Lysander supervisor hopeful Joe Saraceni must refund a large portion of a donation to his campaign, the state board of elections ruled last week.
Last month, Highland Meadows Development LLC donated $4,000 to the Citizens for Saraceni committee. While state election law allows individuals and LLCs to donate up to $150,000 per year, the Onondaga County Board of Elections limits individual campaign donations to $1,000. Saraceni’s campaign will have to return $3,000 to the Liverpool-based developer.
Saraceni told the Messenger the state informed his treasurer via email that the donation exceeded the county’s contribution limit. He said he was not aware of the local limit.
“Obviously I wouldn’t have accepted it [if I had known],” he said.
Onondaga County Board of Elections Commissioner Dustin Czarny said the county limit is based on the population of a municipality.
“You do see it from time to time,” Czarny said of campaigns accepting donations that exceed the limit. “It’s definitely a fair criticism that he doesn’t know what the limits are.”
“We immediately issued a partial refund to the donor and submitted an amended July periodic report to the state board of elections,” Saraceni wrote in an email to the Messenger. “I think this demonstrates the importance of the reporting process. I am sincerely appreciative of the support our campaign has received.”
