Amid scandals, lawmakers consider crackdown on themselves Ethics reform for D.C.’s scandal-plagued lawmakers could soon include new mandates for enforcement and punishment — including being booted out of office — with a new, independent city commission acting as the government’s ethical watchdog.
The D.C. Council’s Government Operations Committee on Wednesday heard testimony on nine bills it is considering after scandals hit five of the 13 council members earlier this year, including Chairman Kwame Brown’s 2008 campaign. Mayor Vincent Gray’s 2010 campaign is also under a federal investigation.
Dozens of residents and officials signed up to offer suggestions and admonish legislators. D.C. Chamber of Commerce President Barbara Lang said she was concerned that so many suspected and proven ethical violations had surfaced in recent years because elected officials “don’t know right from wrong.”
| On the table |
| Among the proposed ethics reforms before the D.C. Council: |
| > New commission — A three-member commission would be established to handle the city’s ethics issues. The change could require congressional approval if significant changes were also made to the Board of Elections and Ethics. |
| > Legislator training — Require an online ethics training course for council members twice a year to help make sure they are aware of the laws and sanctions. |
| > One-strike rule — Council members convicted of a crime or misdemeanor while in office would have to leave and could not run again. Current rule only bars those convicted of a felony. |
Ward 7 Councilwoman Yvette Alexander, who was fined $4,000 by the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance for misuse of constituent service funds, acknowledged that “we draw the line so thinly in our relations with people and they get sketchy.”
But, she added “until you’re on the other end of what we are and what we do, [you don’t realize] we really … put out what’s best for the council.”
Ward 4 resident Michael Sindram called some of the council’s actions immature. Earlier this year, Brown removed Ward 6 Councilman Tommy Wells as chairman of the powerful Committee on Public Works and Transportation and gave him Committee on Libraries, Parks, Recreation and Planning. Wells held hearings on Brown’s SUV scandal and was sometimes critical of him.
“To eat one of your own is just reprehensible,” Sindram said.
Many who testified said the law governing city officials was generally adequate, but the larger problem is they are not enforced and sanctions not carried out.
Dorothy Brizill, founder of DCWatch, said she has submitted dozens of complaints to the Board of Elections & Ethics with few responses. One complaint asserted that Brown’s nomination for city auditor, Yolanda Branche, made false statements on her resume. Branche’s confirmation hearing was held this week.
Some agreed that punishments were too lenient. Ward 2 Councilman Jack Evans speculated that the $5,000 fine currently on the books for not disclosing required information was looked at by some as a “cost of doing business.” He suggested raising the sanction to expulsion from office.
But legislators also defended themselves. Ward 4 Councilwoman Muriel Bowser said when former mayoral candidate Sulaimon Brown leveled his accusations against the mayor’s campaign this year, no one in city government wanted to “step up” and address the allegations. So the council formed a special committee and issued a report on Gray’s campaign.
As chairwoman of the Government Operations Committee, Bowser plans to include Wednesday’s input in consolidating the nine proposed bills into one ethics reform proposal. She is also considering proposing a three-member commission that deals solely with the city’s ethics, separating that task from the Board of Elections & Ethics.
