The Joint Commission on Public Ethics has selected Ellen Biben to serve as its executive director.

Biben is a former federal prosecutor, who served as a deputy in the attorney general’s office, and now serves as inspector general.

New York Senator Carl Kruger pleaded guilty in United States District Court in Manhattan yesterday to federal corruption charges.

Prosecutors offered a complex tale of federal wiretaps, bribes in return for political favors, and Kruger living in a mansion built for the boss of a New York crime family.

Kruger could face a sentence of up to 50 years.

The New York Times covers the news in “After Resigning, Tearful Senator Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes” by William Rashbaum.

Photo of the Moynihan U.S. Courthouse in Manhattan by Americasroof on Wikipedia.

NEW YORK:  Governor Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders announced the appointment of 14 members to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics.  Governor Cuomo chose Janet DiFiore, the District Attorney of Westchester County, to chair the commission.

The new agency replaces the Commission on Public Integrity, which was created in 2007 by the merger of the ethics and lobbying commissions.  Under a law signed on August 15, the new commission came into existence yesterday.

The creation of the joint commission put operations of the prior agency on hold, except for collecting lobbying expenditure reports, financial disclosure reports by state employees, and conducting on-line ethical training courses. Any allegations of unethical conduct it has received will be transferred to the new commission.

Approximately 30 employees remain with the commission, about half the work force when the Commission on Public Integrity was formed in 2007.

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NEW YORK:  The Suffolk County Legislature has approved two bills that would overhaul the county’s ethics rules. One bill would create a five-member board of ethics, to replace the three-member commission. The county executive would appoint two members, and the legislature’s presiding officer, majority leader, and minority leader would each appoint one member. All appointees would require confirmation by the legislature.

The other bill consolidates disclosure and ethics requirements into one section of the county code. The bills are awaiting action by the County Executive.

The Suffolk County Ethics Commission is currently under investigation as a grand jury determines if the County Executive attempted to influence actions of the commission, and if the commission disclosed confidential information.

We now provide information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for Gilbert, Arizona; Savannah, Georgia; Ann Arbor, Michigan; Springfield, Missouri; and Syracuse, New York on our website.

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Federal:

Colbert Declares Victory at FEC

FEC Limits Lawmakers’ Fundraising for Super PACs

From the States and Municipalities:

Alabama

Gambling Trial Highlights Fees Paid to Legislators

Arizona

Justices Strike Down Arizona Campaign Finance Law

Florida

Judge Strikes Down Florida Campaign Finance Matching Law

Illinois

Jury Finds Blagojevich Guilty of Corruption

Massachusetts

Ethics Changes Generate Talk as Proposal to Require Lobbyists to Wear ID Badges Is Likened to Nazi Germany

Massachusetts

Special Education Director Said to Siphon $10 Million

Missouri

Missouri Lawmakers Eat for Free

Nevada

Tougher Nevada Campaign Money Laws Come into Play

New York

New Contribution Rule Limits Assignments to Elected Judges

Oklahoma

Oklahoma Ethics Commission Reprimands NRA Lobbyist

Wisconsin

Wisconsin Justices in Altercation

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.

Jim Sedor is editor of News You Can Use.

Legislators concluded the 2011 regular session Friday evening after reaching agreement on a number of bills.

Governor Andrew Cuomo has 10 days upon transmittal of a bill to sign or veto legislation that reaches his desk.

Photo of the New York Assembly Chamber by UpstateNYer on Wikipedia.

The New York Governor’s Office has released the ethics bill created by the agreement between legislators announced last Friday.  The bill, which had previously been titled the Clean Up Albany Act of 2011, will be known as the Public Integrity Reform Act.

Chiefly, the bill establishes an independent Joint Commission on Public Ethics and enhances disclosure requirements by requiring state employees to disclose income from outside sources and names of clients. The Joint Commission on Public Ethics will have jurisdiction over all elected state officials and their employees in the executive and legislative branches, as well as lobbyists.

