Mark Weprin Leads Property Tax "Revolt" at City Hall

left to right: Bay Terrace President Warren Schreiber, Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Council Member Mark S. Weprin, and Assemblymember David I. Weprin lead a “tax revolt” at City Hall against outrageous real property tax assessment increases.

New York City Council Member Mark S. Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens), founder of the City Council Co-op and Condo caucus, stood with Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Senator Tony Avella, Assemblymember Edward C. Braunstein, Assemblymember Grace Meng, Assemblymember David I. Weprin, Council Member Daniel J. Halloran, Council Member Peter Koo, co-op shareholders, and co-op board members and presidents from Eastern Queens to protest the outrageous increases in real property tax assessments on co-ops and condos. They called on Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Finance Commissioner David M. Frankel to rescind the increases because they are arbitrary, inconsistent, and unfair.

“These increases cannot stand,” said Council Member Mark S. Weprin. “As an official who represents tens of thousands of co-op and condo residents, I will continue to fight for tax equity.”

The rally and property tax “revolt” took place in advance of City Council Finance hearings to be held on Monday, May 2 at 10 AM at 250 Broadway. At that time, Council Members will call on Commissioner Frankel to explain how he can justify the increases or rescind them immediately.

Since the New York City Department of Finance (DOF) released its real property tax assessments earlier this year, there has been considerable and well-justified angst on the part of Queens co-op and condo boards. When DOF changed the valuation methods, some co-ops saw their valuations rise by as much as one hundred fifty percent, at a time when property values are basically flat. DOF later agreed to limit increases to fifty percent.

“I am a shareholder in a co-op where valuation skyrocketed one hundred forty-seven percent this year, and then DOF decided to cap increases at fifty percent, for this year only,” said Senator Toby Ann Stavisky. “Fifty percent is totally arbitrary and is still a very large increase on middle class families.”

It has also been reported that a computer glitch at DOF was responsible for some of the unusually high assessments.

“The failure of DOF to recognize its mistakes for three months, only to ultimately blame all of its failures on a computer glitch, is simply unacceptable,” said Assemblymember Edward C. Braunstein. “It's time for DOF to abandon its effort to balance New York City’s budget on the backs of co-op owners in Queens.”

"Our ongoing fiscal recovery depends on our neighbors being secure in their homes and able to afford their groceries and medications,” said Assemblymember Grace Meng. “This plan doesn't allow for that; it's simply pickpocketing."

“The City’s formula for valuing these properties doesn’t add up,” said Council Member Daniel J. Halloran. “This is just a hidden co-op tax on my constituents.”

Council Member Peter Koo said, "DOF stated that a computer glitch is the cause for a one hundred forty-seven percent tax assessment increase for co-ops and condos in Queens. This is an unacceptable answer, and whatever glitch occurred should be corrected and assessments re-evaluated.”

"DOF was caught red-handed using commercial properties to value residential co-ops,” said Bob Friedrich, President of Glen Oaks Village Owners. “The Presidents Co-op Council, an affiliation of fifty co-op Board Presidents in Queens, is calling for an independent investigation and is preparing to file a lawsuit if these flawed valuations are imposed."

“Co-ops and condos represent a last bastion of middle class housing in New York City,” said Warren Schreiber, President of Bay Terrace Cooperative, Section One. “As property taxes continue to rise, many long-time residents could be forced from their apartments.”

There may also be a need to correct the underlying issue with legislation at the state level.

"I have introduced legislation to reclassify certain property held in cooperative form," said Assemblymember David I. Weprin. “This will better reflect that the units are primary residences, not investment properties.”

Save the American Dream Rally on February 26th at City Hall Park...

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Rallies in Lower Manhattan in Support of Workers' & Women's Rights by

Thousands take to the streets of lower Manhattan to protest GOP assault on the rights of workers and women.

By Kellabeck

Rep Weiner, CM Ferreras Call on City to Sell Sexist Statue on Craigslist

Today, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D – Queens and Brooklyn), Council Member Julissa Ferreras, Chair of the Women's Issues Committee, and representatives from local women’s organizations called on the City to get rid of the sexist statue near Queens Borough Hall, Triumph of Civic Virtue, which depicts a nude man standing atop two women, and sell it on Craigslist to raise funds.

