Gov seeks to cut 100k NY AC chairman salary

Most athletic commissions have a board and chairman appointed by the governor and an executive director, generally with some support staff, to carry out the directions of the board. The members of the board and the chairperson generally are only modestly compensated, while the executive director often receives a living wage.

New York is an exception. The state athletic commission chairmanship has a $101,600 annual salary. The NYSAC has come under intense criticism following the brain damage suffered by heavyweight boxer Magomed Abdusalamov when he fought Mike Perez on November 2, 2013, at Madison Square Garden.

State Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott issued a highly critical report of the commission in July. It found “critical practices, policies and procedures were either nonexistent or deficient; a lack of appropriate oversight by commissioners; and conflicts of interest involving the Commission’s top executives and staff.”

The report found that then Athletic Commission Chairwoman Melvina Lathan and her staff received gifts from promoters including wine and jewelry. She resigned.

Lathan was replaced by Thomas Hoover who is reported to have allowed relatives and friends to be improperly issued credentials allowing them to attend events for free, among other transgressions. He paid a $2,000 ethics fine and resigned last year.

The position is held at present on an interim basis by commission member Ndidi Massayhas. The commission has recently taken on new duties, with the legalization of MMA in New York.

Now Ken Lovett reports for the NY Daily News that Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has moved to cut the 100k salary in his 2017/2018 spending bill. Curiously, the cut was deep in the transportation portion of the budget proposal. The athletic commission is part of the New York Department of State.

The Athletic Commission has an executive director to run the day-to-day operations, said Cuomo budget spokesman Morris Peters. Removing the requirement that the chairperson be paid allows flexibility in the compensation structure, ensuring that existing state resources are utilized most efficiently in the operation of the commission.

Hopefully, that means is New York will be putting more resources into the support staff, so they can do the job they need to do.