The bill provides the Joint Commission on Public Integrity must create an online ethics training course for registered lobbyists with a specific curriculum regarding the public officers’ law and ethics to be completed every three years. Additionally, the bill requires the disclosure by lobbyists of any reportable business relationship of more than $1,000 with public officials.

The definition of “widely attended” event is altered to include any event where 25 or more people other than legislators, officials, or government employees attend and which is related to the attendee’s duties or which allows the public official to perform a ceremonial function.  The bill also allows officials to accept food or beverage valued at $15 or less.

The bill increases penalties for violations of the filing requirements and contribution limits and provides for a special enforcement proceeding in the Supreme Court.

The bill must age three days after its introduction and then can be voted on by the Legislature. The Legislature will recess today until next Monday, making adoption possible next week.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and General Assembly leaders have reached an agreement regarding comprehensive ethics reform.  The agreement titled the “Clean Up Albany Act of 2011,” creates a joint commission on public ethics to investigate violations of law by members of both the executive and legislative branches, oversee their financial disclosure requirements, and oversee lobbyists with newly expanded disclosure rules and definition of lobbying.

The act expands lobbying disclosure requirements, including the disclosure by lobbyists of reportable business relationships of more than $1,000 with public officials. It also expands the definition of lobbying to include advocacy to affect the introduction of legislation or resolutions.   Additionally, the act calls for the state board of elections to issue new regulations clarifying disclosure requirements for independent expenditures.

Photo of Governor Cuomo by Pat Arnow on Wikipedia.

New York Assembly Bill 04933, which is currently before the Assembly Election Law Committee, seeks to impose disclosure requirements upon lobbyists who act as political consultants.

The bill defines political consultants as any person receiving compensation for providing professional services relating to advising clients on political activities, political advertising, campaign strategies, campaign publicity, or campaign management.

Political consultants would be required to disclose the identities, telephone numbers, and addresses of all clients.

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City Council has confirmed the appointments of Herbert Berman, Margaret Morton, Lesley Horton, and Jamila Ponton Bragg to the New York City Lobbying Commission.  Berman, a lobbyist and former Council Finance Committee Chair, was selected to be the Lobbying Commission Chair.

Formation of the Lobbying Commission had stalled for three years as suitable candidates were sought.  The Lobbying Commission is an advisory body charged with making recommendations to improve New York City’s 2006 lobbying laws.

Photo of the New York City Hall by Momos on Wikipedia.

Senate Bill 37, introduced by Senator Daniel Squadron, proposes to curtail political contributions by lobbyists.   The bill limits lobbyist political contributions to $250 per candidate, per election and contributions may only be made between the first of July and the end of the year.

The bill further bars lobbyists from soliciting or transmitting a contribution or a request for a contribution from any person, including a political committee, for the benefit of a public official or party committee.

Photo of New York State Capitol courtesy of UpstateNYer on Wikipedia.

The New York State Commission on Public Integrity has released an advisory opinion making it easier for state employees targeted by layoffs to gain new employment.  The commission announced that the 30-day recusal period set forth in Advisory Opinion No. 06-01 has been suspended as it applies to state officers or employees who have been targeted for layoffs or state employees who may opt for relocation or layoff because their position will be eliminated.

State employees who pursue potential post-government employment opportunities must still recuse themselves from any matters pertaining to that private entity for the duration that the employee remains employed by the state agency, if targeted for layoff.

Flag of New York image courtesy of Wikipedia.

Michael Cherkasky resigned as chairman of the New York Commission on Public Integrity sighting personal conflicts of interest.  Cherkasky explained in his resignation letter that the recent acquisition of Altegrity Inc., where he is chief executive officer, could create future conflicts of interest with him functioning as commission chair.

Cherkasky also identified several concerns he has for the future of the commission including the lack of resources allocated to the commission, the lack of enforcement over the legislative branch, and issues with the commission having too many members and being overly partisan. Cherkasky’s resignation is effective January 1, 2011.