Ex-NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio Hit With Historic Fine for Misuse of Public Funds

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during an event in New York City in a file photograph. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has been fined roughly $475,000 for misusing public funds during his failed presidential campaign.

The fine is the largest ever imposed by the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board.

“Between May 2019 and September 2019, while serving as Mayor, Respondent was a candidate for President of the United States,” the board wrote in issuing the June 15 order (pdf). “During this time, Respondent had the City pay the travel expenses for an NYPD [New York Police Department] security detail to accompany Respondent or his spouse on 31 out-of-state trips in connection with his presidential campaign.”

De Blasio’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination lasted only four months before he called it quits. But in that time, he managed to rack up $319,794.20 in travel-related costs for the city, including airfare, car rentals, meals, accommodations, and other incidentals.

The board also said de Blasio was warned prior to the launch of his campaign that using his security detail for out-of-state travel related to his presidential campaign would constitute a violation of the law.

But as the mayor ultimately disregarded that advice, the board fined de Blasio $5,000 for each out-of-state trip—$155,000 total—and ordered him to reimburse the city for the misspent funds.

Appeal Filed

The board gave de Blasio 30 days to make the payment, though it also noted that he had the right to appeal the decision to the state’s Supreme Court.

Wasting no time, the former mayor chose to do the latter.

“The COIB’s action—which seeks to saddle elected officials with security costs that the city has properly borne for decades—is dangerous, beyond the scope of their powers, and illegal,” said Andrew Celli Jr., de Blasio’s attorney, in a statement. “Today, just as soon as this action became final, we filed suit to stop this inappropriate and perilous decision from ever taking effect.”

Describing the board’s ruling as “reckless and arbitrary,” Celli said the decision endangered the safety and security of public servants like de Blasio.

“Every mayor faces threats, and all mayors are entitled to protection—regardless of party or politics,” he said. “That’s why the NYPD is charged with determining what level of protection is necessary for such officials, when, and how.

“This case isn’t about Bill de Blasio or any other mayor or high official in particular. It’s about the principle of protecting our leaders from harm—for the good of our city.”

Investigation

The historic fine follows a probe of de Blasio’s use of his security detail conducted by the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI). In October 2021, the department released its findings (pdf), which comprised “a range of issues, including potential violations of the New York City Conflicts of Interest Law, lapses in best practices, corruption vulnerabilities, and inefficient uses of public resources.”

According to the report, members of de Blasio’s protection unit not only accompanied him on the campaign trail but also transported his children and staffers on multiple occasions where he was not present.

“In addition, DOI learned that, for approximately one year, the security detail has been conducting frequent security checks at houses owned by the Mayor in Brooklyn, where neither he nor his family members currently reside,” the report adds.

Responding to the Conflicts of Interest Board’s order on June 15, DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber said: “[The Conflicts of Interest Board’s] conclusions regarding former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s misuse of his security detail reaffirms DOI’s investigative findings, and shows that public officials—including the most senior—will be held accountable when they violate the rules.”

‘Errors’ and Mistakes

The latest fine is not the first the former mayor has been ordered to pay in recent months.

In April, the Federal Election Commission imposed a $53,100 fine on three committees associated with his presidential campaign.

According to the commission, de Blasio’s campaign committee accepted and failed to disclose improper contributions from two political action committees—Fairness PAC and NY Fairness PAC—that he and others set up.

The campaign committee agreed to pay that fine.

“There were some accounting errors here and we immediately worked to get it right. We are happy to have it settled,” Peter Ragone, a longtime de Blasio adviser, said in an April 21 statement.

Since his brief presidential run and last year’s even shorter congressional campaign—which lasted just two months—de Blasio has appeared to abandon politics for a career in academia. During the fall 2022 semester, he joined Harvard University as a visiting fellow and has also taught classes at New York University.

While reflecting on his presidential campaign in a recent interview with New York Magazine, de Blasio said he now regrets the decision to run.

“It was a mistake,” he said. “I think my values were the right values, and I think I had something to offer, but it was not right on a variety of levels. And I think I got into a place of just extreme stubbornness and tunnel vision.

“I learned an immense amount,” he added, “and I learned some things that proved to be very valuable and necessary, even in the next immediate chapter, which was COVID. It was not without value, but it didn’t make sense.”