New York State just released the exact dollar figure on how much money taxpayers are spending on political campaigns for statewide candidates to run in contested primaries on June 25th, 2024.
The first payouts will go to six state senate candidates and 29 state Assembly candidates for a total of $3,592,904. The amounts received varied from $93,750-352,218 for senate candidates and $43,049-175,000 for Assembly recipients. Other eligible offices that may get funds include: Governor, Lt. Governor, State Comptroller, State Attorney General.
The first political campaigns eligible to receive taxpayer money are now getting their checks. Primaries happening right now are the first campaigns eligible to receive taxpayer money. The program works by providing a multiplied match to candidates for contributions of $5-250 received from people who live in the area they hope to represent.
New York State Conservative Party Chairman, Gerry Kassar, has been outspoken against this program saying, “For people like me, it’s an extraordinarily expensive program that the taxpayers cannot afford.”
Kassar has seen a similar program within NYC limits operate and sees the pitfalls. In 2021, when Public Advocate Jumaane Williams was given almost $1 million in taxpayer funds for his re-election campaign, criticism was swift stating that Williams could use the public funds to promote himself while considering a run for governor or other office. Kassar said at the time “delivering public funds to Williams is a waste and a misuse of taxpayer funds.”
This is the tip of the iceberg in your tax dollars being used for public financing of campaigns.
Taxpayers are ultimately on the hook for $114.5 million to finance political campaigns for candidates they may not support or even heard of before leading up to Election Day on November 5th, 2024.
Your hard earned tax dollars are paying every penny for politicians to run for statewide office, including on campaign consultants, direct mail, and advertisements on television, radio, and social media.
The Albany democratic majority increased the budget of the state’s new Public Campaign Financing Program matching funds by a whopping 300%.
NY’s FY24 budget included $39.5 million in taxpayer funds to be used for political campaigns in the state’s new publicly financed election campaign program - $25 million in matching funds and $14.5 million for administrators.
The FY25 budget passed in April increases the matching to $100 million for a total of $114.5 million.
There are roughly 55 staffers administering the program using $14.5 million in taxpayer funds. That’s 55 salaries, 55 health care policies, and 55 pensions all to give hard earned taxpayer money to politicians to run their political operations.
The state’s Public Campaign Finance Board certified 329 candidates in April as eligible for matching taxpayer funds and released the first slate of political campaigns taking taxpayer money this week. Candidates that are eligible are not required to take the matching funds, but can get as much as a 12-1 match for the first $5-50 with a scaled down multiplier for donations from $51-250.
NY State Senator Rob Ortt, also a critic of this misuse of hard earned taxpayer dollars, said of the program when it was first introduced: “Once again, Democrats in Albany are trying to change the laws in order to protect their own political futures. The only thing worse than taxpayer-funded political campaigns is a taxpayer funded incumbency protection program. This is blatant hypocrisy from Albany Democrats, who continue to show they put politics above all else”.
Republican Assembly Campaign Committee Chair Steve Hawley and Conservative Party Chair Kassar both point out that the overwhelming majority of Republicans voted against this system of using taxpayer dollars for political purposes.
Hawley recommends candidates forgo claiming the taxpayer money if they don't believe they need it. Kassar agrees while at the same time concluding, “the Conservative Party will not advocate that a candidate weaken the strength of their candidacy by not using the program. Candidates should use every legal avenue available to build a strong campaign.”
Kassar went on to say, “the only good thing about this program is that it does have a cap and can run out of money.”