Image courtesy NYC Office of the Mayor
After three years of litigation, the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board (COIB) has reached a settlement with former Democratic NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio to resolve his violations of the City’s conflicts of interest law in connection with his 2019 presidential campaign, board officials announced Wednesday, May 14. As part of the settlement, De Blasio will pay the City a total of $329,794.20 in restitution and fines. They said he has already paid $100,000 of this sum to the board.
COIB officials said the litigation revolved around violations whereby during his presidential campaign, de Blasio had the City pay the travel expenses for his NYPD security detail to accompany him or his spouse on 31 out-of-state campaign trips, despite having been previously advised by COIB in advance and in writing that the City could not pay for such expenses. The security detail incurred $319,794.20 in travel costs, excluding salary and overtime, during these trips.
In terms of the procedural history, they said that on April 14, 2022, COIB commenced an enforcement action against de Blasio and charges were adjudicated at a hearing at the New York City Office of Trials and Hearings (“OATH”). They said OATH issued a report and recommendation on May 4, 2023, finding that de Blasio had committed the charged violations.
They said that on June 15, 2023, the board ordered de Blasio to repay the City $319,794.20 and imposed a fine of $155,000 (adopting the reimbursement and fine amounts recommended in the OATH report and recommendation), and that on the same day COIB issued its order, de Blasio filed an Article 78 Petition in New York State Supreme Court challenging the COIB order.
They said that on Jan. 13 this year, that Article 78 Petition was dismissed, and on Jan. 29, the former mayor appealed that decision. They said that as per the stipulation of settlement, de Blasio agrees to withdraw his appeal of the dismissal of his Article 78 Petition, and also acknowledges that he violated the City’s conflicts of interest law, that he deeply regrets his conduct, and that he no longer challenges the COIB’s factual findings and legal conclusions.
They said that in addition to the $100,000 he has already paid, de Blasio agrees to pay an additional $229,794.20 in quarterly installments over the next four years. They said the settlement brings to a successful conclusion the first ever enforcement action brought by the COIB against a mayor of the City of New York. COIB officials said they acknowledged and were grateful to the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) for what they said was DOI’s “extensive investigative work,” which they said was “critical” to a successful resolution.
De Blasio later posted a statement about the settlement on social media, writing, “Today, I settled an outstanding case with the NYC COIB. I acknowledge that I made a mistake, and I deeply regret it. Now it’s time to move forward.”
Meanwhile, the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) will host its monthly board meeting at CCRB headquarters on May 14 at 4 p.m. at 100 Church St. 10th Floor, New York, NY 10007, and CCRB officials said members of the public can stream it and / or participate in the meeting online or in person. They said they welcome all New Yorkers to attend and share their experiences with police-community relations. To stream the meeting via Webex, register here.
For more information, visit nyc.gov/ccrb. Speaking at the CCRB meeting is open to all, they said and if members of the public have questions about speaking, requests regarding accessibility or need language interpretation assistance, they should email accessibility@ccrb.nyc.gov. Interpretation services are free upon request.
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