Liu not very adept at fundraising

From the NY Post:

Former City Comptroller John Liu’s state Senate campaign missed the deadline for filing its financial-disclosure statement — and no one there realized it until contacted by The Post Thursday.

The campaign said it resubmitted the documents Thursday and provided The Post with a copy, which showed Liu has just $984.80 in his kitty.

Posting a property on AirBnB will have consequences

From Crains:

Airbnb seemed to be sucking wind after its political foes delivered it a gut punch Wednesday.

The City Council voted 45-0 in favor of a bill backed by the hotel industry and its union allies, a measure that will require the company to disclose to law enforcement the names and addresses attached to every one of its listings in the five boroughs. The legislation, expected to by signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, will help the city to crack down on anyone violating state law by using the site to rent an apartment for fewer than 30 days.

The sole consolation for Airbnb was that the final draft of the bill lowered the fines the city can levy against the firm for every case of noncompliance to just $1,500, down from the original bill's range of $5,000 to $25,000.

The vote followed months of bitter public recriminations between the tech giant on one side and the city's traditional lodging interests and Hotel Trades Council on the other. On the morning of the vote, Airbnb labeled its loss "bellhop politics," and announced it would fund a lawsuit against the city brought by a host who claimed authorities targeted him after he testified at a council hearing.

De Blasio speaking to raise dark money

From the NY Post:

Mayor de Blasio will headline a political fundraiser in Iowa without knowing who’s paying up to $2,000 to see him speak or where the cash will go – despite promising to stay away from “dark money.”

“We know there’s a lot that happens in the public process where there’s no disclosure of who the donors are – I don’t go near anything unless there’s full disclosure,” de Blasio said in February 2016.

Yet the mayor will speak at Progress Iowa’s fifth annual holiday fundraiser on Dec. 19 even though the group doesn’t disclose donors or spending. Tickets range from $30 to $2,000 for VIPs and at least 150 are expected.

Progress Iowa won’t have to reveal who’s paying to party with de Blasio or any of its other donors because it’s registered as a shadowy 501-c(4) non-profit.

Judge orders de Blasio to comply with ethics probe

From the NY Times:

A judge in Albany has ordered Mayor Bill de Blasio’s political nonprofit to comply with a subpoena from a state ethics panel, putting a damper on the mayor’s widening effort to prevent the disclosure of certain communications that he deems privileged.

The decision by Justice Denise A. Hartman of State Supreme Court involved an investigation by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics into whether the nonprofit, the Campaign for One New York, violated state regulations by failing to register in 2015 as a lobbyist.

The two parties argued their positions in court in July, the first public court battle to emerge from various state and federal investigations into the mayor’s fund-raising and political activities.

The ruling, issued last week but not received by the parties until Monday, comes as Mr. de Blasio is also fighting in State Supreme Court in Manhattan to keep emails and text messages between City Hall and a small number of outside advisers — some of whom played central roles in the political nonprofit before it closed down this year — from being disclosed to reporters.

New anti-corruption law doesn't go very far

From NY1:

In the final hours of the legislative session in June, lawmakers passed what they called "ethics reform." But some believe it's more notable for what wasn't included.

"The ethics bill is a major step forward," said Governor Andrew Cuomo. "Is it everything? No. Ethics, in many ways, is like other activities in life. It's an ongoing pursuit."

But critics say the legislation does little to pursue actual corruption. In the last year and a half, the leaders of both legislative houses were tried and convicted on federal corruption charges.

"The legislature and the governor missed a huge opportunity in responding to the outcry," said Dick Dadey of Citizens Union. "Ninety percent of New Yorkers wanted action on ethics reform that basically dealt with preventing corruption, and they did nothing."

"Certainly, Albany had a bad year in terms of trust. You have members of the legislature who were indicted, went to jail. So, they needed an ethics reform," Cuomo said.

The ethics reform requires more stringent separation between campaigns and independent expenditure groups that advocate for specific causes. It also appears to target nonprofit and good-government groups by forcing them disclose their donors.

Ethics reform bills proposed

From the Daily News:

State Assembly Democrats have introduced legislation that would increase public disclosure requirements for groups that lobby in New York.

