New York Attorney General Letitia James. NY Attorney General Letitia James
Caribbean Life, APRIL, 2-8, 2021 3
By Nelson A. King
Marie Andrée Bichotte, the Haitian
born mother of Brooklyn Assemblymember
Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn,
chair of the Brooklyn Democratic
Party, died on March 19, her
daughter said. She was 82.
Bichotte Hermelyn said “family
and loved ones were by her side when
she passed away.”
“A Haitian immigrant and first
generation American, Bichotte was a
hardworking, caring and loving person
who devoted her life to God,” said
Bichotte Hermelyn, who was born in
Brooklyn.
“She was a union worker and a
delegate for over 25 years with the
Hotel Trade Council, which afforded
her and her family the opportunity
to achieve the American Dream,” she
added. “Bichotte, a prayer warrior,
was a matriarch not only to her family,
but to many in the United States,
Haiti and beyond, who looked up to
her as a mentor, trailblazer and community
leader.”
Bichotte Hermelyn said her mother,
who was born on Nov. 17, 1938,
had two other children — Wagner
and Marcelle Bichotte.
“Although Bichotte loved flowers,
there are also a few organizations
that were an important part of her
life,” said Bichotte Hermelyn.
A wake was expected to be held
on Good Friday, April 2, at Andrew
Torregrossa & Sons Funeral Homes,
2265 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, from
4:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
The funeral will take place the next
day, at the same funeral home, from
9:00 am – 10:30 am.
Bichotte’s body will be interred on
Sunday, April 3 at Canarsie Cemetery,
1370 Remsen Ave., Brooklyn, at 11:30
am.
By Nelson A. King
New York Attorney General, Letitia
James has taken action to protect
millions of New Yorkers and block
debt collectors from seizing billions
of dollars in emergency stimulus payments
authorized by the American
Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
James has issued official guidance
to New York state banking institutions,
creditors and debt collectors,
making clear that financial relief
provided through stimulus payments
are exempt from garnishment under
New York law.
The New York attorney general
said the American Rescue Plan Act
authorized the US Department of
Treasury to send billions of dollars to
Americans struggling as a result of
the economic fallout of the coronavirus
disease 2019 (COVID-19) public
health crisis, “but these emergency
stimulus payments were not designated
as exempt from garnishment,
allowing debt collectors to potentially
benefit before consumers.”
“As New Yorkers continue to face
economic instability spurred by the
pandemic, it is imperative that we
continue to protect their wallets from
unscrupulous actors,” James said.
“This official guidance makes clear
that banks and debt collectors cannot
freeze or seize stimulus funds
that are intended for New Yorkers,
especially those most in need during
this time.
“My office remains committed to
protecting New Yorkers’ rights, and
ensuring that any institution that
violates this guidance will be held
accountable to the fullest extent of
the law,” she added.
James’ guidance is based on multiple
state and federal consumer protection
laws, and clarifies that any
attempt to garnish stimulus funds
from New Yorkers will be treated as a
violation of these laws.
Under New York law, certain types
of property — including public benefits,
like public assistance, social
security, and veterans’ and retirement
benefits — are exempt from
execution, levy, attachment, garnishment,
or other legal process by a
judgment creditor seeking to satisfy
a monetary judgment.
The New York State Court of
Appeals has held that exemption statutes
“are to be construed liberally
in favor of debtors” because exemptions
“serve the important purpose
of protecting the debtor’s essential
needs.”
The American Rescue Plan Act
stimulus payments are similarly
aimed at debtors’ or borrowers’
essential needs and — under Attorney
General James’ guidance — will,
therefore, be treated and are subject
to the same protections as statutorily
exempt payments.
James said these payments will not
be subject to garnishment — a legal
mechanism that typically involves the
“freezing” of funds in a bank account
by creditors or debt collectors.
The New York attorney general’s
guidance advises banking institutions
that the American Rescue Plan
Act stimulus payments will follow
similar legal processes as other public
benefits, adding that “any person
or entity that garnishes or attempts
to garnish these payments will have
violated multiple state and federal
consumer protection laws.”
The guidance also addresses what
are known as “setoffs” — where a
financial institution seizes funds in
a consumer’s account to pay a debt
owed to the bank.
James said the American Rescue
Plan Act stimulus payments are now
exempt from this “abusive and unfair
practice.”
She urged all financial institutions
to follow the lead of the nation’s largest
banks, which have committed to
ensuring that consumers are able to
access the full value of their stimulus
payments.
James said this guidance does not
apply to any actions taken by the
State of New York, including, but not
limited to, any actions to collect past
due child support.
The American Rescue Plan Act
authorized the Treasury Department
to issue emergency stimulus payments
of up to $1,400 for eligible
adults and up to $1,400 for eligible
children to help offset the costs of
essentials, like housing, groceries,
car payments and other necessary
expenses.
According to the Treasury Department,
as of last week, about 90 million
Economic Impact Payments from
the American Rescue Plan Act had
already been distributed to individuals
throughout the nation, with more
expected in the coming weeks.
James’s latest guidance follows a
similar she issued in April 2020,
which protected New Yorkers’ Coronavirus
Aid, Relief and Economic
Security Act (CARES Act) stimulus
payments from garnishment.
Marie Andrée Bichotte.
Joel Jean-Pierre
James issues guidance to protect
New Yorkers’ stimulus payments
Mother of
Brooklyn
Dems chief
passes