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NYC Comptroller's Race
Recently I wrote about how developers basically run this city for their own profit, getting sweetheart deals from our city and state government through backroom deals. The level of corruption that basically allows rich developers like Bruce Ratner to use our tax money to turn a profit and dominate politics is really quite amazing. Here I discuss the flip side of this: what the politicians get out of. The politicians get campaign money. Some developers will donated to pretty much everyone's campaign in key races to try and get a hold on whoever wins. This is why candidates who genuinely do not take developer money are important to reforming our system.
The NYC Comptroller race is possibly the most uninspiring one this year. Or at least so far. Seems no one wants to be the one to face the city's fiscal crisis. But apparently lawyers and developers (the latter not surprisingly) are very, very interested in who keeps track of the money in NYC.
This comes from True News from Change NYC:
Lawyers and developers contributed almost half of the funds to the three major candidates running for Comptroller. Of the 4,636 listed occupations (5,779 in total) on the contributor list, 826 are listed as lawyers. But even 826 is not the true number due to the fact that the candidates mislabel the contributors' occupations on the list. The same can be said for the 344 real estate contributors...Of the 200 contributions listed as CEOs, most are in real estate, law or banking. Many other listed professions that should have been specified as real estate include: Architect, Broker, Builder, Contractors, Developer, Director, Engineer, Management, Owner, Partner, President, Principal, and Self Employed....Of the 400 contributers listing their occupations as executives, many are developer’s lawyers and bankers. Talk about cooking the Comptroller books, Katz has a contribution listed as "Self Employed" and another contributer from Two Trees Mgmt listed as "Director" for his occupation, when in fact everyone knows that Two Trees is a very famous real estate development company.
There's more. The article is a good bit of digging around the finiancial disclosures of these candidates. And it is nothing new for developers to hide their professions...and for politicians to abet that hiding. Normally I don't have the hours in a day to do the kind of digging around True News from Change NYC did, but when a supporter of Brad Lander (running for City Council in Brooklyn) claimed that Brad took no developer money, I did some similar digging, mainly Googling the top contributors to Brad's campaign. Family members aside, almost all of Brad's top donors were developers and contractors, though few listed that as their profession. It took a simple Google search to find the executives, CEOs and the like were mostly working for developers. When the developers (and apparently lawyers) hide who they are, and the politicians make claims that they take no developer money when they do, that is basic lying in my book.
Looking at the Comptroller's race, Melinda Katz is widely known as one of the top recpients of developer money in the city...and that is saying a lot. She seems largely in the pocket of developers if eagerness of donations is any indication. David Yassky isn't qutie the enthusiasitic pro-developer candidate Katz is...rather he prefers speaking out about standing up to developers only to cave in when thrown a tiny crumb or hollow promise by a developer. His rhetoric often sounds good, but in a weak moment my wife, when asking him questions about his run for Congress in 2006, got him to admit in public that he believed developers will always win so the best we can hope for is to try and get whatever concessions we can from them when the deal is done. If Katz is something of a developer quisling, perhaps Yassky is a bit of a Neville Chamberlain when it comes to dealing with developers.
David Weprin is the one who seems least beholden to developers of the three, though I fully admit that could be as much the fact that I know the least about him than he is any better than the other two. He did make a proposal that was sure to give developers indigestion when he suggested that we should ease traffic congestion by raising construction fees and thus discouraging developers from blocking streets for as long as they do. So far he strikes me as the most conservative of the three, but also is the only one who has actual experience dealing with the city's money, having served as Deputy Superintendent of Banks for NYS, as Secretary to the Banking Board, and as Chairman of the Securities Industry Association (for what it's worth), experience Yassky and Katz largely lack. Now that may well mean Weprin is owned by bankers rather than developers, but to be fair he was involved in the banking and securities industries before Bush's policies started ruining our economy. Here is how Weprin describes on his website his tenure as Deputy Superintendent of Banks for NYS under Governor Mario Cuomo:
, [Weprin] was a watchdog of nearly $2 trillion, regulating more than 3,000 financial institutions and financial service firms in New York State, including international banking institutions, mortgage brokers, and mortgage bankers. One of several accomplishments David is proudest to have achieved on behalf of consumers as Deputy Superintendent was to reduce the number of days banking institutions may hold checks before clearing them, thereby reducing the interest they can earn on the backs of consumers and businesses.
