scheduled.

The sentencing recommendation for Allen is between nine and just more than 11 years in prison and a fine between $15,000 and $150,000, according to the plea agreement dated Wednesday and unsealed Monday.

In exchange for Allen's cooperation, federal prosecutors agreed not to charge his son, Mark Allen, or other family members with any crimes, according to the plea deal.

The pleas came three days after federal prosecutors indicted one current and two former members of the Alaska House of Representatives on bribery and extortion charges related to last year's negotiations for a new oil and gas tax and a proposed natural gas pipeline.

Three unnamed representatives and two unnamed senators are listed in Allen's charging documents as participating in the conspiracy.

The three indicted lawmakers — Rep. Vic Kohring of Wasilla and former Reps. Pete Kott of Eagle River and Bruce Weyhrauch of Juneau — pleaded not guilty Friday.

Kott, the former House speaker, is accused of accepting $8,993 in payments, $2,750 in polling expenses and the promise of a contract as a lobbyist for VECO in exchange for his support of the proposed pipeline and a tax proposal that favored VECO, according to court documents.

He said he would throw his support behind the company if he was made warden of a prison the company was building in the Caribbean, according to the indictment.

The tax passed, but the contract for the pipeline negotiated by former Gov. Frank Murkowski was never approved.

The indictment did not name the company, but an attorney for VECO Corp. said it was the company involved.

The company issued a news release Friday, two days after Allen signed the plea agreement, saying the charges involve Allen and Smith, but no corporate subsidiaries or other executives.

Kohring is accused of demanding and accepting up to $2,600 in cash and a $3,000 job for a relative from VECO executives in exchange for his support.

The indictment also alleges Kohring sought but did not receive a $17,000 loan for credit card debt.

Weyhrauch, a 54-year-old lawyer, is charged with helping advance the oil service company's causes in exchange for the promise of future legal work, the indictment said.

Amy Menard, an attorney for VECO, said the corporation had turned over more than 100,000 pages of documents to the government.

An FBI spokesman said the arrests stemmed from an investigation that led federal agents last summer to raid the offices of at least six lawmakers, including Kohring, Kott and Weyhrauch.

Also raided was the office of former Senate President Ben Stevens, the son of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.

The younger Stevens has not been charged.

VECO Corp. is an Alaska oil field services and construction company whose executives are major contributors to Republican political campaigns.

The corporation also operates in Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean and elsewhere in the U.S.

New Gov. Sarah Palin said Saturday she would call for a review of how the previous administration and the Legislature pursued that tax structure.

[Livyjr]

"A check mark under 'tardy' for the state - Report Card on Schools is later than ever as budget votes loom"

By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

ALBANY -- A week from today, voters statewide will choose school board members and cast ballots for or against their school district budgets.

But if they want to see how well their district is educating kids, they'll have to travel to their local school and study some fairly complex documents.

If they want to compare their school to others in the area, that'll be even harder.

That's because the statewide Report Cards on the Schools is coming out later than ever, and newspapers consequently won't likely publish the information until after the May 15 votes.

Over the past decade, Report Cards have become a spring ritual, with newspapers statewide printing charts and tables of test scores, graduation rates and other performance measures.

Typically, the state Education Department releases the data to the media in the form of lengthy computer files.

Newspapers and other outlets then sift through the data and present it in a user-friendly form that allows for school-to-school and district-to-district comparisons.

But as of Monday, the data hadn't been released to the media.

Education Department officials did not say why, but did say it could be coming as soon as this week.

One critic, B. Jason Brooks of the Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability, said the delay reflects the struggle the state is having in dealing with all the required reporting nowadays.

The state releases numerous reports each year on such things as overall performance, graduation rates, school violence, troubled schools and various test scores.

When the Report Card first started, the data was released as early as January, and, later on, into March, with papers running stories a week later.

But that date has crept back over the years to the point where this year, most newspapers will likely print their Report Cards after May 15.

