Plugged In @ Hinman Straub — July 8, 2016

PluggedInMastheadCoverage of Albany and New York State government – July 8, 2016

  • State Releases Long-Awaited START-UP NY Report
  • Governor Announces Emergency Child Care Program Regulations
  • Comptroller’s Audit Critical of State’s Excelsior Jobs Program
  • Governor Announces Funding for Bridge Rehabilitation Program
  • Governor Announces Downtown Revitalization Awards
  • Report Looks at State, Local Public Authorities
  • Senate, Assembly to Hold Water Quality Hearings
  • Governor Announces Approval of Nation’s First Undergraduate Homeland Security Program
  • ISO Issues Annual ‘Power Trends’ Report
  • Political Update
  • Coming Up

 

State Releases Long-Awaited START-UP NY Report

According to a report released last Friday, the START-UP NY program created 332 jobs in 2015.

In 2014, 76 jobs were created through the program, with 54 companies participating. As of the end of 2015, 159 companies were enrolled in the program.  The report also indicates that the program ended 2015 with commitments for the creation of 4,140 jobs by the end of 2020.

The program, which is in its third year, offers new and expanding businesses the opportunity to operate tax-free for 10 years on or near eligible university or college campuses in New York State. To participate, companies must be new to the state or significantly expand operations, and do business in specific industry sectors.

The program has been controversial because Empire State Development, the state’s primary business-aid agency, has spent millions of dollars on advertising to promote the program, but its job creation results have been modest so far.  A nationwide ad campaign urged companies to “Move here, expand here or start a new business here and pay no taxes for 10 years.”

Critics of the program are questioning whether the program will ever be as transformative as promised in terms of job creation.

 

Governor Announces Appointment of New Senior Advisor, Deputy Chief of Staff

On Wednesday, Gov. Cuomo announced that the appointment of Kelly Cummings to serve as deputy chief of staff and senior advisor, reporting to the Governor. She was most recently director of communications for the Senate Majority.

Shortly after the Governor announcement, Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan said that Deputy Communications Director Scott Reif will be promoted to serve as Communications Director for the Senate Majority.  Reif has been press secretary and chief spokesman for the Senate Majority since 2011. He previously served as state Division of Budget communications director.

 

Governor Announces Emergency Child Care Program Regulations

On Tuesday, Gov. Cuomo announced the release of new emergency regulations to improve safety and accountability of child care programs.  The rules are intended to enable the state to close day care centers immediately for inadequate staffing and other safety and health violations.  The state is also expanding its online registry of state-licensed child care providers to include inspection and violation histories for up to six years, and more information on illegally operated programs.

Gov. Cuomo said:

“Every parent should have access to safe, reliable child care. These new regulations will help improve access to quality care statewide by increasing transparency and accountability in the system.  From strengthening penalties for serious violations to updating our state registry to include a history of fines, these reforms will ensure New York’s children are both safe and protected while in the care of their community provider.”

 

Comptroller’s Audit Critical of State’s Excelsior Jobs Program

On Thursday, state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released an audit of the state’s Excelsior Job’s Program, which found that the state has been unable to verify that many companies receiving these benefits have met their job creation obligations.

The Excelsior Jobs Program, which was established in 2010, provides refundable tax credits to businesses in targeted industries in exchange for creating and maintaining specific numbers of new jobs or making significant capital investments. Empire State Development, which administers the program, requires companies to report annually to verify their job creation and investment totals.

Auditors identified a number of problems, ranging from reducing job creation goals after companies did not meet expectations to not verifying if jobs were full-time or part-time.

Comptroller DiNapoli said:

“New York state gives away millions of dollars each year in tax breaks for companies that are supposed to create jobs and expand under the Excelsior program, but ESD’s oversight leaves a lot to be desired.  ESD needs to stop lowering the bar and giving companies a pass when they fall short of promises. ESD needs to ensure these businesses are not taking advantage of state taxpayers.”

ESD disagreed with the audit’s findings, issuing the following statement:

“Any truly objective review would show this program is cost-effective, performance-based, and incentivizes business growth by only providing tax credits to those that have achieved their job commitments and investments.  The reporting requirements to this agency, as well as to the Department of Labor, are rigorous and companies have to demonstrate to ESD that they met their job commitments before any credits are issued. To be clear: auditors did not find a single instance where incentives were improperly provided. They also apparently ignored the success of this program, which, to date has admitted 434 businesses that have committed to create more than 44,445 new jobs, retain nearly 158,000 existing jobs and invest $4.2 billion.”

