Campaign Finance Board Votes on Penalty for The Advance Group, Inc.

The New York City Campaign Finance Board today determined that The Advance Group, Inc., committed violations and assessed penalties totaling $15,000 for those violations. The Board determined that The Advance Group, acting as agent for an independent spender and two of its campaign clients, cooperated in expenditures reported to be independent.

Board Member Mark Piazza made the following statement:

"We have been watching with dismay as outside groups and candidates at the federal level test the boundaries, and often cross the line, of coordination. New Yorkers have been clear that they do not want that happening in our city elections. Strong enforcement is the only way to ensure that it doesn’t.

This substantial penalty sends a clear message that the Campaign Finance Board will vigorously enforce coordination between outside groups and candidates that violates the law. These violations strike at the very heart of our campaign finance program. When a consultant’s actions make it impossible for their clients to comply with the law, the Board will hold the consultant accountable.

The facts in this matter are clear. The Advance Group arranged mailers for one client, NYCLASS, which promoted the election of two of their campaign clients. CFB staff notified The Advance Group that such expenditures would be violations, yet the expenditures went forward. No one can outsource their responsibility for complying with the law and the Board penalized both campaigns and NYCLASS last year.

However, The Advance Group, serving as agent for its clients, bears a heavy responsibility for these violations and that results in the $15,000 penalty levied by the Board today. In total, the Board has now assessed penalties of nearly $58,000 for the violations orchestrated by The Advance Group.

In addition, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is announcing today a $10,800 penalty against the Advance Group. Combined, our two agencies are penalizing The Advance Group $25,800. I want to thank Attorney General Schneiderman and his staff for their assistance on this matter.”

Attorney General Schneiderman said, “New York voters deserve elections that are fair and free of coordination that distorts the democratic process. The law preventing coordination between candidates and advocacy campaigns is clear. Today’s agreement sends a clear message that campaign coordination is unacceptable in New York city and state politics.”

For details on the Board’s actions, please refer to the chart below. Please note that the number in the “Total Penalties” column links to documents that provide detail on the violations committed.

Archived video of today’s meeting will be made available at www.nyccfb.info/live