Education Department spokesman Jonathan Burman stressed that individual Report Cards already are available at schools, which are given the data ahead of time in order to check the accuracy and to make presentations to residents.

School districts are required to keep their Report Cards on file.

Burman also noted that much of the information in the Report Cards, such as graduation rates, schools in need of improvement, and math and English test score results, has already been released and covered by media outlets.

Either way, people have different views about what these tardy cards mean.

Some believe they should come out prior to budget votes, in order to foster a more informed choice.

"A lot of parents make a connection between (the question of) are we getting the educational bang for our dollars, and if our district as a whole is successful," said Melissa Mirabile, a Guilderland resident who has analyzed the Report Cards to see how her local schools are performing.

On the other hand, school officials say they want adequate time to explain the Report Card results before residents visit the polls.

"We'd want a fair chance to respond before people go to the budget votes," said Bob Lowry, associate director of the state Council of School Superintendents.

"It's less than ideal to be putting that out, say, a week before the budget vote," he said.

However, he said he doesn't believe Report Cards are the major factor people use in voting for or against a school budget.

"My perception is that it has not affected how people vote," Lowry said.

"It tends to be spending and taxes and how people feel about the district."

Karlin can be reached at 454-5758 or by e-mail at rkarlin@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Possible pension fund conflicts eyed - Prosecutors say decisions about investment of $150 billion may have been improperly influenced"

Staff and wire reports, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

ALBANY -- Albany County District Attorney David Soares and state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo are investigating possible conflicts of interest in the state comptroller's office that may have influenced decisions in New York's massive pension fund, people familiar with the case said Monday.

Soares' criminal investigation, one person familiar with it said, is far from conclusive, and such cases involving claims of favoritism and a "pay to play" culture often fall into "a gray area."

Cuomo said he's looking into civil violations surrounding the state's $150 billion pension fund.

He said the investigation is focused on whether the "gate keepers" in the comptroller's office made sure there was no undue influence in investing the $150 billion pension fund.

He said the case is "about systemic conflicts of interests that we believe may exist in the comptroller's office involving the pension fund, which is a precious New York asset."

Cuomo wouldn't comment on whether the fund has been hurt by any misdealings.

The comptroller is the fund's sole trustee.

The current comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli, said his office is cooperating with Soares in his investigation, which includes Jack Chartier, the chief of staff under former Comptroller Alan Hevesi, and "persons with business dealings with" the office.

DiNapoli's spokesman, Dennis Tompkins, said, however, that he was unaware of the "systemic conflicts of interest" of which Cuomo spoke.

He also said Cuomo is only an "ancillary part" of Soares' investigation.

Hevesi resigned last year amid a scandal in which he had state employees chauffeur his wife and help with personal chores, and never reimbursed the state for their time.

He pleaded guilty to a felony, but avoided jail time.

Soares' office was known last year to be looking into Chartier and his use of state resources and employees to provide rides for actress Peggy Lipton, who starred in "The Mod Squad" on TV.

The Daily News reported Monday that Soares' public integrity unit is looking into whether people who wanted to do business with the fund showered Lipton with gifts to curry favor with Chartier.

It also said Hank Morris, Hevesi's longtime political consultant, and Elliot Broidy, a California-based venture capitalist and major Republican fundraiser, are "persons of interest" in the case.

DiNapoli announced he has brought in an outside law firm, Mintz Levin, to look into Chartier's activities.

Overseeing the review will be Bridget Rohde, former chief of the criminal division of the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York.

The firm will share its findings with Soares, DiNapoli said.

DiNapoli also plans to appoint an inspector general for his office to monitor staff activities and operate a hot line for anonymous tips.

That position was recommended by a commission DiNapoli created, headed by former New York City Mayor Ed Koch and finance/government expert Frank Zarb, to look at ways to tighten the office's operations.

"The Hevesi scandal cast a cloud over thousands of honest, hard-working OSC employees," DiNapoli said.

"More tragically, it has violated the trust of every New Yorker."