 

Governor Announces Funding for Bridge Rehabilitation Program

On Tuesday, Gov. Cuomo announced that the state is making $200 million available to local governments over the next two years to rehabilitate and replace bridges and culverts statewide.  The funding is being provided through the Governor’s BRIDGE NY initiative, which was approved as part of the state’s 2016-17 budget.

Gov. Cuomo said:

“Modernizing and improving transportation infrastructure is a vital component of enhancing New York’s economic competitiveness. By helping local governments make investments to ensure the safety and reliability of their bridges, the BRIDGE NY program will literally strengthen our communities and bolster their viability.”

 

Governor Announces Downtown Revitalization Awards

On Wednesday, Gov. Cuomo announced that Elmira, Geneva, Middletown, Plattsburgh and Westbury have each been awarded $10 million by the state to revitalize their downtown areas.  The awards include up to $300,000 in planning funds to draft a Strategic Investment Plan that will identify specific economic development, transportation, and housing and community projects.

The awards are part of a $100 million effort to improve the urban vitality of city centers across the state. Plans will be completed by early 2017.

 

Senate, Assembly to Hold Water Quality Hearings

On Wednesday, the chairs of the Assembly Environmental Conservation and Health committees announced that they will hold public hearings in September on water quality in the state. The hearings will relate to water contamination situations in various communities around the state, and will be held in Albany and Suffolk County.

The hearings are in response to the situation in Hoosick Falls, a village of 3,500 near the New York-Vermont border where residents have been raising concerns since last year regarding the safety of their drinking water.

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform requested all communications regarding the toxic chemical PFOA and Hoosick Falls from the Cuomo Administration and the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Earlier today, Senate Majority Leader Flanagan announced that the Senate will hold public hearings, the first of which will be in Hoosick Falls, “in an effort to explore the sources of water contamination, examine state and federal oversight issues, and determine how we can prevent this from happening in the future.”

 

Report Looks at State, Local Public Authorities

The state’s Authorities Budget Office (ABO) released its annual report this week, which looks at the finances and activities of New York’s 577 state and local public authorities.

The ABO’s report questions the effectiveness of the manner in which the state approaches economic development. Statewide, $38.5 million in net tax exemptions were provided to 316 IDA-approved projects in 2015.  However, the ABO found that there is “little correlation between the number of public authorities in a given county involved with economic development or the number of projects that receive financial assistance from IDAs (industrial development agencies) private sector job growth.”

The ABO is seeking greater authority to carry out enforcement actions, saying that voluntary reporting by public authorities is falling short.  According to the report, about 125 public authorities are delinquent and out of compliance with state law requiring them to submit reports detailing their work in any given year.

 

Governor Announces Approval of Nation’s First Undergraduate Homeland Security Program

On Tuesday, Gov. Cuomo announced that the State Education Department has approved a bachelor’s degree program in Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany, for the fall 2016 academic year. This is the first program in the nation in the field of study.

Gov. Cuomo said:

“The launch of the new college of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cyber Security at SUNY Albany marks a major step forward in the state’s drive to train the next generation of leaders in these critical fields.  This first-of-its-kind program will equip students with the cutting-edge security and preparedness capabilities they need to meet the challenges of the 21st century, and work to enhance the security of New York and the nation for years to come.”

 

ISO Issues Annual ‘Power Trends’ Report

On Tuesday, the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO), which monitors the reliability of the state’s power system and coordinates the daily operations to distribute electricity supply, released its annual “Power Trends” report.

The report “examines shifting patterns of electricity use, a growing need for investment in transmission infrastructure, persistently low natural gas prices, and public policies promoting renewable and distributed resources,” and looks at how they are impacting the state’s energy landscape.

The report finds that demand for electricity in the state is expect fall slightly over the next 10 years, but that NYISO will be facing the challenge of incorporating much more renewable energy into the state’s electric grid.

 

Political Update

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 Board of Regents holds its next meeting on July 12 and 13.

The state Board of Elections holds its next meeting on July 12.

The Public Service Commission holds its next meeting on July 14.

The state Commission on Legislative, Judicial, & Executive Compensation, which is considering salary increases for statewide elected officials, state agency heads and state legislators, holds its next meeting on July 26 in Manhattan.

 

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) holds its next meeting on August 9.