Former D.C. mayor Anthony Williams starts work at Arent Fox today as the director of a new practice dedicated to state and municipal finance and management.
At Arent Fox, Williams, a Harvard Law graduate, will advise clients on issues stemming from the fiscal, management, and economic relationships between the federal, state, and local governments.
"It is tremendously exciting that Mayor Williams is joining our growing government relations practice," said Arent Fox Chairman Marc Fleischaker in a statement. "Cities and states across the country will have access to the most innovative thinking on municipal finance and management issues."
Williams, who served as mayor from 1999 to 2007, came into office after helping balance D.C.’s budget as its chief financial officer. Williams led the effort to bring the now-defunct Montreal Expos to D.C. as the Nationals and headed the District’s effort to build the team’s stadium.
While Williams was in office, Washington underwent a period of gentrification, upsetting some longtime D.C. residents who were forced to move into District suburbs.
Williams’ run for a second term as mayor in 2002 was marred by his failure get his name on the voting ballot because he had not secured the required 2,000 signatures. According to the Associated Press, Williams was later fined $277,700 for submitting more than 5,000 forged signatures, including those of celebrities Kelsey Grammer, Billy Joel, and U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, none of whom vote in Washington.
Wilson was also the subject of a probe into whether he improperly raised campaign funds in 2001, Legal Times reported in 2002. The case was later referred to the U.S. Attorney’s office, which declined to prosecute. Williams acknowledged there were gaps in management and later implemented a set of new ethics guidelines for the mayor's office. During the investigation, Williams was represented by Covington & Burling’s Anthony Herman.
Despite the investigation, Williams was reelected in a write-in campaign and served until 2007.
After leaving office, Williams helped found and served as the chief executive officer of Primum Public Realty Trust, a real estate entity that works to secure alternative funding sources for counties, cities, states, and not-for-profit corporations.
Williams was in meetings and could not be reached for immediate comment.
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