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Res. No. 295-2006
Resolution urging the Mayor to issue an executive order creating an office to oversee all development, operation, and maintenance of the public and private infrastructure of the City of New York.
By Council Member Monserrate
Whereas, New York City has a vast and complex public and private infrastructure that includes bridges, tunnels, roads, buildings, structures and systems that, despite their age, are the envy of the world; and
Whereas, Public infrastructure affects the safety and security of businesses, workplaces, schools, places of worship, hospitals, cultural institutions, property, homes, and the daily quality of life of all New Yorkers; and
Whereas, Public infrastructure also affects millions of visitors to the city annually; and
Whereas, A substantial portion of the city’s annual budget is dedicated to the upkeep of existing and the development of new public and private infrastructure; and
Whereas, There is currently no requirement that the Mayor appoint a single, expert individual to oversee and be accountable for the centralized and integrated development, operation, and maintenance of the city’s infrastructure; and
Whereas, The lack of comprehensive, centralized expert asset management results in an infrastructure system that is not as efficient and as cost-effective as it can be; and
Whereas, The Mayor can substantially improve asset management of the public and private infrastructure by issuing an executive order that creates a permanent office to be filled by either a Licensed Professional Engineer or a Registered Architect who will be appointed by the Mayor and charged with oversight of all public and private infrastructure; and
Whereas, Such an office shall be empowered and required to: (1) advise the Mayor and the Council in formulating the capital program for the city; (2) set overall policies for the maintenance, rehabilitation and construction of the city infrastructure; (3) oversee and control all infrastructure operations; establish and enforce rules for the construction, maintenance and restoration of public areas used by private utilities; (4) represent the Mayor in dealings with federal and state agencies, other regional governments, and private entities on all infrastructure-related matters; (5) interact with government and private regional planning agencies; (6) establish uniform standards for procuring Engineering and Architectural services on the basis of qualifications; (7) ensure the use of such standards by all city agencies; and (8) coordinate with state and federal agencies in procuring funds for city infrastructure projects; and
Whereas, The creation of this office will increase accountability and improve the development, operation, and maintenance of the public and private infrastructure; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York urges the Mayor to issue an executive order creating an office to oversee all development, operation, and maintenance of the public and private infrastructure of the City of New York.
DJ
LS # 499
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August 6, 2007
PRESS RELEASE
OUR CRUMBLING INFRASTRUCTURE
The recent catastrophic collapse of the Minneapolis bridge and the steampipe explosion in mid-town Manhattan highlight the urgent need to address the nation’s crumbling infrastructure. Given the recent American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) failing report card of the nation’s infrastructure, it is imperative that Federal, State and City governments tackle this looming crisis in an aggressive and comprehensive way.
The American Engineering Alliance (AEA), a national Engineering organization founded in 1995 and representing Engineers from all Engineering disciplines and employment venues, is committed to elevating the role Engineers play in public life while promoting and protecting public health and safety.
AEA has consistently advocated for the competent management of the nation’s infrastructure assets by licensed technical professionals, namely Professional Engineers (PE’S) and Registered Architects (RA’s). AEA has spoken out against the ominous trend by government entities, at the City, State and Federal level, of placing non-Engineering managers to oversee technical projects. Invariably non-Engineering managers stifle, intimidate or over-rule good Engineering judgment of the technical professionals they manage resulting in bad decisions and, sometimes, catastrophic and deadly results.
To reverse this ominous and dangerous trend, AEA, along with its sister Engineering and Architectural Societies, recently introduced legislation in NY City Council calling for the creation of an office for the management of the City’s public and private infrastructure. This legislation ( Resolution 195-2006 ) is sponsored by Councilmember Hiram Monserrate.
We hope that the recent tragic events will galvanize the public, as well as its elected officials, to quickly address the looming infrastructure crisis with both money and competent technical expertise free from political interference. Only by engaging the Engineering and Architectural Community, as well as other stakeholders, can we begin to solve this grave crisis.
We urge the Mayor to take the first step in addressing this vital issue by embracing the recommendations of Resolution 195-2006. We, in the Engineering and Architectural Community, firmly believe that the time is now for the City to have a Deputy Mayor for Infrastructure. We hope the Mayor, an Engineer himself and a visionary, sees the wisdom of this Resolution.
Contacts:
American Engineering Alliance
Louis R. Comunelli, PE, Secretary: comunellil@verizon.net | 917-681-1177
Salvatore Galletta, PE, Chair: srgalletta@aol.com | 917-575-8060
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Ed Turner, PE is the former City Engineer of Idaho Falls, Idaho who was forced to resign for refusing to sign and seal projects over which he did not have responsible charge. Ed had been with the City Engineering Department for over 27 years performing his duties competently and professionally when he was asked to step aside and accept a lower position. No rational justification was given for this move except that it was being done to improve the efficiency of the Department. Despite his demotion and reduced span of responsibilities, Ed was ordered to approve plats and other engineering documents over which he had no 'responsible charge'. Ed refused to go along with this set up since it violated the Idaho Engineering Licensure Statute and put the public at risk. Ed acted professionally and ethically in trying to protect the public health and safety and for his exemplary behavior he paid a heavy price, namely the loss of his career and the economic and psychological turmoil that such a loss created.
