I've got two calls this week asking about the status of Saratoga Citizen's semi-annual filing with the New York State Board of Elections.

Callers have noted that the filing, which was due Jan. 18, is not visible on the BOE's website. The reason for this is that the report is late, but being compiled now, according to Saratoga Citizen organizer Pat Kane.

"We're doing that right now," Kane said on the phone yesterday afternoon, adding that the group is currently reviewing annual tax and financial information.

I also spoke yesterday with NYS BOE Communications Director John Conklin, who initially was unsure if Saratoga Citizen was even obligated to file with the state board because their referendum has not yet been cleared for ballot placement.

Because the group filed a semi-annual report in July 2010, Conklin said, they have a "continuing obligation" to file at least the semi-annual periodic reports and any reports for any period where there is "any activity around the ballot proposition."

They may file a "no activity" report if they have raised under $1,000 in the reporting period, a figure the group may or may not have reached since the July report.

Conklin said the agency typically sends notices to committees who fail to report after five days past the deadline, meaning letters will start to be generated today. If there is no response, they will generate another letter with an "order to show cause" for not filing. Any past-due reports filed up to this point are accepted without penalty.

Committees that fail to respond to the first two letters are then slapped with a $500 civil penalty (charged to the group treasurer), the first step in legal proceedings. At this point committees are required to pay the $500, plus interest, and file the report.

Another note on the charter petition, specifically litigation; As of Jan. 14, Accounts Commissioner John Franck identified the total amount spent on the two law firms hired by the city to deal with the case as being just over $28,000.

He broke it down in an email that included a copy of his court ordered certification of the first petition:

"As of today the total amount of attorney fees are $28,083.52.

Brown and Weinraub, PLLC - $20,520.90

Fitzgerald, Morris, Baker, Firth, PC - $7,562.62"

As I've previously noted, the Accounts Department has $68,044.78 budgeted for professional services in 2010 (line A305 1354 54720 in your 2o11 Adopted Budget).

At the time the budget was passed (Nov. 30) they had already spent $58,204.78 from that line. The contract for Brown & Weinraub to vet the petition was approved by the council July 26, and the contract with Fitzgerald, Morris, Baker, Firth as counsel for the legal case was approved August 27, indicating to me that most of that 28K likely figures into the $58K already spent.