New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. today announced the creation of a Counterfeiting Task Force to explore ways to combat the sale of illegal counterfeit goods and develop a comprehensive program to recover a significant portion of the tax revenues lost to the city each year.

The Counterfeiting Task Force will be comprised of clothing, music, legal and law enforcement professionals with anti-counterfeiting expertise. The Task Force is expected to hold its first meeting in November.

“This Task Force will help to develop a comprehensive program to stem the tide of counterfeit goods flooding the city’s marketplace,” Thompson said. “This group will work to increase public awareness to make it easier for consumers to know when they are buying from legitimate street vendors and when they are purchasing illegal goods. Counterfeiting undermines the notion of fairness for those who pay taxes and endangers the future prosperity of the city’s businesses and creative community.”

Last Fall, Comptroller Thompson released a report estimating that New York City is home to a $23 billion annual illegal counterfeiting industry, which causes the city to lose more than $1 billion in tax revenues each year.

Thompson issued the report, “Bootleg Billions: The Impact of the Counterfeit Goods Trade on New York City,” at a news conference attended by industry and anti-counterfeiting experts. Overall, the Comptroller noted that New York State and New York City lost a combined total of about $2.6 billion in tax revenue in 2003 as a result of the sale of counterfeit goods.

According to Thompson, the dollar exchange of the counterfeit goods trade in New York City during 2003 was about $23 billion. This activity cost the City about $1.03 billion in lost tax revenue. That figure is comprised of unpaid New York City sales taxes ($380 million), business income taxes ($290 million) and personal income taxes ($360 million).

Thompson’s report also examined the global connections to local illegal activity. The estimated dollar exchange associated with counterfeiting throughout the United States during 2003 was $287 billion, which is about 63 percent of the total $456 billion annual worldwide trade in counterfeit goods.

The Comptroller noted that New York City suffers from a high share of counterfeiting because of several factors, including the size of the city’s population and volume of visiting tourists, which generate high demand of both legal and counterfeit goods.

The Task Force is still in formation. The members thus far are:

• David Benjamin, Senior Vice President, Anti-Piracy, Universal Music Group (UMG), and Chairman, Anti-Counterfeiting Committee, International Chamber of Commerce. Benjamin oversees and coordinates UMG’s anti-piracy activities. He works closely with the company’s record and publishing companies and their artists and songwriters, as well as the various departments within UMG, including eLabs (new media and technologies division), Business and Legal Affairs, Corporate Communications and Vivendi Universal’s Government Relations. He also works in cooperation with sister companies within Vivendi Universal and the music industry’s trade groups.

• Donald Halperin, Spokesperson, N.Y. Metropolitan Retailers Association, and former State Senator. Halperin was elected to the New York State Senate in 1970, and became the youngest person ever to hold that position. He served for 23 years, including 13 as the ranking member of the Finance Committee. During his tenure, he also served as a member of the Insurance Committee for 15 years and as President of the National Conference of Insurance Legislators. Governor Mario Cuomo appointed Halperin as his Director of Housing and as Commissioner of the Division of Housing and Community Renewal. As part of his responsibilities, he chaired and served on the boards of a number of policymaking governmental bodies.

• Barbara Kolsun, Senior Vice President/General Counsel of Seven For All Mankind. Kolsun devotes much of her time to anticounterfeiting work by notifying law enforcement and issuing cease-and-desist letters to retailers selling fraudulent goods. Kolsun, a frequent speaker on counterfeiting, recently conducted a seminar in conjunction with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to law enforcement officials in the STAR-Vietnam Project, which is a program that supports Vietnam in the implementation of the Vietnam-United States Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). Kolsun’s active role in counterfeiting was highlighted in a November 2002 New York Times profile "A Pit Bull Who Lunges at Brand Counterfeiters."

• David Markey, Counsel, New York State Senate Majority Task Force on Immigration representing State Senator Frank Padavan. Markey recently served as Counsel to the Immigration Taskforce on a legislative report entitled, “The Golden Door: Illegal Immigration, Terrorism, and the Underground Economy,” that focuses on counterfeit goods trade and analyzes the 2000 Census.

• Heather McDonald, Partner, Gibney Anthony & Flaherty. McDonald represents the firm's litigation group, specializing in intellectual property enforcement and anti-counterfeiting litigation. Ms. McDonald assists in the coordination of a nationwide network of investigators, attorneys and government agencies on Federal and state levels, pursuing individuals and entities trafficking in counterfeit goods. On behalf of several of the firm's clients, McDonald has participated in drafting and lobbying for state legislation to strengthen the penalties for those convicted of trafficking in counterfeit goods.

• Brian O’Neill, Deputy Inspector, New York City Police Department. O’Neill is a 25-year veteran of the New York City Police Department. He is currently the Commanding Officer of the Organized Crime Investigation Division (OCID). OCID oversees various investigative units and task forces including the Trademark Infringement Unit which is the only police unit in the country dedicated solely to investigating trademark infringement. OCID is also responsible for various task forces that work in conjunction with other law enforcement agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the New York City Business Integrity Commission.

• Gerald Schoenfeld, Chairman, The Shubert Organization. Schoenfeld is the owner and operator of the Shubert Organization, one of the country’s most well-known, live-performance theaters. The Shubert Organization has played a key role in the history and development of the American theater, overseeing the production of countless classic plays, musicals, and other dramatic pieces. In addition to his professional accomplishments, Mr. Schoenfeld has played a key role in community development and civic affairs in New York City. He has helped lead the effort to renew and improve Times Square and the surrounding area.

• Bill Shannon, Director, U.S. Anti-Piracy Operations, Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Shannon joined the MPAA in January 1997 and was placed in charge of the New York office, where he was responsible for all Anti-Piracy investigations east of the Mississippi River. Shannon was promoted to Director of U.S. Anti-Piracy Operations in October 2000 and designated Vice President and Director of US Anti-Piracy Operations for the MPAA in October 2002. In April 2004, Shannon was designated as Deputy Director of U.S. Anti-Piracy Operations. Shannon assists the Director in supervising the day-to-day Anti-Piracy Operations conducted by a staff of 20 employees and approximately 90 contract Field Investigators.

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