Where's Sandy recovery money going? New tracker gives incomplete answers

Where’s Sandy recovery money going? New tracker gives incomplete answers

Posted December 5, 2013 By Annaliese Wiederspahn

The city’s storm recovery agency launched a Sandy Funding Tracker this week to tally billions of federal dollars flowing into New York City for rebuilding — but without information on the private contractors who received much of the money so far.

Under a measure currently being considered by the City Council, the website would have to reveal much more, including details about the companies under contract to do the work, the wages they pay their workers and locations of projects completed.

The Sandy Funding Tracker tallies broad categories but is skimpy with details about spending on private contractors. Here’s how the city plans to use funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as shown in the tracker.

“City Hall must do more to provide detailed information on Sandy rebuilding employment and contracting, including specific numbers, wages, and the names of firms being contracted by the City.” said Nathalie Alegre, Coordinator of the Alliance for a Just Rebuilding, a coalition of labor and community groups, in a statement sent after the tracker went live on Monday. “These additional data points are essential in order to ensure every taxpayer dime is spent wisely, and prevent abusive wage theft from unscrupulous contractors.”

A recent Baruch College study found that 82 percent of Sandy relief and recovery workers were not paid some portion of their wages.

The Sandy recovery funds come from two sources: The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has delivered $1.6 billion in aid allocated by Congress, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is just beginning to fund recovery projects in the region through its Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Relief program. The city’s tracker fulfills a commitment the city has made to publicly report its Sandy spending. (New York State is posting its own reports separately.)

At a City Council Finance Committee hearing on Monday about the measure, Deputy Mayor for Operations Cas Holloway insisted that the city’s tracker renders the council bill unnecessary. “We believe the Sandy Funding Tracker obviates the need for Intro 1040-A,” he testified, suggesting that going forward the existing tracker could be expanded to include details about private contractors and how much money each is receiving. The city is already posting HUD-funded contracts, in PDF form.

Contractors work to restore Rockaway beaches in May. Which company were they working for? A new funding tracker doesn’t say. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

The bill’s boosters in the City Council aren’t taking that for an answer. Following Monday’s hearing, council member Donovan Richards, a sponsor of the bill whose district includes storm-hit Far Rockaway, said on his Facebook page that he will press on for passage.

“Our legislation has helped start the process of tracking Sandy funding.” Richards wrote. “However, we are still moving forward with our bill to ensure that the process and details towards rebuilding are transparent for years to come.”

The current tracker discloses no information on individual contractors or the projects on which they have worked. Instead, it tallies total dollars allocated and spent under 18 programs the city is running with approval of HUD. Funds from FEMA are itemized separately, broken down by city agency. The tracker also provides some basic information on program results, organized by borough, such as the number of applicants for housing repairs and the number of jobs created.

In November, Richards and fellow council member Brad Lander joined labor activists at a rally on the steps of City Hall in support of the Sandy tracker bill. They met stiff opposition at the hearing that followed from Thaddeus Hackworth, general counsel at NYC Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery Operations.

Hackworth testified that the bill would be unworkable: he said the city could not readily acquire detailed information from Sandy recovery contractors because no such disclosure was negotiated by the city when it signed contracts with them.

“Ask them nicely, ask them not so nicely,” Hackworth said. “The city cannot make these contractors provide the [labor] information.”

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<h1>Where’s Sandy recovery money going? New tracker gives incomplete answers</h1>The city’s storm recovery agency launched a <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www1.nyc.gov/sandytracker/');" href="http://www1.nyc.gov/sandytracker/">Sandy Funding Tracker</a> this week to tally billions of federal dollars flowing into New York City for rebuilding — but without information on the private contractors who received much of the money so far.
Under a <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=1419832&GUID=5902C0D5-CDF7-492C-AD73-DFA089487BCC&Options=Advanced&Search=');" href="http://legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=1419832&GUID=5902C0D5-CDF7-492C-AD73-DFA089487BCC&Options=Advanced&Search=">measure currently being considered by the City Council</a>, the website would have to reveal much more, including details about the companies under contract to do the work, the wages they pay their workers and locations of projects completed.
<div id="attachment_13240" style="width: 578px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-13240" class="size-medium wp-image-13240" src="http://www.thenewyorkworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SandyTracker_CDBG-DR.jpg" alt="The Sandy Funding Tracker tallies broad categories but is skimpy with details about spending on private contractors. " width="568" height="320" srcset="thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SandyTracker_CDBG-DR.jpg 568w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SandyTracker_CDBG-DR-352x198.jpg 352w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SandyTracker_CDBG-DR-300x169.jpg 300w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/SandyTracker_CDBG-DR-500x281.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 568px) 100vw, 568px" />The Sandy Funding Tracker tallies broad categories but is skimpy with details about spending on private contractors. Here’s how the city plans to use funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as shown in the tracker.</div>
 
