Categories for In-Depth

Apr 11

2012

Disclosure dysfunction

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Common Council Majority Leader Demone A. Smith, whose wife pleaded guilty to fraud charges last week, has legal problems of his own. Smith’s campaign committee has not paid $1,842 in judgments filed by the state Board of Elections for its failure to file disclosure reports in a timely fashion. In addition, another campaign committee that lists Smith as its treasurer hasn’t paid $1,121 in judgments involving late and missing disclosure reports. Smith’s campaign committee has had problems meeting disclosure requirements since he first ran for public office in 2005. Investigative Post has determined that while the Committee to Elect Demone[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Mar 21

2012

Opening the books at the UB Foundation

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By Luke Hammill The UB Foundation and other foundations and non-profits associated with SUNY schools operate in some ways similar to authorities in state government. In UB’s case, its foundation manages university real estate, grants scholarships and supplements the pay of hundreds of employees. But unlike state authorities, SUNY-related foundations operate behind closed doors. Their meetings are not open to the public and their records are not subject to disclosure under the state Freedom of Information Law. The opaqueness has come under criticism in the face of press reports that raised possible conflicts of interest by UB Foundation board members[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Feb 23

2012

Clearing up the confusion

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The governor wants all the development in the city. Or not. He’s focused on just a couple of big projects. Or maybe more. The answers vary regarding Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s plans for $1 billion in state incentives to rally the local economy, depending on who is doing the talking. And a lot of people are talking. Mayor Byron Brown. State Sen. George Maziarz. Assemblyman Sean Ryan. Among others. Investigative Post interviewed the two local officials who have spoken directly with Cuomo about his intentions and who are among those charged with translating into action his $1 billion pledge of economic[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Feb 22

2012

Cuomo’s $1B economic stimulus for region: Promising vision, questionable assumptions

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposal to invest $1 billion of state incentives in an effort to revitalize the region’s economy is even bolder than the “B as in billion” suggests. Bold, but potentially flawed. Cuomo is alone among the nation’s 50 governors in targeting that kind of money at a regional economy. “To have a governor willing to spend $1 billion in one metropolitan area is truly exceptional these days, given states’ fiscal conditions,” said Greg LeRoy, a national expert on economic development subsidy programs and executive director of Good Jobs First. Moreover, Cuomo wants to break from current economic development[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Feb 22

2012

What to expect

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Investigative Post is going to be a work in progress for the foreseeable future. This a primer on our website and how else you can follow our work. investigativepost.org will be updated daily during the work week with at least a couple of new items every morning. Our most substantial, in-depth content will be investigations, analyses and follow-up stories, which will be featured at the top of our home page. The frequency of these pieces will vary; starting out, we hope to post a major piece at least every couple of weeks. The frequency will increase as we add staff.[...]

Posted 12 years ago
Investigative Post

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