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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR-
051-08
February 14, 2008
MAYOR BLOOMBERG RELEASES FY 2008 PRELIMINARY MAYOR'S MANAGEMENT REPORT
Report Reflects Continued Strong Performance Early in the Fiscal Year
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today released the Preliminary Mayor's Management
Report (PMMR) for Fiscal Year 2008. The PMMR provides a snapshot of how
the City performed four months into the fiscal year, and forecasts expected
levels of service based on the City's Preliminary Budget. The report shows
continued strong performance in the delivery of City services, which were
largely maintained or improved during the reporting period. City agencies
are projecting performance for FY 2009 to look much the same as in FY 2008.
"The preliminary results contained in this report show further progress in
our efforts to serve citizens more effectively and efficiently," said Mayor
Bloomberg. "The Preliminary Mayor's Management Report continues to
document the City's ability to deliver, maintain and enhance important
services."
In addition to agency performance statistics, the PMMR shows information
generated by the 311 Customer Service Center, which has transformed the way City
residents interact with government. Calls to 311 rose to nearly 4.8 million, an
8% increase, during the first four months of FY 2008 compared with the same
period last year. While handling this increase, 311 answered 96% of all
calls in 30 seconds or less.
The following highlights some of the preliminary results shown in the FY 2008
PMMR. Unless otherwise noted, the trends described below compare
July-October 2007 to July-October 2006.
Public Safety
- Crime continued to decline: New York City continues to be the safest
large city in the country. Major felony crime decreased 5% during the first
four months of FY 2008 compared to the same period of FY 2007. Six felony
crime categories decreased during the reporting period, while felonious
assault increased 3%.
- Homicides decreased
significantly: The largest decrease in major
felony crime was in murder and non-negligent manslaughter, declining 18%, from
207 in the first four months of FY 2007 to 170 in the same period of FY
2008.
- Major felony crime decreased in transit and
public housing: During
the first four months of FY 2008, there was a 19% reduction in major felony
crime within the transit system and a 7% decrease in major felonies in
public housing.
- Fire response time improved on a citywide
basis: Average response time to
structural fires citywide fell from 4 minutes 30 seconds to 4 minutes 26
seconds, decreasing in four of the five boroughs.
- Fire Department response increased slightly
citywide for medical emergencies and edged up in Queens for structural
fires:
Combined
average response time to life-threatening medical emergencies by ambulance and
fire units increased by one second, from 5:41 seconds to 5:42 seconds.
Average response time in Queens to structural fires increased by nine seconds,
from 4 minutes and 55 seconds to 5 minutes and 4 seconds, due to technical
difficulties in the new Queens borough office. The Department took immediate
steps to address this problem and is continuing efforts to reduce response
times.
- Civilian fire fatalities increased: Civilian fire fatalities rose from 21
to 30 during the reporting period. As of December 2007 the trend had
moderated, with fatalities increasing from 37 to 40.
- Traffic deaths fell: Traffic fatalities decreased to 112 compared to 115
in the first four months of FY 2007.
- Violence in the jails continued to fall and is
at its lowest levels since this data was reliably tracked:
In adult correctional facilities, stabbing and
slashing incidents dropped by 70% during the reporting period from 20 to 6
incidents. Assaults on staff decreased by 15% from 159 to 135, while assaults
on staff resulting in a hospital visit declined by 61%. Fight/assault
infractions dropped by 8%, from 2,352 to 2,174.
Quality of Life
- Street cleanliness ratings reached a new
all-time high: As a result
of the Department's continued emphasis on cleaning, during the first four
months of FY 2008, average street ratings reached a new record high of 95.4%
acceptably clean. In addition, all of the City's 234 sections received average
ratings of 80% acceptably clean or better during the reporting
period.
- Recycling diversion rates and tonnage
increased: The total recycling
diversion rate increased by 4.8 percent points, from 31.6 % during the FY 2007
reporting period to 36.4 % during the FY 2008 reporting period. The
total recycling tons per day also increased 20.8%, from 5,477 tons per day
during the FY 2007 reporting period to 6,620 tons per day during the FY 2008
reporting period due to an increased use of dredge spoil as cover material at
the Fresh Kills Landfill. The curbside and containerized recycling rate
increased by half a percentage point.
