(TheConservativeTimes.org) – New York City’s Conflicts of Interest Board recently fined former NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio $155,000 and ordered him to pay back the nearly $320,000 the city paid for his mayoral security detail to travel with him while he briefly campaigned for president in 2019.
Between May and September 2019, de Blasio had the city pay the travel expenses of the NYPD security detail that accompanied him and/or his wife on 31 trips out of state “in connection with his presidential campaign,” according to the order from the board.
In total, the city was billed $319,794.20 in expenses, excluding the officers’ salaries and overtime.
New York City’s conflict of interest law prohibits public servants from using city resources for non-City purposes.
The board fined de Blasio $5,000 for each of the 31 trips for a total of $155,000.
In issuing the fine, the board concluded that the former mayor’s conduct was a plain violation of the law, noting that there was “no City purpose” in paying the “extra expenses” related to de Blasio’s presidential campaign.
The board also noted that then-Mayor de Blasio had been advised of the law before he launched his campaign and chose to disregard it.
De Blasio is also being ordered to reimburse the city for the $319,794.20 spent on his NYPD security team’s expenses.
Defending his client, De Blasio’s attorney Andrew Celli Jr. said in a statement that the board’s order is “reckless and arbitrary.” Celli said a lawsuit was filed to prevent “this inappropriate and perilous decision” from taking effect. He claimed that the board’s order would threaten the safety of elected officials at a time when there are “unprecedented threats of political violence.”
The Conflicts of Interest Board’s ruling follows an October 2021 probe by the New York City Department of Investigation that found de Blasio cost the city $319,794.20, shuttling his NYPD security detail with him during his brief presidential campaign.
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