‘Wasted millions’: Lander issues scathing audit of Adams’ no-bid $432M DocGo contract

August 6, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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CITYWIDE — NYC COMPTROLLER BRAD LANDER issued a scathing report Tuesday following his office’s audit of the Adams’ administration’s $432 million contract with Rapid Reliable Testing NY, LLC (aka DocGo) to provide temporary housing and support services for asylum seekers. The city’s Department of Housing Preservation & Development demonstrated a shocking lack of oversight over the no-bid contract, costing taxpayers millions of dollars, Lander said in a release. A detailed review of invoices from just the first two months of the contract found that nearly 80% of payments — $11 million of $13.8 million paid — were unsupported and should be recouped. The Comptroller’ s Office had denied the emergency contract in Sept. 2023, citing numerous concerns about DocGo including the company’s complete lack of experience in providing emergency housing; lack of HPD oversight; substandard and sometimes dangerous conditions; and lack of financial records. City Hall chose to move forward with the contract anyway, Lander said. In statements, Councilmembers Alexa Avilés (D-38) and Shahana Hanif (D-39) called the report “damning,” “disturbing” and “unsurprising.”

The Comptroller’s Office offered eight recommendations to recoup the wasted funds and tighten oversight; HPD agreed in full with six of them, in part with one, and disagreed with one. The full report is available online.

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