[Livyjr]

NEWSDAY

"AP New YorkProsecutor probes N.Y. pension fund conflict, `Mod Squad' link"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY

Associated Press Writer

May 7, 2007, 7:19 PM EDT

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Prosecutors are investigating whether investment funds and companies took advantage of conflicts of interest within the state Comptroller's Office that may have affected the state's massive pension fund, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Monday.

Cuomo said it is a shared investigation with Albany County District Attorney David Soares, with state and county investigators melding their authority, although Soars would ultimately handle any criminal case and Cuomo's jurisdiction would be civil charges.

Cuomo said the investigation is focused on whether the "gate keepers" in the comptroller's office made sure there was no undue influence in investing the $150 billion pension fund.

"It's about systemic conflicts of interests that we believe may exist in the comptroller's office involving the pension fund, which is a precious New York asset," Cuomo said.

But comptroller's office spokesman Dennis Tompkins there is no investigation into systemic problems.

"To the best of our knowledge, the attorney general is an ancillary part of District Attorney Soares' investigation and that is the only investigation we are aware of," Tompkins said.

"If the attorney general has any knowledge of systemic conflicts of interest, we'd like to hear them."

Tompkins said the investigation led by Soares is limited to the claims about the behavior of past comptrollers' office employees under former Comptroller Alan Hevesi.

Cuomo spokesman John Milgrim said the results of the investigation will make Cuomo's role clear.

DiNapoli on Monday said his office is cooperating with Soares in his investigation of Hevesi's former chief of staff, Jack Chartier, "and persons with business dealings with" the Office of the State Comptroller.

Chartier's role in the comptroller's office was questioned as early as October, when The Buffalo News reported that a state car and state worker were used to drive a friend of Chartier's, actress Peggy Lipton of TV's "Mod Squad," to appointments.

Chartier accompanied Lipton on the infrequent trips, said Hevesi's spokesman at the time, David Neustadt.

The New York Daily News first reported Soares' investigation on Monday.

"The Hevesi scandal cast a cloud over thousands of honest, hard-working OSC employees," DiNapoli said.

"More tragically, it has violated the trust of every New Yorker."

Attempts to reach Chartier, who left state service in 2006, were unsuccessful.

"It's not about one person," Cuomo said of the investigation.

"That's the tip of the iceberg in some ways and it is about very troubling, serious systemic conflicts of interest in the comptroller's office."

Soares didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cuomo wouldn't comment Monday on whether the state's $150 billion pension fund has been hurt because of what he claims to be conflicts of interest.

He began his investigation in January, before Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli took office, he said.

The comptroller is the sole trustee of the state pension fund that provides the public pensions of state and many local workers.

DiNapoli was chosen by the Legislature to replace fellow Democrat Alan Hevesi who resigned in December following a scandal.

Hevesi pleaded guilty to a felony for using state employees as drivers and companions for his wife.

The plea resulted in no jail time for Hevesi, but a $5,000 fine.

Hevesi also agreed not to take office Jan. 1 for the second term he won in the November election despite the scandal.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/new...egion-apnewyork

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"Add Cuomo to squad looking into Hevesi conflicts"

BY ELIZABETH BENJAMIN

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Tuesday, May 8th 2007, 4:00 AM

Former State Controller Alan Hevesi is facing even more scrutiny - this time from state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who revealed yesterday his office is investigating pervasive conflicts of interest under the disgraced fiscal chief.

"It's not about one person."

"That's the tip of the iceberg in some ways," Cuomo said.

"It is about very troubling, serious, systemic conflicts of interest in the controller's office."

Cuomo's revelation came on the heels of a Daily News report yesterday that Albany County District Attorney David Soares is probing a possible pay-to-play pension scam on Hevesi's watch.

The probe involves Hevesi's former chief of staff, Jack Chartier, his longtime political consultant, Hank Morris, "Mod Squad" actress Peggy Lipton and California venture capitalist Elliot Broidy.

