The Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission fact checks the Herald-Leader in its latest newsletter.

We’re reprinting the entire article in its entirety (with permission):

The Lexington Herald-Leader’s recent article on Kentucky’s Legislative Ethics Commission included several errors and omissions.

The story failed to assess any of the Commission’s 172 published opinions, or the Commission’s efforts to respond to and educate more than 1,500 legislators, candidates, lobbyists, and employers of lobbyists to whom the Code of Legislative Ethics applies.

Also missing from the lengthy piece was any recognition of the independence and experience of today’s citizen-run Commission, especially when compared to the hastily-assembled group of former public officials who dominated the original Commission.

Earl Mackey, the Ethics Commission’s original director who is quoted extensively by the Herald-Leader, was a former legislator who was hired in 1993 despite his total lack of experience in ethics education or enforcement. Unfortunately, Mackey was flat wrong on several points in the story, and the newspaper failed to verify the accuracy of his comments.

For example, Mackey was wrong when he said “tips about legislators dried up” because a 1996 statutory change required a signed complaint to initiate a legally correct and costly (to the taxpayers) investigation of alleged misconduct by a legislator, candidate, lobbyist, or employer.

Actually, all that “dried up” were Ethics Commission investigations based on anonymous letters and phone calls — “tips” which were unsupported by even a trace of evidence.

Read the rest of the article after the jump…

The fact is, citizens file as many or more complaints against legislators as before. In addition, the Commission’s enforcement counsel files complaints based on “tips” if there is evidence of wrongdoing. However, Mackey knows nothing about that, and since he was asked to leave in 1996, he has had no contact with the Commission.

Unhappy former employees are entitled to their own opinions, but they should not be allowed to make up their own facts.

When the General Assembly made some procedural changes in the ethics law in 1996, there was breathless speculation by a few people that the law and the Commission were “emasculated”. That prediction has been proven wrong, but is repeated even today without supporting evidence, if it fits the contours of a news story.

In fact, the 1996 changes did not alter the strict standards of conduct which the ethics law establishes for legislators, lobbyists, and employers.

Those standards have been faithfully applied across the board in the Commission’s public opinions, enforcement actions, and in thousands of conversations and informal opinions designed to assist people in complying with the law.

Despite a handful of fact-free opinions, the Herald-Leader’s story did include a quote correctly pointing out that Kentucky has avoided any recurrence of the early 1990’s BOPTROT scandal that shook the public’s confidence in the Legislature.

In the 14 years since the last federal prosecution in that case, no Kentucky legislator has been indicted in a state or federal court for any sort of abuse of his or her legislative office. Of course, that’s what the public has a right to expect, but that’s not always the case around the nation.

In just the past six months, we’ve seen the following reports about legislators in other states:

Alabama – The Birmingham News reports that former Alabama Sen. E.B. McClain is sentenced to six years in federal prison for taking kickbacks in a bribery scheme. A jury found McClain guilty of securing public funds for community programs and then receiving kickbacks once the money was in hand.

The Montgomery Advertiser reports that former Alabama Rep. Sue Schmitz was sentenced to two-and-one-half years in federal prison on a fraud conviction for using her influence as a legislator to get a job in the state’s two-year college system and then rarely showing up for work. The U.S. District Court also ordered Schmitz to pay more than $177,000 in restitution and serve 360 hours community service.

Alaska – The Anchorage Daily News reports that a fifth former Alaska lawmaker has been sentenced to federal prison for corruption. Beverly Masek, who served in the state House for five terms, was sentenced to six months in prison, followed by three years of probation.

Florida – The Miami Herald reports that former House Speaker Ray Sansom faces official misconduct and perjury charges. The felony charges stem from Sansom’s efforts to steer six million dollars to Northwest Florida State College for a building.

Maryland – The Baltimore Sun reports that a grand jury continues to investigate state Sen. Ulysses Currie in a federal probe into the senator’s work as a consultant for the Shoppers Food and Pharmacy grocery store chain.

Massachusetts – The Boston Globe reports that former Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi was indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly orchestrating a scheme that allowed him to pocket tens of thousands of dollars in payments from a software company while he was using his office to make sure the company won state contracts. DiMasi’s indictment makes him the third consecutive House speaker to face criminal charges, following Thomas Finneran, and Charles Flaherty, both of whom pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges.

Missouri – The Kansas City Star reported the FBI is investigating schemes in which legislative favors are bestowed only after campaign donations are made. Some lawmakers cooperating in the probe said the political culture in the Capitol has become tainted by “pay-to-play,” in which virtually any legislative benefit, from committee assignments to gaining a hearing for a bill, come with a price attached. Also, former Sen. Jeff Smith resigned after pleading guilty to two felony charges and is awaiting sentencing.

New Jersey – The Star-Ledger (Newark) reports that a day after appearing in federal court to face corruption charges, New Jersey Assemblyman Joseph Vas was indicted by a state grand jury on a host of new counts.

The Star-Ledger also reports that Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt announced his resignation. Van Pelt is one of six elected officials accused of taking envelopes stuffed with cash in exchange for promises to help an informant posing as a developer.

The Star-Ledger also reports that Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone and his wife were indicted for allegedly depositing state-issued paychecks for legislative employees into their personal bank accounts and Chiappone’s campaign fund. With the indictment, five state lawmakers have been charged with crimes by state and federal authorities this year.

The Star-Ledger also reports that former state Sen. Wayne Bryant, once a titan of New Jersey politics, was sentenced to four years in federal prison for trading his clout as budget committee chairperson for a “low-work” job to boost his taxpayer-funded pension. In handing down the sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Freda Wolfson said public officials need to understand they cannot use their office for their own personal gain. “You’re not going to get a walk when you engage in this kind of activity,” said Wolfson.

