Fundraising For New York Legislators’ Charity Spiked After Hiring Top Lobbyist - Michael Towner, Iconic Legacy

​An embattled nonprofit with close ties to top state lawmakers, the NYS Association of Black & Puerto Rican Legislators, in 2017 hired a prominent Albany lobbyist to boost its fundraising capabilities, according to newly released tax records.
The hiring of Patrick B. Jenkins and Associates paid off, as the nonprofit, which is the focus of an investigation by the state attorney general’s office, raised substantially more revenue and gave out almost as much scholarship money to needy youth as it had for the three previous years combined.
Even before Jenkins’ hiring, questions had been raised about the lawmakers’ charity receiving significant funding from interests with business before the state Legislature. Jenkins, meanwhile, in the past has raised significant campaign dollars for lawmakers by soliciting donations from its own roster of influential clients, then lobbying some of those same state lawmakers for the clients.

Tables are set for the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus at the Empire State Convention Center on Friday, Feb. 15, 2019, in Albany, N.Y. The 48th annual legislative conference for the NYS Association of Black and Puerto Rican Legislators began Friday. (Will Waldron/Times Union)

​The filings also reveal several inconsistencies in the charity’s previous filings submitted to Attorney General Letitia James’ office, and raises more questions about the charity’s spending for that year and those prior, including how much money it was giving to students in need.
The group’s new filing, which covers the 2017-18 tax year, is a focus of the state attorney general’s probe, according to a source with knowledge of the matter. The tax documents apparently were posted to the attorney general’s website within the last two days.
A spokeswoman for the attorney general’s office declined to comment, citing its ongoing investigation. Assemblywoman Latrice Walker and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow, the nonprofit’s chairwoman and treasurer, respectively, did not return calls for comment.
A spokesman for the association, Hank Sheinkopf, said Walker restructured the organization when she took over as chair in 2017.
“A new accounting and auditing team has been hired and the attempt is to ensure that everything is being complied with and all filings are being brought up to date,” he said.

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