Upon his resignation from this position, Ed sued the City of Idaho Falls for wrongful termination and breach of contract among other charges. He battled the City in court for over three years. Because of errors by his first lawyer, Ed lost his fight with the City of Idaho Falls. Due to financial difficulties Ed was forced to settle with the City. He then sued his former lawyer for malpractice.
Although Ed's lawsuit was for legal malpractice, the resolution of the case still hinged on the issue of responsible charge. Ed's second lawyer had to prove that the issue of responsible charge was still valid and central to winning the case. In legal jargon, Ed's second case is what's called a 'case within a case'. The 'inside' case is Ed's original lawsuit against the City of Idaho Falls. The 'outside case' is the legal malpractice lawsuit. In essence Ed's lawyer had to win the original case in order to prevail in the new case.
Because of the importance of this case to the Engineering Profession, AEA marshaled all available resources to ensure that Ed prevailed in his legal battle. AEA consistently and vigorously supported Ed from the moment we heard about his situation. We didn’t take an exorbitant amount of time to study the issues and quickly saw what had happened and what was needed. We called out to the Engineering Community to come to the aid of Ed Turner, PE. We worked with some of our sister societies to coordinate our efforts in support of Ed Turner's litigation. After a long and arduous battle, Ed finally prevailed.
Engineers can help in other such cases by joining AEA so that we will have the resources to continue supporting Engineers like Ed, and to carry on the work of promoting and protecting the Engineering Profession.
Click here for more information about Ed Turner's Case |
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Letter from the New York City Mayor - October 24, 2007
Letter to the New York City Mayor - January 3, 2007
July 3, 2004
Hon. Iris Weinshall
Commissioner
New York City Department of Transportation
40 Worth Street
New York, New York 10013
Re: Personnel Practices Detrimental to the Quality of Engineering Services
Dear Commissioner Weinshall,
Several recent personnel hires in your Bureau of Roadway Bridges have come to our attention that leave us with a serious concern for the quality of management that can be provided by your Department’s Engineering staff.
1. Positions calling for incumbents to possess a valid New York State Professional Engineer’s License were filled by individuals without this qualification
2. The key management position of Director of Roadway Bridges, until recently occupied by Bharat Parekh, P.E., was filled by an individual from outside the Department
Hiring the unlicensed persons is a clear diminishment of the quality of your Engineering staff. We have been informed that this action was taken because it was not possible to recruit licensed individuals. This particular ?emergency? measure is counterproductive. Instead of seeking to improve the desirability of the positions to Licensed Engineers, the Department is accepting less qualified Engineers to oversee the work of contractors and outside consultants. Such a practice ignores the actual problem, in favor of a mistaken idea of what expediency is. This myopic practice, instead of being the exception, will become the norm in a short time, and exponentially decrease the quality of Engineering provided by NYCDOT. This in turn will at the very least end up costing the Department a great deal more money through waste, than could be saved by artificially keeping salaries low. At the worst, it could cause damage to public safety and infrastructure.
In filling key Engineering Middle Management positions from the outside, you are causing gaps in the institutional memory of the organization. It is an admission that the Department senior leadership has failed in its role of training its own people to perform the work of their units in consonance with the methodology that has been learned over the years. Such a practice will cause inconsistencies in the way projects are carried out. Moreover it will also demoralize your Engineers who will not foresee promotions in their future. This will exacerbate the diminishment of quality in your staff.
The American Engineering Alliance (AEA) has no desire to criticize without offering assistance. We offer our services to assist in developing a sound and consistent policy for recruiting and managing the Department?s Engineering personnel. Please feel free to contact us on this or any o0ther issue affecting the Engineering Staff of NYCDOT.
Sincerely,
Salvatore R. Galletta, P.E.
Chairperson
April 3, 2002
Senator Charles Schumer
313 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
Re: Request for Your Intervention in Resolving
Carson v. Department of Energy (DOE)
Dear Senator Schumer:
The American Engineering Alliance (AEA) supports Engineers throughout the Country when they are defending the Public Interest. We became interested in the above case several years ago because of the potential danger to the Public in the actions of the DOE.
Joseph P. Carson, P.E. is a Nuclear Safety Engineer in the Department of Energy. He has had to seek protection from DOE reprisals under the Whistle blower Protection Act of 1989, a law you supported, eight times in the last ten years. Details of his ordeal may be found on his web site http://www.carsonversusdoe.com.
It is reprehensible for senior people at DOE, who are supposed to represent the interests of the people of the United States, to systematically punish the very individuals whose performance of their duties is protecting the safety and welfare of the Public. This is being done in an attempt to protect the reputations of Bureaucrats who would rather maintain the Public at risk, than admit errors in judgment.
In the latest case, even though Mr. Carson has prevailed in the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, DOE Headquarters has vigorously resisted any settlement. This type of tactic is clearly contrary to the Department?s avowed policy of ?Zero Tolerance for Workplace Reprisals?, and only serves to undermine the ability of Safety Engineers and others to adequately protect the Public.
The AEA respectfully urges you to use the power of your office, and your position as a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, to demand that DOE live up to its declared Zero Tolerance for Reprisals Policy, and settle with Mr. Carson who has been proved to have been harmed by them.
Mr. Carson has been in recent contact with Sam Fowler of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and has recently met with the office of Congressman Stephen Israel of Long Island. It is our hope that the addition of your interest in his case will resolve the impasse.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and for your distinguished service to the people of New York and the United States.
Sincerely,
Louis R. Comunelli, P.E.
Chairperson |
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