New York taxpayers have vented a whopping $60 million in legal fees due to the scandal that hit Andrew Cuomo's administration, according to a new state audit of the bomb that comes as the former governor is about to become mayor.
An updated tally from state secretary Tom DiNapoli vowed to pay New Yorkers a call from other Democratic mayoral candidates and not to use the cash of another taxpayer in the bill.
The large sums include about $18 million to defend Cuomo against a lawsuit in which former aides and state employees accused him of sexual harassment.
Taxpayers have spent $8.6 million so far defending the still-maintaining harassment lawsuit brought against him by state troopers, and paying $9 million from the lawsuit brought by former aide Charlotte Bennett, who decided to drop the lawsuit in December.
Dinapoli's findings include an additional $11.7 million spent on the state probe, including Cuomo's handling of Cuovid Pandemic and his infamous $5 million pandemic book deal, including the ammo each procedure launched against the then governor.
(A total of $29.7 million in direct bills from his close peers that Friday's taxpayers have been added since September) at the time of Friday's taxpayers being added.
Taxpayers are on Hook for bills that are directly linked to Cuomo's legal defense. Because he was governor at the time of the allegation, and he could argue that the state should pay his legal fees.
The state director's figures also count the legal costs of state agencies $31.3 million. This includes funds that are not directly related to Cuomo's legal defense. This is clearly paying GottlieB $6.6 million, as Attorney General Lettia James is working to Whiteshaw's law firm to tackle a sexual harassment probe for the then governor.
City Comptroller Brad Lander, one of Cuomo's mayoral rivals, seized new numbers in a speech Monday, saying Cuomo should spend his own cash.
“This is the money he entered the court to force taxpayers to spend on him, and what it gives him is an undeveloped spigot, not just his own defense, but chasing his accuser, but an infinite amount of money,” Lander told reporters. “Let's be clear about this. Andrew Cuomo has sexually harassed 13 women. Now he is legally harassing him, and taxpayers are making accessories for harassment and bullying.”
Lander added that Cuomo “should be committed to raising funds to reimburse New York taxpayers for the $60 million legal costs he had already had to spend on us.”
“And if he refuses to answer questions, or to stop spending money or refuse a refund, he is sending a very clear message to all taxpayers in New York City that he intends to put himself in the first place,” added Comptroller.
Cuomo repeatedly denied allegations of harassment and tried to cast them as politically motivated, but still resigned as governor in August 2021.
His representative called the $60 million figure the result of the bulging of creative accounting.
Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi argued that many of the legal costs mentioned in the state's secretary's audit were the result of James' office choosing not to take charge of themselves, forcing the state to hire outside the law firm.
“Bloodlander should be more concerned about his ethical failures due to his anti-Israel pension fund sales strategy than legal costs resulting from AG's multiple denials,” Atzpaldi told the Post.
He also found in January that the Justice Department watchdog had personally boasted about an investigation during the first Trump administration about whether officials during the first Trump administration had hurt three Democrats before the 2020 election and whether Cuomo had embedded nursing home deaths during Covid to support Trump.
“New Yorkers know that cities are in crisis, and Andrew Cuomo has the ability to save experiences, records, and it's not confusing with fuzzy mathematics,” Atzpaldi said.
– Additional reporting by Reuven Fenton and Craig McCarthy