“City Hall must do more to provide detailed information on Sandy rebuilding employment and contracting, including specific numbers, wages, and the names of firms being contracted by the City.” said Nathalie Alegre, Coordinator of the Alliance for a Just Rebuilding, a coalition of labor and community groups, in a statement sent after the tracker went live on Monday. “These additional data points are essential in order to ensure every taxpayer dime is spent wisely, and prevent abusive wage theft from unscrupulous contractors.”
A recent Baruch College study found that <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.scribd.com/doc/181549739/Day-Labor-Worker-Centers-Disaster-Relief-Work-in-the-Aftermath-of-Hurricane-Sandy');" href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/181549739/Day-Labor-Worker-Centers-Disaster-Relief-Work-in-the-Aftermath-of-Hurricane-Sandy">82 percent</a> of Sandy relief and recovery workers were not paid some portion of their wages.
The Sandy recovery funds come from two sources: The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has delivered $1.6 billion in aid allocated by Congress, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is just beginning to fund recovery projects in the region through its Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Relief program. The city’s tracker fulfills a commitment the city has made to publicly report its Sandy spending. (New York State is <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.nyshcr.org/Programs/NYS-CDBG-DR/QuarterlyPerformanceReports.htm');" href="http://www.nyshcr.org/Programs/NYS-CDBG-DR/QuarterlyPerformanceReports.htm">posting its own reports</a> separately.)
At a City Council Finance Committee hearing on Monday about the measure, Deputy Mayor for Operations Cas Holloway insisted that the city’s tracker renders the council bill unnecessary. “We believe the Sandy Funding Tracker obviates the need for Intro 1040-A,” he testified, suggesting that going forward the existing tracker could be expanded to include details about private contractors and how much money each is receiving. The city is already <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.nyc.gov/html/recovery/html/jobs/cdbgdr_registered_contracts.shtml');" href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/recovery/html/jobs/cdbgdr_registered_contracts.shtml">posting</a> HUD-funded contracts, in PDF form.
<div id="attachment_13241" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-13241" class="size-medium wp-image-13241" src="http://www.thenewyorkworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/sandy-300x169.jpg" alt="Contractors work to restore Rockaway beaches in May. Which company were they working for? A new funding tracker doesn't say. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer" width="300" height="169" srcset="thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/sandy-300x169.jpg 300w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/sandy-352x198.jpg 352w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/sandy-500x281.jpg 500w, thenewyorkworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/sandy.jpg 568w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Contractors work to restore Rockaway beaches in May. Which company were they working for? A new funding tracker doesn’t say. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer</div>
The bill’s boosters in the City Council aren’t taking that for an answer. Following Monday’s hearing, council member Donovan Richards, a sponsor of the bill whose district includes storm-hit Far Rockaway, said on his Facebook page that he will press on for passage.
“Our legislation has helped start the process of tracking Sandy funding.” Richards wrote. “However, we are still moving forward with our bill to ensure that the process and details towards rebuilding are transparent for years to come.”
The current tracker discloses no information on individual contractors or the projects on which they have worked. Instead, it tallies total dollars allocated and spent under 18 programs the city is running with approval of HUD. Funds from FEMA are itemized separately, broken down by city agency. The tracker also provides some basic information on program results, organized by borough, such as the number of applicants for housing repairs and the number of jobs created.
In November, <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.wnyc.org/story/new-sandy-tracker-might-end-wage-theft-among-relief-workers/');" href="http://www.wnyc.org/story/new-sandy-tracker-might-end-wage-theft-among-relief-workers/">Richards and fellow council member Brad Lander</a> joined labor activists at a rally on the steps of City Hall in support of the Sandy tracker bill. They met stiff opposition at the hearing that followed from Thaddeus Hackworth, general counsel at NYC Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery Operations.
Hackworth testified that the bill would be unworkable: he said the city could not readily acquire detailed information from Sandy recovery contractors because no such disclosure was negotiated by the city when it signed contracts with them.
“Ask them nicely, ask them not so nicely,” Hackworth said. “The city cannot make these contractors provide the [labor] information.”

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