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Newsletters 2007
August
Betsy Gotbaum This Week
August 27, 2007
Real People, Real Problems, Real Results
A Brooklyn mother, vexed by inaction and inaccurate records, called my office for help with a subsidized housing transfer. Her apartment was overly warm and stuffy, and requests for repairs were ignored. One bedroom window had been sealed because of ongoing construction outside her building. The mother feared that her 7-year-old son's chronic asthma would worsen. She also said that, month after month, the city's subsidized housing office inexplicably sent her rent payment to her prior landlord. The same office sent her threatening notices, saying that if she didn't provide access to her "studio apartment" for inspection, her subsidy would stop. But she had provided access, and her apartment was a two-bedroom, not a studio. My staff contacted the appropriate parties, who promptly investigated. In short order, they reported that everything the woman said was true. They corrected their records, suspended the improper payments and scheduled the woman for the next housing transfer briefing. She had been battling red tape literally for months. My staff was able to cut through it in two days.
DOE Must End Second-Class Status for Female Athletes
Eight months ago, pro basketball star Stephon Marbury donated 3,000 pairs of sneakers to high school boys' varsity basketball teams, a kind and generous gift -- for boys. In a May 30 letter, I called on the city Department of Education (DOE) to provide basketball shoes for varsity girls as well. Not doing so would be an apparent violation of Title IX, which requires school systems to secure equal benefits and services for both boys and girls in providing sports equipment. This DOE failure has yet to be remedied. In fact, it's part of a larger failure to expand athletic opportunities for girls. A year ago, my office released a report showing just how unfair the system is, and I twice asked DOE for information on specific actions it had taken to address gender inequities in sports. Referring to the Marbury gift, I also asked for specific actions the city had taken to obtain sneakers for girls. The DOE said that it would "explore the possibility" of providing sneakers for girls' basketball. It offered no specifics about addressing gender inequities. In effect, this shortchanges girls, giving them and their athletic teams second-class status. It must stop.
Immediate Independent Oversight of Children's Agency Needed
I have renewed my call for the state to create an independent Office of the Child Advocate, following a city Department of Investigation report that found multiple problems with the city Administration for Children's Services (ACS) and its ability to prevent child fatalities. The new office would provide permanent, real-time oversight of the child welfare system, including ACS and contract agencies. Simply put, ACS has shown that it is incapable of protecting all children under its care. Each time a fatality makes front page news, ACS apologizes and promises change. But their mea culpas have not resulted in enough improvement. And Commissioner John B. Mattingly's response that the agency will never be perfect is at once irresponsible and unacceptable. ACS must do everything within its power to protect every child. If it cannot create a better system, a strong, independent agency needs to step in.
Citywide Plan Needed to Protect Kids from Toxic Toys
Last week I called on the city to come up with an immediate five-borough plan to identify and remove all recalled toxic toys from city-operated sites, such as hospital waiting areas, preschool toy boxes and day care centers. Many city-operated sites maintain vast inventories of toys, some of which may be part of the toxic batch. Parents must be assured that the city takes responsibility for the safety of toys at sites it operates. I'm also calling on the city to advise parents and guardians of potential hazards and to expand testing of children at risk of toy-related lead poisoning. Lastly, I'm asking the city to look into whether toy manufacturers may be liable for the city’s health care expenses, including testing children who may have been put in harm’s way by their products. Now and always, public safety must be the city's paramount concern. Taking these steps would uphold that standard. For my news release on this topic, along with my letter to the city, click here.
Updated Guide Helps Seniors Access City Services
New York is a great place for seniors, and part of my job is making sure that seniors have access to vital city services. I have released a new edition of my Guide to Senior Services in New York City, which, for example, helps seniors access programs on energy assistance and rent increase exemptions. It also provides information that helps seniors navigate Medicare and Medicaid. As an additional resource, my office operates a Senior Action Line, 212-669-7250. For the Guide to Senior Services, click here.
Betsy Gotbaum This Week
August 13, 2007
Real People, Real Problems, Real Results, Case #1
A disabled Bronx woman, very distraught, called our office about summonses that had been sent to her long after her car had been stolen, recovered and replaced by a second car. After the theft, she had dutifully notified police, her insurance company and the state Department of Motor Vehicles. When the car was recovered, she re-instated her insurance, surrendered her license plates and received new ones. When the car broke down and was irreparable, she had it towed and bought a new 2005 Toyota Camry. She insured the second car and received new license plates. Shortly afterward, to her considerable surprise, she also received a notice of impending judgment: There were 12 summonses and more than $1,400 in unpaid fines on the previous car. Despite the paperwork she brought to court, which she believed exonerated her, she was found guilty and fined $1,085. She couldn't file an appeal until she paid the fine, which she couldn't afford. My office contacted the Department of Finance, requesting a review of her documents. We also asked that she be allowed to appeal without first paying the fine. Ultimately, all 12 summonses were dismissed.
