SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

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Mayor Michael Bloomberg is joining the effort to junk the new digitized voting machines in favor of bringing back the older and supposedly more reliable lever machines. NY1 reports that Bloomberg said during a press conference that bringing back the old machines might prevent a voting disaster in the upcoming 2014 elections.

We’ve previously reported State Senator Marty Golden and Councilman David Greenfield’s efforts to bring back the old machines, with Golden successfully leading the passage of a bill to bring them back in the senate. The bill then went to the Assembly, which has been lukewarm on it.

“We are not prepared in the Assembly at this point to bring back the lever machines. We think it would be a step backwards,” State Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh told NY1. “We are prepared to work with the city and the city Board Of Elections to change some of the rules that may allow them to run the runoff more quickly and more smoothly.”

Mayor Bloomberg’s voice adds to the growing groundswell of support to the return to the old machines. The decision would be costly as the new digitized voting equipment, mandated by federal law, cost taxpayers $60 million.

The Board of Elections has warned that it is unprepared for the upcoming mayoral elections, citing that votes cast with the new electronic machines cannot be certified fast enough to account for a potential runoff after the primary.

While the new voting equipment wouldn’t be ditched forever, an exception could be made just once for a local election.

Bloomberg urged that returning to the old machines could prevent a voting catastrophe.

“If we don’t do that, we are running a real risk of not knowing who the mayor is for months,” Bloomberg said at the press conference.

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Corrupt New York politicians are dominating the news lately, most recently the scandal surrounding State Senator John Sampson. While the alleged crimes of Sampson and Malcolm Smith are serious in size and scope, they aren’t the only local politicians skirting on the edges of the rules, especially when it comes to those governing state campaign finance laws.

A report by the Associated Press cites studies done by the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) that have found over 100,000 violations committed by New York politicians since 2011. The violations also include failures by campaign committees to file accurate reports.

Bill Mahoney, a researcher for NYPIRG, stated that his group noted 278 improper corporate donations among other violations.

“Some of them are flagrant violations of the state’s contribution limits. Others are more minor peccadillos that show a complete disregard for the law because they occur in such huge numbers,” the Chronicle reported Mahoney saying.

The report explained why nothing is being to done to enforce violations:

Barbara Bartoletti of the League of Women Voters, whose group has monitored the state Board of Elections for decades, said then Gov. Eliot Spitzer budgeted $1.5 million for board enforcement of election laws in 2009, but it was never used because the agency is controlled by the Republican and Democratic parties. It has no will for enforcement, she said. “Right now it has no investigators.”

The NYPIRG report says that corruption on the state level is “exponentially greater” then the corruption on the city level. Governor Andrew Cuomo cited the report as a clear need to move away from the current system, which allows state officials to police themselves, and is pushing for greater independent enforcement.

The AP report noted that local State Senator Marty Golden was found to be in violation of more minor offenses have “seemingly questionable expenses.” Apparently, on his way to and from Albany, Golden refuels his car using campaign cash in Mahwah and Hackensack, New Jersey, where gas is cheaper. [Corrected: See below, with statement from Golden's office]

Golden, who is for stronger enforcement, defended his actions by stating that he saves 30 cents a gallon by filling in up in New Jersey on his 170 mile trip to Albany.

Correction (May 10 at 11:40 a.m.): Our original post indicated that the NYPIRG report noted “minor offenses” by Golden in spending campaign cash on gas in New Jersey. In fact, that was an observation by the Associated Press, and was listed as a “seemingly questionable expense,” not a violation. Golden spokesperson Ray Riley wrote the following to Sheepshead Bites:

It’s not a violation, nor has it been considered a violation.  If you read the AP article, the author writes: “The AP review of finance records found seemingly questionable expenses..”  which means the AP found them to be questionable, not the New York State Campaign Finance or Board of Elections.

We regret any confusion this may have caused.

Source: Blue387 via wikimedia commons

Marty Golden is following through on his promise to bring back the old voting machines by leading the New York State Senate in approving legislation that would allow the machines to be used in upcoming elections, according to a press release.

