Bill de Blasio Agrees to Pay $329,000 to Settle Campaign Expense Dispute

New York Times

14-05-2025

Bill de Blasio, the former mayor of New York City, accepted blame and agreed to pay $329,000 to the city to resolve a conflicts-of-interest violation for bringing his security detail on trips during his failed presidential campaign in 2019.
The Conflicts of Interest Board, which announced the settlement on Wednesday, had found that Mr. de Blasio violated the law by billing the city for his security detail to travel with him and his wife on 31 out-of-state trips, even after the board advised Mr. de Blasio in advance that the expenses were not allowed.
The settlement, which reduced the board's fine from $155,000 to $10,000, was the board's first enforcement action against a mayor. The board said that Mr. de Blasio had already paid $100,000 of what he owed and would pay the rest in quarterly installments over the next four years.
Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat who was mayor from 2014 through 2021, said in a statement that he had erred.
'I acknowledge that I made a mistake, and I deeply regret it,' he said. 'Now it's time to move forward.'
His ill-fated presidential campaign lasted just four months. The city spent roughly $319,000 in travel-related costs for members of Mr. de Blasio's security detail to accompany him and his wife, Chirlane McCray, on campaign trips. The expenses included airfare, car rentals, overnight lodging, meals and other incidentals.
The board — an independent body with five members appointed by the mayor, comptroller and public advocate — found in 2023 that Mr. de Blasio had to reimburse the city for the costs and pay the $155,000 fine. Mr. de Blasio had fought the case in court.
On Wednesday, the board said that it agreed to lower the fine to $10,000 as part of the settlement because Mr. de Blasio said that his 'financial situation' prevented him from paying the full amount.
After leaving office, Mr. de Blasio ran unsuccessfully for Congress and has worked in academia, teaching classes at New York University and the University of Michigan. He occasionally weighs in on local politics and appeared recently with Mayor Eric Adams at an event to promote funding for preschool for all, Mr. de Blasio's signature policy.
Mr. de Blasio's improper campaign expenses were part of a report by the city's Department of Investigation, which found that he misused public resources for both political and personal purposes, including having a police van and officers help move his daughter to Gracie Mansion. He also faced a number of investigations into his fund-raising methods.