UTICA — The Mohawk Valley Chamber of Commerce is calling for the resignation of Sheldon Silver as speaker of the state Assembly.
The chamber cited a New York Times report that Silver authorized a secret payment of more than $103,000 in taxpayer money to settle sexual harassment claims against Assemblyman Vito Lopez, a Democrat from Brooklyn. The settlement, which was cloaked from public view by a confidentiality agreement, was an improper use of public funds, the chamber said.
The chamber calls for both the resignation of Silver as speaker and full restitution of the settlement funds.
The New York Times also noted that a University of Illinois Institute for Government and Public Affairs study this year found that New York leads the country in public corruption.
Contact DeLore at tdelore@tmvbj.com