The bill, according to officials, would also specifically exempt from the definition of lobbying any communications with news outlets, including editorial boards.

In a controversial order that has sparked lawsuits from several public relations firms, the state ethics commission recently enacted a requirement that would require communication consultants who speak with editorial boards about issues before the state to register as lobbyists.

Currently, groups, including noncharitable, nonprofit organizations, that spend more than $50,000, at least 3% of which is devoted to lobbying in New York, are required to disclose the identities of donors who gave them more than $5,000.

Under the Assembly Democrats’ bill, which is sponsored by Assemblyman Matthew Titone (D-Staten Island), the amounts would be significantly lowered.

The bill, officials said, would require organizations registered to lobby in New York and that spend more than $5,000 to disclose the names of all donors who gave them more than $1,000. They would also have to disclose the exact amount donated and how the funding was used.

Under federal law, donations to nonprofits cannot be tax deductible if the money is used for lobbying, Assembly officials said. The bill would make it easier to figure that out.

From the Daily News:

The Democrat-controlled state Assembly is looking to crack down on a major source of outside cash for lawmakers — referral fees.

A plan released by the Assembly on Friday would require legislators employed as private lawyers to disclose the legal work they did.

Lotsa loot for little lawyering

From the Daily News:

State lawmakers are earning big money from law firms — and some of them aren’t doing much lawyering.

Financial disclosure statements made public this month show some legislators earned up to six-figure incomes from law firms without representing a client or stepping foot inside a courtroom.

"I work in an executive capacity with the firm's management committee to develop and advance the firm's strategic goals," State Sen. Michael Nozzolio (R-Seneca County) wrote on his annual statement.

Nozzolio, who earned up to $250,000 from the firm Harris Beach, was one of at least four state lawmakers who reported significant earnings from law firms while admitting they provided no direct services to clients.

Outside income of lawmakers, a thorny issue at the Capitol for years, was put under a new spotlight after the January arrest of then-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan), who was accused of pocketing $4 million in bribes and kickbacks that were masked as legal fees.

At least 17 state lawmakers earned $100,000 or more in outside income in 2014, much of it coming from legal work, according to lawmakers’ latest financial statements.

In the wake of Silver’s arrest, lawmakers have begun providing more detail about their outside work but the disclosures still leave out important information, such as the number of hours they spent at their side jobs...

Shelly won't reveal his income

From the Daily News:

Former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is already taking the Fifth about disclosing his outside income.

In a financial disclosure statement made public late Thursday afternoon, Silver (D-Manhattan) declined to answer questions about his non-government jobs or outside salary in 2014, citing his looming corruption trial.

“Given pending proceedings in Federal Court it is inappropriate to answer this question,” Silver wrote. “However, this answer will be amended upon completion of the proceedings.”

Lobbying ethics bill unveiled in Albany

From the Observer:

Following through on a promise he made last month, State Senator Tony Avella unveiled a bill today that would force political consultants to register and report their activities like lobbyists.

Mr. Avella, a Queens Democrat, said he was inspired by a NY1 report on the growing influence of BerlinRosen, a consulting and communications group that counts Mayor Bill de Blasio as a client, to craft the bill.

“In this time of declining public trust in elected officials, it has become vital that consultants are subject to similar disclosure mandates that lobbyists already follow,” Mr. Avella said in a statement. “By revealing these lobbyists in consultants’ clothing, we can continue to rebuild New Yorkers’ confidence in government.”

Mr. Avella, the chair of the Senate Ethics Committee and a part of the five-member breakaway Democratic bloc known as the Independent Democratic Conference, said his bill would apply to public relations, strategic communications and campaign consulting firms earning more than $5,000.

The bill would require these consultants to register and report their client relationships, similar to mandates that already exist for lobbyists. It would also require annual registration and bi-monthly reporting by consultants, which would be monitored and reviewed by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics. Penalties for failure to report or false reporting would include criminal charges as well as potential civil fines starting at $25,000.

How the tweeding gets done

From Progress Queens:

In an investigative report broadcast Wednesday evening on NY1 Inside City Hall, the journalist Grace Rauh pulled back the curtain on the unregistered lobbying firm, BerlinRosen.

