Ethics Bill Passes, Paterson Promises Veto
January 20th, 2010
After lengthy debate the ethics package passed the Senate 59-1 with the lone nay vote from Sen. Ruben Diaz. It passed the Assembly 137-2 with no votes from Assemblyman Vito Lopez and Assemblyman Jack Quinn. Now Gov. David Paterson is promising to veto the measure.
Here is Paterson’s statement:
“While there are some good aspects of the ethics bill passed today by the legislature, it does not go far enough to address the underlying issues that have caused the people of New York to lose faith and trust in their government. It is for this reason that I will veto this bill once it has been delivered to my desk. What is now in the best interest of all New Yorkers is for the leaders of the legislature to work with me on a five-way agreement that can pass both houses and that I will sign. We need to restore transparency and accountability to government and assure the public that their elected officials work for them and no one else.”
Legislators thought it was long shot that Paterson might veto the bill as it is basically a symbolic gesture–both houses can easily override it and senate spokesman Austin Shafran has already promised to do just that.
Paterson has been critical of the legislature’s bill since it was announced. He is touting his own plan that is far more reaching but is unlikely to find the votes it needs to pass. Just as when it was announced, legislators were critical of their own package, noting that it does not go as far as it can, but almost all of them hailed it as a step worth taking. “The bill isn’t perfect,” Sen. Liz Krueger told her colleagues on the floor while explaining her vote for it. “This is not a perfect bill,” she noted before adding, “The perfect system is only to elect perfectly ethical people.”
Earlier Diaz, the lone no vote in the Senate, bashed the bill and the fact that it does not require lawyers, doctors, and clergy to disclose their clients. “Not to do that is a mockery, not to do that is a joke, not to do that is a farce,” Diaz told his colleagues today.
By David King on January 20, 2010, 9:22 pmIn category: Albany, Eye on Albany | No Comments »

