New York Law News Vol IX
-New York governor David Patterson signed a new bill this month that puts more stringent rules on private attorneys who have been collecting public pensions. Roughly 29 neighborhoods in Long Island alone have attorneys that are also employees of the village, many of which get both a salary from the city as well as from their private law firm.
Although most public employees must file time sheets, work regular hours and meet other criteria to qualify as public employees, the comptroller’s office says elected and some appointed officials do not have to. As a result, hundreds of officials statewide are allowed to earn coveted pension credits without having to keep time sheets of the hours they actually worked in what essentially is an honor system.
-The mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, will sign the new term limit bill on Monday, November 2:
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has scheduled a Monday bill-signing ceremony for the law that gives officeholders the option of a third consecutive four-year term.
The bill narrowly passed the City Council last week after just three weeks of debate. Bloomberg pushed the law through the council because he wants to run for a third term. His critics say term limits changes should not be up to the council but should be decided by the voters.
-After warning AIG about using federal bailout money as rewards for executives, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has cautioned nine other banks about using government bailout payments as bonus money for executives, as it is illegal under state law.
In a letter sent to Bank of America Corp, Bank of New York Mellon Corp, Citigroup Inc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Merrill Lynch & Co Inc, Morgan Stanley, State Street Corp, and Wells Fargo & Co, he also asked their boards to explain what mechanisms they have put in place to protect taxpayer money.
"Specifically, corporate expenditures and payments, made in the absence of fair consideration of undercapitalized firms, may well violate NY Debtor and Creditor Law 274, which deems such payments illegal fraudulent conveyances," Cuomo’s letter said.
