Christine Quinn admits she has 'not done this job perfectly'
BY FRANK LOMBARDI
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU
Saturday, April 12th 2008, 4:00 AM
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Smith for
News
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn opened a Pandora's box of
millions in secretive budget goodies Friday and vowed to relinquish control of "every penny" she personally controls.
Stung by a budget-manipulation scandal that could derail her planned mayoral bid next year, Quinn became the first City Council speaker to divulge how
much in discretionary funds - or "pork" - she and her 50 members give out each year.
"I have not done this job perfectly," she said during an hour-long press grilling. "And I will seek now to work even harder and do it even
better than I've done it before."
She said her personal speaker's pot is $20 million to $25 million a year.
Quinn said her share had been $10 million bigger before she relinquished control of some of the dough so it could be distributed to cultural groups in
"merit-based funding."
In addition, Council members doled out at least another $26.2 million in the current budget that ends June 30, her aides said.
Quinn and her aides acknowledged that the Council also controls another $300 million in funds for major program initiatives, ranging from increased
funding for HIV-AIDS care to community college scholarships.
She admitted last week that millions of dollars worth of pork was parked under the names of bogus organizations to be allocated at Council members'
discretion.
While some praised Quinn's reform move, others denounced it.
"If you get caught with your hands in the cookie jar, just let go of the cookies and remove your hand, and maybe give yourself a slap on the wrist.
But do not tie the hands of all the successors," said Councilman John Liu
(D-Queens).
Her reforms - which were praised by Mayor Bloomberg and
private government watchdogs - include the following:
Quinn will relinquish control of "every penny" of her discretionary pot for the new budget due July 1. They will be distributed through "a
competitive merit-based" bidding process, known as Request for Proposal. The recipients will be selected by city agencies under their procurement
rules.
While the 51 individual Council members, including herself, will continue to control their own discretionary funds, they will be allocated under new
monitoring and disclosure rules, with applications and awards posted on a Web site.
Quinn also will hire an independent compliance officer to oversee Council budget and all other actions. While she will pick that official, who will report
to her, Quinn said she will seek a Charter change to set a four-year term on that post.
[url=mailto:flombardi@nydailynews.com]flombardi@nydailynews.com[/url]
BY FRANK LOMBARDI
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU
Saturday, April 12th 2008, 4:00 AM
Smith forNews
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn opened a Pandora's box of
millions in secretive budget goodies Friday and vowed to relinquish control of "every penny" she personally controls.
Stung by a budget-manipulation scandal that could derail her planned mayoral bid next year, Quinn became the first City Council speaker to divulge how
much in discretionary funds - or "pork" - she and her 50 members give out each year.
"I have not done this job perfectly," she said during an hour-long press grilling. "And I will seek now to work even harder and do it even
better than I've done it before."
She said her personal speaker's pot is $20 million to $25 million a year.
Quinn said her share had been $10 million bigger before she relinquished control of some of the dough so it could be distributed to cultural groups in
"merit-based funding."
In addition, Council members doled out at least another $26.2 million in the current budget that ends June 30, her aides said.
Quinn and her aides acknowledged that the Council also controls another $300 million in funds for major program initiatives, ranging from increased
funding for HIV-AIDS care to community college scholarships.
She admitted last week that millions of dollars worth of pork was parked under the names of bogus organizations to be allocated at Council members'
discretion.
While some praised Quinn's reform move, others denounced it.
"If you get caught with your hands in the cookie jar, just let go of the cookies and remove your hand, and maybe give yourself a slap on the wrist.
But do not tie the hands of all the successors," said Councilman John Liu
(D-Queens).
Her reforms - which were praised by Mayor Bloomberg and
private government watchdogs - include the following:
Quinn will relinquish control of "every penny" of her discretionary pot for the new budget due July 1. They will be distributed through "a
competitive merit-based" bidding process, known as Request for Proposal. The recipients will be selected by city agencies under their procurement
rules.
While the 51 individual Council members, including herself, will continue to control their own discretionary funds, they will be allocated under new
monitoring and disclosure rules, with applications and awards posted on a Web site.
Quinn also will hire an independent compliance officer to oversee Council budget and all other actions. While she will pick that official, who will report
to her, Quinn said she will seek a Charter change to set a four-year term on that post.
[url=mailto:flombardi@nydailynews.com]flombardi@nydailynews.com[/url]
Heartbreakers and Souvenir takers!
