State Comptroller Kevin Lembo was not happy to find that as a result of a brief encounter with New London Mayor Daryl Justin Finizio he found himself dragged into the budget dispute between Finizio and the City Council.

In a May 4 email to council members, Finizio referenced having “had the opportunity today to speak directly with State Comptroller Kevin Lembo about the fact that the council had underfunded our mandatory payment due to the state.”

The mayor went on to say that the comptroller stood ready to set the council straight on the need to meet all obligations mandated by the state, noting in particular the city’s contribution to the Enhanced Municipal Employee Health Insurance Plan. The mayor wrote that he hoped that the talking to would not be necessary.

“The Comptroller offered to speak to the Council directly to explain that we must pay these obligations to the State of Connecticut,” stated Finizio. “I am hopefully (sic) that this will not be necessary. It would be an embarrassment for the Council to have to have the State Comptroller explain what our Finance Department has already stated on the record: that this bill must be paid.”

Lembo’s spokesperson, Tara Downes, said the comptroller was taken aback when he saw the news coverage about the email.

“He feels it kind of overblows the encounter, which was very informal,” Downes said when I asked her about it.

It seemed odd to me at the time that Lembo would jump into a local budget dispute.

According to Lembo’s office, the mayor went up to talk to the comptroller when they were both attending the “Moving Towards A Gigabit State” conference in New Haven, sponsored by the city and the Connecticut Office of Consumer Counsel. The focus was building “ultra-high-speed” fiber networks in cities as a means of driving economic development and improving quality of life. Finizio has set such development in New London as among his goals. Lembo was moderating one of the workshops.

According to Downes’ account, Lembo agreed with Finizio that the mandates couldn’t be ignored and told the mayor to “let him know” if Finizio “needed any additional information or to explain the situation to someone.”

“And that was the end of it. (Lembo) saw it as an informal, background discussion. He has no interest in getting involved in their local politics,” she said.

The mayor’s account was true, but arguably mischaracterized. He did have the chance to talk with Lembo, who did offer to help, including, if need be, talking with someone. Yet the nature of the email and its admonishment that the council would embarrass itself with a Lembo visit if it did not shape up, left the impression the state comptroller had taken the mayor’s side in the budget confrontation, when Lembo actually knew nothing about it except what Finizio told him.

It may seem a small thing, but relationships, whether they be in government, business or one's personal life, are built on a level of trust and comfort. If a state official feels that he has been used, he may not be so quick to respond next time when that municipal official comes looking for help .

Finzio said he considers his actions appropriate and may yet ask Lembo to address the council if it persists in cutting funding for mandates.

The mayor said he was not surprised, however, that Lembo, as one of the state's Democratic leaders, would want to avoid any apperance he is getting involved in a local Democratic primary battle. And with Finizio facing a challenge from City Councilor Michael Passero for the party nomination in next November's election, it is hard to separate the politics from the budget debate. Passero has led the charge to reduce Finizio's budget proposal and the size of the resulting tax increase.

Logically, you would think Finizio's recognition of the politics would have made him less inclined to drop Lembo's name.

My suspicion is the next time the pair are at a meeting together, Lembo will choose his comments very carefully, or perhaps take an evasive maneuver before Finizio spots him.

Paul Choiniere is the editorial page editor.

Twitter: #Paul_Choiniere