State Senator David Valesky (D-Oneida), a member of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), has introduced legislation that would prohibit political consultants from lobbying, and lobbyists from engaging in political consulting. […]
Archive Ethics
State Senator Indicted for Embezzlement, Obstruction of Justice
Earlier today, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York announced the indictment of State Senator John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) for embezzlement, obstruction of justice and witness tampering. (Read […]
NYC Mayoral Candidate Loses Lawsuit Challenging City’s Contribution Limits
On Friday, a State Supreme Court Justice ruled against Republican mayoral candidate George McDonald in his challenge to New York City’s contribution limits. (Read my earlier posts on his challenge […]
Report: JCOPE Executive Director to Resign
The Wall Street Journal reports that Ellen Biben, Executive Director of the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) plans to resign. She joined JCOPE in February 2012, and is the […]
Election Reform Day at the Capitol
From an Election Law perspective, Tuesday was quite a busy day at the State Capitol. Gov. Cuomo went first, releasing his election reforms legislation (read the bill text and sponsor’s […]
Governor Releases Public Corruption Bill
Last night, Gov. Cuomo released his Public Trust Act (Governor’s Program Bill), which follows the recent indictments of a State Senator, two Assemblymembers and a New York City Councilman (among […]
Assembly Elections Committee to Take Up Bills to Provide for Public Financing of Campaigns, Closing the LLC Loophole
The Assembly Elections Committee will meet next Wednesday at 9:30 am. Among other bills, the committee will consider the 2013 Fair Elections Act (A.4980-B, Silver/S.4705 Stewart-Cousins), which provides for public […]
JCOPE to Meet on Tuesday (Updated)
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) has scheduled its next meeting for Tuesday, April 30th at 10:30 am, at its office in Albany. There is no agenda available yet. […]
Weekend Ethics & Campaign Finance Reform Recap
News articles: Albany Times Union: How much will public financing of campaigns cost? The Journal News: Public campaign finance debate heats up in Albany. AP: Politicians’ promises clean up Albany […]
Campaign Finance Reform Update
For your reading pleasure, below are some links to recent stories regarding campaign finance reform in New York State: Campaign finance reform continues to be a hot topic at the […]