- Howard Mills III
Infobox_Governor
name= Howard Mills
caption=
order=New York's
38th Superintendent of Insurance
term_start =2005
term_end =2007
party=Republican
spouse= Erin Rice-Mills
profession= Insurance ConsultantHoward D. Mills III (born
May 29 ,1964 inGoshen, New York ) is aninsurance consultant and former politician fromHamptonburgh, New York . He served as New York's Superintendent of Insurance from2005 to2007 , and previously held elective office in both theNew York State Assembly and the Town of Wallkill. In2004 , he ran against SenatorCharles Schumer of New York for the United States Senate but lost by the biggest margin of victory in state history.Political career and background
Mills graduated from
Marist College inPoughkeepsie, New York in1986 with a degree in political science and fromAmerican University inWashington, D.C. in1988 with a master's degree in public administration. Prior to beginning his public service career, Mills served as the Director of Development atMount Saint Mary College inNewburgh, New York , where he also was an adjunct instructor of geography. He also worked as a business consultant to the telecommunications industry and was the business development and public relations officer for the Myles Financial Services Group inFlorida, New York while a member of the Wallkill Town Board.Mills is a
Major in theNew York Guard , a state militia organization. In the wake ofSeptember 11, 2001 , Mills was briefly called to active duty and later awarded the New York State Defense of Liberty Medal. He is married to the former Erin Rice, and has two sons.Early political career
At 24 years old, Mills won a seat on the Wallkill Town Board. and served two terms over for four years before he was elected
Town supervisor , a job he held from 1993 until 1998, when he was elected to theNew York State Assembly . As Supervisor, Mills lowered taxes, improved the Town’s bond rating, and oversaw a landfill closure, three major bridge replacements and a town-wide road improvement program.Slackman, Michael. " [http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/11/nyregion/11mills.html?_r=1&oref=slogin 3 Weeks Out, Refrain in Senate Race Is Still, Howard Who?] ". "New York Times ".October 11 ,2004 .] Mills served six years in the State Assembly after being elected in 1998. He served as the Deputy Minority Leader, sat on the Banking, Housing, Insurance and Ways and Means Committees, and was a member of the Armed Forces Legislative Caucus." [http://www.cibgny.com//News_Archives_2004/news_archive_0412b.htm Governor Pataki announces new Insurance Superintendent] ". " [http://www.cibgny Greater New York Council of Insurance Brokers] ".December 24 ,2004 .] He was described as pro-choice, pro-Second Amendment, against late term abortion and moderate on social issues.In 2001, two years after Mills left his post as supervisor, state
Attorney General Eliot Spitzer , sued the town in federal court, accusing the police department of petty corruption, civil liberties violations, and harassment. [" [http://archive.recordonline.com/archive/2001/01/19/agcompla.htm PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK v. THE TOWN OF WALLKILL] ". "United States District Court , Southern District of New York".January 17 ,2007 . Retrieved from "Times Herald-Record " article entitled "Text of the attorney general's complaint" onFebruary 29 ,2008 .] [Hegedus, Nathan. " [http://archive.recordonline.com/archive/2001/01/19/nhag.htm Wallkill cops face Spitzer's scrutiny] ". "Times Herald-Record ".January 17 ,2001 .] [Herbert, Bob. " [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9802E3DF163FF936A15752C0A9679C8B63 In America; Police Predators] ". "New York Times ".January 25 ,2001 .] [" [http://archive.recordonline.com/archive/2003/03/01/catbrfs1.htm False arrest claim set for trial] ". "Times Herald-Record ".March 1 ,2003 .] The town entered into an agreement with the state, dismissed the police chief, agreed to the appointment of an overseer and accepted a lengthy code of conduct laid out by the state." [http://news.google.com/archivesearch/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=5-0&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.loislaw.com%2Fgpc%2Findex.htp%3Fdockey%3D14412528%40NYAPP&ei=57THR4eHGajG6gHclpipAQ&usg=AFQjCNGOBiPgE2mkwSKTvFEqWMa589iQkA&sig2=eP1_CPSX7GhzJUDNmXK27Q COSCETTE, v. TOWN OF WALLKILL, ET AL. 281 AD2d 479 (2d Dept 2001) 721 NYS2d 784] " "New York Appellate Division Reports".October 18 ,2001 .] [Barry, Dan. " [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE6DB173CF93AA25752C0A9679C8B63 Seeing Lawless Police Behavior, State Files Civil Rights Complaint Against Small Town] ". "New York Times ".January 19 ,2001 .] The police chief, James Coscette, had been appointed by Mills and unanimously confirmed by the Town Board. [" [http://archive.recordonline.com/archive/2001/01/19/timeline.htm Key dates in Wallkill police controversy] ". "Times Herald-Record ".January 19 ,2007 .]2004 campaign for U.S. Senate
