Plugged In @ Hinman Straub – October 4, 2016

PluggedInMastheadCoverage of Albany and New York State government – October 4, 2016

  • Governor Unveils Plans for New Penn Station
  • State Puts New Protections in Place for Gift Card Users
  • Comptroller Announces Latest Fiscal Stress Scores for Local Governments
  • CBC: State’s Economic Development Efforts Lacking Adequate Oversight
  • Good Government Group Critical of ‘Lump Sum Funds’ in State Budget
  • Report: New York’s Highways Among the Nation’s Worst
  • Political Update
  • Coming Up

Governor Unveils Plans for New Penn Station

On Tuesday, Gov. Cuomo announced a plan to “fast track” construction of a train hall and retail space in the James A. Farley Building, also known as the General Post Office, in Manhattan, and to renovate the underground passageways and platforms across Eighth Avenue at Penn Station.

The Farley building will be the new home of both Amtrak and the Long Island Rail Road, and 112,000 square feet of retail and nearly 588,000 square feet of office space. Preconstruction work will begin this fall, with the new Farley Train Hall expected to be completed by December 2020.

Gov. Cuomo said:

“New York’s tomorrow depends on what we do today, and the new Moynihan Train Hall will be a world-class 21st century transportation hub….the current Penn Station is overcrowded, decrepit, and claustrophobic. The Moynihan Train Hall will have more space than Grand Central’s main concourse, housing both Amtrak and LIRR ticketing and waiting areas, along with state-of-the-art security features, a modern, digital passenger experience, and a host of dining and retail options. This is not a plan – this is what’s going to happen. People are going to walk through this station and recognize that this is New York.”

The Governor’s presentation can be viewed here.  He said that all of the necessary approvals are in place, as well as the required funding.

State Puts New Protections in Place for Gift Card Users

On Monday, Gov. Cuomo announced that he has signed legislation instituting new consumer protections for consumers using gift cards.  The new law increases the minimum time before cards are charged a user fee, places additional restrictions on those fees, and expands the expiration dates of gift cards in order to protect consumers.

Gov. Cuomo said:

“These new protections will help prevent New Yorkers from being nickeled and dimed by hidden costs and fees.  No one expects an asterisk when buying a gift card and I’m proud to sign this legislation to help ensure consumers get their money’s worth.”

Comptroller Announces Latest Fiscal Stress Scores for Local Governments

State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli announced this week that his Fiscal Stress Monitoring System has designated 40 municipalities across the state as fiscally stressed, including 10 counties, 10 cities and 20 towns.  The system considers the local governments’ fund balance, cash-on-hand and patterns of operating deficits, and considers environmental information such as population trends, poverty and unemployment. His office also released a report which looks at fiscal stress trends over the past three years.

Comptroller DiNapoli said:

“The challenges facing local governments across the state are real.  Our monitoring system has shown that for those localities experiencing financial hardship, it can be difficult to overcome challenges that have been years in the making. Local officials should be carefully examining their scores and using this system to determine how they can budget prudently and develop realistic long-term financial plans.”

CBC:  State’s Economic Development Efforts Lacking Adequate Oversight

On Monday, a New York City-based fiscal watchdog released which finds that the state’s spending on incentives and tax breaks to companies continues to grow, but that the money is being distributed without adequate safeguards to protect taxpayers.

According to the Citizens Budget Commission (CBC) report Increasing Without Evidence: NYS Economic Development Spending Update, the state’s economic development programs lack the metrics and reporting requirement needed to determine what value taxpayers are receiving from these investments.  The group recommends that the state create a single economic-development budget so the money would be better accounted for rather than spread out among state agencies and authorities.

The report is a follow-up to the group’s February 2015 report on the same topic.

Good Government Group Critical of ‘Lump Sum Funds’ in State Budget

On Thursday, good government group Citizens Union released a report on discretionary spending sources in the state’s current budget.  The group found $4.8 billion of “opaque lump sum funds,” which that give the Governor and legislative leaders wide latitude on how the money will be spent.

Citizens Union Executive Director Dick Dadey expressed concerns about the practice, which enables lawmakers to make funding decisions outside of the state’s normal budget process, saying that it creates a risk of corruption. He said “This is done largely without public disclosure.  Without this kind of transparency, significant risk exists for public corruption and a waste of taxpayer money.”

Report:  New York’s Highways Among the Nation’s Worst

A new report from Reason Foundation finds that New York’s highways are among the worst in the nation for their condition and cost-effectiveness, ranking 45th in the nation.

The analysis by the non-profit think tank ranks state-controlled roads in 11 categories, including spending, pavement and bridge conditions, traffic congestion and fatality rates. It is based on 2013 state data reported to the federal government and 2014 traffic congestion data from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.

The report finds that New York’s highway system, the 14th largest in the nation, is not improving.  The state ranks 48th for its maintenance disbursements per mile, 47th for its urban interstate pavement percentage in poor condition and 49th for its urbanized area traffic congestion delay per commuter.

In July, state leaders signed a five-year agreement to spend $27.1 billion over the next five years on projects planned by the Department of Transportation or the Thruway Authority.

Political Update

State Conservative Party Re-Elects Leader

Mike Long, chair of the state’s influential Conservative Party, was re-elected to that position at the organization’s meeting this past weekend.  Long has served in that position since 1988.

Nassau County Comptroller Joins Democratic Party; Will Run for County Executive

On Thursday, Nassau Comptroller George Maragos announced that he has switched his party registration from Republican to Democrat, and that he will seek the Democratic Party’s nomination to run for county executive in 2017.  Maragos has served as County Comptroller since 2010.

Winners & Losers

Each week, City & State New York publishes a list of the week’s political “winners” and “losers.”  Read this week’s list here.

Coming Up

The state’s Sixth Annual MWBE Forum will be held October 5 and 6 in Albany.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) holds its next meeting on October 13.

On October 20, Columbia Law School and the Rockefeller Institute of Government are hosting an event titled “Constitutional Convention Referendum 2017 and Home Rule within the Empire State” in New York City.

On October 21, City & State Reports and New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service present a day-long conference on government ethics in New York City.

The state Board of Regents holds its next meeting on October 17 and 18.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) meets on October 26.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 8.