Adam Lisberg, City Hall News
The forces of city Comptroller John Liu and Mayor Michael Bloomberg will battle in front of an obscure city commission today, when Liu’s office tries to force banks with city business to do more for New Yorkers facing foreclosure.
The Banking Commission, which has one vote from Liu’s office and two from Bloomberg’s, is scheduled to take the usually-routine action of approving three dozen banks to handle money for New York City’s accounts.
Deputy Comptroller Alan van Capelle, however, says he will vote against them to protest the slow pace at which banks are modifying mortgages for struggling homeowners.
“We’ve been looking for leverage to discuss this issue with the banks. We believe that it is an honor to hold taxpayer dollars for the city,” van Capelle said. “The Banking Commission is a tiny, obscure commission that I believe holds and wields enormous power – if we use it.”
Van Capelle asked the Banking Commission in March to require banks to detail the efforts they have made to modify loans for homeowners facing foreclosure, but the other two members – Andrew Salkin of the Finance Department and Eugene Lee from City Hall – voted it down.
“The foreclosure crisis has hit New Yorkers particularly hard in several neighborhoods,” van Capelle said. “These banks haven’t been able to tell us what relief they’ve provided in New York. It seems to me they have a lot to answer for.”
Liu and Bloomberg have frequently tangled over New York City’s financial matters, from outsourcing to tax breaks to pension reform. Yet they share control over some financial oversight bodies, such as the Banking Commission or the Office of Payroll Administration.
Bloomberg spokesman Marc La Vorgna said the Banking Commission shouldn’t be a venue to discuss anything about banks besides how well they handle the city’s money.
“The commission’s job is not to regulate banks’ activities or become another in the web of oversight bodies,” La Vorgna said. “It’s to ensure the city’s deposits are placed in safe locations.”
