A Letter to the Editor From Chad A. Lupinacci On New York’s Ethics

Dear Editor,

Over the last few years, we have seen politicians at every level discuss corruption. Not surprisingly, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll, over 86% of New Yorkers believe that corruption is a serious issue in government. It is sad that such a large majority believe government is making life more difficult and working against our best interests.

Assemblyman Lupinacci

It is all too frequent here in New York that we see another politician being taken away in handcuffs for betraying the public’s trust. While the seemingly constant stream of arrests is shocking, it is even more alarming that it took the entire 2016 Legislative Session for the Assembly Majority to realize that politicians convicted of abuse of power should not receive their taxpayer-funded pensions. Finally, after six months of Session and repeated calls from me and my colleagues, we passed pension forfeiture legislation in the Assembly.

New Yorkers believe that quid pro quo politics has become the national norm and the voice of the voter is obsolete and unimportant. The Assembly Minority is working to change that.

I have proposed and supported some of the strongest ethics legislation in the nation that would once again make government accountable to the people. My proposals include term limits for all government leadership positions, prohibiting the use of campaign funds for criminal defense fees; requiring convicted felons to return their campaign funds to donors; and a real independent ethics commission to investigate accusations of corruption.

These proposals are not only common sense – they are necessary for New Yorkers to trust in government again.

As your Assemblyman, I have worked every day to be accountable to each of my constituents. I have done all I can to be transparent and efficient with your tax dollars. We need ethics reform to hold all elected officials to these same standards.