- Park and playground ratings were generally
better: The percent of parks
and playgrounds rated in overall good condition rose to 85%. New
maintenance strategies introduced during February 2007 resulted in a five
point jump in the percent of play equipment deemed acceptable, with continued
improvement expected this fiscal year. Acceptability ratings for safety
surfaces in playgrounds also improved, from 91% to 94%.
- Repair times improved for traffic light
defects: The average time for the
Department of Transportation to fix a traffic signal was 28.3 hours, 38%
faster than during the same period last year; more than 97% of traffic signal
defects were corrected within 48 hours.
- Response times to sewer backup and leak
complaints increased: The number
of sewer back up complaints jumped by 23% as a result of heavy rains during
July and August, resulting in an increase in response time during those two
months. By September 2007, response times were reduced below the
established target of 7 hours. The time for the Department of
Environmental Protection to resolve leak complaints rose from 11.0 to 15.3
days as a result of a significant rise in complaint levels.
- Housing starts and completions are down,
though new construction units are up.
Overall construction starts and completions under the New Housing
Marketplace Plan declined by 42% compared to the same period last year.
The trend reflects a shift in annual goals in the preservation and new
construction categories. New construction starts and completions increased by
84%. The Department of Housing Preservation and Department expects to
meet its year-end targets.
- Complaints were down, and City response times
improved for non-public housing:
The Department of Housing Preservation and Development reduced its
response times to emergency and heat/hot water complaints by 5.4 and 12.2
hours, respectively, primarily as a result of an 8% decline in overall
complaints. Heat/hot water complaints dropped by more than a third due to
higher average temperatures.
- Response times to emergency and heat
complaints in public housing increased:
In the summer of 2007, the New York City Housing Authority
re-categorized some work requests, such as sink and tub stoppages, as
emergency requests in order to meet customer requests for service within 24
hours. This change resulted in triple the number of emergency work requests
received, and the average time to respond to the increased number of emergency
complaints rose by 129% to 7.8 hours. The average time to respond to
heat complaints rose by 50% but remained within the goal of seven
hours.
- Public library availability improved
citywide: Average weekly scheduled
hours improved for branch libraries in all three NYC library systems. All
branches citywide were open at least six days per week.
- Taxi complaints are handled more
efficiently: The average time to close a
consumer complaint about for-hire vehicles dropped to less than 28 days, 61%
better than last year's four-month period and 41% better than the year-end
average. During FY 2007, the Taxi and Limousine Commission changed how it
handles these complaints and also improved its tracking methods, resulting in
a more streamlined and efficient process.
Education
- Class sizes continue to decline: Average class sizes fell in nine out of
ten grades (Kindergarten through grade 9), and remained the same in one
grade.
- School safety continues to improve: During the reporting period major
felony crime in the City's public schools decreased 30% compared to the same
period of FY 2007.
- Education capital program continues to expand
school capacity: Since
State funding for DOE's five-year capital plan was confirmed in Spring 2006,
DOE has awarded contracts and started construction on 35 capacity projects
that will provide more than 23,000 new seats for students. The School
Construction Authority expects to create 10,239 new seats in time for the
start of the 2008-09 school year. In the following three years, SCA expects to
create 38,337 new seats.
Human Services
- The number of adult families placed into
permanent housing increased:
The number of adult families placed into permanent housing
increased by 64% during the reporting period. The Department of Homeless
Services is aggressively working with clients at adult family facilities to
prepare for placement into permanent housing, including weekly room
inspections focusing on health and safety issues, targeted attention on
clients with Advantage NY program certification, and increased social service
staffing at these facilities.
- Placements for homeless families with children
decline: The number of
families with children placed into permanent housing declined by 11% for the
reporting period. The decrease was partly due to the phasing out of the
Housing Stability Plus rental assistance program, which had become less
effective in helping families find permanent living situations. DHS' new
program, Advantage NY, represents a basic shift in City policy. With
assistance from the Human Resources Administration, Advantage NY not only
helps families to secure permanent housing, but also provides incentives to
employment, offers financial and legal counseling, assists in asset building,
and encourages families to build savings accounts.