Sculpted by Frederick MacMonnies, the Civic Virtue statue has been the source of controversy in the Kew Gardens community since 1941, when then-Mayor LaGuardia moved the offensive figure out of City Hall Park to Kew Gardens. The marble statue, which depicts a nude man with standing over the necks of two woman, has been an eyesore on the community ever since.

With the passage of time, the statue has worn down significantly – and considerations are now underway to restore the decaying, misogynistic figure. Potential repairs, according to the Parks Department, would cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Standing in front of the statue, representatives from the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy and the Queens County Young Democrats Women’s Caucus joined Weiner and Council Member Ferreras in expressing their outrage over the offensive figure and urged the City to place the statue on Craigslist as means of raising revenue – rather than using already scarce funds to restore it.

“Mayor LaGuardia had it right when he banished this offensive statue from City Hall Park. Queens residents don’t want this sitting in our backward any longer,” Weiner said. “This statue is neither civil nor virtuous – and it’s time for it to go.”

"There is nothing NYC about this statue. It depicts women as weak and inferior to men- which is far from the truth- the statue has no place in a public space,” Council Member Ferreras said. “This should not be the first thing women see when getting out of the subway. The statue is located just one block away from the Queens Family Justice Center and sends the wrong message. It belongs in a museum."

Today’s press conference comes in the midst of recent anti-women proposals by the new GOP-led Congress, including the “Protect Life Act,” which would allow hospitals the right to refuse emergency abortions even when a woman’s life at stake, and the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act," which would impose tax penalties on Americans with private insurance plans that include abortion coverage.

Today, Rep. Weiner wrote to Edna Wells Handy, Commissioner of Department of Citywide Administrative Services, asking that the offensive Civic Virtue statue be removed and sold.

In the letter, Weiner stated, “Rather than pouring money into restoring the statue, the city should sell it on Craigslist. I am sure the city could come up with some productive uses for the proceeds.”

Full text of Weiner’s letter is below:

February 25, 2011

Ms. Edna Wells Handy

Commissioner

Department of Citywide Administrative Services

City of New York

1 Centre Street, Floor 17

New York, New York 10007-1602

Dear Commissioner Handy:

It’s time to get rid of Civic Virtue. Not the ideal, the statue. It’s sexist. It’s ugly. It’s time for it to go. I am writing to urge you to put the statue, located next to Queens Borough Hall, up for sale and removal.

The statue has been there since 1941, when then Parks Commissioner Robert Moses and Mayor Fiorello La Guardia moved it from City Hall Park in Manhattan. From the time the statue was moved to Queens, many members of the community have objected to the sexist nature of the statue, and I agree with them.

I appreciate the wealth and diversity of arts and humanities displays in the Borough of Queens. We have museums, cultural centers, stadiums and theatres – This statue does not contribute to the mix. It’s an eyesore that depicts a nude man standing triumphantly atop two women at one of the busiest intersection in Queens.

The statue apparently wasn’t appropriate for City Hall in the 1940s, and it’s an insult to think that it is fine for Queens today. What might have at one time been seen as a socially acceptable demonstration of our desire to stamp out vice and corruption is simply not appropriate today. This is particularly true given the assault on the rights of women underway today in Washington

I thank you in advance for your prompt attention and reply to this matter.

Sincerely,

ANTHONY D. WEINER

Member of Congress

Rally in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin and Save the American Dream Rally at City Hall Park, NYC - Video Rally 211

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My friend, Vickie, recently sent me a link to a video of a rally in her home town, Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin on February 11th...She and her husband are in one of the cars beeping in support of the rally'ers at the 3:30 mark... 

Prairie du Chien is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 6,018 at the 2000 census...

So, if that many people can come out in a little Midwest town then, New York City should fill Broadway tomorrow with thousands of people in the streets in solidarity with Wisconsin and the unions...

Attend tomorrow's (today's) Rally to Save the American Dream in New York City at City Hall Park at 11am - 1pm, information below...

