Blakeman thought his matching funds were secure, then Democrats objected

ALBANY — The decision of whether Republican Bruce Blakeman will receive matching public funds in his campaign for governor may rest on whether his campaign or a state board is responsible for catching a paperwork error.

Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, trails Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in the money chase by roughly $20 million and has applied for public matching funds through a program that is available for governor candidates for the first time. But he is in danger of disqualification because of a filing error. Without the potential millions of dollars in matching funds, Blakeman's steep task of unseating an incumbent in a Democratic state becomes even harder. Here is what to know: 

Changing rules

Republican and Democratic attorneys at the state Public Campaign Finance Board knew by early February that there was a potential issue with how the board processed candidates for governor and lieutenant governor because of a new law requiring candidates to run on a joint ticket.

The board commissioners approved a new regulation requiring the candidates to file jointly on Dec. 9, but the form candidates fill out was never updated to include space for two candidates. A week after that regulation was approved, Blakeman's campaign filed an application for the program but he did not yet have a running mate.

On Feb. 6, the board attorneys settled on a deal where candidates could file paperwork together or file separately and board staff would combine them.

By that point, Blakeman’s campaign had already registered for the program and it’s unclear if it was ever aware of the requirement, leaving it at risk of missing out on millions of public funds.

Republicans on the board argue that since Blakeman was certified for the program, the board should have alerted his campaign of any potential issues before the window to register closed.

"If either side thought there was something deficient or incomplete about the submitted forms, the PCFB had an obligation to reach out to the Blakeman campaign," Republican co-director Carl Zeilman said in an email.

Brian Keegan, the Democratic co-director, maintains it is a candidate’s responsibility to make sure the campaign follows the program’s rules.

'Shall jointly submit'

The state’s Public Campaign Finance program is meant to encourage campaigns to pursue small dollar donations. Candidates who reach certain milestones can receive taxpayer funds.

The board’s seven commissioners unanimously approved an emergency regulation on Dec. 9 to create rules for how candidates for governor and lieutenant governor would register for the program.

The key line in the regulation states that both candidates running on a joint ticket for governor and lieutenant governor, "shall jointly submit an application/certification."

Blakeman’s campaign registered for the program a week later and the board’s staff certified his paperwork the next day. In its letter to Blakeman’s campaign, the board noted that to remain eligible, his campaign needed to continue to comply with the program rules.

At that point he was not the Republican nominee and had not selected a running mate.

Less than two months later, the board’s attorneys were discussing how to handle the paperwork issue as Republicans and Democrats looked ahead to their respective nominating conventions.

For Blakeman, the Republican convention in Garden City was a coronation. U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, the presumptive nominee, had dropped out of the race shortly after Blakeman announced.

Shortly after the convention, Blakeman tapped Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood as his running mate.

And on Feb. 12, the campaign brought on a new treasurer and amended its paperwork for the public matching funds program.

That paperwork was also approved by the board’s staff, but no one notified the campaign that it would need information from Hood to qualify for public matching funds. Hood never filed paperwork to qualify for matching funds.

Keegan said that because the rules allowed Hood to file separately board staff couldn’t notify the campaign in advance of a missing filing.

"In other words, a deficiency could not be identified until the deadline had passed," he said.

March deadline

The deadline to register and certify for the program came and went on Feb. 23.

Shortly after March 2, the deadline for a campaign to fix any paperwork issues, Republicans on the board learned Democrats intended to claim that because the board did not receive any paperwork from Hood, Blakeman’s campaign was ineligible for the matching funds.

Keegan said while the program does offer opportunities for candidates to cure some technical defects, that provision does not include missing paperwork.

"Eligibility must be determined based on what was submitted by the statutory deadline," Keegan said.

While the board staff is empowered to determine a candidate’s eligibility, if staff can’t reach a consensus the issue comes to vote by the board’s seven commissioners. Democrats control four of the board’s seven seats, leaving Blakeman at a disadvantage if it comes down to a party-line vote.

The seven-member board hasn’t scheduled a meeting to hash out the issue, but Republicans expect it soon. Campaigns already qualified for the program are expected to receive their first reimbursements in the coming weeks.

Believing it was qualified for the program, Blakeman’s campaign submitted $1.4 million in expenses earlier this month to the state Board of Elections for reimbursement under the program.

Losing out on the funds would put Blakeman in a financial crunch. Hochul is sitting on a $20 million campaign account. Meanwhile, Blakeman has raised $3.2 million since declaring his run in early December and the majority of it has been transfers from the Nassau County Republican Committee.

The board does not have an appeals process, meaning Blakeman’s only avenue to remain in the program would be a lawsuit.