Investigators are trying to determine whether fund managers that wanted to do business with the $150 billion state pension fund gave gifts to Lipton in hopes of influencing Chartier, who was enamored with the actress.

Morris, Broidy, Chartier and Lipton did not return calls for comment.

Cuomo said he and Soares are working together on the investigation, which began in January.

Controller Thomas DiNapoli is cooperating and is not implicated, Cuomo said.

DiNapoli was elected by the Legislature in February to replace Hevesi, who pleaded guilty to a felony for using state employees to chauffeur his wife.

He then resigned.

DiNapoli has hired a Manhattan law firm to audit all of Chartier's correspondence while he was at the controller's office.

Cuomo may have his own conflicts to navigate.

Between 2001 and 2002, Broidy contributed $15,000 to Cuomo's failed 2002 gubernatorial bid.

In 2004, Cuomo attended a Queens political event that honored Chartier, and he bought a $500 ad in the program.

Cuomo rejected the idea that he has a conflict of interest in this case.

He said he doesn't know Broidy personally and the event was just one of many he attended as a runup to his 2006 attorney general bid.

"Just because a person contributes to a campaign doesn't mean you're not in a position to look at the matter," Cuomo said.

ebenjamin@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/05/08...o_hevesi_c.html

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"CUOMO PROBING PENSION 'CONFLICTS'"

By KENNETH LOVETT

May 8, 2007 -- ALBANY - Attorney General Andrew Cuomo yesterday revealed he is investigating the State Comptroller's Office over what he called "systemic conflicts of interests" involving the state pension fund.

One issue, sources said, is whether Jack Chartier, a top aide to disgraced former Comptroller Alan Hevesi, convinced Elliot Broidy, a California venture capitalist with pension-fund business, to give a "six-figure loan" to actress Peggy Lipton.

Chartier, who is said to have been in love with the former "Mod Squad" actress, also is believed to have gotten Broidy to pay Lipton's Manhattan rent for a year.

While Cuomo wouldn't comment on the details, he did say the issue of whether Lipton received cash favors from someone doing business with the pension fund "is one of the subjects of the investigation."

He also indicated the investigation, which began in January, before current Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli took office, is much broader.

"It's not about any one person, Cuomo said.

"It is about systemic conflicts of interest that we believe may exist in the comptroller's office involving the pension fund."

Noting there are civil and criminal charges possible, Cuomo said his office has been working in cooperation with Albany County District Attorney David Soares, who had brought a case against Hevesi that resulted in his resignation and guilty plea to a felony for using state workers to chauffeur his wife.

Soares' office, which is also currently investigating whether there are improprieties regarding the pension fund, had been investigating Chartier for providing round-the-clock state drivers to Lipton.

DiNapoli, who said he is cooperating with the Soares investigation, announced yesterday the appointment of an inspector general to monitor the agency.

kenneth.lovett@nypost.com

http://www.nypost.com/seven/05082007/news/...neth_lovett.htm

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Cuomo Announces Inquiry Into Conflicts Under Hevesi"

By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE

Published: May 8, 2007

ALBANY, May 7 — Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo said on Monday that his office was investigating “very troubling, serious, systemic conflicts of interest” in the way the comptroller’s office has managed the state’s $145 billion pension fund.

Mr. Cuomo said that since January, his office’s public integrity unit, in conjunction with the Albany County district attorney, P. David Soares, had been investigating management of the pension fund.

He emphasized that the investigation predated the Legislature’s selection of Thomas P. DiNapoli as state comptroller in February and that Mr. DiNapoli was cooperating with it.

He would not say whether his investigators had spoken with Alan G. Hevesi, who resigned last December after admitting that he had used state employees as chauffeurs for his wife and pleading guilty to a felony count.

New York state’s pension funds are unusual among large funds in that they are managed by a sole trustee — the elected state comptroller — instead of a board of trustees, giving the comptroller tremendous latitude in choosing investments and awarding millions of dollars in management fees.

Several past comptrollers were criticized for awarding such work to campaign contributors.

