What’s your Good News?
John C. Liu serves as the 43rd Comptroller of the City of New York, independently elected and sworn into office on January 1st to protect and enhance the fiscal health of New York.
In his first months as the City’s Chief Financial Officer, John Liu has sharpened the tools of the Comptroller’s Office to make government more efficient and accountable to the people we serve.
- John Liu restructured the office and elevated his auditors as a separate bureau to aggressively root out waste and inefficiency. Already, one audit exposed $125 million owed to the City by an entity that had been charged with collecting the monies on behalf of the City. Another audit uncovered $8 million in lost revenues at an agency due to careless accounting practices. Yet another audit has uncovered poor procurement practices that paid out nearly $152 million through non-contracted, unwritten “handshake” agreements.
- He has also stopped out-of-control “moneypit” contracts like those associated with the CityTime project — the cost of which has mushroomed from an original $68 million dollar estimate to now more than $738 million dollars.
- To maximize pension investments for the 700,000 hard-working New Yorkers and retirees, John Liu has proposed far-reaching reforms to the New York City Pension Funds to eliminate pay-to-play and to ensure both best practices and the highest integrity in the investment-making process.
- To demand accountability to shareholders and to ensure that corporate contributions are aligned with shareholder interests, John Liu successfully negotiated with the Bank of America to disclose and publish its political expenditures online.
- To promote civil rights and fight discrimination, John Liu and the trustees of the Pension Funds have successfully convinced a number of Fortune 1000 companies to amend their employment policies and include protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
- To get a better deal for taxpayers while meeting the infrastructure needs of tomorrow, over $3.9 billion dollars in bonds were sold, including the first-ever competitively-bid “Build America Bond” sale. To further save taxpayers money, two refinancings were completed, generating over $60 million in present value savings.
- To strengthen government accountability, John Liu launched “My Money NYC”, a powerful online tool to provide unparalleled access to the City’s finances. One of the most comprehensive initiatives of its kind in the nation, it will soon allow New Yorkers to view nearly every single City expenditure online.
- To secure capital funds for public schools, John Liu successfully argued for a 100% subsidy rate for Qualified School Construction Bonds which will serve as a zero-interest financing tool for the construction, repair and rehabilitation of New York City public schools.
- To examine publicly-subsidized economic development, John Liu has launched a Task Force to draft a framework on a more effective and equitable process to guide such development in New York City.
- To ensure equal opportunities, John Liu has undertaken a thorough review of City agencies’ performance under Local Law 129, specifically with regard to eliminating significant disparities in government contracting opportunities for minority- and women-owned business enterprises.
Previously, John Liu served in the New York City Council, representing District 20 in Queens and served as Chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee. His most significant accomplishments as a legislator include exposing financial irregularities at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), shepherding bills through his committee designed to enhance administrative efficiency, and enacting legislation that ensures equal access to city services regardless of language ability.
Hailed as a “Trailblazer” and “Pioneer”, John Liu’s historic elections as the first Asian American elected in New York City – both to legislative office in 2001 and citywide in 2009 – were milestones for Asian Americans in New York and across the nation. Although he wishes Asian Americans had been elected long before in New York, he is honored to be the first. He embraces the responsibilities and opportunities that come with the distinction to broaden representation and access to government.
Prior to joining the City Council, John Liu managed a team of actuaries working on the largest pension plans in the country.
John Liu immigrated to New York at the age of five. He is a proud product of New York City public schools beginning with kindergarten at P.S. 20 in Queens and graduation from the Bronx High School of Science. He went on to Binghamton University, where he earned his degree in Mathematical Physics. He lives in Flushing, Queens with his wife, Jenny, and their son, Joseph.