The legislation, which was sponsored by Golden, allows New York City to use lever machines for all non-federal elections, including the upcoming mayoral primaries, run-offs and general election. Golden praised the passage of the bill as a victory for making voting simpler.

“The lever voting machines had been successfully used in New York for over 100 years. They have proven to be reliable and easy for voters to use. In addition,  using lever voting machines will expedite the canvass of votes cast in the primary election and reduce the number of paper ballots that would need to be hand-counted,” Golden said in the release.

State Senator Simcha Felder believes that the machines will help seniors.

“The new voting machines are confusing to people and very hard to read, especially for seniors,” Felder said.

There have been concerns that the new voting machines, which rely on paper ballots and digital readers, were causing more problems than solving them. Voters, especially seniors, complained about difficult to read and confusing paper ballot instructions, and the Board of Elections has proven unequal to the task of tallying the votes on the new machine in a timely manner.

The bill will now go to the Assembly for a vote.

Photo by Max Bolotov.

On Thursday, in light of National Volunteer Week, State Senator Marty Golden held an appreciation dinner honoring dozens of those neighbors who lent at hand in Gerritsen Beach in the terrifying hours after Superstorm Sandy battered the New York coastline, despite the fact that many of them suffered their own trials due to the storm’s waters.

Golden handed out citations at Buckley’s Restaurant (2926 Avenue S) to “community residents who have proven  to  be  extraordinary  in  their volunteerism, dedicated to helping during Hurricane Sandy, special events and community organizations,” including Father Farrell of Resurrection Church, who opened the institution’s doors to serve as an evacuation center and shelter.

Also honored was Rose Coulson from the Ancient Order of Hibernians, who organized opening the facility despite its disrepair from the storm, and rallied volunteers and services to help the community.

Linda Cupo and Tracy Ambrose from the Gerritsen Beach Property Owners and Volunteer Fire Department were manning the Vollies Hall everyday throughout the aftermath of the storm, serving hot meals and doling out supplies.

John Murphy was a huge help running the shelter at Resurrection Church, acting as the director of the shelter spending countless hours at the church during the first week following the storm.  He continued to volunteer at the Ancient Order of Hibernians, following the closing of the Resurrection Shelter.

View the full list of honorees, and a photo gallery from the event.

Source: mikaylakonvicka / Flickr

“Operation Seniors” — a “free night of fashion and fun” created to offer prom season assistance for high school seniors affected by Superstorm Sandy — will be held tonight, April 16 at 6:30 p.m. inside the Bay Ridge Manor, 476 76th Street.

The office of State Senator Marty Golden, who informed us about the event, says that high school seniors can choose from prom dresses, shoes, bags, and more. There will also be consultations with hairdressers and makeup artists, who will be on hand.

More than 200 dresses have been collected and the organization has received donations from The Jones Group, MAC Cosmetics, Revlon, Synderela, Coloriffics, New York Dress Company, I Love Jewelry Auctions, Charles Elias Salon, Lucky New York Salon, Marine Florist and Classie Tuxedo.

To learn more, contact Mary Beth at (917) 865-1260.

Golden

State Senator Marty Golden has requested the name of the confidential informant that led to the indictment of State Senator Malcolm Smith and Councilman Daniel Halloran. Golden has sent a letter to U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara requesting that he make public the name of the Republican County Chairman that blew the whistle on Smith and Halloran’s scheme to get Smith, a Democrat, to run on the GOP line for mayor.

In the case against Smith and Halloran, the main FBI informant is simply referred to as “County Chairman #1.” This informant wasn’t indicted of any wrongdoing. Golden wrote a letter to Bharara asking that this mysterious chairman be revealed so that the Republican party can decide for themselves what to do with a leader who was uncomfortably close to an intensely corrupt situation.

“Descriptions within the sealed complaint raise serious questions concerning the integrity of said County Chairman.  Although this individual has not been indicted, I believe the 300,000 plus members and hundreds of activists within the City’s Republican Party require the publication of such information to allow them to determine if said individual should remain a leader within the Republican Party,” Golden wrote.