So there you have it. The Comptroller's race in a nutshell: Lawyers, Developers and Bankers.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
I been very disappointed with the daily gotham
CM David Weprin is pushing an irresponsible industry bill, Int. 653-A, sponsored by Councilmen Kendall Stewart, Oliver Koppel, David Weprin, and Simcha Felder which the HSUS,ASPCA,Coalition to ban horse drawn carriages, Friends of Animal, NYC bar association and other groups opposes. This bill will weaken enforcement of current laws by removing authority from the ASPCA, New York Police Department, and others to enforce the meager protections that the horses have while providing fare hikes for the industry and shifting the costs of providing water to horses to taxpayers. It opens the door for the industry to self-regulate and escape oversight by independent agencies. What makes Int. 653-A especially reprehensible is that a year and a half ago, City Comptroller Bill Thompson released an independent audit documenting the inhumane conditions the horses live and work in, which found the horses are forced to stand in their own waste in stables and work without adequate water, protection from harsh weather conditions, and oversight by authorities. More enforcement needs to be done, not less.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
"We're being asked to make cuts to services and raise people's taxes. We should start by asking those who owe the city money to pay," said City Councilman David Weprin (D-Queens), who heads the Council's Finance Committee.This is a joke, right? Actually it is Campaign Speak to those who do not know the real facts. This is the same person who is voicing support for (and sponsoring) Intro 653-A, an anti-consumer bill that would reward the carriage industry by increasing rates of carriage rides and taking away oversight from the ASPCA.
How much revenue are taxpayers losing from a business that: is cash only, primarily employs independent contractors, doesn't pay concession fees or sales tax, and overcharges customers Maybe Council Member Weprin should go after the carriage industry that he blindly supports. This is not only a cash only business, but cheats the public in what they charge. There are videos on Youtube that show drivers asking for more than they are legally allowed. They also charge sales tax, which are not required. Maybe someone should check on whether or not they actually make sales tax payments to the City. They also charge outrageous amounts on their web sites, which are also not allowed by law.
So Mr. Weprin saying anything about anyone paying back taxes should not be taken seriously. And anyone who supports fraud, should not be elected City Comptroller
The Move Blinders, the Truth behind the Tradition (tradition is a lame excuse for abuse)
http://beta.sling.com/video/show/117999/77/BlindersBLINDERS
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
Submitted by GetReal (not verified) on Mon, 02/16/2009 - 5:15pm.
This whole situation is mind-boggling. Weprin cannot be comptroller until he gets a grasp on finances, accountability, and revenue. First, the absurd and dangerous horse-drawn carriage industry is cash-only. How bizarre is that? Yes, baby-sitters are cash-only. Some workers in nail salons and restaurants get tips. BUT AN INDUSTRY that the city actively promotes and protects with one side of its mouth while missing out on potentially important revenue, such as the horse-drawn carriage industry, is bad business. How in the hell does the city get revenue from this sketchy business? not to mention, why do the horses look so bad?
Have you seen those videos that were made, where the drivers are saying crazy prices for rides? i don't think that's right, so I looked it up--guess what, it's online, and it isn't $50 or $79 ... it's $34 for 30 minutes.
This is scandalous and I feel very disenfranchised from the city government. It seems to be about back-room deals, overdevelopment, and egregious stupidity. Bloomberg is supposed to be smart, right? How would we know? Is he in cahoots with Weprin?
I've seen lemonade stands run by 5-year-olds that are better business.
Disconnect
Your view, and the one expressed by the individual who made the two comments above, regarding the horse carriage issue are valid points of view and we welcome your expression of them even though, personally, the issue is not on my radar.
But I think it is a bit disingenuous to suggest Weprin doesn't have a grasp of finances, accountability, and revenue. I have no sense of how tied he is to the banking and financial industries, but he definitely does have a grasp of finances, accountability, and revenue. Arguably he is the ONLY candidate in the race who does since Quisling Katz and Weasel Yassky have no real sense of those, or more accurately, have not really demonstrated such. Do I trust Weprin? Not necessarily, but I definitely do not trust Katz or Yassky. So please, by all means criticize Weprin, but don't claim he has no grasp of things he has spent considerable time actually dealing with while other candidates have not. Keep the criticisms focused.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
Do you have any actual evidence for your claims, other than a "Google search"?
