UTICA, N.Y. (WKTV) - Before voters can get to the ballot box this election season they have to sift through allegations brought against the candidates.

The latest is about the relationship between the health insurance industry and state legislators.

The Central New York Citizens in Action Group is calling for campaign finance reform and clean elections free of "special interest money."

That goal - based on a new report released by the group about health insurance companies - and their campaign contributions to state legislators.

The report claims Republicans in the State Senate have received a majority of campaign contributions from health insurance companies.

That includes Senator James Seward, who the report specifically names as the number one recipient of that money.

Members of the citizens in action group say it's "strategic giving" to benefit interests of the insurance industry.

But Seward says that just isn't so!

He says he answers only to the people he represents, not to the big corporations who support his candidacy.

We caught up with both sides on Wednesday to get their thoughts!

Here's what they had to say.

"The state legislature has allowed large health care insurers to rip off the public, charge high rates without public accountability," said John Furman of the CNY Citizens in Action.

"People make all kinds of bogus charges," Senator Seward said. "To say that I haven't been active in the area of health insurance, trying to make that available and affordable is a totally erroneous charge."

Seward also says his campaign contributions come from a wide variety of supporters, and that they're all legal and fully disclosed.

He says he won't turn down help from the health insurance industry or anywhere else.

And of course, we do want to mention that Senator Seward is up for re-election in November. His challenger is Caroline Town Supervisor Don Barber.