One of BerlinRosen's name partners, Jonathan Rosen, is a close advisor to Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City). Indeed, BerlinRosen worked on the de Blasio mayoral campaign in 2013 and maintains close ties to Mayor de Blasio. A report published last year in The New York Post showed that Mayor de Blasio regularly consults with BerlinRosen by phone.

In 2014, Mr. Rosen attended 20 meetings with Mayor de Blasio, according to a review conducted by NY1 of Mayor de Blasio's calendar. Those meetings have given Mr. Rosen access to inside information about the de Blasio administration.

That insider access gives Mr. Rosen and his firm with access to present his clients' business to Mayor de Blasio, and Mr. Rosen is extremely aware of political sensitivities specific to Mayor de Blasio, allowing Mr. Rosen to guide his clients according to Mr. Rosen's knowledge of Mayor de Blasio's political sensitivities.

One nonprofit client of BerlinRosen, which Ms. Rauh highlighted in her report, was Communities United for Police Reform, a coalition of police reform groups that, for much of 2014, deliberately deescalated pressure for police reform, so as not to embarrass Mayor de Blasio. However, late in 2014, after police reform activists began to demand that Mayor de Blasio hold the New York Police Department accountable for police brutality and officer-involved fatalities, BerlinRosen separated from its representation of Communities United for Police Reform, because BerlinRosen did not want to jeopardize its lucrative business opportunities, which are premised on maintain close ties to Mayor de Blasio.

The political phenomenon of elected officials subjugating nonprofit social groups into deescalation has been described by Jane Hamsher, the publisher of Firedoglake, as locking groups into a "veal pen." The local phenomenon of the "veal pen" was the subject of a workshop as the 2014 Left Forum.

BerlinRosen also represents the Coalition for the Homeless, a group that refuses to hold Mayor de Blasio accountable for the runaway spike in homeless during his mayoral administration, and the external nonprofit lobbying arm of City Hall, the Campaign for One New York.

The Campaign for One New York raises big money donations from special interests, who have business before New York City government. How many favors are being traded either by BerlinRosen on its own behalf or on behalf of the de Blasio administration in order to raise large sums of unregulated money for the controversial lobbying arm of City Hall ?

Ms. Rauh's report noted that because BerlinRosen is an unregistered lobbying firm, the public has no transparency into which private corporate clients the firm may represent or how much the firm is being paid -- transparency that does exist for registered lobbying firms, according to Ms. Rauh.

Another issue raised in Ms. Rauh's report is the fact that BerlinRosen can skirt campaign finance regulations that place a cap on campaign contributions for municipal officials.

Not mentioned in Ms. Rauh's report, however, is the fact that BerlinRoses uses the Campaign for One New York to coördinate its political and lobbying activities with City Hall when, during the normal course of an election cycle, such coördination would be deemed a violation of campaign finance law as amended by the Supreme Court's decision in the Citizen United case.

BerlinRosen's lucrative business opportunities are given to it by its access to inside information about the de Blasio administration, and the public has no insight about how BerlinRosen may be exploiting that insider access, except that, on a few occasions, it becomes known that the firm is representing many sides on the same transaction, a revelation that became clear when it was reported that BerlinRosen was being paid by Two Trees Management, a real estate developer on whose behalf BerlinRosen consulted, in connection with a zone-busting real estate development project at the site of the old Domino Sugar factory in Brooklyn. BerlinRosen was representing Two Trees Management at the same time when BerlinRosen was advising City Hall on other matters.

Avella eyeing behavior of consulting firms

From the Observer:

State Senator Tony Avella, a Queens Democrat, said today he will push legislation that would require disclosure for all political consulting firms that have “substantial contact” with both elected officials and other clients.

Mr. Avella, reacting to a NY1 story about the significant influence the consulting firm BerlinRosen has on City Hall, said he would want these firms to disclose their activities like registered lobbyists already do.

“The fact of the matter is that these firms are meeting with government officials, all the while advocating their outside clients’ interests,” Mr. Avella, the chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, said in a statement. “Whether these firms are directly making requests of elected officials or not, they are in a position to broker agreements, expedite client meetings, and influence decision-makers.”

Mr. Avella noted he already backs legislation that would separate the activity of lobbyists and political consultants–the bill appears unlikely to pass either chamber–and said it’s “high time” to review laws regulating the activities of consulting firms, who critics say perform some of the same duties as lobbyists without having to register with the government.

