UES Candidate Says City Fundraising Rules Harm The Disabled

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — An Upper East Side City Council candidate is at odds with the city's Campaign Finance Board over its fundraising rules, which she says are unfair for people like her who have disabilities.

Rebecca Lamorte, one of seven District 5 Democrats running to succeed Ben Kallos, is taking issue with the CFB for its matching funds program, in which public dollars are allocated to candidates who raise enough money from New Yorkers — with a strict $190,000 spending cap attached.

Spending on accessibility measures like American Sign Language interpretation count toward those limits. That means campaigns could be penalized for paying for necessary accommodations, argued Lamorte, who walks with a cane due to a 2013 subway accident.

In a letter to the CFB last week, Lamorte called on the board to remove accessibility spending from the matching fund spending limits. She was joined by more than 60 other candidates, including five fellow District 5 contenders; six candidates for borough president; and mayoral candidate Dianne Morales.

Lamorte has spent thousands of dollars on accessibility measures thus far, she told the Queens Daily Eagle, including an ASL interpreter who cost $600 for a single event.

In response, the CFB rejected Lamorte's request, writing in a Thursday letter that the spending limits were set by laws that the board had no authority to change.

This was what true community #solidarity looks like. Thank you @BillyFreelandNY and @kimmosc for coming to today’s press conference and working with me to make #NYC elections more #inclusive!#RebeccaForNewYork pic.twitter.com/jrRaqIL6FP
— Rebecca Lamorte (@RebeccaLamorte) April 6, 2021

"However, the Board shares your concern with providing accommodations to every voter that make participating in our political process possible," Chair Frederick Schaffer wrote, adding that "more can and should be done" to improve accessibility.

Schaffer the board would review the accessibility concerns after this year's city elections, and could recommend policy changes.

Still, following the denial, Lamorte planned to rally Monday outside the CFB's lower Manhattan headquarters, demanding that the board "stop disenfranchising New Yorkers from elections."

Those set to join Lamorte included Lindsey Boylan, a candidate for Manhattan Borough President, and Kim Moscaritolo and Billy Freeland, who are also running in District 5.

Upper East Side Patch will have ongoing coverage of the City Council race ahead of the June 22 primary, including candidate responses to the issues raised in our neighborhood survey.

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