2 December 2021: NY Taxpayers on Hook for Cost of Defending Cuomo from Federal Civil Rights Violations for Sexual Harassment

Cuomo legal contract includes defense of any EEOC complaint

This report gives more information about the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights probe of Andrew M. Cuomo's alleged sexual harassment of women working for New York's state government. It indicates the state of New York will pay to defend Cuomo in the probe.

The contract for a law firm retained by the Executive Chamber to represent Andrew M. Cuomo's administration in various investigations includes a provision indicating the legal work includes responding to a U.S. Department of Justice inquiry related to the sexual harassment claims made against the former governor, according to a copy of the contract obtained by the Times Union Thursday.

The $2.5 million contract is with the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher. It was approved by the state comptroller's office on Tuesday, publicized Wednesday and made available Thursday.

The details of any federal inquiry related to sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo was not immediately clear. However, the Department of Justice often handles complaints filed against public officials under the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The Civil Division of the DOJ opened an inquiry in August based on the sexual harassment report by Attorney General's Letitia James' office, Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said in a statement. Cuomo's team has critiqued the credibility of the report, asserting it was politically motivated.

The report also tallies the cost of the Cuomo investigations and the cost of defending Cuomo:

Overall, the state has nearly $23 million in valued contracts in 2021 that are related to Cuomo controversies.

Included in the $23 million are investigations by the state Assembly and the state attorney general's office, which total at $8.6 million.

Cuomo continues to face multiple investigations by law enforcement agencies at multiple levels of government, including the Albany County Sheriff's Office and the U.S. Department of Justice.

New York's state government may recoup the cost of defending Cuomo related to any charges of which he is convicted.