A Magnifying Glass on Public Authorities

The New York Times: City Room, July 12, 2010

They have long operated as a sort of shadow state government: more than 700 public authorities that function largely with little public oversight. Last December, the State Legislature passed a new law aimed at making the long inscrutable agencies more transparent and reining in their spending. Now, a state office given more power to oversee the authorities has issued its first report. And the results do not seem all that encouraging — at least to New York taxpayers. New York’s ...

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees DC 37 Endorses Brodsky for AG

Press Release, July 08, 2010

White Plains – The Richard Brodsky for Attorney General campaign announced today the endorsement of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), District Council 37 union (AFL-CIO).  District Council 37 represents 125,000 Public Employees and 50,000 Retirees in New York City. Lillian Roberts, Executive Director of DC37 said, “We’re proud to be part of a winning team that will make sure New York has an Attorney General who will stand up for ...

Richard Brodsky Scores Support of DC 37 In Attorney General Brawl

NY Daily News: Daily Politics, July 08, 2010

Westchester Assemblyman and state attorney general hopeful Richard Brodsky now carries the endorsement of DC 37, the city’s largest public employees union—a boon his campaign sees as a major boost in the coming ground war in the crowded field for the Democratic nomination. Brodsky bandw.jpg DC 37 represents 125,000 city employees and 50,000 retirees—troops who can come to the aid of Brodsky here in the five boroughs, where most of the primary vote will be ...

Subpoenaed local development officials no-show Assembly hearing

News 10 Albany, July 02, 2010

Two officials of a local economic development agency failed to appear before an Assembly committee investigating how each of them was paid about one million dollars over a two year period. Richard Brodsky, the chairman of the Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, had subpoenaed Jeff Bray, executive vice president of the Fulton County Economic Development Corporation, and Peter Sciocchetti, executive vice president of its sister agency, Crossroads Incubator ...

NY development officials suspended in bonus probes

Bloomberg Businessweek, July 02, 2010

In the first test of a state crackdown on alleged abuses in the shadow government of public authorities, two local economic development groups have suspended two top executives while investigating more than $1 million they received in bonuses, officials testified Monday. The presidents of the Fulton County Economic Development Corp. and affiliate Crossroads Incubator Corp. said they and other members of the groups’ two boards only recently learned about the executive bonuses and saw ...

Brodsky: Reveal bonus pay deals

Times Union, July 02, 2010

Assemblyman examines authorities in wake of Fulton County revelation Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Chairman Richard Brodsky began writing to all 500 public authorities on Wednesday because of irregularities he’s discovered at a rural county’s local development corporation. Brodsky’s letters demand information about arrangements providing for bonuses paid to top officials and other employees. The directive comes because of ...

Democratic Attorney General Candidates (Sort Of) Face Off For First Time

The Daily News, June 21, 2010

As I said, we’re here in Manhattan at City Hall’s candidate forum—that’s FORUM, not debate—for the Democratic AG candidates… stick with this post for a bit and I’ll update it as we go along… (Commenter Mary Alice is correct—I should have noted that this is the first time the candidates have all been together SINCE NYDEMCON.) After some introductory talk, we’re at the bit where everyone (in rotating alphabetical order) is talking ...