Funding New York State’s Public Campaign Financing Program

On behalf of the New York City Bar Association (“City Bar”), as Chairs of its Election Law Committee and Government Ethics and State Affairs Committee, we urge Governor Hochul and the New York State Legislature to fully fund New York’s public campaign financing system for the 2024 election cycle and beyond. The City Bar has long supported measures to strengthen our representative democracy and thus appreciate the significant step that the State Legislature took in this regard in 2020 by enacting an innovative public campaign financing system to curb the influence of money in elections.  

Since 2020, the State has worked to implement this new public financing system, including by appointing members to the newly-constituted Public Campaign Finance Board, hiring staff, adopting regulations, and even enrolling candidates. As a result, the infrastructure is in place for public financing to be fully realized in the 2024 election cycle, as was contemplated by the 2020 law establishing the financing system. Now the Governor and State Legislature must follow through on this commitment and provide the necessary funding.

Rachael A. Harding, Chair
Election Law Committee
New York City Bar Association

Edward L. Murray, Chair
Government Ethics and State Affairs Committee
New York City Bar Association