A little somethin’ for everyone

BureaucracyBlog had a great post today on why transparency is needed for all of the political spectrum. Here’s a taste:

People have grown disgusted with wasteful pork-barrel spending and plain inefficiency. We must eliminate the secrecy that surrounds government spending. Let the people see how government is spending their money and then you will see responsibility return to government. Whether you believe in less government or believe that more money should be directed toward education and social services, we can all agree that reducing wasteful government spending is in everyone’s best interests.

Most of this information is publicly available, accessible by state employees, but the public can get this information only by sending an open records request, waiting for someone to rummage through file cabinets or computer files and then either pay them to copy the material or travel yourself to Frankfort to view it.

This issue transcends the traditional gulf between liberals and conservatives.

Go read the rest here. Bravo! Let’s keep on keepin’ on with the bi-partisan battle for transparency.

OH: Taking transparency personally

Personal responsibility transparency. Catchy, eh? Phil Kidd, Downtown Director of Events and Special Projects for the city of Youngstown, OH, has taken matters into his own bloggy hands and has been tracking his taxpayer-paid time online here.

I hope this spurs a movement for more transparency from individual government employees and agencies. More transparency, less corruption. Thanks for setting the example, Mr. Kidd.

Another leader in Ohio’s transparency movement: The Buckeye Institute

H/T: Progress Pittsburgh

LA legislators: Loving their no-bid contracts

The Louisiana legislature hit the brakes on their forward momentum on transparency this week in voting to allow State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek distribute no-bid educational consultant contracts. With overwhelming majorities from the House (9-25) and Senate (37-0), the bill now goes to Governor Jindal’s desk. From the AP:

Under current law, educational consultants whose services top a $50,000 price tag must be hired through a competitive bidding process. Pastorek wanted educational consultants hired by the Department of Education added to a list of “professional services” – like doctors, engineers and accountants – for which contracts can be awarded without competitive bidding.

Lawmakers worked on several versions of the language, finally settling on a measure (House Bill 891) that would give Pastorek the authority to skip the bid process for contracts up to $250,000 and only for one budget year. The consultants must hold doctorate degrees in education.

Competitive bidding not only gives the bidding process transparency, but also encourages public scrutiny on bidders and ensures taxpayers receive the best price on state services.

Weekend Round-up

Here’s my transparency weekend round-up:

Connecticut: The bill I mentioned here became law last week with Gov. Jodi Rell’s signature on the steps of the Capitol, where she took her oath of office. The legislation allowing a judge to reduce or revoke the pension of a corrupt public official will go into effect October 1. More from Newsday.com.

Ohio: The Buckeye Institute released a podcast with Americans for Prosperity’s Jack Boyle that discusses transparency and fiscal restraint.

Pennsylvania: Legislation advanced in the Senate to require all taxpayer-funded advertising to include the dislaimer “Paid for with Pennsylvania taxpayer dollars.” Read more here.

Louisiana: Indicted Congressman William Jefferson defies ethics advocates by running for re-election.

Hope you’re looking forward to another great week of transparency reporting.

US Senate Budget Chair Caught Up in Sub-Prime Mortgage Scandal

This scandal is getting scant attention by the mainstream media but it appears that Chairman of the US Senate Budget Committee U.S. Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) got a sweetheart deal from the mortgage firm Countrywide. This scandal comes as a blow to Conrad who has always campaigned on his ethics and honesty. I guess Kent Conrad is just like every other Washington politician!

According to news reports Conrad, appears to have changed his story numerous times about his ties to the CEO of Countrywide and the kickbacks he received on his mortgage.

Fellow Democrats Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Chris Dodd (D-CT) are caught up in the same scandal.

North Dakota’s finest political blog, sayanythingblog, has been on top of this scandal since it broke. I encourage you to read each of these posts and become informed.

The Case for Kent Conrad’s Resignation

Conrad Doesn’t Even Beleive His Own Story About How He Got His Mortgage
Kent Conrad Friend of Angelo

Kent Conrad Changes His Story on the Mortgage Scandal AGAIN

Did Kent Conrad’s VIP Loan Violate Senate Ethics Rules?
Senators as Confused, Victimized Borrowers?