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N.Y. Deputy Mayor Goldsmith Learns City Operations the Hard Way by David W. Chen - NYTimes.com

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Stephen Goldsmith, a deputy mayor, is a novice New Yorker.

When Deputy Mayor Stephen Goldsmith announced the demotion of about 100 senior city officials last fall, he emphasized that he would not involve himself in the fine details of how the personnel changes were carried out.

A reporter, incredulous, asked him, “They report to you, don’t they?”

Mr. Goldsmith described his role differently: “I’m their liaison.”

Mr. Goldsmith, 64, occupies perhaps the most hands-on job at City Hall: deputy mayor for operations, with responsibility for police, fire, sanitation and nearly a dozen other agencies that provide the services most visible to ordinary New Yorkers. But he has often seemed quite distant.

During the Christmastime blizzard, he was at his Washington town house, uninvolved in the critical conversations about whether to declare a snow emergency, and writing “Good snow work by sanitation” on Twitter the evening of Dec. 26.

On Monday, most New Yorkers will get their first look at the still obscure deputy mayor, when he is called before the City Council to explain what went wrong during the blizzard. But some current and former city officials are already suggesting that Mr. Goldsmith, who was the mayor of Indianapolis in the 1990s and until last year had never lived or worked in New York, is the wrong man for his high-pressure position. His immediate predecessor, Edward Skyler, was so maniacal about making the city work he was called “Batman” and once tackled a would-be mugger in Midtown Manhattan.

Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, said Mr. Goldsmith reminded him of an outside management consultant.

“I think he’s very intelligent and very steeped in the work of government,” Mr. de Blasio said. “But this seems to be an abstract enterprise for him: it’s not his city, and he’ll be here as long as he wants to be here. There’s something about City Hall that’s supposed to be more than a job. It’s supposed to be a lifestyle and a total commitment.”

Mr. Goldsmith arrived at City Hall with much fanfare in June, the highest-profile appointment of Mr. Bloomberg’s third term. Beyond his eight years as mayor, Mr. Goldsmith had been a fixture in national Republican politics, serving as a top adviser to the presidential campaigns of George W. Bush in 2000 and Rudolph W. Giuliani in 2008, and had become a prolific author and faculty member at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.

It was at Harvard that he connected with Mr. Bloomberg last March, when Mr. Bloomberg participated in a class with two other big-city mayors, Manny Diaz of Miami and Richard M. Daley of Chicago. Mr. Bloomberg later offered what Mr. Goldsmith said, at his debut news conference in April, was an “irresistible opportunity” to “put into practice many of the things I believe in.”

In an interview this week, Mr. Goldsmith said he still viewed his job as much more strategic and long-term in nature.

“I view my assignment as trying to help the mayor transform the foundation of New York City government so as to prepare it for the future, and to use his remaining time to make big changes,” he said. “I’ve also assumed that you don’t want the new guy to be coming in and telling the transportation, sanitation, police or fire commissioner how to run their departments; it’s not the model the mayor wants.”

But he also said that in the wake of the blizzard, and the nonstop bad press he received, he had become “totally more intense” and would log even longer hours than his usual 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. schedule in City Hall.

Mr. Goldsmith’s supporters say that it is unfair to view his brief tenure here through the prism of snow alone. Mr. Giuliani predicted that Mr. Goldsmith, with his background in municipal finance and governance, would ultimately be remembered for reinventing city government.

“It was a screw-up, there’s no doubt about it,” Mr. Giuliani said, referring to the blizzard. “But up until this snowstorm I’d bet that everyone thought he was doing a terrific job. It just shows you that enormously capable people can make mistakes. I would urge patience.”

Already, city officials say, Mr. Goldsmith has helped to pare the city’s projected multibillion-dollar deficit next year by more than $1 billion. An ardent believer in technology (he always carries an iPad and two BlackBerrys), he has produced a report identifying $500 million in potential savings over the next four years by consolidating the real estate, information technology and human resources operations. He also sets aside Friday mornings to meet with community groups.

