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No disclosure for Cuomo's girlfriend

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York's government ethics board says TV star Sandra Lee can have many of the taxpayer-paid perks of being a governor's wife without requiring Gov. Andrew Cuomo governor's girlfriend to disclose financial information required of officials' spouses.

Spouses of legislators and top state officials must disclose some business relationships and financial interests to identify conflicts of interest.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics expanded the perks for the state's "first family" in a legal opinion first reported Friday by The Associated Press. The commission says Lee can stay in the governor's mansion and fly for free with Cuomo on state aircraft during official trips as well as receive police protection.

The opinion expanded the first family to include a "domestic partner" with a common real estate holding.

Cuomo declined to comment Monday.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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