JCOPE Says Silver Failed to Report Outside Income

Last Friday, the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) sent former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver a ‘notice of delinquency’ relating to his annual financial disclosure statements for 2011, 2012 and 2013, specifically regarding his non-state employment and income.

JCOPE’s actions (which are civil in nature) may appear minor in the context of the criminal charges the former Assembly Speaker is facing, but the potential fines for an intentional failure to accurately report outside income are pretty steep.

According to the JCOPE web site:

Subsequent to the issuance of an NOD, the Commission may initiate an enforcement proceeding against the filer. Any individual determined to have knowingly and willfully violated the provisions of Public Officers Law § 73-a may be subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $40,000.

JCOPE could also refer the matter to a prosecutor, who could pursue a misdemeanor charge.

A spokesperson for Silver said “Assemblyman Silver firmly believes that he filed all financial disclosure information pursuant to the law, and he intends to prove that.”

 

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