Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump owes more than $750,000 to four cities and one county for campaign events — with some bills reaching back eight years, and one topping half a million dollars, NBC News reported.
They are for expenses and to reimburse local law enforcement and first-responders for their costs, noted the report published Friday.
Trump has often been called out for overdue bills for campaign rallies by cities, unlike other candidates he has run against.
Back in June 2019 the Center for Public Integrity published an investigation that found 10 city authorities were then seeking at least $841,219 from the Trump campaign for expenses, such as policing, that they had incurred during rallies. Among those listed then included Tucson, Arizona; Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Erie, Pennsylvania; Lebanon, Ohio; and Burlington, Vermont.
Authorities from the five locations named in the NBC News report said they have sent the bills to the Trump campaign for payment.
El Paso, Texas, said it is still owed a hefty $569,200 in expenses from 2019, the report said, citing an invoice from city spokesperson Laura Cruz Acosta.
The bill ballooned from the initial $470,000 owed because the city charged the campaign a late fee.
The El Paso City Council hired a law firm in 2020 to represent the city to collect the money, but four years later the Trump campaign has yet to pay.
“The Trump campaign has not submitted any payments for their debt,” a city spokesperson told NBC News, so El Paso is now asking for the initial fee plus a one-time late fee of 21 percent—i.e., $98,787.58—bringing the total to $569,204.63.
“The City continues to seek the payment of these past due expenses, so City taxpayers do not continue to have to bear the cost,” a city spokesperson told Newsweek last month.
Spokane, Wash., said the Trump campaign still hasn’t paid for costs from a visit way back in May 2016, even before Trump became the Republican nominee that year. That bill is for $65,000.
Missoula County, Montana, said it is owed $13,000 for a Trump campaign rally in 2018. The bulk of the costs — $12,000 — are for police officers and 911 dispatchers.
Mesa, Ariz., is still seeking $65,000 to reimburse local law enforcement for Trump’s October 2018 visit six years ago.
Trump, a billionaire, held his third campaign event last month in Erie, Pa., even though he hasn’t paid the tab for two earlier visits, the report said.
The former president’s campaign owes more than $40,000 for rallies he held there in 2018 and 2023. City officials haven’t calculated his bill for the September event.
Complicating the matter is it’s unclear who’s legally responsible for picking up the check.
A Trump campaign official told NBC News in a text message that “questions related to local law enforcement and first responder costs should be directed to the secret service.”
A spokesperson for the Secret Service, Anthony Guglielmi, acknowledged that the agency, not the campaign, is usually the one requesting local assistance for campaign rallies, though reimbursing costs hasn’t appeared to be an issue with other candidates.
The Secret Service “lacks a mechanism to reimburse local governments for their support during protective events,” he said. Guglielmi said it has “identified this as a critical need,” and is working with Congress to find a solution.
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