Kent Conrad’s Countrywide Mortgage Deceptions Making National News

More on Kent Conrad’s VIP Loan from Countrywide Mortgage CEO Angelo Mozilo
Kent Conrad Lies About Never having Met Angelo Mozilo

Kent Conrad Benefits from Unethical “Sweatheart” Loan Deal From Subprime Lender

The story has gotten some attention on Fox News. This clip is courtesy of sevenload.com

Link: sevenload.com

This just proves that you do not need to be from a big state to have politicians with ethical lapses in judgment.

AZ Government Employee fired for Misuse of Resources

This should be a lesson to every government employee that wants to use government resources for partisan politics.

Cross posted from Sonoran Alliance

Maricopa County Spokesman, Al Macias, has lost his job after being discovered of using his work computer to conduct personal business. According to the Arizona Republic, Macias, “violated ethics policies by ‘disclosing potentially negative information’ about Brock to his District 1 political opponent, Ed Hermes.”

Macias was also discovered of using his County computer to surf the internet, shop for personal items and for sending emails to local television stations containing, ”potentially negative information about Sheriff Joe Arpaio.”

Macias responded to his termination with the following letter which addresses the charges against him.

Al Macias was on the County payroll at $90,000/year.

Lesson learned – Do not use taxpayer funded resources for partisan purposes!

I (heart) NY Transparency

I love New York: The fashion, the buildings, the pizza (though I am more partial to Chicago-style), the abundant art and musical talent, and… the budding transparency revolution.

The Hudson Valley Press Online reports on transparency legislation proposed by NY Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi. If signed into law, the 6,900+ special districts (towns split into special districts to deliver utility services and parks to certain areas) would be required to be more open to taxpayers.

The legislation:

* Establishes a uniform date for public hearings conducted by the board of commissioners on district budget estimates before these budgets are submitted to the town;
* Requires that budget estimates, annual financial reports, public notices and audit reports are posted on the websites of both the district and of the town in which the district is located; and
* Requires adequate notice to the public for annual budget hearings including the time, date, location, purpose of the hearing and the availability of an estimate of the proposed expenditures and revenues.

I also spotted our friends at Americans for Tax Reform highlighting this article from Eric Singer at the New York Sun. Singer calls upon NY political leadership to take open government seriously by opening the checkbooks to taxpayers. The best part:

Seeking to establish credibility in his new role, … [G]overnor [Paterson] has created working groups to find budget cuts and he has launched a statewide economic development fund. He should also immediately take the next step towards transparency and move to put the entire state check register on line for the public to study. I am sure we would learn a lot. Speaker Silver and State Senator Bruno should welcome this change, and ratify it in the Assembly and the Senate — although this can be done just by Executive Order in the same way PEG and Project Sunshine were started.

Mr. Bloomberg is an information age entrepreneur who has made billions of dollars in the private economy by getting timely information at the speed of light to Wall Street. I cannot think of anyone more qualified to bring this revolution to New York City, thereby leaving his personal stamp on the bureaucratic behemoth New York City has become.

Well said, Mr. Singer.

OK Auditor: GUILTY

The corruption trial and political career of Auditor Jeff McMahan and his wife, Lori, came to a close Saturday with a guilty verdict on three of the eight felony counts. Each will likely to serve time for accepting cash, trips, jewelry, and campaign contributions from Steve Phipps (the Tony Rezko of Oklahoma) in exchange for favorable treatment for Phipps’ businesses from the Auditor’s office.

Amid threats of impeachment, McMahan stepped down from office today. Talks of replacement Auditors have been circulating widely throughout the state in the last few weeks, with Gary Jones, Republican Party chairman who lost to McMahan in 2002 and 2006, publicly promoting himself for the appointment.

The Oklahoman has the story:

State Republican Party Chairman Gary Jones, who lost to McMahan in statewide elections in 2002 and 2006, has been openly campaigning for the auditor job recently. Jones publicly questioned the financing of McMahan’s campaign during this past election cycle.

