Food prices keep going up, sure, but some of this is absurd! In its second audit this month related to food in the city, the Comptroller's office has called out the Department of Education for not being careful with its food contracts—with costly results [PDF]. Like, for instance, with the distributor who charged the DOE the same amount to deliver cases of "Beef - Gyro Strip" as it did to deliver cheaper and lighter cases of "Eggplant, breaded." And it goes on. After the audit, the Comptroller's office went and smacked down a Department of Education contract that inexplicably jumped $20 million dollars in a year! more ›

In the wake of Cooper Union's announcement that they may have to start charging tuition for the first time in 102 years, many people are calling BS on the school, disbelieving that it's actually as broke as it claims it is. more ›

The Port Authority's board votes on the proposed toll and fare hikes tomorrow and while most pols seem to agree that there will be some kind of hike (if not necessarily a huge one), that doesn't mean that opponents of the idea aren't going down without a fight. And helping the cause is New York's own comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli, who has released an incendiary audit [PDF] of the PA's overtime costs. Does $459.2 million in overtime over four years seem a little high to anyone else? more ›

There's been a lot of back and forth about the city's bragging rights to recent high school graduation rates. Sure they're on the rise, but when fewer than 23 percent of graduates are "college ready," does that diploma even mean anything? Now, an audit (below) finds that the city may have been fudging the numbers on high school dropouts. Would it be better to let them graduate? more ›

This should be fun: NY1 reports that State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and City Comptroller John Liu "announced they will audit the MTA to determine if bus and subway service disruptions are always necessary, as well as the financial impact of those disruptions. The audit is expected to take months to complete." For lovers of the "two sets of books" mythology, check this out. more ›

The Justice Department outlined an effort this week to review how the NYPD deals with New Yorkers who don't speak English. The Department insists this is a "routine audit" to see if the NYPD is complying with federal civil rights laws, and is looking at whether language barriers affect things like the filing of complaints or emergency calls. The government's letter to the NYPD stated, “We want to know what the N.Y.P.D. is doing well, and what it could do better." more ›

The horse racing organization that has threatened to cancel the Belmont Stakes due to monetary woes says it will take the state to court instead of opening its books to auditors, according to the Daily News. The New York Racing Association refused to turn over its records to State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli after he subpoenaed the group yesterday, arguing that because a court has ruled that nonprofit charter schools don't need to open their books to the state, neither should the nonprofit horse-racing organization. more ›

The horse racing organization that threatened to cancel the Belmont Stakes due to monetary woes will be subpoenaed for refusing to open its books. The state is skeptical of the New York Racing Association's claims that it doesn't have enough money to hold the final leg of the Triple Crown, because the organization was awarded $105 million in taxpayer money and had its $200 million debt erased last year, according to the Daily News. more ›

David Friehling, who was in charge of auditing Bernard Madoff's billion dollar "business"/Ponzi scheme from a little accounting office in a Rockland County strip mall, pleaded guilty to securities fraud charges for not verifying Bernard Madoff's trades and assets. The 49-year-old said, "At no time was I ever aware Bernard Madoff was engaged in a Ponzi scheme," and said his own family's savings (and kids' college funds)—which is also an SEC violation— were put into Madoff's scheme, while also admitting he took Madoff's records "at face value." more ›

An audit by the State Comptroller's Office has found that five CUNY colleges failed to report 73 percent of the felonies that occurred on their campuses, as required by law. The most ironic offender? John Jay College of Criminal Justice, which failed to report 19 of its 20 felonies. more ›

Following this weekend's crash, the carriage horse debate surfaces in the headlines once again. CityRoom takes a look at the status of the industry after two years of getting audited by the city comptroller's office. They note that while certain things have improved, "the two agencies that oversee the business have acted too slowly in putting reforms into effect." more ›

In this case, double-dipping doesn't refer to a George Costanza-like social faux pas—it's the more serious instance of a retired city worker who collects his/her pension PLUS pay from a new public job! The Daily News reports, "New city audits have found 39 city retirees double-dipping with new public jobs - and pulling in some $600,000 in improper pension payments," such as "a retired assistant district attorney collecting a $69,660 pension on top of a $99,100 consulting contract for the state courts... a retired police captain who earned $51,246 as a city teacher on top of a $55,622 pension and a retired teacher with a $55,882 pension who also worked an FDNY office job for $76,490." Nice work if you can get it! The News further explains that retired city employees cannot receive pension payments if they take "another city or state job, though some are allowed to do so if they obtain waivers." City Comptroller William Thompson said, "Immediate action ... is needed to investigate and recoup, if appropriate, any improper payments made to these retirees identified as possible 'double-dippers.'" more ›

Bernard Madoff's accountant was (finally) charged with helping the fallen financier run his Ponzi scheme. David Friehling was "charged with securities fraud, aiding and abetting investment adviser fraud and four counts of filing false audit reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission," according to the Wall Street Journal. Friehling, the first arrest aside from Madoff's in the case, made his $2.5 million bail after the hearing. more ›

After an audit of funds meant for childcare programs for low-income parents, State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli referred multiple daycare centers to district attorney offices in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the Bronx for possible prosecution. The audit determined that between 1999 and 2007, more state money was spent fraudulently than legally by recipients. more ›