Cahill to keep state insurance post

Oct. 29--KINGSTON -- Assemblyman Kevin Cahill is keeping his job as chairman of the Assembly Insurance Committee despite double billing of travel expenses uncovered by the Times Herald-Record.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie's office said it plans "no further action" at this point when asked Friday about Cahill's status in the Assembly in the wake of the discoveries.

Cahill's campaign had paid $13,000 in expenses connected to traveling to and attending 10 conferences around the country from late 2014 to July of this year. Cahill also billed the state for nearly $16,000 in expenses for nine of those conferences. But at least some of the expenses were billed to both the campaign and the state and Cahill reimbursed his campaign only $1,650. He admitted the lapses in an email to the Times Herald-Record on Tuesday. Cahill could be charged with at least offering a false document for filing, which can be either a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the circumstances. He is not facing any charges currently. The 10-term Democrat from Kingston is up for re-election Nov. 8.

Cahill has said his office staff was supposed to flag him when he needed to reimburse the campaign and failed to do so. He said he was not aware of the problem until questions from the Record highlighted the discrepancies. However, he has said that, in the end, the responsibility is his and he will fully reimburse the campaign out of his own money.

That seems to satisfy Heastie. His office issued this statement:

"Assemblyman Cahill acknowledged that these are bookkeeping errors and has stated that he will personally reimburse his campaign for any funds owed. He has assured the Speaker that he is taking the proper steps to correct this, so at this time no further action is warranted."

Cahill was chairman of the Assembly's Ethics and Guidance Committee from 2005 to 2008. In 2010, according to a press release, he introduced legislation to restrict the use of campaign funds for personal use.

As current chair of the Assembly Insurance Committee, he is key to oversight and regulation of the complex and extensive insurance industry in the state, figuring in such issues as the potential expansion statewide of peer-to-peer ride services such as Uber and Lyft.

[email protected]

___

(c)2016 The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.

Visit The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y. at www.recordonline.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.