N.Y. Attorney General’s Charity Ties Questioned
July 12, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute
A candidate for the governorship in New York has criticized his
opponent, state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, saying that he
violated conflict-of-interest policies by serving on the board of his family’s charitable trust, reports The New York Times.
As attorney general, Mr. Spitzer oversees the approximately 60,000 nonprofit groups in New York.
According to the New York Daily News, Mr. Spitzer defended his role against attacks from Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, which came after an investigation into the Bernard and Anne Spitzer Charitable Trust by the newspaper.
Mr. Spitzer said he had been advised by lawyers that his role was not improper.
In 2004, the trust had to pay a $51,000 tax penalty for not giving away enough money to meet the law. The Daily News article did not include a comment from Mr. Spitzer on that topic.
