Comments on: UPDATED: Ethics Commission Opinion: Did they overstep their Authority?

By: rochesterturning.com: turning the tide upstate

rochesterturning.com: turning the tide upstate — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 14:56:12 +0000

[...] taxes is transparent, behind the scenes, boring stuff. Certainly not all that exciting stuff like tax dollars funding elected officials to conduct partisan activities but boring everyday stuff like - maintaining the [...]

By: robinia

robinia — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 09:30:33 +0000

OK, hate to have to say it, but, this is a job for a “constituent services” staffer of a NYS Senator or Member of Assembly. You see, “Open Government” is just, kinda, the name. How it really works is that an Albany insider has to intercede on your behalf.

This is an interesting point about the FOIL thing, though, and I think worth biting the bullet and pursuing it through the feudal-style “court intercessor” method. An alternative might be to try to get Blair Horner, now working in the Attorney General’s office on open government issues, to help you get an answer. Good luck, and thanks for doing it.

By: Itchy

Itchy — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 18:11:57 +0000

ahh, the irony…

By: Jrviper

Jrviper — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 12:06:59 +0000

Yes, only with regard to FOIL. The commission has no authority to determine what should and shouldn’t be made available under FOIL, to the extent that other agencies are involved. That is, the commission can determine what they, as the commission, will make available under FOIL, but they don’t have the authority to tell the Governor , Legislators, or others in Government what must be made available under FOIL.

By: stlo7

stlo7 — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 11:53:48 +0000

OK - nice post but help me understand which part the ethics committee overstepped - only with regards to FOIL?

Looks like all the other stuff is great. I would it is easy to manipulate mixed use travel to ensure you were able to use a state plane. This should tighten up the rules.