Mr. Cuomo would not divulge details of the investigation.

Under state law, the attorney general has civil jurisdiction in many public corruption cases, while the Albany district attorney has criminal jurisdiction.

Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Soares pledged shortly after Mr. Cuomo took office this year to pool resources on investigations and act more aggressively to prosecute fraud and conflicts of interest.

“Suffice it to say, in this case I believe there is potential for both criminal and civil exposure,” Mr. Cuomo said at a news conference.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Soares said he could not comment on investigations under way.

The Daily News reported on Monday that Jack Chartier, who was chief of staff in Mr. Hevesi’s office, was one subject of the investigation.

According to the article, investigators were looking into whether companies seeking to do business with the pension fund had made gifts to the actress Peggy Lipton, a close friend of Mr. Chartier.

The investigation also includes Mr. Hevesi’s longtime political consultant, Hank Morris, and Elliott Broidy, a California financier and Republican fund-raiser, according to The News.

Both men may have benefited from pension fund investments made during Mr. Hevesi’s tenure.

The fund at various times invested in a company called eSpeed, on whose board Mr. Morris served, and committed $250 million to a private equity firm of which Mr. Broidy is chairman.

The latter investment is still active.

A spokesman for Mr. DiNapoli said the pension fund formerly owned shares in eSpeed, through several different companies, known as discretionary account managers, that invest on behalf of the fund, but had not owned any eSpeed shares since last November.

On Monday, Mr. Cuomo described questions about Mr. Chartier as “the tip of the iceberg in some ways.”

Separately, Mr. DiNapoli said on Monday that he would make several changes to prevent future wrongdoing in the comptroller’s office.

They included setting up a hot line for anonymous tips, and appointing an inspector general who would be obligated to report to law enforcement authorities any legal or ethical violations by employees of the comptroller’s office.

“We can’t change what happened during the prior administration,” Mr. DiNapoli said in a news release, “but I can change what will happen during my administration.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/nyregion...amp;oref=slogin

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Cuomo Announces Inquiry Into Conflicts Under Hevesi"

By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE

Published: May 8, 2007

ALBANY, May 7 — Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo said on Monday that his office was investigating “very troubling, serious, systemic conflicts of interest” in the way the comptroller’s office has managed the state’s $145 billion pension fund.

Under state law, the attorney general has civil jurisdiction in many public corruption cases, while the Albany district attorney has criminal jurisdiction.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/nyregion...amp;oref=slogin

THE NEW YORK TIMES EMPIRE ZONE

May 8th, 2007 7:36 pm

In your story “Cuomo Announces Inquiry Into Conflicts Under Hevesi” By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE, published May 8, 2007, it was stated:

“Under state law, the attorney general has civil jurisdiction in many public corruption cases, while the Albany district attorney has criminal jurisdiction.”

However, like all things in NYS, the Office of the NY AG is well-defined by statute, in this case, by Art. 5 of the NY Executive Law, and with respect to the general duties of the NYAG, sect. 63(1) of Art.5 provides in relevant part that:

“The attorney-general shall: 1. Prosecute and defend all actions and proceedings in which the state is interested …”

And with respect to criminal proceedings specifically, sect. 63(2) provides:

“Whenever required by the governor, attend in person, or by one of his deputies, any term of the supreme court or appear before the grand jury thereof for the purpose of managing and conducting in such court or before such jury criminal actions or proceedings as shall be specified in such requirement; in which case the attorney-general or his deputy so attending shall exercise all the powers and perform all the duties in respect of such actions or proceedings, which the district attorney would otherwise be authorized or required to exercise or perform; and in any of such actions or proceedings the district attorney shall only exercise such powers and perform such duties as are required of him by the attorney-general or the deputy attorney-general so attending. In all such cases all expenses incurred by the attorney-general, including the salary or other compensation of all deputies employed, shall be a county charge.”

So, according to the law in the State of New York as it is presently written, as NYAG, Andrew Cuomo himself can most definitely do criminal prosecutions.

