Craig Reappointed to Upton Finance Committee

Upton, MA …Today Iraq War Veteran and candidate for State Representative Shawn Craig proudly announced that he has been reappointed by the Upton Board of Selectmen to the Finance Committee.

“I am pleased that the board has reappointed me. I take my duties of reviewing our town’s finances quite seriously,” said Craig. “Public service is not a job. It is about giving back to your community.”

Serving on the Finance Committee gives Craig first-hand knowledge on the town’s financial issues and local aid issues.

The primary responsibilities of the Finance Committee include the review of the town’s expenditures and income, and submitting a budget at the annual town meeting. Craig works with town leaders to help produce a balanced budget that keeps taxes low while providing key services.

“I have the municipal experience to make a positive difference. Talking about local aid is not academic to me. I actually have to work with the local aid numbers for our town,” added Craig.

The differences between the candidates in the race for State Representative are increasing. Craig is the only candidate to sign the no new taxes pledge, endorse the Small Business Bill of Rights, and call for the welfare reform bill to be released from conference committee. On top of that Craig is the only candidate with military, private sector and municipal experience.

Craig is the Finance Committee’s liaison to the Mendon Upton Regional School District. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force. In addition, he is an active member of the VFW and Upton Men’s Club.

Professionally, Craig has 16 years of private sector experience with the majority spent within the financial services industry. He worked for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for 8.5 years where he investigated broker-dealers for compliance with federal securities laws and FINRA rules and regulations. This included both routine as well as special investigations involving the review and discovery of money laundering, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading and unsuitable investments. One investigation of which he was the team lead resulted in the discovery of fraud and misrepresentation at a firm located in Braintree, MA. Craig drafted a referral whereby the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission became engaged along with the FBI. The firm’s owner was detained October 2, 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 17 years in federal prison plus 3 years supervised probation and $9 million in restitution. Craig left FINRA in 2013 to start a consulting business focused on helping small broker-dealers.

Craig earned his B.A. from Roanoke College, where he double majored in International Relations and Business, and an M.S. in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston.