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Carl Heastie, staff scored $14K in free Celtics tickets from gaming giant — before it won massive $18M NY tax break
An investigation reported that New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and his staff received nearly $14,000 in Boston Celtics suite tickets from gaming and hospitality company Delaware North. Less than three months later, the company secured a state budget tax break projected to be worth $18 million, raising questions about the relationship and the timing.
The tickets were donated to the Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee, which Heastie helps lead, and were described by the company as intended for political fundraising. Delaware North’s lobbyists met Heastie after the March game to discuss taxes on slot parlours; the tax break appeared in the final budget in May, though it was absent from earlier proposals. Heastie said the games were fundraisers and that the campaign had raised much more than the ticket value; the company said its staff followed applicable laws and did not discuss political matters at the games.
In short
- Heastie and staff received nearly $14,000 in Celtics suite tickets.
- Delaware North later won a tax break projected at $18 million.
- Heastie says the games were political fundraisers.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The timing and value of the tickets, followed by a tax break that was absent from earlier proposals, reasonably warrant scrutiny of whether political access and corporate hospitality influenced public policy. Even if the tickets went to a campaign committee and were intended for fundraising, the public has a legitimate interest in transparent decision-making and safeguards against actual or perceived conflicts of interest.
The case against
The reported facts do not establish that the tickets caused or secured the tax break: they were donated to a political fundraising committee, and the company says its staff followed the law and did not discuss politics at the games. Heastie says the events raised far more than the tickets’ value, and the case for the tax break could have rested on policy or economic considerations; timing alone is not proof of improper influence.