And so …

— Posted by Livyjr

http://empirezone.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/0...mania/#comments

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

Mr. Ravi Batra, when you say, "Finally, no one can really argue that representative democracy is at its best when we drive our representatives into financial despair", that statement of yours fails to make a lot of presumptions, starting with the fact that in a true representative democracy such as ours should be, but is not, the democracy itself does not come from these representatives!

It comes from the people themselves!

And I'll tell you that up here in APPALACHIA, as "STEAMROLLER" Spitzer calls upstate NY, it is the people themselves who are being driven into financial despair by their alleged "representatives", and that is because people who are making between six and ten dollars per hour must work and sacrifice to keep all of these various politicals living on salaries of $50 thousand up to well over $100 thou per year, which indeed takes us right back to 1776, and the language in the Declaration of Independence:

"He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance."

And so, Mr. Ravi Batra!

And it then takes us back to 1801, Mr. Ravi Batra, and the first convention to consider amendments to the NY Constitution, and if one studies that segment of our state history, what one finds is this, with respect to the Council on Appointments that was abolished BY THE PEOPLE in NYS in 1821:

"Under the construction given by this Convention the council became a powerful and sometimes a very objectionable political machine, and at the time of its abolition, twenty-one years later, it wielded a patronage including nearly 15,000 officers, with an aggregate salary list of one million dollars."

"It often dispensed patronage with a high hand, making appointments and removals at will; it reduced the dignity and responsibility of the governor, so that, instead of being the chief executive of the state, he had only a casting vote in this appointing body, and only one fifth of the power of making nominations."

"The plan of this council, as devised by Mr. Jay, was reasonable; and if it had been administered as intended, it might have continued as a permanent feature in our Constitution."

"Mr. Jay's plan contemplated a joint responsibility for appointments, to be shared by the governor and the legislature, by providing a council composed of four senators, distributed geographically through the state, with power only to confirm or reject nominations by the governor."

"The whole legislature was charged with a duty and responsibility in the matter by requiring the assembly to choose the council from the senators, thus directly or indirectly bringing both branches of the legislature into cooperation with the governor in making appointments; but the efficiency of the plan was destroyed by the construction given to the article by the Convention of 1801."

"The evolution of this council, and its final destruction, without a dissenting vote, by the Convention of 1821, shows that even the cohesive power of patronage as a political force must yield to higher principles of constitutional government when it is discovered that the dispensing of such patronage by an unrestrained and irresponsible body is inimical to the best interests of the state."

The best interests of the state, Mr. Ravi Batra!

Out here in APPALACHIA, we would say that the "best interests" of the state should start with not starving the people of the state to keep a bunch of political "placemen" living in a style that can never be attained by those who must starve to keep our present royalty living in this style that they have grown accustomed to, yet again, here in our NYS!

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | May 1, 2007 8:56 AM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...s.html#comments

[Livyjr]

"He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance."

"Empire Zone tax breaks attacked at hearing - Legislators, critics question economic development program's effectiveness, suggest shutting it down"

By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Wednesday, May 9, 2007

ALBANY -- The state's Empire Zone economic development program came under scathing criticism Tuesday during a legislative hearing, with some Democratic lawmakers suggesting the program should by halted.

The zones, as part of a program started in 1986, provide tax breaks to companies within a designated geography.

Since 2000, Empire Zones have given companies statewide nearly $3 billion in tax breaks.

The Republican administration of Gov. George Pataki expanded and widely used the program, but state economic development officials under Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, say they are looking at ways to improve the program administered by Empire State Development Corp., the state economic development agency.

During Tuesday's hearing before the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, Patrick Foye, co-chair of the agency, said Empire Zone breaks have been given to companies that are unlikely to leave the state or are distant from the blighted areas the program initially was established to help.

He said the program "is a one-size-fits-all" approach to economic development, adding that "one can raise considerable questions about the effectiveness of the program."

