Pay to Play or Canoodling with Noodlehaus

Dear Nieces and Nephews

Auntie would like to call your attention to item III on the agenda for the Rules Committee on Wednesday: “Amending” Local Law No. 13 of 2013 “Pay to Play and Disclosure Law” . It is actually a repeal of the Pay to Pay law with reference to the Election Law of NYS, not amending the law.

One would expect that attorneys would be able to compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges.

The rationale is flawed, juvenile and unbecoming anyone with a JD. It is clearly political. It is frightening that it was even presented. And while Legislators may not be expected to understand certain legal nuances, they are drafting and creating LAW so they better put on their legal “thinking caps”. They should not rely solely on the advice of attorneys, especially where one is in fear for her job.

The OC Legislative Attorney is basing the rationale for a change to the law on 1) a fear on the part of other municipalities to enact a pay to play law and 2) NYS Case Law (we limit ourselves to the main one, referenced here. Others are cited but not worthy of discussion at this point). 

    

1) Other municipalities are scared?? Are you serious??? How many municipalities have unchallenged Pay to Pay laws? Take a look at these two memos, written for Public Citizen to get a general idea:

Excerpt:

“This memorandum outlines the nature of the federal and state pay-to-play laws that affect campaign contributions from government contractors and documents the scandals and corruption that gave rise to these government contracting reforms. Though each law is somewhat unique in scope and in their restrictions, most of these pay-to-play laws define “government contractors” to include both business entities as well as individuals who receive contracts with the federal, state or local governments. Many of the reforms were in response to large campaign contribution scandals associated with a business entity, but many other pay-to-play reforms were prompted by even relatively small contributions from individuals seeking favoritism in the contracting process or by coordinated giving of individuals affiliated with the contracting entities. What this case record demonstrates is that the awarding of government contracts can, and has been, influenced by campaign contributions, large and small, from business entities as well as from individuals.

And the quote in the memo was written by a former US Attorney and former NJ State Governor:

“It does not matter if the pay -to-play practices are exercised by individuals or businesses, the damage is also the same: undercutting the integrity of the government contracting process.”

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/wagner-case-record.pdf 

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/pay-to-play_state_summary_report.pdf 

There are multiple examples of enforceable, constitutional pay to play laws, too many to list for our purposes today, which is to get out documented word  about the fallacy some of the Legislators, members of the Noodlehaus Goon Squad, are dumping on us. (From this time forward “NGS” to be included with “FOS”)

REASON ONE: DISMISSED!

2) Case Law, NYS Election Law and Clinton County Local Law No 1 of 2000. Also, a Memo by OC Chief Assistant County Attorney Hyun Chin Kim to County Attorney Langdon Chapman (aka “Languish” Chapman)

Castine v Zurlo

733 F.Supp.2d 338 (2010)  https://www.leagle.com/decision/infdco20100811b23.xml 

938 F.Supp.2d 302 (2013)  https://www.leagle.com/decision/inadvfdco140116000665 

46 Misc.3d 995 (2014)     https://www.leagle.com/decision/innyco20141212303 

NYS Election Law https://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/law/2017NYElectionLaw.pdf 

$1-102  

$14-114

Clinton County Local Law #1 2000

https://www.clintoncountygov.com/sites/default/files/legislative_office/pdf/LocalLaws/Local%20Law%201%20of%202000.pdf 

Clinton County NY Local Law #1 of 2000 titled, "Disqualifying Any Person During the Period of His/Her Candidacy for Elective Public Office from the Appointment or Continued Employment as an Employee of the County Board of Elections". Very specific.

A Legal Memorandum of Chief Assistant County Attorney, Hyun Chin Kim, December 11, 2017

In Castine v Zurlo, the issue was a Town Justice being appointed to Election Commissioner (Democratic Party) and later on, continuing in both roles. Her opponent for the Town Justice position had challenged her legally and she pursed this action based on first amendment retaliation and that the Clinton County Law No 1 was unconstitutional. (As an aside, The JUDICIAL CAMPAIGN ETHICS HANDBOOK of the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics: 1. Basic Rule: No Partisan Political Activity). We believe that Being appointed by the Political Party of the County is political.

The Legislative Attorney is citing this case as rationale for repealing the Pay to Play law in Orange County; this case that has nothing to do with Pay-to-Play and campaign contribution limits and with references that are simply taken out of context.

If you reed on, in this very same case, after the section quoted in the proposed legislation for this Wednesday’s committee, you will see:

…"any other law" was intended to reference any other state law — not any other law whatsoever, including local law.

AND

Having found that Election Law $1-102 does not apply to local law, the court denies respondents' pre-answer motion to dismiss in its entirety.

Emphasis added

At the least, this is faulty logic or misreading of case law, at the most, this is DISHONEST INTENT on the part of our County Government and THEIR legal advisers.

And the Legal Memorandum of Chief Assistant County Attorney, Hyun Chin Kim dated December 11,

2017?

Auntie and the Team encourage you to dismiss such a memo. It is authored by an attorney who seems to have a bias based on following direction from political leaders and her husband. (She is married to none other than Mr Paul Ernenwien -Mr. “Earn and Whine”- leader of the Orange Valley View LLC.)

REASON 2 DISMISSED!

ALL involved with attempting to pass this law should be brought up on ETHICS charges and removed from their positions!!!

And just like the Mystery Grant offered by Senator REP CONFERENCE, there is no sponsor listed, a new trend on the part of our County and State Government!!!

The “transparency” (we see right through you) of our elected leaders makes their hit list quite obvious: Pay to Play, Valley View etc. The big issues of yesteryear are not gone, they have merely been delayed.

US Attorney? Well, how much faith do you have in a Trump appointee to act on action taken by big supporters of Trump in the election?

http://www.warwickadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20160609/NEWS01/160609935/Neuhaus-Canfield-Greene-slated-as-Trump-delegates-for-RNC 

https://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/news/local/new-york/2016/05/23/sheriff-gop-leader-among-local-trump-delegates/84785142/ 

 

PS These legislators expect to replace the current pay to play law with this: Election Law$14-114 excerpt:

…”in the case of any nomination to public office, the product of the total number of enrolled voters in the candidate’s party in the state, excluding voters in inactive status, multiplied by $.005, but such amount shall be not less than four thousand dollars nor more than twelve thousand dollars as increased or decreased by the cost of living adjustment described in paragraph c of this subdivision, and…” blah blah blah! Is that Clear?   

PPS The County Website: Beautiful but Useless. The agenda and draft law were listed under “Human Services Committee" not Rules, in case you were trying to find it. Sloppy or more deception? You decide.