“I knew there were some things that had happened that had affected the outcome of the race,” Jones said this afternoon.

Jones said the jury’s verdict shows that McMahan stole the election. He said that puts Henry in a unique position “to fix a wrong” by appointing him as the next state auditor and inspector.

Jones had asked to speak with the governor about the possibility of replacing McMahan before the conviction and said Monday that he will renew his call to Henry to discuss the issue.

Sund didn’t rule out the possibility that Henry could appoint a Republican to the post.

“The bottom line is he’ll pick who is the best person for the job,” regardless of party, Sund said this morning.

However, the three statewide elected officials Henry has appointed in his time in office are all Democrats: Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland, State Treasurer Scott Meacham and Corporation Commissioner Jim Roth.

Another sad day for Oklahoma with more Phipps-fallout likely to come.

If corruption inspires YOU to get involved with your community’s transparency, please visit Sunshine Review to learn how you can help track your tax dollars and hold your officials accountable.

Two thumbs up for CA and CT

Some quality transparency work is being done by state legislatures across the country. A couple of my recent favorites:

California: Don’t battle with people that buy ink by the barrel

The California Chronicle reports on legislation aimed at keeping taxpayers in the loop on how their cash is spent.

Senate Bill 1696, authored by Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), would prohibit a state or local agency from allowing an outside entity to control the disclosure of information that is otherwise subject to the state´s Public Records Act. In addition, the bill would specify that regardless of any contract term to the contrary, a contract for the purpose of conducting a review, audit, or report between a private entity and a state or local agency is subject to the same disclosure requirements as other public records.

The need for the measure arose from the denial of a January 2007 request by the San Francisco Chronicle to the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF). UCSF refused to release an independent review of its finances or even the name of the firm that was issued a contract for $165,000 to carry out the review. UCSF claimed the auditing firm controlled the confidentiality of the contract and the audit.

I’m glad most newspapers are on our side.

Connecticut: No pension for you! (unless you have a union contract)

The Connecticut legislature approved a measure Thursday that would empower the state to revoke the pension of any elected official or state worker convicted of corruption. Newsday.com also tells us the bill will also:

_ Makes failure to report a bribe and failing to report witnessing a bribe a crime.

_ Includes the governor’s spouse as a “public official” under the ethics code.

_ Limits gifts to public officials for major life events, such as the birth of a child, to $1,000 or less.

_ Prohibits state contractors from offering a job to a state employee who participated significantly in awarding a state contract to that firm.

Since we try not to make the Perfect the enemy of the Good, we applaud the legislators that worked to give taxpayers some justice in public corruption cases. For states that have public officials on trial (SEE BELOW): Take Note.

McMahan: FBI agents are liars- I did nothing wrong

There was more news from the trial of OK state Auditor Jeff McMahan in today’s Oklahoman. McMahan proclaimed his innocence when he took the stand in his own defense yesterday, claiming the FBI agents were not telling the truth.

And add a little thwarting of democracy to the rap sheet:

Much of the auditor’s two hours under cross-examination focused on the $77,600 Phipps admitted giving Jeff McMahan’s 2002 campaign through “straw donors” to avoid the $5,000 contribution limit.

Line by line, contributor by phony contributor, Guthrie went over Jeff McMahan’s 2002 campaign contribution reports, making him acknowledge all 46 contributions that Phipps made were illegal.

“You stole that election, didn’t you?” Guthrie asked.

“I didn’t think I was stealing anything at the time,” Jeff McMahan said.

He said he felt uncomfortable with many of the contributions he received that year, including a $5,000 donation from former state Sen. Gene Stipe, whom the auditor referred to as “a bad man.” He said he didn’t return the contribution because he was told his campaign needed the money.

Hey, McMahan, even if you close your eyes really tight and say “Sally Jesse Raphael” 40 times backwards, the Feds will still be at your doorstep if you take dirty money. Can someone PLEASE tell me why Oklahoman taxpayers are STILL paying this guy’s salary?

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