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Good morning. It’s Tuesday. We’ll find out who’s paying for the lawyers defending former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in sexual harassment lawsuits. We’ll also get details on calls for Mayor Eric Adams to resign amid federal investigations that have shaken his administration.

ImageCredit...Richard Drew/Associated Press

Andrew Cuomo resigned as governor in 2021 amid allegations of sexual harassment that he vehemently denied. Since then, the state has spent more than $25 million on his lawyers. More than half the money has gone toward defending Cuomo and several top aides in four lawsuits filed by three women, and the lawyers have fought hard. I asked my colleague Benjamin Oreskes to discuss Cuomo’s aggressive defense.

Let’s answer a “why” question first. Why are the taxpayers of New York State paying a former governor’s legal bills?

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Because of a state law — officially, Public Officers Law 17, which states that New York will “provide for the defense” in a case involving “any alleged act” that occurred “while the employee was acting within the scope of his public employment or duties.”

Cuomo and his aides were in office when the allegations laid out in these lawsuits occurredmango win, so the state is covering their defense.

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