Proposal calls for public financing of campaigns

Tucked within the 299-page proposed 2020 budget for Ulster County is a $75,000 line item earmarked for the public financing of political campaigns.

While only a minute amount of the $342.3 million spending plan put forward by County Executive Pat Ryan, the item’s inclusion in the proposal is historic because its approval would mean taxpayer money would, for the first time in Ulster County’s history, be spent to benefit candidates running for county offices.

The measure would let candidates tap into the well of taxpayer dollars to help fund their election efforts and, according to its sponsors, help stem

the tide of big money being poured into campaigns.

Opinion on the proposed local law was almost evenly split during a public hearing held by the Legislature earlier this week, with seven of the 13 speakers opposing the use of taxpayer money to fund campaigns and six people supporting the measure.

Opponents criticized the use of public money to support political campaigns and said taxpayer dollars should be used to benefit the public good.

“It is not OK to spend our taxpayer dollars on political campaigns,” said Wawarsing resident Cynthia Wagner.

“I do not understand how any member of this body feels they have the right to come into our homes and take the food off of our tables to finance your own personal gains,” said Thomas Meerling, also of Wawarsing.

Meerling said the law would “rob” taxpayers of their money and strip them of the right “to not give politicians our money.”

Other speakers said the money would be better used to fund county services, which they said have been scaled back over the past several years.

Supporters said the measure would open up the political process to more people by enabling those of “limited resources” to wage competitive campaigns, require candidates to connect more with voters and let donors with limited income have an impact because, under the proposal, a $10 donation would become a $60 donation.

Among those supporting the bill was Cynthia Bell, president of the League of Women Voters of the Mid Hudson Region and a member of the subcommittee that helped draft the measure under consideration.

“We all pay for things we never use or for helping people we never know,” Bell said. She said adopting the measure would send a message that “Ulster County government supports a fair and balanced democratic process.”

County officials have been debating the implementation of a campaign finance law since 2014, and several iterations of a proposed law limiting who can donate to a political campaign and how much a candidate can accept have been advanced, but none have made it to the full Legislature for a vote.

Members of a special subcommittee of the Legislature’s Laws, Rules and Governmental Services Committee who crafted the proposed law said the measure will not only get “big money” out of elections but also encourage more people to run for office.

As proposed, the law would provide a five-to-one match of public funds, up to $23,000, for candidates running for county executive, comptroller, clerk, district attorney and sheriff, and up to $2,500 for candidates for county Legislature seats.

In order to be eligible for matching funds, a candidate for one of the five countywide offices would have to raise no less than $15,000, made up of contributions of up to $100 per donor, including at least 150 matchable contributions of $10 or more.

For the county Legislature seats, candidates would have to raise at least $500 in donations, from up to $100 per donor, including at least 50 contributions of $10 or more.

Only donations made by residents of the county could be counted toward the public funding match, and no donations made by businesses, labor unions or political committees would be eligible for matching funds.

The law also would significantly restrict how much candidates accepting public finances could accept from donors.

As proposed, candidates for countywide office would be prohibited from taking more than $3,500 from any individual, political committee, labor union or other entity during a four-year election cycle. Candidates for the county Legislature would be restricted to accepting no more than $650 from any individual, political committee, labor union or other entity during the Legislature’s two-year election cycle.

Candidates for countywide office would be further restricted to accepting no more than $1,000 from any individual or company doing business with the county and no more than $600 from a county employee appointed by that candidate, as well as that employee’s spouse or dependent, during an election cycle; while legislative candidates would be prohibited from accepting more than $250 from any individual or company doing business with the county or from any appointed employee, or that employee’s spouse or dependents, during an election cycle.

If approved by the full Legislature, the law would take effect Jan. 1, 2020, though regularly scheduled local elections are not to be held next year.