Your logic seems to be based on moral absolutes. For example, it appears that you think all lawyers are bad. What about those who are working at public interest firms doing impact litigation for progressive causes? We need those people on our side. We also need developers on our side - who else will build affordable housing? These people are not inherently bad and their donations are not necessarily indicative of corruption.
If you are really concerned about corruption, then become an advocate for full public financing of elections and make some change. Get off the internet and do something.
Dude
Calm down. I am providing information. I don't even discuss the lawyers. As for affordable housing, look at the record in NYC, particularly people like Ratner, who make promises and don't keep them. Ratner has no record of building affordable housing and was not the top bidder, but because of political connections he got the deal. That is corruption.
We do not need the city dominated by developers. We need a government that stands up to developers. Why do developers get what they want through back room deals? Why are they allowed to break their promises yet still take our tax money?
As for full public financing, Dan Jacoby on this site does a good job of discussing such issues. As for getting off the internet and doing something, I do that too.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
Mole, you rock!
Once again, I repeat my "broken record" mantra -- that a "Clean Money, Clean Elections" system is as good a solution as there is to this and many other problems.
Right now, Intro 803, the "Clean Elections Act," has two sponsors -- Tony Avella (who introduced it) and David Yassky. Say what you want about Yassky, but he clearly knows a good solution when he sees it.
Yassky
Well, good luck with that. My guess is he will back it as long as it costs him nothing and will, if his pattern continues, agonize over selling out for awhile then sell out. But I have always maintained that deep inside Yassky's self-centered outlook there is a decent guy trapped by his ambition. I have seen him sell out everything he has stood for at one time or another. He always has painfully unconvincing excuses that he goes over in excruciating detail, publicly flagellates himself in penance over selling out (leading my wife to coin the phrase "Sado-Yassikist"), but in the end sells out. May your "Clean Money, Clean Elections" solution be an exception because we sure need it.
Actually, keep in mind that I did highlight some good biodiesel proposals Yassky and Gennaro proposed. So I am willing to give Yassky his due when it is deserved. I just have long ago stopped trusting what he says. Let me say publicly that if he gets some real action going on Clean Money, Clean elections, I will certainly write praise for it. But words alone from Yassky are meaningless.
And let me add that True NEws from Change NYC did the hard part on this one, tracing down the funding sources in the Comptroller's race. Again, the only candidate I did that for was one candidate in a city council race.
Brad is not accepting contributions from for profit developers
Brad is not accepting contributions from for-profit real estate developers, corporate lobbyists, or PACs. The March 16th campaign finance filing will show that several contributions that were shown in earlier statements have been refunded.
Michael Freedman-Schnapp
Campaign Coordinator
Brad Lander for City Council
Re: Brad is not accepting contributions from for profit develope
Thanks for posting. I have heard that Josh Skaller did get one developer contribution and returned it immediately. Nice to see Brad will follow Josh's lead in this one.
So I guess this means that, family aside, most of the top donations to Brad's campaign will have been refunded?
Thanks again for posting.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
1 more candidate to add to your list. I've heard that John Liu will give up his run for P.A. and run instead for Controller.
Re: NYC Comptroller's Race
It makes sense for Liu; the question is, who benefits in the P.A. race? Gioia, because he has Queens all to himself?
The Marist poll released a couple of weeks ago had Gioia trailing the pack with 2%, so he has nowhere to go but up. On the other hand, Liu (as well as de Blasio) was polling at a mere 6%, so there aren't a lot of votes to be had by Liu's departure from that race.
I think the winner is Mark Green. Liu, by moving from P.A. to Comptroller, is effectively saying nobody can compete with Green. It doesn't matter whether it was true; all that matters is the perception that can become reality.
Meanwhile, if only because none of the three current Comptroller competitors has done anything to become separate from the pack, Liu comes in as the favorite. If a poll were taken next week, Liu might trail the pack, but there is a lot of room for his numbers to rise, and not much room for anyone else's numbers to increase significantly.