The New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB) has expanded its reasons for denying Mayor Eric Adams public matching funds for his reelection campaign, citing a nearly $3 million discrepancy between bank records and official reports. According to board records obtained through Freedom of Information Law requests, bank statements for the mayor's campaign showed $7.5 million in total receipts as of December 31. However, the campaign only reported approximately $4.6 million in contributions to the board, leaving $2.9 million in undocumented funds.
This discrepancy represents a variance of nearly 65 percent between reported and documented receipts, exceeding the board's 10 percent threshold for eligibility. Auditors also found that while the campaign reported $8,200 in cash deposits, only $700 of that amount was backed by required paperwork. The board first denied the mayor's request for $4.5 million in matching funds in December and has renewed that denial monthly, previously citing a federal indictment that alleged Adams solicited illicit campaign contributions.
Adams has pleaded not guilty to those federal charges and denies any wrongdoing. While the U.S. Department of Justice moved to dismiss the charges in February, the CFB has continued to withhold the funds. The board's February 18 letter cited more than a dozen relevant city statutes, compared to six cited in January. The mayor’s campaign has until March 17 to provide a formal response to the board regarding the documentation errors.
The scale of the financial impact could grow. The CFB has stated that the mayor could be found in "breach of contract" due to the criminal allegations and accounting infractions. Such a finding could require Adams to return approximately $10 million in public matching funds he received during his 2021 campaign. For the current cycle, auditors found that between October and January, nearly 50 percent of the contributions the campaign submitted for matching were improperly reported and deemed invalid. This rate of error distinguishes the mayor's filings from several primary opponents; for context, challenger Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-Queens) had a documentation variance of approximately $12,000, or 10 percent of total receipts.
The situation sets a precedent for how the CFB handles campaigns facing both criminal allegations and bookkeeping irregularities. While a federal judge is currently considering a Justice Department request to dismiss the criminal charges against Adams, the CFB's independent audit process continues. Additionally, the 2021 audit remains ongoing, which could result in fines for the $2.3 million in improperly documented spending previously identified by the board.