Thomas DiNapoli

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Thomas DiNapoli
Thomas DiNapoli

In office
February 7, 2007 – present
Preceded by Tom Sanzillo

Member of the New York State Assembly
from the 16th district
In office
1987 – 2007
Preceded by May Newburger
Succeeded by Michelle Schimel

Born February 10, 1954 (1954-02-10) (age 54)
Political party Democratic
Residence Great Neck Plaza, New York

Thomas P. DiNapoli is the 54th Comptroller of the state of New York. He is a former state assemblyman in New York, who was appointed as New York State Comptroller on February 7, 2007. He was formerly the Chairman of the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee. DiNapoli is a Democrat from Long Island. He is a resident of the Village of Great Neck Plaza.

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[edit] Political career

[edit] Early career

DiNapoli has been active in politics since he was a teenager, when he ran for and won as a representative to the Mineola Board of Education. DiNapoli at 18 was the youngest person in state history to win a school board seat. After studies at Hofstra University, he worked for New York Telephone before he was elected to the New York State Assembly to represent the 16th District in Northwest Nassau County in 1986. He had previously worked for Assemblywoman May Newburger, whom he succeeded. DiNapoli was later elected Chairman of the Nassau County Democratic Committee. In 2001, he lost the Democratic nomination for Nassau County Executive to Glen Cove Mayor Thomas Suozzi, who won the seat. In 2006, DiNapoli was a candidate for lieutenant governor, but dropped out of the race after State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the party's frontrunner for governor, choose Senate Minority Leader David Paterson as his running for lieutenant governor.

[edit] State Comptroller

DiNapoli applied to be State Comptroller to replace Alan Hevesi, who resigned in January 2007. He was interviewed by a panel of two former State Comptrollers, a former New York City Comptroller and a group of legislators on January 24, 2007. DiNapoli was not amongst the three finalists deemed qualified by the review panel. On February 7, 2007, in a joint session of the New York State Legislature, DiNapoli was elected as New York State Comptroller, succeeding Alan Hevesi by a vote of 150 to 56. [1]

In lieu of a transition committee, DiNapoli established a commission to review the comptroller's office. The commission was headed by former Mayor of New York Ed Koch and financial expert Frank Zarb. Also included in this commission are Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, Chancellor of Syracuse Nancy Cantor, and New York City Comptroller William Thompson. [2]

In March 2007, as one of DiNapoli's first public statements as comptroller, he criticized Governor Eliot Spitzer's proposed budget, stating that the levels of spending were at an "unsustainable rate." DiNapoli states that the rate proposed by Spitzer's budget, there would be a $13 billion deficit in three years' time. [3]

[edit] External links


Preceded by
May Newburger
New York State Assembly, 16th District
1987–2007
Succeeded by
Michelle Schimel
Preceded by
Tom Sanzillo
Comptroller of New York
February 7, 2007 – Present
Succeeded by
Incumbent