Sunday, May 25, 2025

Piermont Mayor Conceals Comptroller Recommendations.

Law Office of John J. Tormey III, Esq.
John J. Tormey III, PLLC
1636 Third Avenue, PMB 188
New York, NY  10128  USA
(212) 410-4142 (phone)
(212) 410-2380 (fax)
jtormey@optonline.net
https://www.tormey.org
 
FURTHER REQUEST UNDER THE NEW YORK STATE
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW (“FOIL”)
 
Sunday, May 25, 2025
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-473-8940, and U.S. MAIL
Jane Hall, Records Access Officer
State of New York, Office of the New York State Comptroller (OSC)
110 State Street, 15th Floor – Press Office
Albany, New York  12236-0001  USA
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-473-8940, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
foil@osc.ny.gov
Jennifer L. Freeman, Deputy Comptroller – Communications
Colin Bradt, Deputy Comptroller – Chief Information Officer
State of New York, Office of the New York State Comptroller (OSC)
110 State Street, 15th Floor - Records Access Office, Communications
Albany, New York  12236-0001  USA
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-486-6479, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
localgov@osc.ny.gov
Andrea C. Miller, Executive Deputy Comptroller – Audit & Policy
State of New York, Office of the New York State Comptroller (OSC)
Division of Local Government
110 State Street, 12th Floor
Albany, New York  12236-0001  USA
 
Re: Further FOIL Request – The Village Of Piermont, New York

Dear Ms. Hall, Ms. Freeman, Ms. Miller, Mr. Bradt, and OSC Colleagues:
 
Introduction
 
This supplementary FOIL request is made further to my prior Thursday, November 14, 2024 FOIL request to your OSC office (FOIL Request #2024-0958):
https://unhandpiermont.blogspot.com/2024/11/vacuuming-bruce-tuckers-detritus.html
Your response to FOIL Request #2024-0958 is apparently still pending.
 
There is a new significant development. Piermont Mayor Bruce Tucker just admitted on-record on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 in a public Piermont Village Board of Trustees meeting, that at least one OSC Auditor has been reviewing Tucker’s and Piermont’s finances, books, and records. My understanding is that the Auditor to whom Mayor Tucker referred must be your own OSC colleague Mr. Brian Sheevers, copied on this letter with others in your agency. I further understand that Mr. Sheevers and OSC first initiated a “Risk Assessment” action as against Mayor Tucker and the Village of Piermont - on a date some months ago which had to have been prior to Thursday, November 21, 2024:
https://unhandpiermont.blogspot.com/2024/11/newsflash-office-of-new-york-state.html
 
This in turn leads me to believe that the below Tuesday, May 13, 2025 quotation from Piermont Mayor Bruce Tucker below must refer to a second, more recent phase of the OSC “Risk Assessment”, and perhaps indicative of what is now a full-blown and well-deserved OSC audit of unscrupulous Mayor Bruce Tucker and Piermont’s finances.
 
The Tuesday, May 13, 2025 Transcript
 
Here is the verbatim transcript of what Mayor Tucker said on-camera before the Village Board of Trustees and Piermont residents on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. The “youtube” video-link with “in/out” time-code is also provided, immediately hereinbelow, for your reference:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBPiGL7j42Y
[Time-Code 00:53:20 to 00:54:04]
Piermont Village Board of Trustees Meeting
Piermont Village Hall, 478 Piermont Avenue
Piermont, New York 10968 USA
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
 
Mayor Bruce Tucker (speaking):
 
“…‘Item Number 10’ – ‘Establish A Restricted Fund Account For Capital Expenses And Review Resolution To A Fund Balance Policy’…
 
“This was at the… [Uh]… As I mentioned at the last meeting… [Uh]… There is a State… [Uh]… Auditor who’s been here… for a few weeks now and… [Um]… He’s been making recommendations along the way… [Um]… One of the recommendations that he’s made is that we do a Resolution in the event that the “Un-…” …[Uh]… the “Un-…” …[Um]… “[-]Specified[sic] Fund Balance” is over a certain percentage”. [Vocalized pauses as in original] [Bold-faced emphasis supplied].
 
Despite the fact that Mayor Bruce Tucker was utterly unable to accurately state the phrase “Unassigned Fund Balance” even with notes physically in front of him, it is obvious from the context that he meant “Unassigned Fund Balance” when he instead stated “Un-…” …[Uh]… the “Un-…” …[Um]… “[-]Specified[sic] Fund Balance”.
 