Under questioning from lawmakers, Foye and Daniel Gundersen, who also chairs Empire State Development, said that from 2000 to 2005, Empire Zones provided about $1.9 billion in tax breaks.

Roughly $550 million in breaks was approved last year, and a similar amount is expected this year.

During the five-year span, they said, the program led to the creation of about 85,000 new jobs, though there was considerable questioning Tuesday over the accuracy of the job total.

Some lawmakers weren't pleased by the level of return on the taxpayer investment.

Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, D-Greenburgh, said the program "is in shambles" and should be shut down, at least until it is reformed.

And Assemblyman Joseph Morelle, D-Rochester, said he believes "we'd be better off as a state" if the program were eliminated altogether.

But many companies, including some in the Capital Region, say the program has boosted their bottom line and the state's economy.

Firms such as SuperPower Inc. in Schenectady and Crystal IS Inc. in Green Island have credited the program with aiding their growth.

And the program is cited for helping to pique the interest of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. in building a $3.2 billion chip-fab plant at the Luther Forest Technology Campus in Saratoga County.

On Tuesday, Gundersen suggested that Empire Zones should be targeted at certain industries, such as the high-technology field, that the state wants to see grow.

But it's a mistake, he said, "to use the program to drive all business development in the state."

Gundersen and Foye, who said they have initiated a review of the program with an eye toward potential changes, particularly questioned the state's practice of giving tax breaks to retail businesses, which they said are unlikely to base location decisions on tax benefits and may succeed at the expense of already existing businesses.

Between 2000 and 2005, the state gave $155 million in tax breaks to retail businesses.

Tuesday's hearing coincided with the release of a report by the New York Initiative for Development Accountability and New York Jobs with Justice that questions the state's industrial development agencies, which also provide tax breaks for economic development.

The report claims the agencies awarded $385 million in tax exemptions in 2005, yet nearly 70 percent of that money went to companies that actually cut jobs.

Chris Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Spitzer raises funds for senators - Governor helps collect thousands at event for Democratic lawmakers"

By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

NEW YORK CITY -- Gov. Eliot Spitzer on Monday helped raise tens of thousands of dollars for Senate Democrats, although none were with him at the Woolworth Tower in lower Manhattan.

The event came on a day the Legislature was in session, and Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith, D-Queens, and his conference were busy with bills on such issues as property tax relief for elderly New Yorkers and changing the primary election date.

"It's not a priority," said William C. Samuels, finance chairman for the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee about Smith's decision to remain in Albany.

Spitzer spent roughly a half-hour at the two-hour fundraiser.

He preceded about 35 people who agreed to pay up to $10,000 to the minority's campaign treasury, which they hope to use to oust the GOP in 2008 from Senate control.

Republicans hold a 33-29 advantage and are fighting Spitzer's campaign finance overhaul proposal, seeing it as an assault on their ability to raise funds and maintain control of the chamber.

Republicans also say the governor is hypocritical, pointing to things events such as the fundraiser.

The Senate Democratic event came as Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, also held a fundraiser Monday in Saratoga Springs for the Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee.

Spitzer said there's a difference between raising money in Albany when the Legislature is in session and going elsewhere.

"The problem we have in Albany is that you have the lobbyists who tend to concentrate around the Capitol on days when you have session in contact with legislators at 4 o'clock saying we want you to work on this bill, then showing up at 4:15 making a contribution," Spitzer said.

"There's an appearance issue there."

Sources say the governor and legislative leaders are still far apart on campaign finance changes.

Senate Republicans want to continue collecting donations from limited liability corporations, which Spitzer would ban, and Assembly Democrats are cool to PAC limitations that would cut what unions could contribute.

David Terrio, of BTQ Financial, which works with nonprofit groups in the human services industry, said he attended the fundraiser because he believes in equal access to government.

"These are groups that are not 1199 and don't have expensive lobbyists," he said, describing how his clients don't have the political funds of the giant SEIU 1199 health care workers union.

James M. Odato can be reached at 454-5424 or by e-mail at jodato@timesunion.com.