In 2004 he dropped a bid for a fourth Assembly term in order to run against Charles Schumer for the
U.S. Senate . He was considered an underdog from the start of his campaign. [http://web.archive.org/web/20040807054126/www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=222422&category=CAPITOL&BCCode=&newsdate=2/25/2004 Senate hopeful claims GOP bosses snubbed him] . "Albany Times-Union ",February 25 ,2004 .] He was nominated by the State Republican Committee after its fallout with the conservative front-runner Michael Benjamin, who had a significant advantage to Mills in both fund raising and campaign volunteers. [Humbert, Mark. [http://web.archive.org/web/20041027170724/www.benjamin2004.com/press/news/press_051504.asp Major Parties to Anoint their Senate Combatants] . "Associated Press ".May 15 ,2004 .] Perhaps as a backlash, Mills was denied the important nomination of theConservative Party of New York State . [http://t0llenz.blogspot.com/2005/11/remember-senate-2004.html Remember Senate 2004] ,November 20 ,2005 .]He faced considerable difficulty raising money and getting name recognition. He raised only $600,000 for the race, while Schumer's campaign amassed over $24 million." [http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/alsorun.asp?CID=N00000927&cycle=2004 2004 New York Senate Race] ". " [http://www.opensecrets.org The Center for Responsive Politics] ".
December 31 ,2004 .] In the November election, Mills lost in the most lopsided contest for statewide office in New York history, with only 24% of the vote to 71% for Schumer. Marilyn O'Grady of the Conservative Party received 4%. He also lost his own Assembly district, winning only Hamilton County, the least populated and most Republican one in the state. Mills conceded the race minutes after polls closed and before any votes were counted.New York Superintendent of Insurance
In 2005, Mills was appointed by Governor
George Pataki as the New York State Superintendent of Insurance, making him the state's top regulator of that industry. Mills signed landmark settlement agreements with the world’s largest insurer as well as three prominent U.S. insurance brokers, secured auto rate premium reductions, was involved in securing an extension of the federalTerrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) through the end of 2007, and within the Insurance Department itself, created a Corporate Practices Unit within the agency’s Office of General Counsel." [http://www.ins.state.ny.us/bios/bios_ed_sup.htm Official Biography - Howard Mills III - Superintendent] ". " [http://www.ins.state.ny.us New York State Insurance Department] ". Retrieved onJanuary 25 ,2007 .]After a "
New York Post " article revealed that Mills had maintained his Assembly campaign account and continued raising funds while Insurance Superintendent, using them for purposes such as paying for a luxury car, dining out and purchasing gifts, Governor Pataki publicly chastised Mills' conduct.Celock, John. " [http://www.cityhallnews.com/news/132/ARTICLE/1337/2007-11-27.html Mills Mulling Run Against Hall] ". " [http://www.cityhallnews.com/ City Hall News] ".November 27 ,2007 .] [Benjamin, Elizabeth. " [http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:Yxp1W0G7MWwJ:blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/date/2006/12/page/2+%22Howard+mills%22+biography+superintendent&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=6&gl=us Odds and Ends] ". "Albany Times-Union ".December 27 ,2006 .] He served until 2007, when he reentered the private sector and became Chief Advisor, Insurance Industry Group, Deloitte & Touche USA. [Levensohn, Michael. " [http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061227/NEWS/612270359 Mills to take job with financial firm when he leaves as state Insurance head] ". "Times Herald-Record ".December 27 ,2006 .]2008 congressional run
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
