JCOPE Announces Settlements

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) announced five settlements today, two by former state employees for violating the Public Officers Law, and three relating to failure to file lobbying disclosures under the Lobbying Act.  All five of these settlements were entered into in December 2012.

In the first settlement, Governor Paterson’s former Counsel ran afoul of the prohibition on post-employment appearances when he signed RFP responses issued by the Division of Budget and the Thruway Authority before his two-year ban had run.  He paid a $3,500 settlement to resolve the matter.

In the second, a former DEC engineer appeared before the state Tax Department on behalf of another person “in relation to a case, proceeding, application and transaction with respect to which [he] was directly concerned and in which he personally participated during the period of his employment, and which was under his active consideration” in violation of the Public Officers Law.  He paid a $250 to resolve the matter.

In the first lobbying matter, a lobbyist failed to file two bi-monthly reports in 2009, and did not file a 2011-12 lobbying registration or bimonthly reports for 2011 and part of 2012.  He has agreed to pay a $2,000 settlement.

In the last two matters, two lobbying clients failed to file a client semi-annual report in 2010.  Each agreed to pay a $1,000 fine.