“It is high time that we review the law regulating these activities and I am committed to developing legislation that would require disclosure for all firms that have substantial contact with both elected officials and outside clients,” Mr. Avella added.

What's applies to the legislature should apply to Cuomo

From the Daily News:

State legislators say they are willing to enact a number of new ethics reforms, but they argue Gov. Cuomo should subject himself to more public disclosure as well.

Republican and Democratic legislative sources say that while Cuomo has attacked lawmakers on the issue of outside income, the governor is making as much as $900,000 from HarperCollins for his recent memoir, which only sold a few thousand copies.

They also say that perhaps there should be a ban on governors giving paid outside speeches. While Cuomo during his first four years has not given such speeches, former Govs. Mario Cuomo and George Pataki did.

New Jersey bars governors from receiving “directly or indirectly” any compensation, salary, honorarium, fee or any other form of income on top of their regular taxpayer-funded salary.

An official in the New York Legislature argued there should be more public disclosure on what guests, if any, are staying at the governor’s Albany mansion.

And, in perhaps the most contentious suggestion, a number of legislative sources say Cuomo’s longtime live-in celebrity chef girlfriend, Sandra Lee, should be required to publicly disclose her income, investments and other financial information that the spouses of public officials are already mandated to reveal.

Silver failed to disclose all his income

From the Daily News:

Already facing federal corruption charges, former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is now being fined for violating state ethics laws for not properly disclosing all his outside income.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics — the state’s top ethics watchdog agency —notified Silver that he faces up to $120,000 in fines for filing inadequate financial disclosure statements in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

Cuomo ready to shut down the government over reform

From Capital New York:

Governor Andrew Cuomo laid out a five-point plan to combat corruption in the State Legislature during a speech Monday at New York University, promising to use his power in the state budget process to enact new reforms, even if it means shutting down the government.

“A governor’s maximum leverage, vis-a-vis the Legislature, is the budget process. In that exchange, the governor can effectively say to the Legislature, ‘Either pass my budget, or shut down the government,” Cuomo said, recalling the federal shutdown that occurred during his time working for the Clinton administration. “It was ugly, but sometimes ugly is necessary.”

The governor’s speech comes shortly after Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was arrested by federal law enforcement officials and accused of taking millions in bribes and kickbacks as part of his work with two outside law firms. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, whose office is prosecuting the case, said he is continuing to investigate lawmakers in Albany, which he has deemed a “cauldron of corruption."

Asked after the speech if he had “any clue of what was to come regarding Sheldon Silver,” Cuomo denied any prior knowledge.

“Absolutely not,” said Cuomo, whose Moreland Commission probed legislators' finances before it was disbanded. “No one had any clue. I was totally shocked on a number of levels.”

At the heart of Cuomo’s proposals are changes he’s previously presented: the creation of more robust campaign finance restrictions, alongside a public financing system and far greater disclosure of legislators' outside income.

The governor also said he would push for a change to the state constitution that would deprive a convicted public official of a pension, end the use of campaign funds for personal use and curtail legislative “per diem” payments to cover only actual expenses.

Shelly's chickens coming home to roost

From the Daily News:

In a move bound to rock the state Capitol, longtime Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver reportedly will be arrested Thursday on corruption charges.

The arrest of Silver, who has been one of most powerful men in Albany for more than two decades, was reported overnight by The New York Times.

While it’s unclear exactly what charges Silver could be facing, The Times reported they are linked to payments the powerful Manhattan Democrat received from New York City law Goldberg & Iryami that he did not disclose publicly as required by law.

A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara had no comment.

UPDATE: This guy allegedly hid A LOT of money.

Next speaker has more serious ethics issues

Click for larger version

From the Daily News:

The leading candidate for New York City Council speaker, Melissa Mark-Viverito, has been leasing out space in an East Harlem building she owns without reporting any rental income on city financial disclosure forms, the Daily News has learned.

Mark-Viverito purchased the three-unit building on E. 111th St. in 1998 with the help of a no-interest city loan, and has been using it as her home.

