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Legislators Fending Off Ethics Enforcement -- Who Needs Legislative Immunity?
Saturday, March 7th, 2009
Robert Wechsler
Two months ago, I wrote a
blog entry about the en masse resignation of the Jackson County
(MO) ethics commission, and said that this was a sign that things were
seriously wrong in that county. Little did I know.
One thing I didn't know was the conflict that lies at the center of the commission's selection process. I praised the fact that independent organizations sat on an ethics selection committee. What I didn't realize is that the organizations receive substantial sums from the county legislature, according to a recent op-ed piece by a former county legislative aide, former legislative candidate, and citizen activist. A recent letter to the editor added, "With the appointment process under way, the Legislature wasted no time in drafting more than five ordinances distributing millions of dollars to those organizations."
Due to this, all three members of the ethics selection committee appear to be in violation of the county ethics code, which "prohibits board members from service if they or their employers are in a financial relationship with the county."
Another thing I didn't know was the history of relations between the ethics commission and the county legislature. Even assuming that there is some exaggeration and simplification here, and the author has some axes to grind, it's a pretty frightening picture:
So far, no one appears to have publicly responded to these accusations.
The situation in Jackson County says something about legislative immunity in the ethics sphere. When a legislative body makes ethics rules, but applies them only to others, it undermines the very trust in government that ethics programs are supposed to support. All the constitutional and other arguments (and the Jackson County legislators came up with some original arguments; see my blog entry) cannot change the view that legislators are just trying to get away with unethical conduct.
When the ethics commission did have jurisdiction over the county legislators, many of them apparently ignored their rulings and subpoenas, and withheld the funds necessary to enforce the ethics code against them. A legislative body, especially at the local level, doesn't need constitutional arguments to undermine an ethics commission's jursidiction. Its members have a host of other weapons, ranging from pursestrings to intimidation.
I hope that the op-ed writer was exaggerating what the Jackson County legislature did. But he did show some of what can be done and has been done in local governments across the country to fend off ethics enforcement against local legislators.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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One thing I didn't know was the conflict that lies at the center of the commission's selection process. I praised the fact that independent organizations sat on an ethics selection committee. What I didn't realize is that the organizations receive substantial sums from the county legislature, according to a recent op-ed piece by a former county legislative aide, former legislative candidate, and citizen activist. A recent letter to the editor added, "With the appointment process under way, the Legislature wasted no time in drafting more than five ordinances distributing millions of dollars to those organizations."
Due to this, all three members of the ethics selection committee appear to be in violation of the county ethics code, which "prohibits board members from service if they or their employers are in a financial relationship with the county."
Another thing I didn't know was the history of relations between the ethics commission and the county legislature. Even assuming that there is some exaggeration and simplification here, and the author has some axes to grind, it's a pretty frightening picture:
A few years ago, the Ethics Commission
had lapsed into oblivion (even
though it is supposed to be a standing committee, according to the
County Charter), and a sole legislator pushed to re-establish a
functioning commission. Once re-established, some complaints came to
the commission regarding the county legislators.
One particular complaint alleged the legislators had received services paid for with public money. The commission found the legislators in a conflict of interest and ordered them to pay for the services. Some complied, but most did not.
Next, the commission issued subpoenas to ascertain compliance with their order. Again a majority of the legislators did not comply with the subpoenas or show proof of payment.
The legislators spent thousands of your taxpayer dollars for legal representation in this simple matter and withheld money requested by the commission for transcripts and other necessary expenditures. Financially, the Legislature had blocked the commission’s work.
While all of this was going on, the commission was also putting in long hours, drafting a new and improved “code of ethics” at the direction of the county executive. Once again, the Legislature blocked the commission’s work by adopting the new code but exempting the Legislature from its jurisdiction. Shortly thereafter, the entire commission resigned.
As for the sole legislator who revived the Ethics Commission, he was physically beaten one day after a legislative meeting. In the back offices, the remaining legislators and their aides celebrated with laughter and high fives. The county executive at the time referred to the beating as “the Italian job.” Since then, the legislator’s successor has been warned that failure to do “as you are told” would be met with a similar treatment.
One particular complaint alleged the legislators had received services paid for with public money. The commission found the legislators in a conflict of interest and ordered them to pay for the services. Some complied, but most did not.
Next, the commission issued subpoenas to ascertain compliance with their order. Again a majority of the legislators did not comply with the subpoenas or show proof of payment.
The legislators spent thousands of your taxpayer dollars for legal representation in this simple matter and withheld money requested by the commission for transcripts and other necessary expenditures. Financially, the Legislature had blocked the commission’s work.
While all of this was going on, the commission was also putting in long hours, drafting a new and improved “code of ethics” at the direction of the county executive. Once again, the Legislature blocked the commission’s work by adopting the new code but exempting the Legislature from its jurisdiction. Shortly thereafter, the entire commission resigned.
As for the sole legislator who revived the Ethics Commission, he was physically beaten one day after a legislative meeting. In the back offices, the remaining legislators and their aides celebrated with laughter and high fives. The county executive at the time referred to the beating as “the Italian job.” Since then, the legislator’s successor has been warned that failure to do “as you are told” would be met with a similar treatment.
So far, no one appears to have publicly responded to these accusations.
The situation in Jackson County says something about legislative immunity in the ethics sphere. When a legislative body makes ethics rules, but applies them only to others, it undermines the very trust in government that ethics programs are supposed to support. All the constitutional and other arguments (and the Jackson County legislators came up with some original arguments; see my blog entry) cannot change the view that legislators are just trying to get away with unethical conduct.
When the ethics commission did have jurisdiction over the county legislators, many of them apparently ignored their rulings and subpoenas, and withheld the funds necessary to enforce the ethics code against them. A legislative body, especially at the local level, doesn't need constitutional arguments to undermine an ethics commission's jursidiction. Its members have a host of other weapons, ranging from pursestrings to intimidation.
I hope that the op-ed writer was exaggerating what the Jackson County legislature did. But he did show some of what can be done and has been done in local governments across the country to fend off ethics enforcement against local legislators.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
---
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