Message from the Public Administrator

Greetings from the Office of the Richmond County Public Administrator ("RCPA").

I am honored to serve you as Staten Island's Commissioner and Public Administrator. The RCPA is responsible for the administration of estates of persons that have left no will, and where there are no qualified person(s) to administer the decedent's estate. Amongst other things, the RCPA provides for burial arrangements when no close relative is available to do so; protects the decedent's property from waste, loss, or theft; and locates persons entitled to inherit from the estate. Public Administrators, by law, are barred from investing any funds or property in their care in a manner that is speculative or otherwise imprudent.

I hope you will peruse our website for more information regarding the role of a Public Administrator, useful forms, dates of upcoming estate sales, dates and locations of burials, and information regarding outside vendor opportunities, as well as instructions on how to become an outside vendor of the RCPA.

I am pleased to continue the RCPA's tradition of providing a dignified burial on Staten Island to all decedents whose estates we administer. In the fiscal year 2018, (July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018), thanks in large part to generous donated services from businesses and elected officials, the RCPA arranged for the dignified burials of 71 Staten Island residents, including 32 still born infants, preventing the fate of their being ignobly buried on Hart Island – New York City's pauper's gravesite – as is the practice in the other boroughs of New York City.

Dignity and compassion for all, coupled with transparency and accountability in the operations of the office of the RCPA, are my top priorities. In addition to the above listed areas of responsibility, other areas of interest include:

1. Ensuring the elderly, and other vulnerable communities, have access to adequate estate planning, such as wills, health care proxies, powers of attorney, and disposition of remains;
2. Ensuring veterans receive the end-of-life benefits to which they are entitled, including burial with military honors;
3. Educating families regarding the importance of establishing Guardianships for adult children with developmental disabilities; and
4. Educating the elderly and other vulnerable communities about financial and physical abuse.

If your community group or organization would like me to address you on any of the above topics, please contact the office. Also, if you have any questions or comments regarding this website, please let us know, we welcome your feedback!

Honorable Edwina Frances Martin
Commissioner
Public Administrator, Richmond County

"[W]e are but stewards of this earth, and it is incumbent upon us to leave it in a better place than when we came into being." Edwina Frances Martin, Esq., Swearing In as Richmond County Public Administrator, February 9, 2019.