- Response time to child abuse reports is the
fastest since FY 2001:
The percentage of abuse and neglect reports responded to within 24 hours
increased from 94.5% to 97.0% and is the highest reported in the Mayor's
Management Report since FY 2001.
- Repeat child abuse reports are down: During the reporting period, the
percent of children in completed investigations with repeat investigations
within a year fell from 21.5% to 20.6%, and the percent of children with
substantiated reports followed by a second substantiated report within one
year decreased from 14.5% to 14.0%. These trends show the effects of improved
case management, largely as the result of ChildStat, the Administration for
Children's Services' weekly data and case review process.
- Reports of child abuse and neglect in foster
care and child care increased:
The number of abuse/neglect reports for children in foster
care increased from 401 to 453. For children in child care, the number of
reports increased from 128 to 140. In both cases the proportion of
substantiated reports also increased. Beginning in Spring 2007, new strategies
were implemented to improve reporting of potential abuse/neglect in foster
care and child care settings, through interagency collaboration and provider
training.
- The number of people receiving public
assistance declined: The
number of persons receiving cash assistance decreased by 8.1%. The public
assistance caseload as of October 2007 represents the lowest number of cash
assistance recipients since January 1964. This decrease has been due to the
Human Resources Administration's continued welfare reform efforts designed to
engage recipients in work and work-related activities, in order to enhance
their ability to obtain employment and reach their maximum level of
self-sufficiency.
- The number of persons receiving food stamps
increased: The number of
persons receiving food stamps increased by 3.3%. Among these recipients, the
number of non-cash assistance persons receiving food stamps increased
12.4%.
Health
- Asthma patients needed fewer emergency room
visits in public hospitals:
The rate of emergency room revisits within seven days of discharges for adult
asthma patients decreased from 7.3% to 7.0%, and the revisit rate for
pediatric asthma patients fell from 4.1% to 3.8%. The Health and
Hospitals Corporation's Asthma Initiative, combined with facility-specific
asthma programs, emphasize close monitoring of asthma patients.
- Lead poisoning cases continue to
decline: The number of new cases among
children less than 18 years requiring environmental intervention for lead
poisoning decreased by 17%. Other indicators of lead poisoning cases show
similar improvement and illustrate the continued success of the Lead Poisoning
Prevention Program.
- Restaurant inspections
declined: The percent of restaurants
inspected decreased by 6.8 percentage points. Inspection duration times
have increased, reflecting efforts to better assess pest infestation concerns
and to conduct other risk prevention activities during
inspections.
- The number of syphilis cases
increased: The number of syphilis cases rose
by 56%, reflecting national trends. In addition to provider training,
community outreach, electronic and print communications, the Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene has developed protocols for Internet-based partner
notification, including sponsoring a website where patients can notify
Internet partners themselves, either anonymously or
confidentially.
- Health Department increases
exterminations. The number of pest control
exterminations increased by 17%. The hiring of additional exterminators has
increased the Department's capacity to conduct exterminations.
Economy
- Private building activity steady or
climbing: Total job filings with
the Department of Buildings grew by more than 7%, with decreases in
applications for new buildings and major renovations more than offset by the
increase in applications for minor renovations. Actions taken on permit
applications by the Landmarks Preservation Commission increased by one-third,
partly due to a 12% increase in the number of applications received.
- Consumer complaints processing time
improved: Complaint processing
times improved dramatically even with a significant increase in the volume of
complaints received. The number of complaints processed in 20 days or less
more than doubled, from 7% to 19%, as did the number of complaints processed
within 21 to 50 days, from 14% to 33%. This marked improvement is attributable
to operational changes introduced in FY 2007.
- Economic development project activity was down
when compared to last year's stadium deals:
The Industrial Development Agency closed contracts
for economic development on five projects, including a Liberty Bond
transaction for the development of a hotel in downtown Manhattan. Overall
these projects are expected to create and retain 321 jobs in the City, and
generate more than $36 million in total City tax revenues over the course of
their term. When compared to the same period last year, IDA activity was
significantly lower, because FY 2007 included a few very large projects, such
as the two major league baseball stadiums.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Stu Loeser/ John Gallagher
(212) 788-2958
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