Republicans in the New York State Senate are in talks with Gov. Andrew Cuomo about legislative ethics reforms as demands for changes mount after the recent arrest of the former Assembly speaker.
Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos of Long Island said Tuesday that the goal of the negotiations with Cuomo is "full transparency and strong ethics laws" modeled on effective laws in other states.
The debate hinges on possible limits on the income lawmakers can make from outside jobs - an idea popular with Democrats but opposed by Republicans.
This came one day after the leader of the Senate's Independent Democratic Conference called for a total prohibition on outside income -- something no other state does -- to restore public trust in the Legislature.
And the leader of another Senate faction says he’s quitting his private law practice.
Senate Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein says he’s decided to give up his private law practice.
“While I enjoy and love the practice of law, I think now we’re in an ethical crisis,” said Klein, who says he wanted to lead by example.
Klein’s decision comes after former Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver was charged by federal prosecutors with netting millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks that silver characterized as income payments from two law firms. Klein says none of his clients had business before the state or presented any kind of a conflict of interest.
“It was really just neighborhood practice,” said Klein.
The Senate IDC Leader says he backs a complete ban on all outside income for state lawmakers.
Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos, whose GOP majority rules the Senate, was the second-highest earner of private income in the Senate, after former Speaker Silver, as reported in required annual filings with the state ethics commission. Klein says he spoke to Skelos about the matter, but did not urge the Republican Leader to also quit his private law practice.
Sen. John Flanagan , a Republican from Long Island, is one of several senators who report earning more than $100,000 a year from outside employment, in his case also a law firm. Flanagan says he does not think legislators should quit their private jobs.
“Personally, no, I don’t believe in a ban on outside income,” Flanagan said. “I don’t think there’s any state in the country that has a ban on outside income.”
But Flanagan says he does support greater transparency from lawmakers about the money that they do earn.
Senate Democratic Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and her colleagues first proposed that state lawmakers adopt a policy similar to the one in congress. It limits outside earnings to 15 percent of a lawmaker’s salary. State legislators make just under $80,000 a year, so up to $12,000 would be allowed.
Stewart-Cousins, in an interview with public television and radio, says lawmakers would also likely need a salary increase to enact the restrictions.
"It’s been almost 16 years since there has been a legislative raise,” said Stewart-Cousins. “But I think right now there is more of need to make sure that we are serving the people who send us here to do their work.”
In the State Assembly, Speaker Carl Heastie, who replaced Silver after he resigned, is also declining to take any outside income. But he was non-committal over whether he’d support a total ban or restrictions.
"That’s a decision that we’ll make as a conference,” Heastie said. “I know the governor would like to see something done.”
Cuomo is seeking complete disclosure of outside income from lawmakers, and says he’ll hold up the budget over it.
The developments come as U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, in an interview on MSNBC, says there are a number of ongoing investigations involving corruption and state government.
-- The Associated Press contributed to this report
