Observer » Amy Dowell

A Fund-Raiser for Cuomo and DiNapoli

Jimmy Vielkind — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:51:37 -0400

ALBANY—Amy Dowell is now working as a fund-raiser for both Andrew Cuomo and Tom DiNapoli, an interesting arrangement considering the political tension between the men.

Dowell was listed as the contact on the invitation to a fund-raiser DiNapoli held last week in Huntington, and the comptroller's spokesman Dennis Tompkins confirmed she had been working for him since August 2008.

Dowell has also been raising money for Cuomo 2010, where she remains a "part-time consultant," according to a Cuomo aide.

On Thursday, Cuomo said on a conference call that the comptroller's office has "systemic corruption issues."

Now, Cuomo Picks Up a Schumer Fund-Raiser

Jason Horowitz — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:26:36 -0400

Andrew Cuomo has added another high-powered fund-raiser to his campaign as he gears up for 2010, prompting even more skepticism that the attorney general, whose reelection would be a laugher, is gearing up to run for anything but governor.

According to sources with knowledge of the hire, Cuomo has now brought on Jennifer Bayer Michaels, Chuck Schumer's longtime chief fund-raiser and then a senior fund-raiser at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. She joins an already-crowded roster of fund-raisers that includes Amy Dowell and David Paterson's former fund-raiser, Cindy Darrison, among others.

Changing His Campaign Finance Posture, Cuomo Now Seeks $25,000 Contributions [updated]

Azi Paybarah — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 13:45:21 -0400

It looks like Andrew Cuomo has had enough of a self-imposed $10,000 limit on individual political contributions, a cap he originally created "to show solidarity" with Eliot Spitzer's similar self-imposed limit.

This invitation to Cuomo’s January 15 fund-raiser at the Mandarin Oriental hotel seeks contributions of up to $25,000.

When I reached Cuomo 2010 spokesperson Amy Dowell for comment, she said she would call me back. She has yet to do so.

UPDATE: A source close to Cuomo just told me, "Initially, we had said we'd adhere to 10 [thousand], but once the campaign finance agreement was announced, we agreed to 12.5 [thousand]. But at some point we're going to need the clarity of a real campaign finance law." That limit is still being met because half of the $25,000 would go to the primary, and the other half to the general election.

Cuomo Abides by Spitzer Fund-Raising Limits, Mostly

Azi Paybarah — Wed, 23 May 2007 13:30:42 -0400

Here’s a fund-raising letter for Andrew Cuomo’s June 13 event at the swanky Le Parker Meridian Hotel. What’s interesting isn’t the fact that he’s fund-raising (who in Albany isn’t?) but rather the disclaimer at the bottom.

It’s basically the same as Eliot Spitzer’s self-imposed limit of accepting no more than $10,000 per contributor, way below the state’s legal limit of about $50,100. And it closes the loophole that allows limited liability corporations from giving endless amounts of money.

What’s missing on Cuomo's fund-raising piece, but included in Spitzer's, is a line that closes the loophole on corporate contributions.

Here’s the fine print at the bottom of Cuomo’s fundraising letter:

Andrew Cuomo 2010 will accept no more than $10,000 per election cycle from individuals, unions, political action committees, and trade associations. Partnerships and LLCs that make contributions will be required to specifically identify the partners responsible for the contribution, and that amount will be counted against each partner’s individual contribution limit. Total contributions from a corporation may not exceed $5,000 per calendar year aggregate to all New York state and local candidates and committees. Corporations, other entities and individuals are strictly prohibited from reimbursing another person/entity for making a contribution to Andrew Cuomo 2010. All contributors must be US citizens or permanent resident aliens (green card holder).

And here’s the line missing from Cuomo's fine print that's included in on Spitzer’s fund-raising materials:

Contributions made by a corporation’s affiliates and/or subsidiaries will be viewed as cumulative against that corporation’s $5,000 limit to Spitzer 2010. Spitzer 2010 will not accept contributions from at-will employees or their spouses or domestic partners.

Amy Dowell, who runs Cuomo 2010, emailed over this statement:

"We have voluntarily accepted the $10,000 limit to show solidarity with the Governor's proposal and we expect a new campaign finance law to be passed this session to provide certainty to the situation."