Friday’s News
Friday, September 5th, 2008-Last week’s news of longer term limits for local New York City elected officials is one step closer to reality. G. Oliver Koppell, a member of the city council, has decided to introduce legislation that would move term limits from two terms to three.
The debate over term limits has paralyzed the city’s political world, forcing candidates for a variety of offices to rethink their campaigns. The city comptroller, William C. Thompson Jr., a candidate for mayor, has demanded that Mr. Bloomberg say whether he plans to change the rule.
If it acts, the Council may change term limits without voter ratification, and that possibility has raised the eyebrows of some city officials. On Thursday, the city’s public advocate, Betsy Gotbaum, wrote on her blog that she “cannot support extending term limits by anything other than a public vote.”
-A student loan company in New York has been violating state and federal laws trying to lure in college students with cash and gifts to sign loans with the company, and the attorney general of the state is now preparing to take them to court. Goal Financial has used iPods and monetary gifts trying to bring in new clients to their company.
The attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo, has been investigating the student loan industry since early last year and has uncovered an array of troubling practices. Separate from the Goal lawsuit, the office is close to agreements with about a dozen loan companies on what marketing tactics are appropriate, according to the official, who cited the investigation and the pending lawsuit as reasons he could not be identified.
“The hope is that those settlements will set a new industry standard when it comes to how direct-to-consumer lenders are operating,” the official said. Goal is being sued because it has failed to demonstrate a willingness to change its practices, he added.
-This week three crane safety laws were passed in the city council of New York City to further protect workers from construction accidents, one of which occurred just yesterday. Over twenty people have died this year alone in construction accidents in the city.
The measures would strengthen inspections, require more training for operators and restrict the use of nylon slings, which may have played a factor in one of the year’s major crane tragedies.
"The impacts are still being felt,” said Councilwoman Jassica Lappin, who represents the affected area. “They are still real people, are still out of their homes, and people are still scared when they walk by construction sites. These three bills will make crane operation safer and the average person who is walking down the street should know that."
