February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Since stepping into office as New York City’s 42nd Comptroller in January 2002, Thompson has expanded the use and scope of the office to greatly increase investments in New York City, including the creation of thousands of units of affordable housing, to encourage significant participation by minorities and women, to aggressively enforce prevailing wage laws, and to fight for corporate governance reform both here and abroad.
Thompson is a proven leader who energetically works to strengthen the New York City Pension Funds, safeguard the city’s finances, and uncover waste and abuse. He has worked to protect homeowners and renters, promote fair wages for working people, preserve and expand the middle class, and provide better services for seniors, children and all New Yorkers.
The son of a judge and a public school teacher, Thompson is the proud product of New York City’s public school system, and he continues to work to improve education, health care and workplace opportunities in the City.
The Comptroller has made many efforts to promote peace and equality of Northern Ireland. As custodian of all five City pension funds, he has called on many U.S.-owned companies operating in Northern Ireland to adopt the MacBride Principles, a specific set of guidelines that encourage and promote a means for establishing justice and equality in the workplace. To date, 93 companies have adopted the Principles.
In April 2008, Comptroller Thompson and the New York City Pension Funds announced an unprecedented investment in Northern Ireland of $150 million. This announcement marked the largest major investment by a public pension fund in the region. The investment will primarily target projects in the alternative energy, waste management, property development and conventional energy sectors.
In May 2008, the Comptroller attended a conference in Belfast hosted by the government of Northern Ireland to discuss American investment in the region. British Prime Minister Gordon Browne and Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen also attended. This was Bill Thompson’s second visit to meet with government leaders. In November 2006, he met with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams to discuss the work of the Comptroller’s Office in promoting equality and peace in Northern Ireland.
Each year, Thompson hosts an Irish Heritage Celebration, honoring Irish and Irish American leaders in areas such as business, education, journalism, immigration reform, and community activism.
Thompson has earned a reputation as a tough advocate for New Yorkers, and has stood on the side of working people seeking a living wage and fairness on the job. Among his other accomplishments: he led the fight to protect the City’s Meals-On-Wheels program, lobbied against bus and subway fare hikes, and forced the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to open its books to the public.
Thompson graduated from Tufts University, where he currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees. He graduated from Brooklyn’s P.S. 161, Andries Hudde Intermediate School and Midwood High School.
Following his work for a Brooklyn congressman and his service as the borough’s youngest-ever Deputy Borough President, Thompson was appointed to the New York City Board of Education in 1994. Two years later, he began the first of five consecutive terms as its President. During that period, he led a reform agenda that resulted in improved student achievement and greater public accountability. Bill Thompson also served as a Senior Vice President for Public Finance at an investment banking firm in the early 1990s.