Senate Republicans: Where Is Governors 30-Day Review Of State Contracts With Acorn?
October 29, 2009
(New York,N.Y.)-On September 18th, Governor Paterson put a 30-day hold on all state agency contracts with the controversial group ACORN and its affiliate, the New York Agency for Community Affairs, while a review of those contracts was conducted. Almost two weeks past the deadline, Senate Republicans are asking why no report on that review has been issued.
“The federal government, state government and New York City all put the brakes on any money for ACORN because of the threat that taxpayer dollars could be jeopardized by fraud and abuse,” Senator George Winner (R-C-I, Elmira) said. “It’s been 41 days since the Governor ordered a 30-day review of state contracts with ACORN and we have heard nothing about the result of that review. Taxpayers are waiting for an answer.”
Senate Republicans were the first to call for an investigation into ACORN and say that state funds for the group should be put on hold until an inquiry was completed.
After news reports of potentially illegal activity at ACORN, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office announced an investigation, that was followed by decisions by Congress, the New York City Council, as well as the state Comptroller and Attorney General, to stop taxpayer dollars from going to ACORN.
In a memo to state agency commissioners last month, Governor Paterson’s Budget Director ordered the 30 day hold, while agencies scrutinized their contracts with ACORN and its affiliates and reported any potential issues.
“The 30 day review period is long over and no one has heard anything from the Administration about the status of taxpayer dollars going to ACORN,” Senator Steve Saland (R-C-I, Poughkeepsie) said. “Are state dollars flowing again? Were any irregularities found or issues raised? The Governor was very public in announcing this review, he should be equally public about the results, especially as we are contemplating serious cuts to balance the budget.”
Senator Saland introduced a resolution urging the Senate to stop the distribution of all member item funds targeted for ACORN and the New York Agency for Community Affairs (NYACA).
The 2009-10 budget includes at least ten member items, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars for ACORN, all of them sponsored by Senate Democrats, who are the primary beneficiaries of ACORN’s political support. The Assembly said it would hold off from distributing member item funds to ACORN.
In addition, Senator Tom Libous (R-C-I, Binghamton) introduced legislation to prevent any of the $112 million from the ‘green jobs’ law, which was recently signed by the Governor, from being given to ACORN. The funds are targeted for job training programs run by community based organizations, such as the scandal-scarred group ACORN.
“When the Legislature comes back into session the first thing we should do is pass my bill to ensure accountability and make it very clear that ACORN, or any group affiliated with it, will not get any taxpayer money from this new program,” Senator Libous said
Posted by News LI Editor · Filed Under Politics
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