THE INACTION OF THE NY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE HAS MASSIVE COSTS, WHO PAYS FOR THEM? By Javier Palenque

Imagine a world where the very institution responsible for upholding justice and ensuring legal integrity is unknowingly—or perhaps knowingly—complicit in perpetuating a grand deception. Picture the New York Attorney General's Office, the same body that meticulously prosecuted cases against Trump and the NRA, serving as an unwitting enabler of the USTA's questionable activities. What we are witnessing is not merely negligence but an egregious misuse of public trust, where inaction has become an intrinsic part of a corrupt business model.

The USTA has masterfully exploited the inertia of the New York Attorney General's Office to maintain a false fa?ade of non-profit legitimacy. This inaction, specifically the failure to revoke the USTA's non-profit status, is not just a minor oversight—it's the cornerstone of how the USTA conducts its business. The financial data reveals a shocking reality: a business with such a lopsided income distribution does not merit non-profit status under any reasonable interpretation of the law. Yet, in New York, this travesty continues unabated.

Attorney General Letitia James, the non-profit designation was granted to the USTA to foster the growth of tennis across all 42,000 zip codes in the United States. Yet, even in the very shadow of Arthur Ashe Stadium, in zip code 11368, the sport languishes. A cursory examination of the USTA’s financials, its exorbitant salaries, and bloated expenses would lead any diligent observer to the inescapable conclusion that your office's inaction is being weaponized against the very principles it is sworn to uphold.

This is not just a failure of oversight; it is a betrayal of public trust. The USTA does not deserve its non-profit status because it is not operating as a non-profit. Instead, it functions as a lucrative cash cow for a select few, shielded from scrutiny by the very institution that should be holding it accountable. Year after year, the USTA’s elite benefit from a system that allows them to operate with impunity, cloaked in the protective garb of a non-profit organization.

The USTA’s defense will undoubtedly hinge on the alleged economic benefits it brings to the city. But this argument is as hollow as their claim to non-profit status. Take a look at this:

1. The same USTA has been embroiled in scandals for underreporting numbers and evading rent, all within the confines of New York City.
2. This is the same organization that has hidden sexual abuse cases and only opens up under the threat of a congressional investigation—all of this within your jurisdiction, Attorney General James.
3. The USTA board making headlines for doing whatever it wants.
4. $175K box seats and not-for-profit?
5. This is a for-profit business.
6. ESPN signed a new $2B agreement with USTA, so why are they a not-for-profit Mrs. James?

If the USTA were stripped of its non-profit status and required to operate as the for-profit entity it truly is, the city would still enjoy the same economic benefits. However, the difference would be profound: individuals like Wayne LaPierre of the NRA, along with their cronies, would no longer remain at the USTA’s “Fort Knox” structure, a structure that remains intact because the New York Attorney General’s Office has failed to act. You realize that dissent is not allowed and if there is a loud voice it is censored and discriminated like in Cuba or Venezuela. All this is in zip code 11368, Queens, NY.

The alternative is, of course, to do nothing. If this course is chosen, the scam will continue unabated. The USTA’s propaganda machine will continue to spin tales of growth and prosperity across all zip codes and economic strata, despite the glaring evidence to the contrary. But make no mistake, this is not just a failure of the USTA; it is a failure of the very system of law and order that is supposed to protect the public from such deceit.

The USTA is a scam, and the only thing standing between it and accountability is your office, Attorney General James. Acting against the USTA would be a service of monumental proportions, far greater than the cases against the NRA or Trump. It would free up resources and allow competent, ethical individuals to steer the USTA back to its intended mission: to grow the sport of tennis in all 42,000 zip codes and to positively impact millions of children.

I urge you to review the congressional petition against the USTA. The allegations are nothing short of appalling, and the organization’s directors laugh at the law, mock the parents, and dismiss the gravity of their misconduct, all because they believe no one will hold them accountable.

The sheer volume of discrimination and sexual abuse cases reported and ignored by the USTA is enough to demand immediate action. Look at the article recently published by Sportico and look at the graph that accompanies it. There is only one logical conclusion, a non-profit they are not. So, why do you allow it, Mrs. James?

Let your conscience guide you, Attorney General James. The integrity of non-profit laws is at stake. The children who are supposed to benefit from the USTA’s programs need you to act. The good people within the organization, those who genuinely want to make a difference, need you to act. And the unscrupulous individuals exploiting the non-profit status need to be banished from any position of power within this organization.

Law and order must prevail if we are to save the sport of tennis and restore faith in the institutions designed to protect it. The time to act is now. I close with two points I want to drive home to your office.

• Mrs. Loretta Lynch put a needed order at FIFA and the sport is much better for it.
• Here is a quote from the great, MLK:

"DARKNESS CAN NOT DRIVE OUT DARKNESS, ONLY LIGHT CAN DO THAT"

I SAY NO TO INEPTITUDE AND YES TO GROWING THE GAME.

?I can be reached at [email protected]