My Supplementary FOIL Request
 
That "said" - as you are aware from prior correspondence, I am an attorney in New York, and a citizen and resident of the Town of Orangetown and the County of Rockland. Under the New York State Freedom of Information Law:
http://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/foil2.html
and, as may be applicable, its state, federal, and other counterparts, including without limitation New York Public Officers Law, Article 6, Sections 84-90, and Title 5 of the United States Code, Section 552 (collectively herein referred to as “FOIL”), request is hereby made that each of you provide to this, my law office, full and complete copies of each and every document and other item of material dated or otherwise generated from January 1, 2024 forward to the present day (collectively, “Records”) which may be at all responsive to the following requests:
 
1. Records Of All The “Recommendations”. All Records, of any kind or nature, of the multiple “recommendations” which Mayor Bruce Tucker has now admitted have been made and communicated to him by the Auditor or by OSC otherwise.
 
It should be noted here that, to date, Mayor Tucker has only come forward to the public with but one of those multiple “recommendations” - that is, only the “recommendation” to impose a 20% cap on Piermont’s Unassigned Fund Balance - which "recommendation" Mayor Tucker proceeded to flout and disregard anyway, as explained here:
https://unhandpiermont.blogspot.com/2025/05/piermont-mayor-bruce-tuckers-us367938.html
 
It is obvious to all concerned Village of Piermont and Town of Orangetown residents that, by disclosing but only one of the multiple OSC “recommendations”, Mayor Bruce Tucker is intentionally concealing the remainder of the "recommendations" from the Piermont resident taxpayers. Yet it is Piermont resident taxpayer money which is directly affected and at stake. It is therefore in the public interest that this FOIL request receive an immediate OSC response without any delay.
 
2. Definition Of “Records”. “Records” should be construed in the broadest sense and manner possible and should include “any information kept, held, filed, produced or reproduced by, with or for (your agency or office)... in any physical form whatsoever...” (FOIL,§86[4]) including without limitation all audio recordings, blog posts, correspondence, data maintained electronically, data, e-mails, executive summaries, extracts, faxes, instant messages, Internet posts, letters, log-book entries, memos, paper records, personal messages, social media communications, spreadsheets, summaries, synopses, telephone records, test-reports, visual recordings, and any other materials:
http://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/foil2.html#s86
 
3. Headings And Subheadings. The headings and subheadings used in this letter are for convenience of reference purposes only, and should not be construed to be words of limitation or otherwise of any substantive significance relative to this FOIL request.
 
4. Costs. If there are any copying or other fees for this, please let me know what they are and how they are calculated, before filling the request and forwarding the Records to me. As this FOIL request should be considered a matter of public importance, and as its results will be shared with the general public and published, I am asking that any otherwise-applicable fees be waived for this document-production. I am also asking that all documents be provided to me electronically to the full extent possible, so as to obviate the need for any photocopying expense.
 
5. Denials And Appeals. In the event that any portion of my request is denied, please inform me of each of the specific reasons for any such denial in writing - and provide me with the name, address, and other contact information of the person or entity to whom an appeal should be directed.
 
6. Additional Requests. This FOIL request is not intended to be exhaustive, and I foresee making additional and follow-up requests.
 
I will appreciate a response from you and your office as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing from you shortly. Thank you.
 
Respectfully, and with thanks,

John J. Tormey III, Esq.
 
cc:
VIA FAX: 1-518-474-1927, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
coog@dos.ny.gov
NYS Committee on Open Government (COOG)
Department of State
One Commerce Plaza, 99 Washington Avenue, Suite 650
Albany, New York 12231 USA
 
VIA U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
bsheevers@osc.ny.gov
Brian Sheevers, Auditor 3 (Municipal)
Office of the State Comptroller (OSC)
Local Government and School Accountability　
33 Airport Center Drive, Suite 102 - Newburgh Regional Office
New Windsor, New York 12553 USA
 
VIA U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
lnewhall@osc.ny.gov
muni-newburgh@osc.ny.gov
LGSA-Audits@osc.ny.gov
Laura A. Newhall, Auditor 3
Office of the State Comptroller (OSC)
33 Airport Center Drive, Suite 102
New Windsor, New York 12553 USA
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-473-8940, (1-212-681-4468), U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
contactus@osc.ny.gov
sgaaudits@osc.ny.gov
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
Office of the New York State Comptroller - Albany Office
110 State Street
Albany, New York 12236 USA         
 
VIA U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
jfreeman@osc.ny.gov
press@osc.ny.gov
Jennifer L. Freeman, Deputy Comptroller – Communications
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
Office of the New York State Comptroller - New York City Office
59 Maiden Lane
New York, New York 10038 USA

VIA U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
eburgess@strategen.com
Edward Burgess, Director
Strategen
10265 Rockingham Drive, Suite #100-4061
Sacramento, California 95827 USA
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-408-3931, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
InspectorGeneral@osc.ny.gov
Lucy Lang, Inspector General
Office of the New York State Comptroller – Inspector General
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
59 Maiden Lane
New York, New York 10038 USA
 
VIA FAX: 1-518-408-3931, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
Jennifer Wood, CFE - Chief of Investigations
Office of the New York State Comptroller – Investigations Division
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
59 Maiden Lane
New York, New York 10038 USA
at
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