Caswell F. Holloway IV, the city’s commissioner of environmental protection, credited Mr. Goldsmith for accelerating his agency’s plan to introduce paperless billing for water bills and advocating public-private partnerships for wastewater treatment plants that could ultimately save the city millions of dollars.

Yet there is no shortage of detractors, as well — especially among union leaders who worry that Mr. Goldsmith will push privatization efforts that dominated his tenure in Indianapolis.

Lillian Roberts, executive director of District Council 37, the city’s largest municipal workers union, said Mr. Goldsmith did not appear to have a good grasp of the complexities of New York City government.

“When you meet with him he will listen,” she said. “He’s very polite. He may raise a question or two. But you get absolutely no feedback.”

In an administration known for being obsessed with public health, Mr. Goldsmith would make an excellent case study. He gets up at 5 a.m. to work out, and always eats the carrots that are plentiful in the City Hall bullpen. He also likes his coffee black — really black. When he arrived in City Hall, he thought the coffee was so weak that a second pot was brewed for him, labeled “Bold.”

“We joke that that’s his kind of brew,” Deputy Mayor Robert K. Steel said.

Mr. Goldsmith still has a toehold in academia and a life outside the city. He remains on leave from Harvard, and teaches a course at Columbia in government innovation. But his wife, Margaret, an heir to the Pulliam family newspaper fortune, which had published The Indianapolis Star, still lives in Washington. So until the Goldsmiths sell their Georgetown town house (five bedroom, seven bathroom, asking price $7 million), he is biding his time in a sparse one-bedroom apartment for Columbia faculty in Morningside Heights.

Some of Mr. Goldsmith’s friends say he has been dumbfounded by the city’s maze of regulations and its savage politics. They say he would be better suited, perhaps, to a different job — like senior policy adviser — that would allow him to think big thoughts.

But Mr. Goldsmith insisted that he was not frustrated, not in the least. Indeed, he likened himself to Rambo trying to hack through a jungle of red tape. He did say, though, that he loved social policy, and he expressed admiration for Linda I. Gibbs, deputy mayor for health and human services.

“I think what Linda Gibbs does is much more fun than what I do now,” he said. “I’d love to do a job swap.

My Twitter Exchange with NYC Deputy Mayor Goldsmith Regarding City's Blizzard Response

Tweet Received from Deputy Mayor Stephen Goldsmith:

And, here's my response:

Deputy Mayor Stephen Goldsmith and His Flaky Ideas Doom New York During Storm by Juan Gonzalez - NY Daily News

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Stephen Goldsmith bungled New York's preparedness for Sunday's winter storm. Xanthos/News

City Hall's bungled response to the Blizzard of 2010 started at the top.

Any probe of what went wrong must first examine the key decisions Mayor Bloomberg and his new deputy mayor for operations, Stephen Goldsmith, made in the weeks and hours leading up to Sunday.

After all, our police, sanitation, fire and EMS workers have always performed admirably in previous storms.

And no one supervises snow removal better than Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty, a guy who actually rose through the ranks of his department.

So what was different this time?

Poor management, plain and simple.

It starts with Goldsmith, the hotshot former mayor of Indianapolis who made a name for himself as a "reinventor" of government. His big secret was laying off gobs of city workers and privatizing every service he could.

Bloomberg named Goldsmith his top deputy in April and has handed him enormous power to do the same thing here.

The blizzard was the new deputy's first big test - and he flunked.

To begin with, Goldsmith and Bloomberg refused to declare a snow emergency, even after they learned a blizzard was on the way.

"I started getting text messages from ambulance drivers at 3 a.m. Monday that they were stuck in the snow," said Pat Bahnken, president of the EMS workers' union. "I urged the Fire Department to declare a snow emergency, but they were told City Hall said 'no.'"

Back in 1996, a similar monster storm struck our city. It dumped 20 inches, closed airports, and left drifts 20-feet high.

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani not only declared a snow emergency and ordered all nonessential vehicles off the road, he took 3,300 city buses out of service so they wouldn't block sanitation trucks and rescue vehicles.

