Nicholas A. Spano

Nicholas A. Spano
Member of the New York Senate from the 35th district
In office 1987–2006
Preceded by	John E. Flynn
Succeeded by	Andrea Stewart-Cousins
Member of the New York State Assembly from the 87th, later the 83rd district
In office 1979–1986
Personal details
Born	1953 (age 62–63)[1][2]
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Linda
Children	Two
Residence	Yonkers, New York
Alma mater	Iona College
Profession	Politician, commercial real estate agent, lobbyist
Website	http://www.empireplanning.com/

Nicholas A. Spano (born 1953) is an American politician from New York.

Biography

Spano's paternal grandfather, also named Nicholas, emigrated with two brothers from the Italian province of Bari to the United States in 1918.^[2] Spano's father Leonard ran for public office in 1967, employing his son Nicholas in door-to-door campaigning.^[2] After losing in 1967, Leonard became a county legislator in 1971, an office he held until 1993 when he was elected to the job of Westchester county clerk.^[2]

Nicholas Spano grew up in Yonkers as the oldest of 16 children of Leonard and Josephine Spano;^[1] He is a graduate of St. Peter's Elementary School in Yonkers and Iona College in New Rochelle, New York. He and his wife Linda reside in Yonkers.^[1] Spano has two children, Lenny and Christina.^[1]

Spano entered politics as a Republican. He was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1979 to 1986, sitting in the 183rd, 184th, 185th and 186th New York State Legislatures.

He was a member of the New York State Senate from 1987 to 2008, sitting in the 187th, 188th, 189th, 190th, 191st, 192nd, 193rd, 194th, 195th and 196th New York State Legislatures.

He represented Yonkers and surrounding areas in the Legislature. During his state senate career he served on the Rules, Transportation, Finance, Education, Health, and Racing, Gaming, and Wagering committees, chaired the Senate Investigations Committee,as was the Senior Assistant Majority Leader.

In 2004, Spano won re-election by only 18 votes after facing a serious challenge by Westchester County Legislator Andrea Stewart-Cousins.^[3] During his run for re-election in 2006, Stewart-Cousins ran against him again, this time with the support of Democrats Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Eliot Spitzer, David Paterson and Andrew Cuomo, she won;^[3] he conceded defeat on November 16, 2006.

Spano subsequently become involved in commercial real estate^[4][5] as well as lobbying state and local governments in New York through Empire Strategic Planning, a firm he established after his defeat.^[6]

In 2012 Spano was indicted for Federal Income Tax evasion. Spano pleaded guilty to a single felony count. He admitted that he underreported his income — $42,419 in federal income taxes and $10,605 in state taxes — from 2000 to 2008. He was to be sentenced in June 2012.^[7]

References

1. Elsa Brenner (June 17, 2007). "Working Under a New Title, but Using the Same Albany Charm". The New York Times. Retrieved March 20, 2011. Mr. Spano, 54
2. Joseph Berger (April 26, 1996). "When County Politics Is a Family Business;Westchester Feels the Spanos' Presence". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2011. Nicholas, now 42, and Michael, 32, were both Republican district leaders in Yonkers at 18. Nicholas won his bid for the Assembly at 25.
3. Danny Hakim (November 5, 2006). "Small Senate Battle, Big Names". Yonkers Professionals Network. Retrieved August 1, 2011. Former President Bill Clinton, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Eliot Spitzer, David Paterson and Andrew Cuomo all made their pitch for Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who lost by 18 votes to Senator Nicholas Spano in 2004.
4. Glenn Blain (April 25, 2007). "Introducing Nick Spano, real estate agent". Politics on the Hudson. Retrieved August 1, 2011. At a press conference in Yonkers this morning, Spano was introduced as the latest addition to Prudential Rand’s Commercial Services division. Spano, who received his real estate license a week ago, described his new job as an outgrowth of his work in the Senate.
5. Joseph Berger (April 2, 2010). "Yonkers campus sells for $14 million". Yonkers Professionals Network. Retrieved August 1, 2011. Rand Commercial Services brokered the sale for both buyer and seller. Adler and Nicholas Spano, a Rand agent and former state senator from Yonkers, negotiated the sale.
6. "Executive Team". Empire Strategic Planning. Retrieved August 1, 2011.
7. Richard Liebson (February 11, 2012). "Nick Spano pleads guilty to tax felony: 'I did not pay'". Yonkers Professionals Network. Retrieved June 1, 2012. Former state Sen. Nick Spano, an influential lobbyist and the brother of the mayor of Yonkers, was released on $100,000 bond until he’s sentenced in June.