Diana Taylor (superintendent)

Diana Lancaster Taylor (born February 6, 1955) is the former New York State Superintendent of Banks and the domestic partner of former Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg, formerly known as the "de facto First Lady of New York City".

Early life

Taylor was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, the daughter of Lois Johnston (O'Neill) and Edwin Douglas Taylor. Her father was a Union Carbide biochemist and her mother a schoolteacher.^[1] Taylor stated in an article in The New York Times, "Growing up, I imagined I would come to New York, get married, move to the suburbs and have kids. It just didn’t happen that way."^[2]

Education

Taylor attended Milton Academy, then went on to earn an A.B. in economics from Dartmouth College, and an MBA from Columbia Business School.^[3]

Career

After graduating from Dartmouth, Taylor moved to New York City and obtained a job at the Department of Social Services.^[1] Realizing that it was not the job she wanted, she applied to business school in a joint degree program that also included a public health degree.^[1] While in business school, she worked nights and weekends as an administrator at St. Vincent's Hospital in Brooklyn and also worked at Smith Barney in its public finance department.^[1] She received an offer for a full-time job at Smith Barney when she graduated from Columbia.^[1] She then moved on to Lehman Brothers, followed by Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette.^[1]

In 1996, Taylor launched a career in the public sector and became assistant secretary to then Governor George Pataki.^[1] After briefly working for Keyspan Energy and serving as the chief financial officer of the Long Island Power Authority, she returned to Governor Pataki's Office as deputy secretary.^[1] She first oversaw the state's authorities for Pataki and then moved to become his chief advisor on finance and housing issues.

In 2003, Pataki nominated her as New York State Superintendent of Banks, a cabinet position.^[1] In this position, Taylor was the head of the New York State Banking Department and Chairwoman of the New York State Banking Board. While at the department she received praise for policing fraud in low-income communities and overhauling the department structure. She also focused on utilizing banks for economic development in low-income communities in New York State.

In 2007, she left public service to become managing director at Wolfensohn Fund Management.^[1]

Taylor serves on the board of ACCION International, a microfinancing organization, and in June 2011 was named to the board of the YMCA of Greater New York.^[1] She is also a director of Sotheby's, Citigroup, and Brookfield Properties.^[1]

In 2014, Taylor began serving as Vice Chairman of Solera Capital,^[4] a women-owned private equity firm based in New York City that is grounded in the belief that companies have the power to shape the world and to inspire solutions, while achieving business success.

FDIC Chairmanship

It was rumored that Taylor would be nominated by George W. Bush as the Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), but Taylor was never offered the job. Reports said that Taylor had undergone a background check by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and had finished the White House paperwork for the position. The reports also said that Bush aides were informing U.S. Senate leaders about the nomination and that it would be announced in a few days.

As Mayor Bloomberg unveiled a second-term agenda with an increased focus on gun control, more rumors came about suggesting that pressure from the National Rifle Association had caused President Bush not to nominate Taylor. Following the withdrawal of her nomination, Bloomberg cancelled a scheduled appearance at a White House dinner, which would feature the Dance Theatre of Harlem. He instead attended a community meeting in the Bronx.

Taylor's only public comments on the FDIC affair were made at the January meeting of the New York State Banking Board and in an interview with The New York Times.

Personal life

Bloomberg and Taylor at a 2006 gala

Taylor, a divorcee with no children,^[5] met Bloomberg at a Citizens Budget Commission event in 2000, where they were seated together. Since then the couple has been together and she acted as an unofficial first lady for the city during Bloomberg's mayorship, joining him at social functions and campaigning with him. She has been frequently seen marching with him in parades citywide. During the 2005 New York City transit strike, Taylor stayed with Bloomberg in the city's Office of Emergency Management headquarters in Brooklyn each night of the strike. During his second inauguration in 2006, Taylor occupied a front row seat with the mayor's mother and daughters. The two live together in Bloomberg's East 79th Street townhouse.^[2]

Potential 2012 Senate race/civic posts

In July 2010, Taylor stated that she believed she would have defeated Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand had she run for Gillibrand's U.S. Senate seat that year.^[6] However, she ultimately decided not to enter the race.^[7] Taylor then commented that she was considering running in 2012.^[8]

In her civic life, Taylor serves on non-profit and corporate boards that include The New York Women's Foundation, YMCA of Greater New York, ACCION, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, Sotheby's, Citigroup, Brookfield Properties and her alma mater Dartmouth^[1]

References

• "The Mayor's Lady." The New York Times, 2/12/06.