RIOC Board Of Directors Audit Committee Meeting Today To Discuss Compensation - NY State ABO Issues Report On Public Authorities

The Roosevelt Island Operating Corp. (RIOC) Board Of Directors Audit Committee will be meeting this afternoon. ( A webcast of the meeting will be available soon thereafter.) According to RIOC:

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a meeting of the Compensation Subcommittee of the Audit Committee of the RIOC Board of Directors will be held on Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. at the RIOC administrative office, 591 Main Street, Roosevelt Island, New York.

The Subcommittee will meet to:

1. discuss and make recommendations concerning the payment of formerly-authorized performance awards; and
2. discuss any other matters current and relevant to the subcommittee's mandate.

The newly formed NY State Authorities Budget Office (ABO) oversees NY Public Authorities of which RIOC is one of more than 700. The ABO issued it's first report earlier this month. According to the report:

The independent Authorities Budget Office (ABO) was created pursuant to the 2009 Public Authorities Reform Act (PARA). The ABO and the Act took effect on March 1, 2010. Prior to this date, the ABO existed for four years as the Authority Budget Office pursuant to the Public Authorities Accountability Act of 2005 (PAAA). From its inception, the mission of the ABO has been to make public authorities more accountable and transparent, and to act in the public interest consistent with their intended purpose. The ABO carries out its mission by: collecting, analyzing and disseminating to the public information on the finances and operations of state and local public authorities; conducting reviews to assess the operating and governance practices of public authorities and compliance with state laws; exercising its enforcement powers; promoting good governance principles through training, policy guidance, the issuance of best practice recommendations and staff assistance; and investigating complaints made against public authorities for non-compliance or inappropriate conduct.

Consistent with its original statutory powers and duties under the PAAA, the Authority Budget Office focused its initial efforts on collecting and analyzing standardized budget, financial, program and operating information submitted by public authorities, conducting 21 onsite reviews of the management practices of certain authorities and their compliance with state laws, and training the directors of public authority boards on their fiduciary responsibilities. The ABO will continue these efforts under PARA and exercise its additional oversight and enforcement power to assure the compliance of public authorities...

The ABO report mentions Roosevelt Island and RIOC 3 times.

• Page 16 - Public Authorities Reporting No Debt During 2009
• Page 17 - 2009 Staffing Levels of 165 total and
  
• Page 20 - number of 2009 Procurement contracts of 194

Below is the 2009 RIOC Annual Report
ABO Roosevelt Island 2009 Report

and budget through fiscal year 2011 submitted to the ABO.
Roosevelt Island ABO Budget Report

Additional and more recent financial reporting information is available at RIOC's web site.

The NY Times City Room Blog has more on the ABO report:

... New York’s public authorities racked up more than $17 billion in new debt in 2009 and many failed to comply with the reforms contained in the new law, according to the report released this month by the Independent Authorities Budget Office.

The $17 billion in new debt brings the total debt accrued by authorities to $133 billion, the report states. The largest contributors to the total debt are the Dormitory Authority, which accounted for more than $38 billion, and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which contributed more than $28 billion.

More than 140 authorities failed to provide budget reports to the Independent Authorities Budget Office and 175 did not provide annual reports, the report said....