“Beyond the Republican Party, the public’s trust in the political system is already greatly shaken and would benefit from the release of this information and by said individual’s resignation,” Golden wrote.

Clearly, the news of the corruption scandal left New York Republican leaders scrambling to clean their ranks out of anyone who might contribute to more negative publicity as the 2014 local and state elections heat up. Right?

Maybe not.

It’s important to note that there is a long history of infighting in the Brooklyn Republican Party, with several splinter groups waging civil war with each other.

Golden’s actions were apparently seen as an attack on Brooklyn GOP boss Craig Eaton, and an attempt to oust him from power. State Committeewoman Gladys Pemberton wrote a letter to fellow party members, which included the following:

Sen. Golden is using this [mayoral] race in an attempt to oust Craig as the Chairman.What a total disgrace. To learn this is being orchestrated by Senator Martin Golden is beyond the pale! I call upon all of our State Committee members to join with me in denouncing what Senator Golden is attempting to do. It is once again a case of another Senator on a power trip. He now wants to control Kings County completely.

The root of this is Golden’s endorsement of Joe Lhota for the Republican nod, as opposed to Eaton’s pick, John Catsimatidis, which was seen as another attempt to undermine Eaton.

Also in response to Golden’s letter, three county chairs including Eaton – Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan – wrote a joint letter admonishing Golden, the Daily Politics reports. From the letter:

It is outrageous that you [Golden] would insert yourself into the midst of an ongoing Federal investigation. As a former member of the New York City Police Department you should know better; you should allow law enforcement to do their job.

Considering that you released your letter to the media the same day that you called a meeting of District Leaders of the Brooklyn GOP, one can only assume that this is a cynical attempt on your behalf to stage a coup in advancement of your personal political agenda.

Perhaps you should be more judicious in your political mudslinging. We can’t imagine that you would be thrilled if a county chairman called for your resignation the next time one of your fellow legislators is charged with a nefarious deed.

The voters of the Republican Party want elected officials who will build our party, not those who break it down through illegal deeds, ill-chosen words or Machiavellian action.

So far, Bharara has not commented on Golden’s request.

State Senator Marty Golden. Photo By Erica Sherman

State Senator Marty Golden continues to take heat over his opposition to speed enforcement cameras as a group of protesters descended upon his Bay Ridge office at 7408 Fifth Avenue demanding he change his stance on the issue, according to a report by Capital New York.

The protest was organized by Bay Ridge Advocates for Keeping Everyone Safe (BRAKES) this past Friday and was full of people outraged over Golden’s opposition to the cameras.

“The point is you need to be in support of traffic-calming measures,” Maureen Landers, an organizer of today’s demonstration. “And his vote against [speed cameras] shows that clearly he’s not and he has not provided an alternative or a solution or taken any measures to calm traffic.”

It is believed that Golden opposes the cameras due to his ties with the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA). Golden and the PBA believe that the installation of the cameras might cost policemen jobs. However, last week, we reported that Golden was willing to support the cameras if Mayor Michael Bloomberg or Governor Andrew Cuomo agreed to fund a $5.6 million busing plan for private Yeshiva school students. Golden, along with State Senator Simcha Felder, was turned down by both Bloomberg and Cuomo. Golden, along with Felder, included the funding for the private busing plan in the state budget anyway.

Golden responded to the protest with a statement that called for the placement of more 20 MPH speed zones around schools, a proposal that did little to quell the anger of his critics.

“Marty Golden is completely tone-deaf and oblivious to the impact this technology could have on keeping our streets safer,” Andrew Gounardes told Capital New York. Gounardes is a Bay Ridge attorney who ran and lost against Golden last year and is considering a future rematch.

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The fight over speed enforcement cameras is getting nastier. Last week, Mayor Michael Bloomberg personally called out State Senators Marty Golden, Simcha Felder and Dean Skelos for having blood on their hands in refusing to include funding for speed enforcement cameras in the state budget. In response, Senate Democrats are trying to reinvigorate the effort to get the cameras approved. However, in their recap of the week’s events, the New York Times included this interesting tidbit of closed door negotiations between Governor Andrew Cuomo, Bloomberg, Felder and Golden.

