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City Hall News

Daily summaries and links to city government related news

Quinn to Revise Budget Changes

05/07/08
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn plans to announce more changes to the City Council’s budget process, possibly as early as Wednesday, amid growing controversy over how council members spend the millions in discretionary money they control. (NY Times)

Council to Screen 'Discretionary' Funds

05/07/08
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has dropped a controversial proposal to let mayoral agencies decide how some of the body's "discretionary funds" are awarded. Instead, all of the more than $50 million in annual member items the Council distributes to nonprofit groups will be rigorously screened through new procedures within the Council, according to sources who attended a closed-door briefing with Quinn Tuesday. (Daily News)

City Opposes Insurance Plan

05/07/08
In a move that could harm the chances of two health insurers seeking to convert into a fused, for-profit corporation, the city is opposing the proposal by the Health Insurance Plan of New York and Group Health Incorporated, arguing it would result in lucrative stock options for top company executives, increase premiums and reduce benefits. (NY Sun)

Rock for Trees

05/07/08
The city's plan to plant a million trees won a star-studded endorsement yesterday from The Police, with the rock band pledging to chip in $1 million during a ceremony in Times Square. (NY Post)

Former Key Mayoral Aide Parks for Free

05/07/08
Marc Shaw, a former deputy mayor and chairman of the commission that backed congestion pricing, has a police-issued parking permit and a free E-ZPass account. (Daily News)

Little Enthusiasm for Mayoral Candidates

05/07/08
With 18 months to go before New Yorkers elect a new mayor, the field of candidates emerging to succeed Mayor Bloomberg is failing to excite New Yorkers. A professor of political science at Baruch College, Douglas Muzzio, said the problem is a lack of “star power” and “juice.” (NY Sun)

A Journalist for Mayor?

05/07/08
Could New York follow London and elect a journalist to lead their city? (NY Sun)

Mayor Bloomberg Sticks to Water Rate Hike

05/06/08
No. That's the icy answer Mayor Bloomberg gave City Council critics who want him to eliminate a unique rental arrangement that could lower the proposed 14.5 percent water rate hike by nearly 5 percentage points. Such a move would save 825,000 water customers as much as $122 million in fiscal 2009, which starts July 1, when the new rates would kick in. (Daily News)

Mayor Defends Council Spending

05/06/08
Mayor Bloomberg yesterday said the public can be "reasonably assured that 99.999 percent" of the City Council's discretionary spending was legitimate. (NY Post)

Bill Would Tie Down Runaway Photographers

05/06/08
Runaway bridal photographers would be forced to pay fines and damages to their clients if legislation being debated in the City Council tomorrow becomes law. (NY Sun)

Where Are They Now: Gifford Miller

05/06/08
The former City Council speaker (one of only two in existence) will not talk about the furor over how the council handles its discretionary funds, whatever his involvement might have been. (Village Voice)

Democrats Eye Fossella's Seat

05/05/08
Democrats saw a chance to defeat Rep. Vito Fossella long before he was charged with drunken driving, but his arrest left partisan rivals
giddy. (Daily News)

Council Money Moved to Unregistered Charities

05/05/08
The City Council has secretly moved millions of taxpayer dollars to unregistered charities through ghost groups that often have ties to the lawmakers themselves, a Daily News investigation has found. (Daily News)

Veggie Carts Get Another Push

05/05/08
He has rid city bars and restaurants of cigarette smoke, banned artery-clogging trans fats, and required eateries to post calorie counts on menus. (NY Post)

Leadership Threat Largest Yet

05/05/08
Speaker Christine Quinn, in a bid to salvage her political career amid speculation that City Council members are considering ousting her, is caving in to pressure from members regarding her plan to give mayoral officials more authority over the council's disbursement of public funds. (NY Sun)

Councilman Appears in Commercial for Dealership

05/04/08
No doubt whoever posted Councilman Hiram Monserrate's Three Kings Day celebration on the video-sharing Web site thought it was a nice way to showcase the Queens politician's annual post-Christmas toy giveaway for thousands of kids. (Daily News)

Legislation Proposed to Vet City Budget

05/04/08
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn should be held personally responsible for the validity of the budget - with criminal penalties to pay for fraud, said one local lawmaker. (NY Post)

