Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, joined by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, today announced that Rabbi Samuel Hiller, the former assistant director of Island Child Development Center, once one of the City's largest providers of special education services to preschoolers with disabilities, has been sentenced to up to three years in prison for stealing $5 million in City and State funding between 2005 and 2012 – money that was intended for special needs students between ages three and five.

Many New York schools fall short when it comes to protecting students from harassment and discrimination based on gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, according to an audit released in Rochester today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. 

The audit released today examined New York state schools’ compliance with the Dignity for All Students Act (DASA). On Sept. 25, DiNapoli engaged a similar audit focused on New York City schools. 

New York state has a new savings plan, called the New York Achieving a Better Life Experience (NY ABLE) program, designed to help individuals with disabilities maintain their health, independence and quality of life. New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, Assemblywoman Aileen M. Gunther and parents and advocates discussed the program today at a press conference in Albany. 

Former Ontario Water Superintendent Rodney Peets was arraigned in Wayne County today on charges of offering a false instrument for filing, tampering with a public record and official misconduct after a year-long investigation by the State Comptroller’s Office, the New York State Police, and Acting Wayne County District Attorney Christopher Bokelman, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said. 

New York State Comptroller Thomas P.

Local sales tax collections showed sluggish growth in 2016 compared to 2015, increasing 2.3 percent last year, according to New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today the following audits and examinations have been issued:

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today his office approved 1,866 contracts valued at $11.12 billion and approved nearly 2.8 million payments worth more than $10.8 billion in December. His office also rejected 253 contracts and related transactions valued at $5.76 billion and 919 payments valued at more than $9 million due to fraud, waste or other improprieties.

Fifty-nine school districts have been designated as fiscally stressed under New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System. This is a decrease from 82 districts that were listed in stress last year and 90 the year prior.

State tax collections through the first three quarters of the fiscal year declined $1.2 billion, or 2.2 percent, from the same period last year to $53.2 billion and were $29.9 million lower than mid-year Financial Plan projections, according to the state cash report issued today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. New York state also received $235 million in new monetary settlements during December.