Topline: New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ domestic partner earned almost $222,000 in salary while working what employees say is a “no-show” job, the New York Post reported.
Key facts: Tracey Collins was promoted to a senior advisor role in the city Department of Education months after Adams took office in 2022. Her salary promptly increased from $175,000 per year to almost $222,000.
Collins allegedly has not shown up for work in almost a year, according to an ethics complaint reviewed by the New York Post. Co-workers say they have not seen her since Thanksgiving.
The complaint also claims Collins has accepted foreign gifts “in excess of $100,000” without filing a required conflict of interest disclosure form.
Prosecutors say that Collins accompanied Adams on $45,000 worth of trips to India, Ghana, Jordan and more, according to the Post.
Collins paid for an economy plane ticket on a 2019 trip to Turkey but received an upgrade to first class worth $7,000, prosecutors say. The same Turkish airlines manager later threatened to stop giving Adams flight discounts unless he was given a job in the mayor’s administration, according to text messages obtained by the Post.
The plane tickets were never disclosed as a conflict of interest, according to Adams’ federal indictment.
Background: The U.S. Department of Justice charged Adams last month with accepting bribes and illegal campaign contributions from foreign interests since 2014.
Adams made $258,000 last year as mayor, per OpenTheBooks.com. He earned nearly $900,000 as Brooklyn borough president from 2017 to 2021.
Search all federal, state and local government salaries and vendor spending with the AI search bot, Benjamin, at OpenTheBooks.com.
Summary: Collins appears to be perfect for her advisory role in education. There’s no one smarter than someone earning six figures not to work.
The #WasteOfTheDay is brought to you by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com
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