New York City is urging a judge to force former Mayor Bill de Blasio to pay a substantial fine imposed on him for using public funds to finance the travel expenses of police officers who accompanied him during his 2019 presidential campaign. .
The Conflict of Interest Board, charged with interpreting and enforcing the city’s conflict code for public employees, ordered de Blasio to reimburse $319,000 to the public coffers for travel, lodging and food expenses incurred on 31 campaign trips from Iowa to South Carolina, as reported by “thecity.nyc.”
Besides, a record fine of $155,000 was imposedthe largest in the history of the Conflict of Interest Board.
De Blasio, who announced his Democratic candidacy for the White House in May 2019 and withdrew in September of the same year due to dismal support numbers, has been embroiled in a legal battle with the Board over the payment order.
The bills that de Blasio would pay
Last summer, the Board clarified that while the city was obligated to cover police officers’ salaries and overtime during the election campaign, all other out-of-city expenses were the responsibility of the campaign team.
Despite the directive, de Blasio, who served as mayor from 2014 to 2022, has not complied with the payment order. Instead, he challenged the Board’s decision in September, asking Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Shahabuddeen Ally, who is presiding over the case, to reject the order.
In his claim, de Blasio maintains that the Board’s order exceeds its authority by regulating the political activities of a mayorstating that it infringes the mayor’s autonomy in managing the city.
The crux of de Blasio’s argument lies in the mayor’s prerogative to decide whether a presidential candidacy aligns with his role, emphasizing the autonomy to make such decisions independently.
The legal maneuver intensifies the debate over the limits of the mayor’s authority and the extent to which ethical guidelines should apply to city officials.
In response, heConflict of Interest Board counters de Blasio’s stancecharacterizing it as a “chilling vision of an imperial mayoralty” and affirming its erroneous nature.
The Board implores the court to dismiss de Blasio’s claim, citing that his argument essentially posits that ethics rules applicable to city workers do not extend to him. This, according to the Board, constitutes an undemocratic ploy to protect the former mayor from accountability.
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2023-11-23 04:46:00
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