Results tagged “cityspending”

Yesterday, the Daily News went after the city's five borough presidents with an article titled, "Borough presidents spend our tax bucks but New Yorkers get little back": "In the last two years, they've plowed through more than $450 million in taxpayer money, in some cases buying items that appear to fall outside the realm of their limited duties, the Daily News found. The bulk of the money goes for construction of pet projects - while the rest covers salaries, drivers for four of the five, glossy promotional brochures and magazines, photo equipment and things like $400 chairs, $5,000 for drapes and thousands more for pictures and videos." The News also drills down with some spending details for each one—Brooklyn BP Marty Markowitz, former Bronx BP Adolfo Carrion Jr., Manhattan BP Scott Stringer, Queens BP Helen Marshall and Staten Island BP James Molinaro. Government watchdog group Citizens Union's Dick Dadey tells the News the Beep position (which pays $160,000/year) "should be abolished or it should be strengthened. I'm not confident that the way the office is currently constructed has proved to be effective." Last fall, the Post looked at the Beeps' schedules.

The Budget Maze is a new "game" from the Gotham Gazette -- because what's more fun than cutting city spending? However, one can learn more here than at, say, Guitar Hero; "If you're seeking to lobby the powers that be, the game offers a useful guide. If you're a student or an armchair activist, the three mazes should help you better understand the tortuous process that shapes city taxing and spending."