The city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, has referred Donald Trump’s campaign to a collection agency over nonpayment of a bill related to security costs for a campaign rally he held in 2019.
The city’s Mayor Tim Keller said the bill for $211,175.94 covers security costs stemming from Trump’s overnight stay in Albuquerque before the rally in Rio Rancho on Sept. 16, 2019, according to the Associated Press.
“In my mind, he owes us a lot more because there was about a day and a half where we couldn’t even function as a city,” Keller said on The Daily Show.
Keller explained how all of the city’s attempts to contact Trump and his campaign were ignored.
“He [Trump] should be getting these annoying voicemails that, like, we get usually from scam companies where it’s like ‘You owe debts,’” Keller said. “I think Mar-a-Lago is now getting those calls.”
The Albuquerque Journal reported that the Trump campaign said last year that the U.S. Secret Service — not the campaign – should get the bills for public safety costs associated with rallies. The Secret Service said it does not receive funding for such expenses.
Albuquerque is not the only city trying to recover debts from the Trump campaign associated with their rallies.
The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit news organization, reported last year that the Trump campaign had at least $1.82 million worth of unpaid bills across 14 communities.