Giuliani also asked then-Gov. George Pataki for help. Pataki dispatched 400 national guardsmen with 100 Humvees that were used as ambulances to transport medical supplies and health workers.

If Bloomberg and Goldsmith had done the same, we wouldn't have had hundreds of stuck buses and ambulances blocking main arteries.

"Under Rudy, every snowstorm was considered a big deal," one former Giuliani official said. "All commissioners and top staffers were expected to be at the command center and we all worked hard together."

This time, Goldsmith was out of town and didn't even show up at the command center until Monday. A City Hall spokesman wouldn't say where he was.

"He was in regular email and phone contact with Doherty and "[Office of Emergency Management Director Joseph] Bruno," mayoral spokesman Jason Post said.

The Sanitation Department has been Goldsmith's special target since he arrived in town.

"He micromanages everything in this department," is how one official put it.

Goldsmith is determined to cut the number of sanitation workers and use more private contractors for snow removal - something Doherty has resisted.

The staff reductions and the deputy mayor's scheduled demotion of 100 sanitation supervisors in January - putting them back in sanitation trucks and cutting the pay of many of them - has led to growing tension and made Goldsmith a hated figure in the department.

Those supervisors normally check that city trucks and private contractors do their routes properly. In some cases, some angry workers appear to have slowed down their work during the storm.

City Hall appeared yesterday to recognize the problem and may be backtracking on some of those demotions, several sources say.

So if you want to know what went wrong, start at the top.

New York Civic to Launch Public Referendum to Close "Grandfather" Loophole of Term Limits Law

Good Government Group to Join Councilman Ulrich, Charter Commissioner Cassino and a Coalition of Former City and State Officials to Close “Grandfather” Loophole That Exempts 34 Elected Officials from Two-Term Law

New York Civic, a nonpartisan good government group founded by former NYC Parks Commissioner Henry J. Stern, will announce Monday morning on the steps of City Hall that it will pursue a public referendum to eliminate the controversial “grandfather” clause of the recently passed term limits ballot question, which delays the effective date of the law until 2021 and exempts 34 city incumbents from being restricted to two consecutive terms.

Joining New York Civic in undertaking this landmark public referendum will be a grassroots coalition of community leaders and activists, including Councilman Eric Ulrich of Queens, who is one of the 34 elected officials the term limits loophole would benefit; Anthony Perez Cassino, one of the Charter Revision Commissioners who objected to the inclusion of the grandfathering clause in this year’s referendum; former New York State Lieutenant Governor Betsy McCaughey; Director of the Hugh L. Carey Center for Government Reform, former State Senator Seymour P. Lachman; and Michael Meyers, President and Executive Director of the New York Civil Rights Coalition. Former Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, who will serve as legal counsel in pursing the public referendum, will also be present at the 10 a.m. press conference on November 22^nd.

“This referendum is not about term limits, it’s about respecting the will of the people,” explained Henry J. Stern, the founder and president of New York Civic. “It was bad enough that the City Council ignored the voters in 2008 to extend term limits for itself. It is outrageous that, after 74 percent of New Yorkers voted for two terms for the third time in a generation, 34 incumbents can still serve a third term because of a loophole snuck into the last referendum to benefit a handful of officeholders.”

“Although I supported the recently passed term limits referendum, I was very disappointed that the Charter Review Commission created this loophole for me and my colleagues,” stated Councilman Ulrich. “That’s why I am acting, contrary to my self-interest, to restore the trust of the voters who clearly intended for there to be two terms. This referendum will allow us to make things right again.”

"This campaign is about respecting the will of the people and ensuring that their votes count on term limits and their decision stands unless they vote for a change,” said former Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, who was the counsel for the plaintiffs in the lawsuit opposing the term limits extension in 2008. “Our local democracy still hasn't recovered from the harm done by Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council two years ago to the true two-term limit that the voters twice imposed by referendum and that they have still not had the opportunity to restore. This campaign will finally afford them that opportunity."

