Onondaga County Comptroller Matthew Beadnell accused a top-level county official on Monday of making thousands of taxpayer dollars by working a side job during work hours.

Dustin Czarny, the county’s election commissioner, worked as a driver for Uber and Lyft cars while on the clock for his job, Beadnell said at a Monday press conference. The accusation comes after a months-long audit by the comptroller’s office, consisting of more than 300 pages of documents and interviews with both Uber and Lyft.

Czarny’s annual salary is $98,753 from the county, an hourly rate of $54.26. The 94 hours of work time he’s accused of using equates to $5,300 of county money, according to figures presented at the press conference. He does not punch an hourly clock for his job, Beadnell said.

Czarny’s office denied the allegations on Monday morning, telling Syracuse.com that he works more than full time at his county job. He usually picks up ride-sharing shifts at night but rides during the weekdays on occasion, he added. His job gives him flexibility through his lunch hour or into the evening, per Syracuse.com.

In March, the county received a tip from a resident that Czarny was driving for ride-sharing services. They then requested information from both Uber and Lyft for records of his time. Czarny’s audit comes at the same time Beadnell was conducting a routine departmental office which he said will be released in the next month.

Beadnell forwarded the findings of the audit to the county officials who will have a say in the punishment. District Attorney William Fitzpatrick will now review the matter. 

“I am confident law enforcement will handle this matter professionally,” Beadnell said.

Czarny has worked as Onondaga County Democratic Elections Commissioner since January 2013, according to his LinkedIn page. He previously worked as Syracuse’s Director of Parking Violations Bureau, Department of Public Works Projects Coordinator and Legal Collections Coordinator for Syracuse.

Beadnell, a Republican running for re-election in November, was repeatedly asked whether this came from a partisan angle against Czarny, a Democratic Elections Commissioner. He responded by saying he would conduct the same audit from any tips received about county employees. Czarny learned of the allegations early this morning and said he would handle any tip the same way — even against one of his own employees.

“Democrats and Republicans would want to know this information,” Beadnell said. “This doesn’t involve partisan politics. This involves a county employee getting paid by the county taxpayers … earning outside income during that time.”

The audit monitored Czarny’s hours driving for Uber and Lyft in the 18 months leading up to March 2019, when his office received the tip.

Published on September 9, 2019 at 2:08 pm

Contact Gabe: gkstern@syr.edu | @gabestern326