New York Seeks to be National Leader in Stimulus Accountability

by Chris Keeley, Common Cause NY

Yesterday, Senator José M. Serrano (D-Manhattan/Bronx) and Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Queens), along with the NYS Stimulus Oversight Working Group, announced legislation to create a dedicated federal Stimulus Ombudsman's office. Setting up such an office would make New York State the national leader in stimulus accountability and effectiveness. The legislation (S5879/A8941), supported by the NYS Stimulus Oversight Working Group, the state's leading network pushing for fair and equitable distribution of stimulus investments, was described by Senator Serrano in an op-ed in this morning's Albany Times Union (PDF).

The Ombudsman would help New Yorkers understand how the state has used stimulus funds by evaluating project performance, the quality of jobs created (e.g., Are they paying decent wages and providing benefits?  Are these long-term positions?), and analyzing the positive impacts actually being felt by New York's families and communities.  The Ombudsman would be responsible for creating 'metrics for success' to provide evaluations of the community-level and household-level impact of stimulus funds and identifying 'best practices' so that New York is not only prepared but strategically-positioned for future funding opportunities. These evaluations would be released annually for New York agencies receiving federal stimulus funds.  (A one-page description of the Ombudsman is available here.)

Under A8941/S5879, the Ombudsman is independently appointed.  A nominating commission presents the Governor with nominees for the head of the Office of the Federal Stimulus Ombudsman and the Governor then selects the Ombudsman (who serves for a fixed term) from among the commission's list of nominees.

The legislation follows letters sent to Governor Paterson by 16 Senate Democrats, 17 members of the Assembly, and 17 members of the NYC Council urging the governor to appoint an "independent stimulus monitor."  Similar oversight measures and proposals have been put forward by the Senate Republican conference.

The legislators and others believe New York has a unique opportunity to leverage federal stimulus funds to create state-level efficiencies and measure the effectiveness and impacts of our investments.  Doing this will ensure our state is well-positioned down the road, should more federal stimulus funding become available and even for non-stimulus federal funding opportunities in the future.

Regardless of the 'chaos in the New York State capitol' right now, as Sen. Serrano wrote this morning, "Rather than lose focus, we must do everything we can to stay energized."