Anthony Perez Cassino, one of three members of the Charter Commission to sign a minority report objecting to the grandfather clause, agrees with Councilman Ulrich’s concerns. “The Charter Revision Commission did the right thing by returning term limits to the ballot for the voters to decide, but we didn’t go as far as we needed to regain the trust of the public. Getting rid of the grandfather loophole is the only way to heal the wounds of 2008.”

Protestors Tell Wal-Mart to "FUHGEDDABOUD" Coming to NYC -by Annie Werner - Runnin' Scared - VillageVoice.com

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Protesters of all kinds gathered at City Hall today against the prospect of Wal-Mart parking its corporate, labor-discriminating ass in the city. A Wal-Mart in New York City? "Fuhgeddaboudit!" they proclaimed.

"What does Wal-Mart not understand about, 'New York City doesn't want you'?" asked Stuart Applebaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union. He added that the RWDSU would work aggressively to prevent any Wal-Mart attempt at circumventing city representatives.

Protesters of all kinds gathered at City Hall today against the prospect of Wal-Mart parking its corporate, labor-discriminating ass in the city. A Wal-Mart in New York City? "Fuhgeddaboudit!" they proclaimed.

"What does Wal-Mart not understand about, 'New York City doesn't want you'?" asked Stuart Applebaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union. He added that the RWDSU would work aggressively to prevent any Wal-Mart attempt at circumventing city representatives.

"We don't want Wal-Mart in Brooklyn if they're not going to live up to our standards," Spellman said. "We need equal opportunity for everybody."

It's no secret that Wal-Mart is notorious for violating labor laws, discriminating against women, and damaging the well-being of small local businesses.

"Brooklyn doesn't want you," Stuart Applebaum said, "And for that matter, Queens doesn't want you. The Bronx doesn't want you. Staten Island doesn't want you. Manhattan doesn't want you."

Well, Manhattan doesn't really want anybody, but you know you're unpopular when not even Staten Island wants you on their water-locked wasteland. Fuhgeddaboudit, Wal-Mart.

New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, NYC Councilmembers and NY Leaders Call Out Wall Street for Abuses...

New York Leaders Rally for Real Financial Reform, Call out Wall Street for its Abuses and Army of Lobbyists Fighting to Block Needed Protections

Today at New York City Hall, scores of community members joined elected officials and organizational leaders to rally and call on the United States Senate to stand up to Wall Street lobbyists and pass the strong financial reforms that are needed to fix our broken economy and prevent another economic crisis Big banks and Wall Street financial firms have spent more than $500 million, or $1.4 million a day, since the beginning of last year in lobbying and campaign contributions, a distorting influence that will only be worsened by the Supreme Court’s recent Citizens United ruling.

Participants in today’s rally included New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, New York City Council members Jumaane Williams, Julissa Ferreras, Margaret Chin, and James Sanders, and members of the Americans for Financial Reform coalition including Demos, Make the Road NY, NEDAP, New York Communities for Change, NY Jobs with Justice, NYPIRG, and NY Citizen Action.

Public Advocate de Blasio spoke forcefully in favor of the corporate governance reform pieces of the Senate Banking Committee bill that will soon come to a floor vote “Real financial reform is not bad for businesses, it is a solid investment in the future of our economy,” said Public Advocate Bill de Blasio “I understand the critical value Wall Street provides to our City and that is exactly why I believe we need to rein in speculative financing practices. Real financial reform will create more stability in the financial system and will protect investors, government budgets, pension funds and everyday New Yorkers.”

Queens homeowner Jean Andre-Sassine described his two-year ordeal attempting to get his bank to talk with him about modifying his predatory loan “The broker and lender tricked us when we took out this loan, and it has been nothing but trouble for me and my family." said Andre-Sassine "A new Consumer Financial Protection Agency will protect families like mine from financial rip-offs and exploding mortgages If after all this pain and suffering we still cannot pass these basic reforms because of powerful bank lobbyists, I fear for our democracy itself.”

Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP) Co-Director Josh Zinner called on the Senate to stand firm against the lobbying deluge and improve the bill on the Senate floor “The SEC’s recent action against Goldman Sachs is just the tip of the iceberg -- greed and corruption are pervasive and institutionalized in the financial services industry, and now the financial giants are using every tool in their arsenals to gut sensible financial reform,” said Zinner “Enough is enough The Senate must stand strong and resist the industry's efforts to riddle this bill with loopholes Further, the Senate should vote to make consumer protection truly independent and not subject to a veto by the same banking regulators who failed to prevent this crisis.”

Tamara Draut, Vice President of Policy and Programs for Demos, placed the financial reform bill in context of protecting and reviving a strong middle class in America “For decades, American families have been feeling the squeeze on all sides, and this crisis is the ultimate consequence of the deregulatory economic philosophy that championed the rights of predatory lenders over those of economically-strapped families,” said Draut “This financial reform package is critical to the survival of the middle class through its strong provisions that will help restore a level playing field and ending ‘Too Big to Fail’ bailouts.”

The Americans for Financial Reform coalition is specifically calling on the Senate to:

• Reform derivatives so that these complex and risky products are traded on open markets with adequate safeguards and minimum capital requirements.

• End “Too Big to Fail” banks by adopting a strong “Volcker Rule” and provide for an orderly resolution authority to make the industry and not taxpayers pay for failure.

• Create a strong and independent Consumer Financial Protection Agency without carve-out exemptions or a veto by banking interests.

• Pass strong corporate governance reforms to empower shareholders and bring transparency to corporate decisions.

• Regulate the ratings agencies and require brokers to act in the best interests of their investors.

The Senate is expected to take up the bill for debate on financial reform as well.

For more information, visit www.ourfinancialsecurity.org

Rally at City Hall for Paid Sick Time Bill with Gloria Steinem - November 17th, 2009

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Gloria Steinem's Call to Action; Chamber's Fuzzy Math

Just before the City Council held its first hearings on the Paid Sick Time act yesterday, Gloria Steinem joined over a hundred people who rallied on the City Hall steps to support the groundbreaking bill:

The Daily News, the Post, El Diario, and WNYC covered the action. From the News:

The bill would mandate up to nine days paid leave for people at firms with more than 10 workers, or up to five days at smaller firms.

It has widespread support in the City Council, but Mayor Bloomberg hasn’t embraced it for smaller companies, making for a potential showdown.

Proponents said leave would not only preserve individuals’ health, but help curb the spread of ailments such as the H1N1 virus.

“Paid sick days is a matter of basic fairness,” said Quenia Abreu of the New York Women’s Chamber of Commerce.

The sides had wildly differing cost estimates: Kevin Miller of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research said at least 850,000 workers would receive leave under the law, costing $332 million. But a city business coalition pegged the annual cost at $8.8 billion.

If that $8.8 billion figure sounds high it’s because, well, it is. Crain’s New York Insider did the math:

Crain’s: About That $7.7 Billion …

The paid-sick-leave bill being debated today by the City Council would cost employers $8 billion annually, or about 1.6% of the gross city product, according to the city’s main chambers of commerce. But that assumes an average hourly wage of $27.44 and includes all private-sector workers, not just those lacking sick days. Proponents estimate the annual cost at $332 million in wages and lost productivity, about $7.7 billion less. They point to an Institute for Women’s Policy Research study that factors in only those lacking paid sick time.

Thompson 2009 Campaign Responds to Mike Bloomberg's Comments on Democratic Primary Debate

Mike Bloomberg’s claim that the Thompson campaign doesn’t exist is similar to his attitude towards 95% of New York City; they don’t exist to him.

Come November 3, 2009 Mike Bloomberg is going to learn that the Thompson campaign does exist when the millions of hardworking New Yorkers that he has dismissed for the past 8 years vote him out of city hall.

The fact of the matter is the majority of New Yorkers want a change at City Hall and we have one simple message for him: this is an election not a coronation and you can't buy what is not for sale.”

Today, Mike Bloomberg told the press that he didn’t watch last night’s debate, stating:

"I'm not running against anybody," Bloomberg told reporters. "I'm running on a record, and I'm trying to lay out the things that I would do if given another opportunity."

NYS Nurses Association Endorses Addabbo for Senate - Addabbo Proposes 3 Point Plan to Reform Health Care - Thursday September 25th at City Hall, NYC..

