• Document Cloud
  • FOIL–Your Right to Know
  • See Through NY
  • Tax Exempt
  • Environmental Justice
  • Campaign Finance Reports

Preserve Ramapo

www.preserve-ramapo.com

  • Home
  • Join our email
  • Donate
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • The Archive
You are here: Home / New York Comptroller / Ramapo arrests show need for LDC reform

Ramapo arrests show need for LDC reform

April 24, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Thomas DiNapoli

NYS Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli

Letter to The Journal News from NYS Comptroller

Given the turn of events in the Town of Ramapo related to the questionable financing of a minor league baseball stadium, is there any doubt New York’s local development corporations need more oversight?

Commonly known as LDCs, these entities are private, not-for-profit corporations often created by, or for the benefit of, New York’s counties, cities, towns and villages to spur economic growth or serve other public purposes. In many cases, LDCs are used for economic development such as rehabilitating industrial plants or encouraging businesses to locate or stay in a particular region.

Unfortunately, my office has uncovered too many instances of local governments using LDCs to avoid state laws or bypass oversight that would apply to projects undertaken directly by municipalities, sometimes driving up taxpayer costs.

As recent articles and editorials in the The Journal News/lohud have outlined, my auditors long ago sounded the alarm about Ramapo officials leaving taxpayers on the hook for up to $60 million for the Provident Bank Park project. After the town’s voters rejected public financing, the town then agreed to guarantee LDC bonds issued for the stadium project.

In Monroe County, audits involving the county’s use of LDCs and an investigation, conducted with State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman as part of our Joint Task Force on Public Integrity, uncovered an elaborate bid-rigging scheme involving public and private defendants that saw hundreds of millions of dollars diverted for personal gain. Although those guilty were convicted, their actions contributed to county taxpayers being left with a bad deal and unnecessary debt.

These are just two of the most egregious examples. Other communities have seen their LDCs engage in back-door borrowing or undertake projects that avoid competitive bidding and public referendum requirements that apply to local governments.

But under current law, the state comptroller cannot directly audit the state’s approximately 300 LDCs, even when they are controlled by a municipality.

Right now, the only way my office can examine the relationship between an LDC and a municipality is as a part of an audit of the locality. Even then, we cannot look beyond the financial or business relationship in order to examine the overall finances and operations of the LDC.

This is a major omission in state law that needs to be addressed.

A bill I submitted to the state Legislature would expand my office’s authority to include direct audits of LDCs and similar entities, which are controlled by local governments. The much-needed oversight my proposal provides will help to shed light on the activities of these entities, and provide greater assurance they are operating in the public interest and fulfilling their intended purposes.

The bill has already passed in the Assembly this session. As the allegations in the Ramapo indictments demonstrate, New Yorkers cannot afford to wait any longer and need the Senate to pass this legislation.

We can’t fully understand the financial condition and operations of local governments unless we can directly examine the finances and operations of the organizations they control. The indictments in Ramapo and the criminal convictions in Monroe County show how important public oversight can be.

New Yorkers need to know about the financial operations of their local governments and the entities they control before things go wrong, as they did in the town of Ramapo and Monroe County.

The writer is New York state Comptroller

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: New York Comptroller, RLDC, St. Lawrence arrest

Preserve Ramapo tree no border

Preserve Ramapo online since 2003

Recent Posts

  • VOTE! Special Election–East Ramapo School Board
  • East Ramapo wants to cut NAACP legal fees to $1, if not teachers could be fired
  • Appeals court backs NAACP in East Ramapo voting rights challenge
  • Airmont, Central UTA settle lawsuit, dropping discrimination claims as school can expand
  • Ramapo residents who stole millions from school tech program face prison recommendations

Archives

  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015

Calendar listing for Posts

January 2021
M T W T F S S
« Dec    
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031

Follow us on Facebook

Follow us on Facebook

Other Links

Airmont,

Pomona,

Montebello,

Suffern,

Sloatsburg,

Hillburn,

Spring Valley,

Chestnut Ridge,

New Hempstead,

Wesley Hills,

Town of Ramapo,

Town of Clarkstown,

Rosa4Rockland,

Rockland Water Coalition

East Ramapo Central School District

Power of Ten -- East Ramapo for the Children,

Strong East Ramapo,

East Ramapo Videos,

Copyright © 2021 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in