Avella demands probe into Queens Councilwoman Vicki Paladino on heels of News expose

Democratic City Council candidate Tony Avella is demanding a probe into Queens Republican rival Councilwoman Vickie Paladino on Monday for discrepancies the Daily News unearthed in her required Conflicts of Interest Board filings.

Avella, who previously served on the Council and the state Senate, said in a statement Monday he’s requested that the Conflicts of Interest Board, the Council and the Campaign Finance Board open investigations into Paladino, whom he’ll face in this November’s general election.

“I am requesting that these agencies investigate her disclosure failures as soon as possible to determine if sheer negligence is involved or a deliberate attempt to hide these facts from the public,” he said. “No one is above the law.”

In May, The News reported that based on public records, Paladino appeared to have misrepresented her personal debt on financial disclosure forms filed with the Conflicts of Interest Board.

At the time, Paladino’s spokesman said the debt “was gradually paid off over the course of approximately 14 years on a payment plan” and that “by the time we needed to report, the balance was below the reporting threshold.”

On Monday, her spokesman said he expects the issue with COIB to “be fully settled by the end of this week.”

“We’ve been in touch with COIB, we’re making a few very simple corrections on a standard form, and that’s the end of it. COIB has been very helpful, and there is nothing to investigate,” Paladino’s spokesman said. “If Avella wants to base his campaign on impotent ranting about a personal credit card debt that’s his business. Council Member Paladino will continue to deliver the results for our district that he never could, and looks forward to another easy victory in November.”