Common Cause RI Applauds Passage of Ethics Reform
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Common Cause Rhode Island has expressed its strong approval for the House and Senate Judiciary Committees passing ethics reform legislation on Tuesday.
"This is an important step in helping restore voters' trust in our elected leaders. Ever since the Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that legislators were immune from ethical oversight, Common Cause has dedicated ourselves to giving the voters an opportunity the right this wrong. We are grateful to the sponsors Speaker Mattiello and Senate President Paiva Weed, as well as all the members of the Judiciary Committees for taking this important step," said John Marion, Common Cause Rhode Island executive director.
In 2009, the Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled that members of the General Assembly are immune from oversight by the state's Ethics Commission for their "core legislative acts" including sponsoring and voting on legislation in which they might have a financial stake.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe resolutions passed on Tuesday will bring a question before voters in November amending the Rhode Island Constitution to allow the ethics commission oversight. Common Cause has supported efforts to pass a similar resolution since the 2010 legislative season.
As GoLocal Reported on May 11:
House and Senate leadership have put forth legislation to restore the Rhode Island Ethics Commission oversight over the General Assembly -- and it has the support of the current and former heads of Common Cause to put before Rhode Island voters in November.
The legislation, which was introduced at a press conference with leadership from both chambers at the State House on Tuesday, seeks to eliminate legislative immunity from Ethics Commission oversight through a constitutional amendment.
“No elected official is above the law,” said Mattiello. “Some contend that legislative immunity yields a fuller debate, but that debate must be safeguarded against conflicts of interest and self-interest. The state’s Ethics Code sets forth high standards and I believe all legislators should be held to those standards. If this bill passes, I will be asking all Rhode Islanders to support this constitutional amendment in November’s General Election.”
The proposal includes additional changes to the Ethics Commission and Ethics Code, including requiring two-thirds of commission members to change any rule or regulation of the Commission. There would also be a prohibition of filing a complaint with the commission once the filing deadline for a given election begins in order to "prevent frivolous complaints and the politicization of the Ethics Commission."
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