Harrisburg tries to clean up its act

HARRISBURG - Just days ahead of the second major round of criminal indictments in the probe of illegal activities in the Pennsylvania Legislature, Senate leaders introduced a new code of ethics that seeks to keep their employees from doing political work on public time.

The proposed code would prohibit employees from engaging in campaign activity on Senate work time, doing campaign work out of Senate offices or using Senate resources such as computers for political purposes.

It would prohibit Senate employees from serving as an officer on a campaign committee for any senator or candidate for Senate, the use of Senate mailing lists for campaign purposes and the mailing of Senate newsletters within 60 days before an election.

Under the code, Senate employees can't be ordered to perform campaign activities, make financial contributions to campaigns and do any non work-related task.

Penalties for violations by an employee would range from a warning to firing. Penalties for violations by a senator would range from a warning to mandatory restitution.

The Senate plans to hold a public hearing on the code before it's brought up for a floor vote.

"Events over the past three years have shown we need to formalize a clear set of rules so that everyone understand what is permissible and what is not," said Senate President Pro Tempore Joseph Scarnati, R-25, Jefferson County.

"The new rules are clear, easily understood and meaningful," said Senate Minority Leader Robert Mellow, D-22, Peckville.

In announcing corruption charges last week against 10 individuals tied to the House Republican caucus, Attorney General Tom Corbett said a successful prosecution in 2004 of former Rep. Jeff Habay, R-Pittsburgh, for using his legislative staff for political purposes should have put legislative leaders on notice about mixing these activities.

The "Bonusgate" probe launched in early 2007 by Mr. Corbett has now led to criminal charges against 22 lawmakers, ex-lawmakers and aides involved with the House Democratic and Republican caucus. The new charges allege the siphoning of $10 million in tax dollars by former House Speaker John Perzel and others for new computer systems used to help GOP candidates win races.

The investigation continues of all four legislative caucuses, said Mr. Corbett.

Redistricting reform

A House committee approved legislation last week to give the public more say in the next redistricting of state legislative districts that takes place in 2011.

But the bill by Rep. Babette Josephs, D-182, Philadelphia, chair of the State Government Committee, doesn't go as far as an earlier redistricting reform measure sought by the Pennsylvania League of Women Voters.

The league pushed for a state constitutional amendment to put redistricting in the hands of a non-partisan legislative agency or commission in hopes of creating a process that doesn't cater to the wishes of incumbent lawmakers, but rather puts community interests foremost.

To have the changes take effect before 2011, the process to amend the Constitution would have had to be launched last year. But lawmakers took no action on that score.

Ms. Josephs' measure would require the existing Legislative Reapportionment Commission to hold more statewide hearings and public comment on redistricting plans and post information on-line at each stage of the process. The measure doesn't change the makeup of the commission which is composed of four legislative caucus leaders and an outside chairman normally appointed by the state Supreme Court.

Pennsylvania Common Cause thinks the bill would be more effective if it barred the commission from using precinct voter registration figures, precinct voting records and a lawmaker's home address when drawing district boundaries.

"These are very powerful tools if you want to gerrymander a district," said Common Cause director Barry Kauffman. "What the bill still needs is a prohibited activities section."

ROBERT SWIFT is Harrisburg bureau chief for Times-Shamrock Communications, of which The Daily/Sunday Review is a part. E-mail: rswift@timesshamrock.com.

Sign up for Text Alerts

Sign up for e-mail newsletters