Lawyer Requests Hearing on Council Slush Fund

05/03/08
Relying on an antiquated provision of the New York City Charter, a civil rights lawyer filed papers in State Supreme Court on Friday requesting a judicial hearing on City Council spending practices that have recently come under intense scrutiny. The hearing, known as a summary inquiry, would not determine guilt or innocence, but would merely lay out the facts surrounding the case for public review. (NY Times)

Members May Be Discussing Speaker's Ouster

05/03/08
Some City Council members are so angry at the fallout from the phantom-funds mess that they're discussing the possible ouster of Speaker Christine Quinn, The Post has learned. (NY Post)

Gotbaum to Reimburse Vehicle Use

05/03/08
Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said yesterday that even if she didn't have to, she would reimburse taxpayers for the private use of her official vehicle. (NY Post)

Fifty-Shot Case May Affect Kelly's Chances in a Mayoral Race

05/02/08
The not guilty verdict in the Sean Bell shooting last week was welcome news to three New York City police detectives charged in the case; one even wept as a judge in Queens read the ruling. But Justice Arthur Cooperman's verdict also created some new challenges in the life of their boss, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. (NY Times)

Two Politicians in Queens Bring Baggage to a Rematch

05/01/08
The last few weeks have caused some sharp discomfort for a number of City Council because of the widening inquiries into how some council members spend their discretionary money. The uneasiness is amplified by the fact that many of the council members are contemplating running for other political offices. Take the case of Councilmember Hiram Monserrate, of Queens, who is considered to be planning a second challenge against State Sen. John Sabini. (City Room)

Gioia Says Food Stamps Not Enough

05/01/08
Councilmember Eric Gioia struggled to survive last year when he spent a week living on $28 - the average food stamp allowance for a single recipient. This year, the same allowance would leave him starving. "Last year, I lasted five days and I was out of food," he said. "I had to go to a food pantry to get through the week." (Daily News)

Quinn Gave to Nonprofit - and She Got $16,000

05/01/08
Speaker Christine Quinn was one of 14 City Council members who sponsored $260,000 in "discretionary funds" for the Hetrick-Martin Institute last year. But only she got some $16,000 in campaign donations from its board members - 16 times more than the combined amount received by other co-sponsors. Current and former Hetrick-Martin board members - including Quinn's partner, Kim Catullo - gave Quinn $16,025 in campaign donations between May 2007 and Jan. 11, records show. (Daily News)

Quinn: I Am Not Target of Investigations

05/01/08
Speaker Christine Quinn is stating emphatically that she is not a target of federal and local investigations into the City Council, and she is standing by her statement that she learned about the existence of fictitious organizations in the budget only within the last several months. (NY Sun)

Council Investigation Grows

04/30/08
The federal inquiry into how City Council members spend the discretionary money they control appears to be expanding, and city investigators have begun questioning workers at a variety of nonprofit organizations that received money, according to a person familiar with the investigation. (NY Times)

Council Members Disclose Conflicts

04/30/08
More than a third of the City Council has reported conflicts of interest with the nonprofit groups they provide with so-called discretionary funds or member items. Twenty of the 51 City Council members - nearly 40 percent - reported a conflict last year involving nonprofits, according to an examination of more than 400 pages of City Council disclosure forms obtained under the Freedom of Information law, (Daily News)

Youth Groups Target of Council Funding Probe

04/30/08
The city Department of Investigation has hauled off the records of 100 nonprofit agencies at the Department of Youth that were funded through City Council's discretionary grants. Investigators have also collected the records of six council members who made some of the funding recommendations, according to one source (NY Post)

Mayor's Budget Could Restrict Council Spending

04/30/08
Mayor Michael Bloomberg's upcoming budget negotiations with City Council could give the mayor with a chance to clamp down on spending by the council, which has been dogged by questions about its use of taxpayer dollars. Bloomberg’s best chance to exert his authority may come in his negotiations over the portion of the budget -- usually around $250 million --the council gets to spend on its own each year. Some political observers are insisting the mayor has no choice but to rein in that spending. (NY Sun)

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