Cuomo and Member Items
Cuomo said he would seek to recover the money under the Tweed law or other statutory authority, but did not indicate what action would be taken against a lawmaker who doled out the misspent money.
Future member items, he said, will have to meet the following criteria:
1) a bona fide legal public purpose for the grant;
2) effective administration by a state agency pursuant to a contract with specific terms and conditions which can be measured and controlled;
3) compliance in actual grant implementation; and
4) full disclosure of all grants throughout the budget process.
Cuomo also said he'll elevate the status of the Public Integrity Unit to Special Deputy Attorney General level and expand the staff in that area.
All this is music to the ears of good government groups, and to people on Wall Street, as The Dealbook noted yesterday. -- Azi PaybarahUPDATE: Cuomo spokesperson Wendy Katz clarified to me that the review of member items will apply to those authorized this year, not in previous years.
Most of the member items authorized this year haven't actually been issued, she explained, so the items determined to have no legal basis simply won't be approved. If the member item was already dispersed and is later found to be unjustified, the attorney general's office will try to use the Tweed Law to recover the money.
Just to clear that up.
All legit non-profits welcome this move by the new AG. We can demonstrate why the member items make good sense. Indeed, the tragedy of most member items is that they should be funded by the Administration. But sadly, most executives and their commissioners think top-down and are out of touch with local needs.
If the member item is a bad one, inappropriate use or to a for-profit company make them pay it back.