Other towns have been left holding the bag for Trump rally costs – NJ.com

WASHINGTON When President Donald Trump left Minneapolis after holding a rally there in October, he left behind a bill of $542,000.

Thats what local taxpayers paid for extra police protection, security barriers and other costs. And the city still hasnt gotten paid.

The city alone should not bear the costs of keeping residents, visitors and the president safe for a campaign rally, and we will continue to seek reimbursement for the event on behalf of Minneapolis residents and taxpayers, Mayor Jacob Frey said in November.

Minneapolis isnt alone. Several other cities, including El Paso, Texas, and Lebanon, Ohio, also have complained about unpaid rally costs.

Nor is the problem unique to the current president. When President Barack Obama flew into Seattle in August 2012 for a fundraiser, the bill to local law enforcement agencies was close to $100,000.

Wildwood Mayor Pete Byron said he doesnt want to foot the bill for Tuesdays Trump rally.

Do I think that our taxpayers should foot the bill for this? Absolutely not," he recently told NJ Advance Media. I will do my best to get a final tally, and I will certainly pass that on to the local Republican organization, and I hope that we get some sort of reimbursement for the event.

Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said the presidents re-election committee is not responsible for the costs.

The U.S. Secret Service, not the campaign, coordinates with local law enforcement for the protection of the president of the United States," Murtaugh said. "The campaign itself does not contract with local governments for police involvement. All billing inquiries should always go to the U.S. Secret Service.

Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., though, said the Trump campaign should be paying those costs rather than ignoring the bills its receiving from municipalities.

I dont want to call the president a dead beat but hes close to it, said Pascrell, D-9th Dist. Let him pay his bills. The campaign should be paying for it, certainly not the states and the cities.

Last October, Pascrell asked the Federal Election Commission to investigate why the campaign was not reporting those unpaid bills as disputed debts, which he said was required by federal law and would let the public know how much those rallies cost taxpayers.

Donald Trumps presidential campaign may ignore their obligation to reimburse local officials for the significant assistance provided at these political events," he said in a letter to the commission. "But FEC regulations on reporting disputed debts clearly state that these disputes must be reported until the dispute is resolved.

The FEC, though, has only three of six commissioners in place, not enough to move forward on any investigation.

The commission is operating without a working quorum and unable to move forward on newly filed complaints and enforcement matters, spokesman Christian Hilland said.

El Paso billed the Trump campaign $470,417 for its costs stemming from a February rally in the city, then tacked on late fees when it was wasnt paid.

Mayor Dee Margo told NJ Advance Media that the next step was to send a collection notice.

We definitely want to get paid, Margo said.

Any advice for Wildwood?

You need a contract with them," he said.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

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Other towns have been left holding the bag for Trump rally costs - NJ.com