Image Credit: Office of the Comptroller

Comptroller Stringer sent the letter in opposition to the Astoria Replacement Project because of the project’s reliance on fracked gas. On September 4, 2020, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer sent a letter to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Division of Environmental Permits urging the DEC to review the NRG Energy’s Astoria Replacement Project. Comptroller Stringer raised concerns about the project due to the wellbeing and of Astoria residents and the project’s environmental impact. (read more…)

(Left to Right): Mayor Bill de Blasio, Department of Finance Commissioner Jacques Jiha, and Comptroller Scott Stringer./Image Credit: Office of the Mayor, Department of Finance, and Office of the Comptroller

The recommendation will also impact interest rates for small property owners not impacted by COVID-19. On May 13, 2020, the New York City Banking Commission recommended that the City Council create a new hardship exemption to eliminate interest on late payments for property taxes due in July for small property owners who faced financial hardship due to COVID-19. The Banking Commission is comprised of Mayor Bill de Blasio,  Department of Finance Commissioner Jacques Jiha, and Comptroller Scott Stringer.

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Comptroller Stringer announces plan to address City’s growing affordable housing crisis. Image Credit: Susan Watts/Office of New York City Comptroller

Universal Affordable Housing would require 25 percent permanently low-income affordable housing in all new development with ten or more units. On January 29, 2020, New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer announced a citywide housing strategy to fundamentally realign the City’s approach to the housing crisis. The strategy, coined Housing We Need, will include a universal requirement for 25 percent permanently low-income affordable housing in all as-of-right developments with at least ten units. (read more…)

NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer. Image credit: Office of the New York City Comptroller

Comptroller’s office analyzes other sources of data, concluding retail vacancy is citywide problem. On September 25, 2019, New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer released a report regarding New York City’s retail vacancy crisis. Comptroller Stringer’s report is intended to fill a void in unexplored data from City Planning’s August 8, 2019, analysis of the same topic.

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Image Credit: Comptroller Scott M. Stringer’s Office.

NYCHA wasted $3.7 million by replacing eight roofs while they were under warranty. On July 26, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller announced the results of its audit of the New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) roof maintenance. According to New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer, NYCHA wasted millions on roof repairs that should have come at no expense to taxpayers and failed to perform basic oversight and preventive maintenance of roofs, putting the health and safety of thousands of NYCHA residents at risk. (read more…)

Image credit: City of New York, Office of the Comptroller.

Comptroller calls for an expansion of property tax relief programs in the City. On September 6, 2018, New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer issued a report detailing property tax increases in the City from 2005 to 2016 and their effect on households at different income levels. The report highlights the dramatic impact that these increases have had, particularly on households with incomes below $50,000 and the inability of existing property tax relief programs to ease the burden of taxpayers at this income level. The report shows how the City tax relief programs fare in comparison to other states that offer tax benefit programs, specifically Maryland and Washington D.C, where benefits are higher and more expansive. The report is a call to policy makers and the recently established NYC Advisory Commission on Property Tax Reform to re-evaluate the impact of property tax increases and the ineffectiveness of existing tax benefit programs in order to turn New York City’s tax system from a regressive one to a progressive one. To read CityLand’s prior coverage on NYC Advisory Commission on Property Tax Reform, click here (read more…)