A safety-tech firm that hired the right-hand man of a top Mayor Adams aide may now be seeking to expand what was a small, trial-run of school bus cameras into a citywide program, the Daily News has learned.
Justin Meyers, former chief of staff to Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks, departed his office last September to become president of BusPatrol, whose automated enforcement technology aims to deter drivers from illegally passing stopped school buses. Their systems are being tested on a couple dozen local school buses.
Students walk to board a school bus in Manhattan’s East Village. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
A year after Meyers’ exit, BusPatrol is expected to be one of the bidders after the New York City Department of Transportation put out a request for proposals to expand the high-tech camera systems — from 30 to 250 school buses.
A provision of the city charter blocks ex-officials from appearing before their former city agency for one year. The News has found no evidence that the former Banks aide is in violation of that revolving-door provision, and there is no law prohibiting former government officials including Meyers to work for private firms such as BusPatrol.
But the revelation comes amid a federal investigation into influence-peddling among key members of the Adams administration. Banks’ devices were seized and home raided as part of the probe.
“Justin Meyers did not lobby the City of New York for or participate in discussions with the City about the NYCSBUS pilot’s creation or the drafting of the RFP,” said Kate Spree, a BusPatrol spokesperson. “BusPatrol has no contract or agreement with the City of New York. BusPatrol complies with all laws and regulations, including those relating to lobbying and the hiring of former government employees.”
“Any other questions related to the pilot or RFP should be referred to NYC DOT,” she added.
While working for the city, Meyers was a key aide to Banks and would step in for Friday afternoon public safety press conferences. Banks did not return requests for comment, and neither did spokespeople for the mayor.
Philip Banks III, Deputy Mayor of New York City for Public Safety. (Luiz C. Ribeiro for NY Daily News)
BusPatrol’s camera systems are installed aboard buses run by NYC School Bus Umbrella Services Inc., or NYCSBUS, a city-run non-profit that operates roughly 950 school buses. NYCSBUS is one of 52 private bus operators the Department of Education contracts with to transport city students.
The request for proposals on the camera systems is due Oct. 11, and school transportation officials at a City Council hearing Monday told Education Committee Chair Rita Joseph (D-Brooklyn) they expect to award the contract in the first quarter of next year.
“Currently, we don’t have a contract for stop-arm cameras, but I will say that there is a pilot ongoing at this moment, that we’re exploring the possibilities,” said Glenn Risbrook, senior executive director of student transportation. Officials testified the decision to expand the pilot came from City Hall.
The other camera vendor in the smaller, 30-bus pilot was Verra Mobility, whose contracting practices for traffic cameras have come under scrutiny. In 2021, Verra reached a $1-million settlement with the city for allegations of over-billing. The company did not admit wrongdoing.
Banks’ calendars show he had at least two meetings with BusPatrol in 2022, and a third scheduled as “School Bus Patrol Safety.” His brother David Banks, the outgoing schools chancellor, was expected to attend at least one of the meetings.
Shortly after Adams took office, BusPatrol hired Moonshot Strategies, a prominent consulting firm, to start lobbying the mayor’s administration about “camera technology for school bus stop arms,” city records show. The company spent $112,500 on Moonshot’s lobbying services, whose targets included Phil and David Banks’ agencies.
BusPatrol ended its contract with the firm in mid-2022, six months earlier than it was scheduled to lapse, according to records. Moonshot CEO Jason Ortiz declined to comment on what prompted the cancellation.
A year later, BusPatrol hired Meyers as its president and chief innovation officer.
BusPatrol has sparked interest in Suffolk County for the lineup of former county officials currently working for the firm, including Meyers, a former first assistant district attorney in the county. Suffolk tapped BusPatrol to supply its camera systems to the county’s schools.
Meyers brought in his boss — former Suffolk Police Commissioner and District Attorney Tim Sini, who he also served as chief of staff to — as outside counsel for BusPatrol. Sini now represents a third Banks brother, government relations consultant Terence, in the federal probe sources say is related to his business before his siblings’ city agencies. Like his brothers, Terence Banks had his devices seized and home raided by the feds in recent weeks.
Separately, Adams pled not guilty Friday to federal bribery and campaign finance charges. On Monday, his lawyers moved to dismiss allegations that Adams accepted luxury travel and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish nationals, in exchange for political favors.