Real People, Real Problems, Real Results, Case #2
An indignant motorist called our office for help with a Manhattan parking ticket. A street sign had said, “No parking during school days,” but since school was out of session, the motorist had concluded that parking was allowed. He made that argument to the appropriate parties, to no avail. My staff made several calls on his behalf. Soon after, the ticket was dismissed.
New York Needs Cleaner, Safer Beaches
I visited Brighton Beach last week, whose 2.7 miles received the second-lowest grade, an "Unsatisfactory," on a report card issued by New Yorkers for Parks. Of the city's seven public beaches, only one -- Midland Beach in Staten Island -- merited a "Satisfactory" grade. Wolfe's Pond Beach in Staten Island was dishonored with the lowest grade. Manhattan, Orchard, South and Rockaway Beaches were rated "Challenged." In the aggregate, these abysmal ratings truly are alarming. Clean, safe, family-friendly beaches should be the norm, not the exception. Toward that end I'm calling on the city Department of Parks and Recreation to take steps to make New York's 14 miles of public beaches cleaner and safer. It's not too much to ask that New York beaches have functioning restrooms, sufficient numbers of lifeguards, litter-free sand and pollution-free surf. Beachgoers deserve better. Much better. New Yorkers for Parks' 2007 report card on city beaches is at http://www.ny4p.org/.
MTA Action Needed to Prevent Transit Paralysis
Once again, New York commuters suffered unspeakable delays last week in getting to work, assuming they could make it in at all. I joined City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and Transportation Committee Chair John C. Liu in giving voice to our extreme frustration and concern regarding the MTA's apparent inability to keep subways running during rainstorms. This was the second significant disruption in less than a month. We look forward to talking with the MTA about capital improvements that may be needed to give New Yorkers dependable subway service. This pattern of outrageous, system-wide transit paralysis must stop. For our letter to MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow, click here.
Betsy Gotbaum This Week
August 6, 2007
Videocast: Improving Access
Today my office released my first videocast, entitled “Improving Access.” The videocast highlights some of my work to improve city schools, support small businesses impacted by the steam pipe explosion and protect police officers by cracking down on illegally tinted windows. To watch the video, go to: www.pubadvocate.nyc.gov.
Real People, Real Problems, Real Results
A concerned woman called my office on behalf of her mother, who lives in an assisted living residence in Manhattan. Work on the Second Avenue subway had left her mother's street torn up, and a chain-link construction fence blocked access to her building. The daughter said that the building's older residents, many of them infirm, were forced to walk to a corner to access a taxi, ambulette or other transportation. Those using canes or walkers, she said, had the added burden of stepping over pedestrian ramps that covered power lines criss-crossing the sidewalk. My staff contacted the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) capital construction office, and those in charge promised to improve access to the building. When they didn't, we called again. A week later, MTA workers dismantled the chain-link fence and shifted the traffic pattern to allow access for ambulettes and other vehicles.
MTA Review Is Needed to Cut Waste, Prevent Fare Hike
In an effort to cut waste and prevent another fare hike, I've written the MTA and asked that it review expenditures before asking for higher subway, bus and train fares. Many New Yorkers, especially the working poor, can't afford another fare hike. In past years the MTA has been reckless with its budget, willing to sell air rights to the Hudson Yards, for example, for hundreds of millions of dollars less than what they were worth, all the while complaining of budget shortfalls. I hope that such egregious money-mismanagement is not the case today. However, I'm confident that a thorough spending review will identify many ways to save money. It even may eliminate the alleged need for higher fares. For my full statement on the issue, click here.
City Effort to Assist Women, Minority Businesses Falls Short
A city program designed to help women and minority entrepreneurs compete for city contracts isn't working the way it should, partly due to excessive paperwork, red tape and a severe shortage of procurement counselors, according to a study I released last week. In Fiscal Year 2006, according to municipal records, the city procured $11.2 billion in goods and services. Yet only $55 million of that amount went to those certified in the city Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprise program. And while the city counted more than 600,000 women and minority businesses in 2002, according to the latest available data, only 1,114 – or less than 0.2 per cent – were certified by the city as of April of this year. The program needs several straightforward reforms, which I've outlined in "More Hassle Than It's Worth: Problems with the City's M/WBE Program." For my report on the issue, click here.
City Department For the Aging to Improve Website
Computer-savvy seniors, not to mention those with more rudimentary internet skills, have had trouble using the city Department for the Aging (DFTA) web site to locate senior centers and related services in specific neighborhoods. My staff contacted DFTA about the problem. After several collegial discussions, we suggested enhancements that would make the web site easier to navigate. For example, we recommended that the DFTA homepage add a "search by ZIP Code" feature as well as the "search by borough" component already in place. "Search by ZIP Code" had been available elsewhere on the site but had been difficult to find. I'm pleased to say that DFTA agreed with our recommendations and that it plans to implement the changes. I'm also pleased that our respective staffs worked together so efficiently and so effectively to improve seniors' access to city services. This kind of behind-the-scenes, intra-governmental cooperation benefits all New Yorkers.
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