ALBANY — A campaign-like effort to garner support for Gov. Kathy Hochul’s executive budget, which includes a push to give judges more discretion to set bail in criminal cases, is being waged quietly and with the support of funding from former New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.
The shadowy effort to influence lawmakers and the public surfaced recently in the Capital Region when mailers were sent to local residents urging them to lobby their state lawmakers, including Assemblyman Phil Steck, to “have Gov. Kathy Hochul’s back because she has ours!”
That mailer carries a Washington, D.C., return address and says its paid for by “American Opportunity,” the group that is closely linked with but refuses to acknowledge its ties to the Democratic Governors Association.
The mailers, the TV commercials and social media ads are allegedly being funded by Bloomberg, who is one of New York’s wealthiest residents and is spending $5 million on the campaign to prop up Hochul’s budget plans, according to a person briefed on the matter. The spending arrangement was first reported by The New York Times. The billionaire has not publicly disputed the newspaper’s report.
At a Capitol news conference on Wednesday where Hochul was touting her criminal justice agenda, she declined to directly respond to questions about Bloomberg’s financial backing.
“I’m happy to receive the support of the people from all over the state of New York,” Hochul said without mentioning Bloomberg, while noting that her support network extends from “Buffalo to Long Island.”
Hochul also deflected questions on the quasi-political campaign that is being leveraged by the Washington-based social welfare nonprofit, American Opportunity, which has registered as a lobbyist in New York but has not yet filed paperwork with the Department of State despite spending millions in New York TV…
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