Press Releases

This new timeline traces five legal battles the Empire Center has fought since 2009 against public agencies that refuse to allow taxpayers to see where their money is going. Read More

After a two-year legal battle followed by two years of additional delays, the New York City Employee Retirement System (NYCERS) has released the full pension records for its retired members. Read More

Maximum pension benefits averaged $68,676 for the 2,495 members of the New York State Teachers Retirement System (NYSTRS) who retired in school year 2016-17 with at least 30 years of credited service time, according to data posted today on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website. Read More

Pension payment data for 81,411 New York City public school and City University of New York retirees were added today to SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website. Read More

New York state and local government workers could save at least $112 million a year if a pending U.S. Supreme Court case puts an end to compulsory fee collections for government unions, according to a new report from the Empire Center for Public Policy. Read More

MEMORANDUM TO: Governor Cuomo Members of the Legislature FROM: E.J. McMahon Research Director, Empire Center for Public Policy SUBJ: St Read More

Following several ignored Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests for its teacher and superintendent contracts, the Empire Center for Public Policy today will file a lawsuit against Malverne Union Free School District in Nassau County on Long Island. Read More

The Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) reform bill signed by Governor Cuomo today is a huge win for government transparency in New York. Read More

New York’s civil liability laws should be brought closer to the national mainstream with a series of reforms designed to balance more fairly the rights of plaintiffs and defendants, according to a report released today by the Empire Center for Public Policy. Read More

Newly added collective bargaining agreements include 120 public school teacher contracts, 28 firefighter contracts, and 62 police contracts. In addition, 164 school superintendent employment contracts have been updated on SeeThroughNY. Read More

The Empire Center today released its annual “Benchmarking New York” report, comparing and ranking government tax, spending and debt levels for hundreds of counties, towns, cities and villages throughout New York. Read More

At least 870 New York state and local government employees have received special permission to collect both public pensions and government paychecks, according to data posted today on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website. Read More