December 9 in Retrospect

It was one week ago today that federal agents appeared on the governor's doorstep to take him into custody. That event, so shocking and yet in many ways so anticipated, has plunged Illinois simultaneously into new levels of paralysis and fervent action. In the blinding glare of national attention, our path to the future is temporarily harder to see.

But before we move too far ahead, we should also note two other reasons for commemorating December 9. It was five years earlier, on December 9, 2003, that the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act was signed into law. The 2003 Ethics Act, as it is commonly known, was enacted, like the 2008 Pay-to-Play law, by the legislature over the governor's veto. The signing ceremony on December 9, 2003 was for an enhancement crafted after a storm of public opinion overcame Senate reluctance, resulting in a law that formed the apparatus of ethics enforcement: the Executive and Legislative Ethics Commissions, the Inspectors General, routine ethics training, and a host of other internal changes designed to ferret out corruption before it reached the scale and scope that typified George Ryan's tenure in public office. Rod Blagojevich signed the new law, the strongest in a generation, on December 9, 2003, five years to the day before he himself was arrested.

The other reason to note December 9 is that on that day, also in 2003, ICPR's co-founder Paul Simon passed away. Though Paul Simon is no longer here with us, his legacy of inspiration continues to guide many who believe that government can be ethical, responsible, and above board.

Now we have a third, far tawdrier, reason to recall December 9. We hope that the date will be remembered mostly not as another step in the final demise of one governor, but in Illinois' forward progress toward a more responsible government. If we in Illinois learn anything from history, it should be that removing one actor from the system will do little to change that system. The events of December 9, 2008, confirmed for many that Rod Blagojevich must go before Illinois' government can right itself. But removing the governor is only one step among many. Until we deal with the culture that embraces unlimited campaign contributions, that allows lobbyists to hide their relationships with clients and officials, that tolerates scorn for FOIA and economic interest disclosure, we as a state will be counting the days until the next Rod Blagojevich comes along.

Tollway Revolving Door Opens Ethics Questions

Illinois State Toll Highway Authority Director Brian McPartlin announced today that he is leaving the tollway and taking a job with McDonough Associates. McDonough Associates is a major Tollway contractor; their contracts in FY09 (ie, in the last three months) total more than $20 million, significantly more than any other year since FY05 and nearly triple the value of their FY08 contracts.

If you think this looks awful, we agree.

The 2003 Ethics Act contains provisions intended to shut the revolving door between state officials and their contractors by prohibiting employment with a contractor for one year after leaving the state agency. McPartlin says he received a waiver from that prohibition. According to the law, the Executive Ethics Commission "shall … grant… [a waiver] upon a showing that the prospective employment or relationship did not affect" the issuance of contracts.

So what to do here? Let's start with some questions. When did he start a job search? Did he approach this company or did the company approach him? Has he negotiated with other firms? When he began talks with this company, did he notify his board and remove himself from any Tollway matters with the firm? When did he get the waiver? Were any contracts awarded after he applied for the waiver?

But it seems we should also take another look at the 2003 Act. ICPR has supported Sunshine in Ethics laws in the past, and we continue to think that the 2003 Act ought to be tweaked to give the public more confidence in how the law is carried out. Currently, the EEC does not disclose who applied for waivers, or even who got them. The law greatly limits what the two Ethics Commissions can tell the public about their work. While this is appropriate at the time of an allegation, we continue to think that the Commissions should be able to say more about final decisions.

It may also be wise to give the Commissions more discretion when considering to grant waivers. That "shall" in the statute doesn't give the Commissions room for deliberation.

The 2003 Act was a gigantic leap forward for the state, but it was not the final word. It's been amended at least four times since it was enacted. McPartlin's departure shows it may be time for another tweaking.