Bryant, who served more than 25 years in the Legislature, told the judge: “I cannot express how deeply sorry I am for the scorn my actions have caused.”

Bryant’s sentencing came the day after federal officials announced public corruption and money-laundering arrests that swept up 44 people, including two legislators, three mayors, and several rabbis. U.S. Attorney Ralph Marra referred to the sweeping corruption, saying Bryant was “one of the architects [of the] crooked world [in New Jersey politics].”

The Star-Ledger also reports that former New Jersey Sen. Joseph Coniglio was sentenced to two-and-one-half years in prison and fined $15,000 on corruption charges. He was convicted of fraud and extortion for commandeering state funding in exchange for a high-paying and low-work consulting job with Hackensack University Medical Center. Between 2004 and 2006, he secretly accepted more than $100,000 from the hospital while helping it secure at least $1 million in state grants. Coniglio is the sixth former member of the state Legislature to be convicted of corruption charges since 2006.

New York – The New York Times reports that former state Sen. Efrain González pleaded guilty to charges he used hundreds of thousands of dollars from nonprofit groups to pay for personal expenses, including credit card bills, rent, and New York Yankees tickets.

The Associated Press reports that former New York Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin was sentenced to 10 years in prison after abusing his authority in a multimillion-dollar scheme to enrich himself. McLaughlin also admitted he used his position as a state representative between 1997 and 2006 to direct state funds to a rigged community association.

The New York Times also reports that former New York Assemblyman Anthony Seminerio pleaded guilty to abusing his position by soliciting for himself an amount prosecutors estimated at $500,000. Seminerio represented his Queens district for more than 30 years before resigning recently. Federal prosecutors said for the last decade he traded upon his office, receiving corrupt payments from people or organizations that had business before the state.

The (Albany) Times Union reports that a federal judge has upheld the criminal indictment against former New York Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno in an order that sets the stage for the government to prove its case to a jury that Bruno was corrupt and used his powerful Senate position to enrich himself.

North Carolina – The News & Observer (Raleigh) reports that imprisoned former North Carolina House Speaker Jim Black may earn early release by cooperating with prosecutors who put him behind bars. He was sentenced in 2007 for accepting thousands of dollars in illegal payments while speaker. Black was the biggest catch in a web of corruption probes that snared several fellow officeholders.

The News & Observer also reports that Rep. Cary Allred, a longtime North Carolina lawmaker who was accused of drunken and inappropriate behavior during a recent legislative session, resigned his seat.

The News & Observer also reports that Rep. Ty Harrell, who has been under investigation over his campaign expenditures, submitted his resignation.

Oklahoma – The Oklahoman reports that a judge sentenced businessman Steve Phipps to a year and a day in federal prison for paying off three Oklahoma legislators to divert almost $2.8 million in taxpayer funds to his businesses. Former state Rep. Mike Mass was sentenced to two years in prison for taking kickbacks from Phipps.

Pennsylvania – Bloomberg News reports that former Pennsylvania Sen. Vincent Fumo was sentenced to four years and seven months in prison for misusing state workers and misappropriating funds from a nonprofit group. The federal court also ordered Fumo to pay $411,000 in fines, and restitution of $1.3 million to the state Senate and $676,519 to a charity he started. A jury convicted Fumo of fraud, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that former Rep. Mike Veon and 11 others were charged with theft, conflict-of-interest, and conspiracy in what prosecutors say was a scheme to divert public resources and state employees for campaigning or other improper purposes.

Rhode Island – The Providence Journal reports that former Rhode Island House Majority Leader Gerard Martineau was the second state lawmaker to go to prison in “Operation Dollar Bill,” the long-running federal corruption probe of influence peddling at the Capitol. In 2007, he admitted to engaging in a scheme in which he took more than $900,000 in payments from CVS and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island. In return, Martineau influenced health care and other legislation to benefit the two companies.

Wisconsin – The Wisconsin State Journal reports that former Assembly Speaker Scott Jensen is facing trial for using taxpayer money for campaign purposes.

These reports (just six months worth!) of dozens of corruption cases involving legislators in 13 states from Alaska to Florida are a reminder of what can happen if public officials veer away from the ethical guidelines with which they are required to work.

Ethics laws are a road map for behavior, but more important, they are a deterrent. However, even strong ethics laws are not a guarantee against scandal, and clear guidance and strong oversight are vital.

Former Congressman Romano Mazzoli, who served 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives and recently completed a four-year term on the Ethics Commission, said Kentucky legislators and others covered by the ethics code have confidence in the Legislative Ethics Commission and its staff, and potential ethics problems are avoided by asking questions in advance.

“Trust provides a framework in which the legislators are comfortable in seeking advice from the staff before taking actions which might be at cross-purposes with one of the ethical rules and opinions,” Mazzoli said. “This, of course, obviates some of the problems which, in another setting, would result in complaints and official sanctions.”

Fortunately, in Kentucky, there is a strong ethics education and enforcement process in place at the Legislative Ethics Commission. At least for the past 14 years, the comprehensive legislative ethics law, the independent citizens’ commission, and the legislators’ awareness of the ethics guidelines have helped Kentucky legislators avoid the fate of many legislators across the nation.

Anyone who has a question or comment about the ethics law or the work of the Commission is encouraged to call the Commission at 502-573-2863 or to review the Commission’s website at http://klec.ky.gov, and send an e-mail.