Senator Proposes Changes to JCOPE, Eliminating LEC

Earlier today, State Senator Tony Avella (D-Queens) introduced S.7852, which would make broad changes to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) while also eliminating the Legislative Ethics Commission.

The bill would reduce the number of JCOPE commissioners from 14 to 5; commissioners would be appointed by a nominating panel, and subject to Senate approval.  The nominating panel would consist of the Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals; the President of the New York State Bar Association; and the executive director of Common Cause (a good government non-profit).

According to the sponsor’s memorandum in support:

In recent months there have been many high-profile cases involving misconduct of elected officials that has done little to diminish the horrible history of official misconduct and dysfunction that is the hallmark of New York State government.

Although the creation of the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) was a much heralded change in the ethics laws, the actual result was less impressive due to the existence of two separate commissions both responsible for implementing the states ethics law. In addition, JCOPE’s original composition of 15 members appointed through a political affiliation process hinders the commission’s ability to be a non-partisan arbiter of the state’s ethics laws. This was proven to be true in August 2012 following one of the first major ethical scandals since JCOPE’s creation when the state assembly entered into a private settlement agreement in response to allegations of sexual misconduct against one of its prominent members.

In order to make meaningful and effective change to the implementation of the state’s ethics laws, it is necessary to have only one state ethics commission that is comprised of 5 members who are appointed through an apolitical process and whose own ethics are unquestioned.

While Governor Cuomo has said that he is open to making “tweaks” to JCOPE, this bill would seem to go far beyond a few minor changes.

As Senator Avella is a member of the Senate’s minority conference, his legislation is not likely to be taken up by the Senate any time soon.