From 2009 to 2012, three people other than Mark-Viverito have voted while listing the building as their principal residence, Board of Elections records show. Yet, in each of those years, Mark-Viverito reported on her city financial disclosure forms that she received no rental income from the property.

Another person listed at the address, Muneer Panjwani, 29, confirmed Sunday that Mark-Viverito was his landlord, but he declined to discuss the matter further.

“I was told not to comment on this,” said Panjwani, who would not say who told him not talk.

State pols make a mint

From the Daily News:

State lawmakers draw a $79,500 salary from taxpayers for their part-time legislator jobs — but for most of them, that’s just chump change.

A new study shows that members of the state Assembly and Senate took home between $178,140 and $237,941 in 2012 on average, thanks to outside income from investments and jobs with law firms and other businesses.

“Being a state legislator is considered a part-time job and, clearly, a lot of them treat it as such,” said Bill Mahoney of the New York Public Interest Research Group, which released the study with Common Cause/NY on Tuesday.

Lawmakers on average earned far more than the state’s median household income, which was $56,951 last year.

And some earned stratospheric salaries with 20 legislators recording total assets worth $1 million or more.

The revelations about lawmakers’ wealth are available thanks to new ethics disclosures that for the first time required all elected officials to report details regarding their outside incomes. The lawmakers disclosed income ranges, not specific details.

Kim forgot to mention Parkside income

From the Daily News:

Quite a few state officials leave to become lobbyists, but Assemblyman Ron Kim is special: He’s a lobbyist who became an elected official.

Before taking office in January, Kim, a Queens Democrat, was a registered lobbyist for the Parkside Group, an influential lobbying and political consulting firm, his financial filings with the state show.

Kim did not disclose his Parkside ties when he first filed his statement in May. But in June, records show, he filed an amendment disclosing that he made between $75,000 and $99,999 with the firm.

Lobbying records show he was registered to represent such clients as the state trial lawyers association, the owner of the Indian Point nuclear power plant and the powerful Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ.

Before becoming a lobbyist, Kim had been a staffer for former Govs. Eliot Spitzer and David Paterson. He also was a staffer for the City Council and then-Assemblyman Mark Weprin of Queens.

Meeks failed to disclose loan but faces no punishment

From the NY Post:

Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-NY., failed to disclose a $40,000 loan from a real estate broker on his financial disclosure reports but there's no credible evidence that the errors were knowing or willful, the House Ethics Committee concluded Thursday.

The committee declined to punish the eight-term congressman, noting that he corrected the errors and omissions in 2010, reporting the liability that should have been on his annual reports from 2007 through 2009.

The decision not to discipline Meeks was similar to findings in other cases in which a House member corrected errors and omissions that were not in bad faith.

The committee also said the evidence did not establish that the loan from Queens real estate broker Edul Ahmad was an impermissible gift. Meeks has contended the loan terms were in writing but has been unable to produce the loan document, saying he misplaced it.

The committee found Meeks repaid the loan in June 2010 and the congressman stated the interest rate was 12.5 percent.

The committee said Ahmad's lawyer contended there was no loan document signed by Meeks and no fixed interest rate. The panel added that investigators were unable to confirm this allegation because they were unable to interview Ahmad — who pleaded guilty to fraud charges in an unrelated federal case.

Sanders the next one in trouble?

From the NY Post:

Southeast Queens residents traded one politician who’s under indictment for allegedly covering up the theft of state funds for another who is in hot water with the state Board of Elections.

State elections officials said last week that they were preparing to sue James Sanders for failing to file proper expenses in his campaign report due 10 days after his Sept. 13 state Senate primary. After The Post’s inquiry, the Democrat updated his filing over the weekend.

Sanders, a councilman who’s had similar issues in a prior race, last month defeated Sen. Shirley Huntley, who is under indictment for allegedly covering up the theft of $30,000 in state funds from a charity she funded.

The board has also sued Sanders four times over the past three years for ignoring required disclosure reports from 2009 Council race, which he won easily.

“(Campaign) people have called over the years to find out what’s missing and then promised to make the filings and then they haven’t made the filings,” Board spokesman John Conklin said.

Sanders' campaign directed questions to his Council office; a spokesman there acknowledged the error with the recent forms but said he could not speak to the 2009 campaign filings.