By Ivan Pereira
State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D−St. Albans) has promised to pay back the state Elections Board for a fine that has remained unresolved for more than 26 years, a spokesman for the Senate majority leader said Monday.
An investigation by the New York Post revealed that Smith, Gov. David Paterson and 15 other state legislators owe the state nearly $1.7 million in overdue fines for not filing campaign finance reports. Smith has owed $39 for violations dating back to 1983 and will be paying it off, according to his spokesman, Austin Shafran.
“That money will be paid back immediately now that we know it was owed,” Shafran told TimesLedger Newspapers.
The spokesman said the senator was unaware of the overdue fines until the Post published its report Monday. He said the fine was entered 15 years before the Board of Elections started using electronic filing systems.
“It will all be taken care of,” Shafran said.
Paterson owes $179 for two fines issued against him during his campaigns for the state Senate in 1994 and 1996, according to the Post.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e−mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718−229−0300, Ext. 146.
