New York City Comptroller Brad Lander Lays Out New Administration’s Roadmap

(New York, NY) — New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and his Transition Committee unveiled a transition report titled “Accounting Together for a More Thriving, Equitable, and Resilient City,” which articulates his vision and priorities for carrying forward the work of the office.  The report, which comes at the close of the new Comptroller’s first month in office, lays out a mission statement, values, and strategic initiatives—including a path towards an inclusive economic recovery, equity and justice, and climate resiliency.

“It is a privilege to work alongside the dedicated staff of this office to serve the people of New York in this time of tremendous challenges and opportunities for our city,” said NYC Comptroller Brad Lander. “This report is a strong roadmap for the work ahead of us, in partnership with New Yorkers, to build a just and durable recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, better hold New York City’s government accountable to its promises, mitigate the risks we face, and invest in the more equitable, resilient, and innovative future we and future generations deserve.”

The transition report was introduced with a letter from Transition Committee Co-Chairs Carol Kellerman, former President of the Citizen Budget Commission, and Mark Winston Griffith, Executive Director of the Brooklyn Movement Center.

“Comptroller Brad Lander and the transition committee share a commitment to making government work better for people and a deep belief in the important role the Comptroller’s office can and should play in realizing this aim,” said Carol Kellerman. “We are confident that the Comptroller’s office, under Lander’s leadership and with the input of fellow New Yorkers, will leverage all of the available resources and tools to support an economic recovery that does not leave anyone behind while keeping the City on solid fiscal ground.”

“New Yorkers need a bold, active government to confront our biggest challenges, from affordability to safety to public health to the climate crisis. But that is only possible, and the people will only support it, when they see government delivering effectively on its promises. Comptroller Lander has made that a priority during his time in public service, and has laid a strong foundation for the work of the office in the first hundred days and beyond,” said Mark Winston Griffith. 

The New York City Charter assigns responsibility to the Comptroller’s office for an extraordinary range of work: conducting audits that help municipal agencies better serve the needs of all New Yorkers, telling the truth about the City’s finances and fiscal health, guaranteeing retirement security for public sector workers, issuing the bonds to finance NYC’s infrastructure, enforcing prevailing and living wage laws, resolving claims against the City, and many more critical functions. The transition process articulated a shared mission for the wide-ranging work of the office, and set forth three strategic priorities for Comptroller Lander’s tenure: creating an inclusive recovery, advancing equity and justice, and confronting the climate crisis with bold and sustained action.

The report also details plans to strengthen and reinforce the core duties of the office, including:

• Deploying  better use of data analytics, increased transparency internally and externally, and innovative strategies for public engagement to analyze and improve how government delivers services.
• Conducting equity and sustainability-focused audits to identify and make recommendations to reduce disparities across race, gender and ethnicity citywide, and to support and monitor City agencies’ efforts to combat and prepare for climate change.
• Building a strong team and process for responsible fiduciary investing that takes a strategic and integrated approach to maximizing risk-adjusted market returns, determining and adjusting asset allocations, minimizing fees to outside investment managers, and investing for the long-term, while remaining attentive to the fund-level and systemic risks posed by dangers including climate change and inequality.
• Improving and advancing procurement reform to deliver timely government services by ensuring timely contract registration and prompt payments to responsible contractors, and oversight to prevent abuses.
• Overhauling the City’s capital project management systems to support greater public transparency, better prioritize infrastructure dollars to address NYC’s most critical needs and prepare the City for the risks ahead.

The full transition report is available here.

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