On April 18, 2024 New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced the following audits of State Departments, Agencies and political subdivision of the State were issued. Click on the text in color to access the full report posted on the Internet.   New York City Department of Small Business Services – Selected Programs to Assist Businesses in New York City (2022-N-1)   The New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS) is tasked with helping businesses throughout New York City start, operate, and expand. SBS programs, including the Energy Cost Savings Program, the ..read more

The Department of Civil Service has published General Information Bulletin 24-01, Memorandum of Understanding Agreement – Movement between New York State Agencies and Departments and Civilian Positions at the Division of State Police. Text of General Information Bulletin 24-01 is posted on the Internet at https://www.cs.ny.gov/ssd/Manuals/SPMM/GIBS/GIB24-01.cfm. The Department also offers a version in PDF format at https://www.cs.ny.gov/ssd/pdf/GIB24-01.pdf. To view General Information Bulletins issued earlier by the Department of Civil Service, visit https://www.cs.ny.gov/ssd/gibs.cfm ..read more

Supreme Court granted Petitioner's motion for leave to file a late notice of claim against the City of New York. The Appellate Division unanimously reversed the Supreme Court's ruling "on the law, without costs". The Appellate Division said Petitioner's motion should have been denied by the Supreme Court, noting: 1. The Respondent City of New York did not own the property where Petitioner alleged he was injured and the New York City Housing Authority [NYCHA] owned the property. 2. The motion for leave to file a late notice of claim against NYCHA should have been denied by Supreme Court "becaus ..read more

On April 12, 2024 New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced three key appointments to leadership positions at the agency. "I am pleased to announce key promotions to DEC’s leadership team to ensure the continued success of New York's environmental protection policies, programs, and operations across the state," Commissioner Seggos said. "Patrick Foster and Carey Merrill contribute a wealth of experience and knowledge to DEC during an agency-wide effort to modernize systems and upgrade technology to meet the evolving needs of our ..read more

3 Signs It’s Time to Find a New IT Service Management Tool Upgrading your ITSM tool can boost efficiencies, save money and result in better service delivery for end users. READ MORE   8 Features of the Best Audit Management Software for Public Sector The shift to electronic working papers in the audit community fosters collaboration but inadvertently generates dark data. Audit management software offers solutions to access, analyze and maximize audit data's value. READ MORE   Almost everyone has heard of ChatGPT. But Jeff Brown, CISO for the state of Connecticut, shares his concerns ..read more

On April 11, 2024 New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced the following local government and school audits were issued.   Village of Corinth – Investment Program (Saratoga County) Village officials did not develop and manage a comprehensive investment program. During the 12-month audit period, the village earned $1,516 from money on deposit in its two checking accounts, which had an average monthly available balance of $4.8 million. Had officials considered other legally permissible investment options, the village may have earned an additional $148,755 in interest ear ..read more

In this CPLR Article 78 action, it is undisputed that the hearing before a Department of Motor Vehicles [DMV] Administrative Law Judge was recorded by an electronic recording system. The recording was sent to a transcription service but the transcription service only provided one audio recording transcript. As DMV was reviewing the record for this proceeding, DMV's counsel discovered that the Appeal Board [Board] had only received the first audio recording, which consisted of the automotive facilities inspector's testimony. The Board credited the inspector's testimony but the Appellate Divisio ..read more

On April 10, 2024, the New York State Department of Education released its report addressing "Mayoral Control of New York City Schools". Click HERE to access the Department's report posted on the Internet. N.B.: This report is Copyrighted ©2024. However, the report includes the following statement: "Except as expressly provided to the contrary, permission to copy, use, and distribute the materials within is hereby granted without fee for personal, private and educational purposes, except that reproducing materials for profit or any commercial use is strictly forbidden without express prior wri ..read more

In deciding a CPLR Article 78 action, the Appellate Division, First Department, addressed the efforts of one of the parties in the action to obtain a Writ of Mandamus to compel a particular action by a public official. Citing Klostermann v Cuomo, 61 NY2d 525, the court observed that mandamus "is an extraordinary remedy that, by definition, is available only in limited circumstances".  The Appellate Division's decision also notes that mandamus "will lie only to compel the performance of a ministerial act, and only where there exists a clear legal right to the relief sought", citing Matter ..read more

A police officer [Petitioner] filed applications for performance of duty and accidental disability retirement benefits in June 2014 based upon an incident that occurred on September 22, 2011. Petitioner alleged that he was injured when a rolling chair slammed into the back of a chair in which Petitioner was then seated, resulting in injuries to his back, as well as the development of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Petitioner returned to a light-duty position in January 2012 but stopped working in June 2013. Although the applications were initially denied, ultimately Ne ..read more