Corwin Calls For Personal Accountability In Albany

A Column from Assemblywoman Jane Corwin (R,C,I-Clarence)

May 3, 2013

It seems like every week we open the newspaper to discover yet another scandal has erupted with a corrupt Albany politician. Like many of you, I am fed up. The people of New York State deserve better from their elected officials, yet despite bipartisan efforts to enact ethics reforms, the sad reality is that until individual lawmakers start to take accountability for themselves, the infamous “culture of corruption” in Albany will never change.

To hold them more accountable for their actions, I am calling for enactment of a variety of proposals that institute term limits, limits on leadership position terms, strengthens penalties for violations of the public trust, allows the public to recall corrupted state officials, and removes pensions from state officials who have felony criminal convictions.

Though I believe that, if enacted, these measures would deter more state legislators and statewide officials from violating the public trust, I firmly believe that each individual legislator or official must take responsibility for themselves and their own actions.

Being your representative in the State Capitol is an honor and a job that I take very seriously. Since being elected, I have worked hard to institute meaningful reforms, reduce the cost of living, keep our children safe, and help get Western New York’s economy back up and running. I am very proud to serve you, and fight every day for Western New York.

Although in my years as your representative I have met many like-minded and decent people in the halls of the State Capitol, and worked together in a cooperative, bipartisan manner to effect positive change, there are still too many that are tempted by power, greed and their own personal interests. I am consistently surprised to see these individuals get re-elected, despite their very public ethics violations.

I do not believe that New Yorkers deserve a state government that is corrupt, or that is spending undo time fighting corruption or dealing with scandals – time that could be much better spent improving public safety, helping citizens live happier, healthier lives, reducing the tax burden on residents or helping put people back to work. It is, quite frankly, a disgrace that the legislature is continuously deterred from its real work – the people’s work – by these scandals; however, please know that I am working to send a clear message that such acts are intolerable.

As always, I invite you to share your ideas with me. What do you think would clean up Albany? Please share your thoughts with me by emailing me at corwinj@assembly.state.ny.us.

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