Governor Cuomo recently announced the creation of New York’s Green Energy Program aimed at building New York’s green economy. Urging that the program will combat global climate change while stimulating New York’s COVID-19 stressed economy, the Governor’s proposal includes the development of the largest offshore wind program in the nation, upgrades to five dedicated port facilities (in Albany, Coeymans, South Brooklyn, Port Jefferson and Port of Montauk Harbor), and the construction of a “green energy…

On December 15, 2020, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law sweeping changes to New York’s General Obligations Law governing powers of attorney (“POA”). The new law is effective on June 14, 2021. The new law is intended to: 1) simplify the current POA form, which is prone to improper execution; 2) allow for the execution of a POA containing language that substantially conforms to the law, because the current law’s exact wording requirement is unduly…

I. Competitive Bidding – The Basics The purpose of competitive bidding is to create an open and fair environment that encourages transparency and accountability, as well as competition.  Local Government Management Guide Seeking Competition in Procurement, NYS Office of the Comptroller, Division of Local Government and School Accountability (July 2014) at: Seeking Competition. Under General Municipal Law § 103, when a procurement meets certain monetary thresholds, local municipalities and school districts (collectively, hereinafter “municipalities”)…

With an existing budget shortfall worsened by the pandemic, lawmakers are again pressing to allow mobile sports betting as a means of generating State revenue. As of today, sports betting is only legal in New York as long as the bettor is physically present on the grounds of certain in-state casinos. By contrast, a mobile sports bet would be placed on a website via an electronic device, such as a computer or cell phone. New…

Purchasing a new home is often one of the biggest moments of a person’s life, whether it is a first home or a “forever home.” Over the past year, restrictions imposed by virtue of the COVID-19 pandemic have interfered with this dream of many. Initially, stay-at-home orders prohibited home showings and in-person closings. Later, low home inventory resulted in weaker purchaser negotiating power given the low supply and great demand triggered by the pandemic. Despite…

With New York facing a tremendous budget deficit and business still reeling from the economic shutdown triggered by COVID-19, state and city lawmakers are looking everywhere they can for means to generate revenue, both for the government and for businesses directly. As of October 2020, New York City restaurants and bars have been allowed to add a “COVID-19 recovery charge” to diners’ bills, excluding takeaway and delivery orders. The measure, which caps the potential surcharge…

In these times of pandemic, many good people (like essential workers, first responders, and doers of random acts of kindness and charity) continue to help others.   Unfortunately, there are those that continue to prey upon others by casting snares to compromise confidential and sensitive information like social security numbers, credit card numbers, and passwords. This is generally known as “phishing” and the ordinary citizen would be surprised at the sophistication of these attacks, the…