Tougher oversight of LIRR pensions sought
Sen. Dean G. Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, speaks with reporters at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y. (June 23, 2011) Credit: AP
ALBANY -- Long Island state senators on Friday called on a federal board to beef up oversight of the Long Island Rail Road in the wake of a massive pension fraud scandal.
The delegation said the scandal exposes potential shortcomings on the part of the federal Railroad Retirement Board, which approves disability claims for LIRR workers. A week ago, federal prosecutors arrested 11 individuals in what they said was a decade-long scheme to collect hundreds of phony LIRR disability claims worth as much as $1 billion.
State Sen. Charles Fuschillo (R-Merrick) noted that the federal board had approved 98 percent of all LIRR disability claims in 2008 -- raising questions about its oversight capabilities.
"Congress needs to examine how to strengthen oversight to ensure that the Railroad Retirement Board is not simply rubber-stamping every disability pension application," Fuschillo said.
In a letter to two congressional committees that supervise the board, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) wrote: "The recent arrests of those who allegedly faked LIRR disability pension claims have raised serious questions about the Railroad Retirement Board's ability to provide oversight of pension funds."
Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), who heads the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, which oversees the railroad board, didn't immediately comment on the letter.
A day earlier, State Senate Democrats called for a state hearing on the LIRR. They cited not only the alleged pension scheme but also a rise in crime at LIRR stations and a series of major delays and breakdowns.
Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
