There’s clear evidence that much more money has been spent than has been identified in campaign finance reports, and that most of this undisclosed spending has gone to benefit the convention’s opponents. | AP Photo Dark money shows up in constitutional convention debate

ALBANY — Activists who believe the state should hold a constitutional convention are outspending those opposed to the idea, according to campaign filings submitted to the state Board of Elections in recent days.

State voters will decide in November whether or not such a convention will be held. Proponents of the vote have identified $768,260 worth of expenditures this year on their disclosure reports, slightly more than the $709,430 spent by the well-heeled coalition that has been formed to oppose the vote.


But the filings tell only a small portion of the story. There’s clear evidence that much more money has been spent than has been identified in campaign finance reports, and that most of this undisclosed spending has gone to benefit the convention’s opponents.

For example, black lawn signs have popped up in every corner of the state urging a "no" vote on the convention question. In some neighborhoods in the Capital Region, the signs have become at least as ubiquitous, if not more so, as lawn signs supporting either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton a year ago.

The signs were created by New York State United Teachers. But an accounting for them doesn't appear anywhere in records submitted to the Board of Elections.

Other unions have similarly engaged in campaigning that hasn’t been reported. For example, members of the Public Employees Federation have shown up in large numbers at several public forums in recent weeks to present a negative view of what might happen at a convention. At one recent event, a member read off a fact sheet printed from a “NYS Constitutional Convention Vote NO Toolkit” maintained on PEF’s website. But despite the clear engagement of PEF's members and leadership, no publicly disclosed transactions by the union’s PAC in recent months suggest that it has been involved in the convention debate.

The unions — and likely, to a lesser degree, convention supporters as well — are able to avoid disclosing their spending because of rules that govern independent expenditures in New York. State law says that a committee will need to disclose its spending on issues like ballot questions if its spending reaches “a general public audience." The Board of Elections subsequently interpreted this to mean that a nonprofit’s or union’s outreach to its own members is not covered.

In the case of PEF, the “toolkit” on its website is labeled as being for “PEF members.” The union can reach out to its rank-and-file members to encourage them to vote no; these members can then go out on their own initiative and campaign on the issue, but since the union’s funds aren’t being used to reach a public audience, no money needs to be disclosed.

NYSUT says that the publicly displayed lawn signs as well as magnets and buttons fall under a similar exemption and were paid for “by an advocacy fund used for member-to-member communications.” The union has been “providing them to [its] locals and members,” said spokesman Carl Korn, and has been reimbursed for the costs.

Additionally, the state’s independent expenditure law covers only expenditures “conveyed to five hundred or more members of a general public audience.” Korn said that because the signs are “not seen by a ‘general audience’ of 500 or more at a time,” they are exempt.

A representative of PEF did not return a call on Wednesday confirming that they hadn't voluntarily disclosed some of their expenditures through a committee other than their PAC. But a skimming of hundreds of the largest transactions reported to the Board in recent months suggests that neither they nor any of the other unions running similar campaigns have identified spending money through an unknown committee.

As far as the spending that has been disclosed, the top spender was a coalition of groups opposed to the convention. After raising $724,697 and spending $431,293 since mid-July, “New Yorkers Against Corruption” entered October with a $616,894 account balance.

It has mostly been funded by unions, having received $120,000 from the New York State Pipe Trades Association and $65,900 from the NYS Laborers' PAC in recent months. Only a few relatively small donations, including $2,100 from lobby firm Meyer Suozzi and $1,000 from the Adirondack Council, came from sources other than organized labor.

A large share of its money went to digital advertising, but the coalition has since branched out to other forms of campaign activity. In late September, it made a $50,260 payment to Red Horse for canvassing and the distribution of flyers.

Among supporters, the top spender was NY People’s Convention, which is primarily funded by Democratic activist Bill Samuels. It has spent $351,133 since its creation, which has been spread fairly widely, covering the costs of an organizer, events, and newspaper, digital and radio advertisements.

The Committee for a Constitutional Convention, which was organized by former Mario Cuomo counsel Evan Davis, has raised $28,666 and spent $42,052 since July, leaving it with $12,405 in the bank. Its recent donors have included former Court of Appeals Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman ($500), former Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch ($2,000) and former state Sens. Martin Connor and John Dunne ($500 apiece).

In addition to the main groups that have focused on the convention, a number of individual organizations have spent money on the issue.

On the opposition side, the “Committee to Defend Forever Wild,” which was created by the Adirondack Council in July, has since spent $16,327. Most of this money has gone to “consultant services.”

And a committee formed by Environmental Advocates has yet to spend any money.

Among supporters, the top spender among individual groups was Citizens Union, which has identified $50,106 in expenditures since July. This money went to web ads, staff salaries and Marathon Strategies, which is handling the group’s public outreach.

The New York State Bar Association’s committee has spent $25,922 since July, for a total of $28,095 since its creation. Most of this has come from an in-kind contribution from the Bar itself for “staff time and services.”

The League of Women Voters similarly spent most of its $1,270 on staff salaries and travel costs.

And a final activist who has gotten involved in the convention vote did not have a filing on the state Board of Elections’ website as of Wednesday evening. Jerome Dewald, who is hoping that a convention will result in the legalization of marijuana, had previously identified in a July report that most of his committee’s costs came from pro bono work that he performed for it and valued as an in-kind contribution at $30,000 per month.

He said his newest filing will similarly show $96,000 worth of in-kind contributions. This brings his committee’s total spending, including the in-kind work, over $250,000, or more than a third of the total money spent by convention supporters.