Standing on the steps of City Hall, Joe Addabbo received the resounding endorsement of the New York State Nurses Association.

"Mr. Addabbo's record shows strong support for nursing and healthcare issues," said Tina Gerardi, CEO of the New York State Nurses Association. "As City Council Chair of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor, he has also advanced legislature and initiatives of importance to nurses. We wish him success in his bid for the Senate."

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative; Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative; Randi Hoffman, NYSNA Assistant Director of Communication; and Councilman Addabbo

“Healthcare is one of the primary concerns of the 21^st century as the cost of coverage escalates and insurance companies continue to encroach upon the clinic. We need to put health care back into the hands of the doctors and nurses who think first about the patient, and second about the bill. I am proud to accept NYSNA’s endorsement and look forward to working together to lower the cost of prescription drugs and out of control insurance premiums. We can do better,” said Councilman Addabbo.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative; Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative; Randi Hoffman, NYSNA Assistant Director of Communication; and Councilman Addabbo

Addabbo took the opportunity to layout a three-point proposal to address the escalating cost of health care in New York State.

1) Single Source Drug Coverage

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

A May report released by Senator Jeff Klein (D-Bronx/Westchester) revealed that insurance companies are denying or restricting access to single source drugs with no generic equivalent. Drugs like Lipitor, Plavix, Lexapro, and Advair treat common conditions such as high cholesterol, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression, and asthma.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

Medical decisions should be the purview of a doctor and patient, not a bureaucrat, and as such, Addabbo supports legislation which would require that all medically necessary prescription medications approved by the FDA be covered by the insurance company.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

2) Convert Life Insurance to Long Term Care Coverage

Addabbo supports a proposal which would allow New Yorkers to convert the anticipated value of their whole life insurance policies into immediate, but discounted, cash to pay for the long term care they require either at the end of their lives or in the event of a disabling health crisis.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

This measure would reduce state Medicaid expenditures by providing more liquid assets that New Yorkers can use to pay for their nursing home and home health care needs.

3) Expand the Income Threshold for EPIC (Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage)

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

EPIC is a New York State program that helps seniors pay for their prescription drugs. More than a of a quarter million EPIC enrollees are saving an average of 90 % of the cost of their medicines. Most enrollees have Medicare Part D or other drug coverage, and use EPIC to lower their drug costs even more by helping them pay the deductibles and co-payments required by their other drug plan. EPIC also helps members pay for Medicare Part D premiums.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative;
Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and
Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

Currently, the eligibility requirements for EPIC are capped at 35K for an individual and 75K for a couple. Addabbo supports existing legislation (S2257) to expand the income threshold to 50K for an individual and 75K for a couple.

Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative; Gloria Qualles,
RN, Queens Hospital; and Councilman Addabbo

If coverage were expanded, an additional 35,172 seniors in Queens County would be eligible for EPIC.

All of these approximately 35,000 newly eligible seniors would be protected from the gap in Medicare Part D coverage which totals $1,650, the Medicare Part D “blackout” period between $2,400 and $4,050 in prescription expenses.

John O'Connor, NYSNA Organizer; Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative; Gloria Qualles, RN, Queens Hospital; Councilman Addabbo; and Glennie Millard, NYSNA Nursing Representative

However, historical trends in EPIC enrollment show that, at the high end of income eligibility, only a small percentage, 10%, of eligible seniors enroll in EPIC. This is primarily due to the availability of alternative coverage and high deductibles at the upper end of EPIC coverage.

John O'Connor, NYSNA Organizer and Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community
Affairs Representative

Using the historical EPIC participation rate of 10% of those eligible, approximately 3,500 of the 35,000 newly eligible would enroll in EPIC.

However, if only 3,500 Queens seniors were to enroll, they could still see aggregate savings of $5.8 million due to EPIC coverage of the Medicare Part D gap.

John O'Connor, NYSNA Organizer and Carol Pittman, NYSNA Community Affairs Representative

The measure would also obviously result in considerable Medicaid savings as well.