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County Commissioner Ethics Authority Over D.A. and Sheriff's Offices
Saturday, November 28th, 2009
Robert Wechsler
According to an
article in the Times-Herald, a Montgomery County
(PA) judge ruled that the county commissioners do not have authority to
prohibit employees of the district attorney or sheriff's offices from
participating in political activities or running for office.
This is an unusual rule. Generally, the limitation of political activity by local government employees applies to working hours, the use of government property and personnel, and coercion of subordinates. In addition, there are many situations where the Hatch Act applies. Such limitations do not, as the Montgomery County law seems to have provided, generally apply to employees' free time.
The suit was filed by the sheriff and the D.A. One of the commissioners said that the law was necessary to keep party politics out of the daily business of government. “We need more ethics and less politics in the courthouse."
According to another of the commissioners, a former Montgomery D.A. who opposed the law, the other commissioners sought to limit future political challengers from the DA’s Office. The D.A. (formerly the commissioner's top deputy) said, “They called it an ethics law, but the truth is their law had nothing to do with ethics. It stunk of politics from the beginning."
But the court decision seems to be limited to "second-class" counties, that is, counties that do not have home rule and have to follow state law. In general, I think that county commissioners should be able to pass ethics laws that apply to district attorney and sheriff offices, although those offices should be able to supplement such laws.
There appears to be an enforcement issue, as well: can the prohibition on political activity be enforced without the D.A. and sheriff's cooperation? If not, it is just an aspirational guideline, but this has value itself.
In any event, I think that reasonable restrictions on political activity are important, and that especially anything that could be or appear to be coercion should be protected against (and this includes, to the extent possible, employee contributions to the campaigns of their superiors). But political activity should not be overly restricted.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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This is an unusual rule. Generally, the limitation of political activity by local government employees applies to working hours, the use of government property and personnel, and coercion of subordinates. In addition, there are many situations where the Hatch Act applies. Such limitations do not, as the Montgomery County law seems to have provided, generally apply to employees' free time.
The suit was filed by the sheriff and the D.A. One of the commissioners said that the law was necessary to keep party politics out of the daily business of government. “We need more ethics and less politics in the courthouse."
According to another of the commissioners, a former Montgomery D.A. who opposed the law, the other commissioners sought to limit future political challengers from the DA’s Office. The D.A. (formerly the commissioner's top deputy) said, “They called it an ethics law, but the truth is their law had nothing to do with ethics. It stunk of politics from the beginning."
But the court decision seems to be limited to "second-class" counties, that is, counties that do not have home rule and have to follow state law. In general, I think that county commissioners should be able to pass ethics laws that apply to district attorney and sheriff offices, although those offices should be able to supplement such laws.
There appears to be an enforcement issue, as well: can the prohibition on political activity be enforced without the D.A. and sheriff's cooperation? If not, it is just an aspirational guideline, but this has value itself.
In any event, I think that reasonable restrictions on political activity are important, and that especially anything that could be or appear to be coercion should be protected against (and this includes, to the extent possible, employee contributions to the campaigns of their superiors). But political activity should not be overly restricted.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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