Senator Felder, too, has no use for cameras. He represents a district dominated by Orthodox Jewish voters, and his priority this session was to persuade the city and state to foot the bill to bus any child past 4 p.m., which in effect means mostly children who attend yeshivas. Mr. Felder and Mr. Golden succeeded in pushing through this legislation, which will cost the city $5.6 million this year.

As the state senators are not unreasonable men, they even offered to bargain: they might allow speed cameras if Mr. Bloomberg agreed to foot the bill for this busing program.

The mayor said no. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said no. But when his state budget emerged from behind closed doors in Albany it included this new and costly busing program.

The Orthodox, who are adroit at pulling the levers of power, and their political allies claim all children could benefit. But that argument is evidence-starved. The state paid for a pilot program this year, and city school buses have picked up 1,000 children — from 29 yeshivas and one charter school.

Senator Golden, who has charted the growth of the Orthodox population in his district, shrugs off criticism. It is, he said, “the new normal.”

So Golden and Felder would have been happy to approve the funding for speed enforcement cameras as long as yeshiva students who attend private Orthodox schools got free busing? Huh…so, using Golden and Felder’s logic, I guess this means that the safety of responsible motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians is less important than free transportation for private schools provided on the taxpayers’ dime.

It’s the “new normal” after all.

Marty Golden, Photo By Erica Sherman

As the upcoming mayoral race heats up, sharp battle lines between Democrats and Republicans are being drawn. The latest hot-button issue centers around City Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s plan to create a special new oversight committee that would monitor and review NYPD policies and procedures, according to a report by the New York Post.

The new agency, dubbed the Inspector General’s Office (IGO), would challenge many controversial policing methods, most famously the stop-and-frisk program, which critics believe overwhelmingly target blacks and Hispanics. The IGO would be placed in the city’s Department of Investigation, the department in charge of investigating all city agencies. The IGO would not take the place of the NYPD’s Internal Affairs, which would still handle individual cases of police misconduct.

According to the Post, Quinn has enough Council votes to pass the measure, even in the face of a mayoral veto by Bloomberg.

Ex-cop and current State Senator Marty Golden blasted Quinn’s plan as “pathetic, sad” and “a setback for the city and the safety of the children.” GOP mayoral candidate, Joe Lhota, also derided the plan.

“Building another bureaucracy is not the answer,” the Post reported Lhota saying at a mayoral debate.

The issue of stop-and-frisk also divided Democrats when former comptroller Bill Thompson rebuked current comptroller John Liu’s call to end the practice.

“I’m worried also about my son being shot by someone who’s a member of a gang in the street.”

For his part, Liu, echoing comments made by Quinn and Thompson, promised to hire thousands of new officers if elected.

Traffic Cameras Source: Theron Trowbridge via Flickr

The war over the installation of speed enforcement cameras kicked into a higher gear as influential State Senate lawmakers reintroduced the legislation in direct opposition to Republicans who stripped it from the state budget, according to a report by the New York Daily News.

The contentious battle to place speed enforcement cameras across the city began in response to the growing number of hit-and-run tragedies that have plagued the city in recent months. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, NYPD Chief Ray Kelly and other key local New York politicians were all in favor of the program but senators including Marty Golden, Dean Skelos and Simcha Felder removed the cameras from the state budget, fearing that the cameras would cost policemen jobs.

In response to the actions of Golden, Skelos and Felder, Bloomberg held a press conference where he lashed out at the senators personally and demanded that constituents personally hold them responsible the next time someone dies in a speeding accident.

Bloomberg’s anger was not considered a stunt, according to a report in the New York Post.

“I’ve never seen the mayor this angry,” one insider told the Post. “He’s furious.”

Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson expanded on Bloomberg’s anger, describing all arguments against the cameras as laughable.

“This is a Republican conference that voted to raise taxes, to legalize marriage equality and to ban assault weapons, but they draw the line on speed cameras?” Wolfson asked. “It’s a joke.”