County bill shot down
State delegation votes in favor of revised version of proposed ethics legislation
The Frederick County delegation voted against the county-sponsored ethics bill in favor of a bill drafted by state Sen. Michael Hough (R-Dist. 4) at its Friday morning meeting in Annapolis.
The votes broke down along party lines, with Republicans voting against the county bill in favor of Hough’s version, and Democrats voting in support of the county’s proposal. Sen. Ronald Young (D-Dist.3) and Del. Carol Krimm (D-Dist. 3A) plan to sponsor the county bill.
Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner and County Attorney John Mathias spoke in favor of the county bill Friday, but were not allowed to speak against Hough’s version. Gardner said in an interview that she is not opposed to Hough’s intention, but that his version has legal and implementation issues that have to be addressed.
Hough’s last-minute legislation she said, which she received Wednesday, Feb. 1, received no public input, unlike the county’s bill which had “broad community support.” “Representative government was not served,” Gardner said.
The county’s proposed revisions to the Frederick County section of the Maryland Public Ethics Law was initiated and recommended by the League of Women Voters, the county’s Ethic’s Task Force and concerned residents. Current law precludes council members from voting on cases for applicants who have donated to their campaigns. The League recommends extending that “pay to play” section of the law to members of the county’s Planning Commission.
Hough said last week that he planned to revise the county’s bill to reflect more comprehensive reform. The county’s proposal is “weak,” he told The Frederick Extra.
Hough’s version requires nonelected members of Frederick County boards and commissions to step down upon becoming a candidate for elected office; prohibits a business entity, or a lawyer or lobbyist for the entity, with a pending bid or application before a county board or commission, from making a contribution to candidates, and requires disclosure of contributions by the candidate within 48 hours.
“[I am] glad to see the stronger ethics bill advance, and I look forward to working with anyone who has suggestions [and/or] improvements,” Hough said in a text.
The senator will host a public hearing in Frederick County on the legislation soon, he said. His bill is scheduled for a hearing in the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee on Feb. 23, 2016 at 1 p.m., according to the Maryland General Assembly website.
Although some of Hough’s recommended changes make sense, some fear that the bill is overly complicated and requires more vetting, making it impossible to pass this year. The 2017 legislative session runs from Jan. 11 to April 10.
“Hough’s bill is tougher but raises a lot of questions,” said Linda Norris. Norris, a member of the ethics task force and the League of Women Voters, attended the delegation meeting Friday. “My only fear is that if this bill doesn’t pass, the county is left with no new protections for transparency in the next election.”
The next county election is in 2018.
In a letter to the delegation, Steve McKay, county resident and local activist, said that although he applauds efforts to strengthen the county’s ethics laws, he does not approve of the hasty process that resulted in Hough’s rewrite.
“A law that would impact County officials (and not yourselves) has had no County input, and I don’t believe that’s fair and reasonable. More significantly, I found many issues and weaknesses with the proposal, some very significant” McKay writes. Read McKay’s full letter here.
A former member of the county’s ethics commission, Karl Bickel, also wrote to the delegation in support of the county’s proposal. In his email, he expressed concern over what he believes is “a well-intended effort” by Hough to strengthen the ethics laws.
“Though well intended, I believe that it is going to be seen as an effort to scuttle our County Executive and Council’s effort to add a simple but necessary provision to our current ethics law that has been locally vetted,” Bickel wrote. “It will look like an effort to thwart the desires of a local community by introducing legislation at the last minute that has little chance of passage in its current form.”
