Believe it or not, there are times when good government and good politics coincide. This would be so if Northampton County Council adopted a gift ban. One is needed badly.
Back in 2011, I tagged then Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan and State Rep. Jenn Mann for a trip to The Super Bowl. The day after that game, over 30 members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly were absent. Pennsylvania politicians were by no means the only persons who were getting face value tickets so they could avoid having to report a gift. It happens everywhere, in all levels of government.
Does this means these politicians have sold out? No. But it certainly looks that way. It's bad optics. Common Cause's Jay Keck then noted, "The real problem in my mind is one of perception. ... Public officials get preferential treatment by being offered these tickets ahead of the rest of the public. ... It creates real cynicism on the part of a lot of citizens about public officials and, frankly, I think public officials, to their detriment, accept things like this and don't think twice about the effect it's going to have on public morale."
That perception exists locally. In a post about yet another handout to ArtsQuest, I wondered whether elected officials get preferential treatment. A reader responded, "Of course elected officials receive tickets to premium ArtsQuest events. They are not always received directly from ArtsQuest, however. Blue Cross, LVHN and other organizations often purchase them in bulk and distribute them to elected officials and other dignitaries. At Musikfest this year, I encourage everyone to take a closer look at the VIP section of every headliner event. You are likely to recognize some of the faces."
In another story advocating a gift ban in Northampton County, a retired government worker had this insight: "Having worked in local government I can say that the amount of people accepting gifts is staggering. Tickets to sporting events (a big one), lunches, dinners, other gratuities were all something that I politely declined. We shouldn't need a gift ban to know the difference between right and wrong. Unfortunately there is no shortage of people willing to take something for free when offered. This includes both elected officials and appointed staff members."
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One example of this is Northampton County Council member Tara Zrinski, who is now running for Controller. On her public official Facebook page (in which has blocked me), she has twice thanked ArtsQuest for "hosting" her. On August 10, she published a Facebook post that includes pictures of her with ArtsQuest CEO Kassie Hilgert and at a concert. "Musikfest was awesome tonight," she effuses. "What a great view. Thank you ArtsQuest and Kassie Hilgert for hosting us."
Hilgert responds, "Thank YOU for all of the support!"
Since Zrinski is a reliable Yes vote to ArtsQuest requests for county funding, this is very poor optics. As I understand, VIP tickets at Musikfest can be expensive. I have no problem with Hilgert doing what she needs to do to secure funding, but have a big problem with Zrinski for certainly creating the impression that she's for sale.
Not a good look for someone who'd like to be the Controller.
To be fair, I emailed Zrinski (at two different email addresses) on Friday to ask her for an explanation. I also asked her whether she accepts free meals and tickets to different events.
As of last night, no response.
Her silence is amazing, especially from someone who pledged "accountability" as Controller.
Like Bethlehem, Northampton County really needs a gift ban ordinance.
There is a gift bam in the County Constitution, our Home Rule Charter. "No elected official, officer or employee shall receive benefit from the profits or emoluments of any contract, job, work or service for the County or accept anything of value, upon terms for favorable than those granted to the public generally, from any person dealing with the County. No elected official, officer or employee shall solicit or receive anything of value from anyone dealing with the County. This subsection shall not be construed to prevent elected officials, officers or employees from accepting group discounts, group insurance or other economic advantages offered to all elected officials, officers and employees."
It bans elected officials from receiving anything of value from anyone dealing with the County.
But get this. The Administrative Code, in violation of the Home Rule Charter, actually allows officials to be wined, dined and accept SuperBowl tickets. This deviation from our county constitution is illegal and needs to be addressed.
This is both good government and good politics.
16 comments:
Every County Councilman or County Commissioner and County Executive has received at one time or another a "FREEBEE". Ask them and maybe, just maybe, they will be honest enough to tell you the truth. If they say no, they are liars. Don't they get wined and dined when they attend their annual Association meetings at various resorts? They also took their families. You are right, a better law needs to be written banning these perks.
A bag of pretzels for money?? Was it an FBI informant? The guy could walk on water in your opinion but that is one funny story. By the way, Mazziotti can tell a good one too. Of course, he is a right wingnut.
Did you ask Chucky and the boys about Philly baseball games?
Typical government solutions.
"A bag of pretzels for money?? Was it an FBI informant? The guy could walk on water in your opinion but that is one funny story. By the way, Mazziotti can tell a good one too. Of course, he is a right wingnut."
Vic may be a right winger, but is an honest right winger. He once refused to sign the Exec's budget message bc he disagreed with it. The person who wanted $ from the county was known other than The Otter, who wanted to be paid for taking it upon himself to represent the Elections Registrar without authority from anyone.
When will Tara finally decide what she wants to be..when she grows up? It is getting fairly ridiculous now and she needs to step away and take some time away from her political pursuits and the losing of elections. Peter principle now applies to her..she has risen to her level of incompetence.
Heckman and Vargo-Heffner are always at Artsquest. Never stick their hand in their pockets.
"Don't they get wined and dined when they attend their annual Association meetings at various resorts? They also took their families. You are right, a better law needs to be written banning these perks."
I think you got that wrong. CCAP is a pretty dry affair, and their meetings are usually at places like Harrisburg. Hardly a resort. It is actually quite helpful for those interested in things like assessment, emergency management, elections, human services and other core county functions. The problem is not that council members attend, but that too few attend. The county will pay Council members for the mileage, meals and hotel stay. It will not pay for family.
Tara is another Morganelli. He ran for every office under the sun. He always lost and finally got elected to a County Judge position. Tara is no different. She will finally find a job that pays her a huge salary with great benefits just like Morganelli.
I own a small to mid-size manufacturing business. Vendors regularly shower me with everything from meals and liquor to concert and sports tickets. Do these gifts influence my decisions to use certain vendors vs others? Every. Damn. Day. But I'm a private citizen running a private business. I can do whatever I want. Our elected officials are incredibly jealous that they can't use their positions to trade favors, as I do all the time. So they take bribes and are compromised. Gifts purchase influence - regardless of whether it's the public (illegal) or private (perfectly legal) sector. The so-called ethical politicians who simply followed the law don't get extra points for doing what they were supposed to do.
So true they get freebies all the time
Bernie
What’s your thought about the deputy sheriffs who frequent Wawa every morning for free coffee and drinks.
All one has to do is stand in the store and watch the parade
Very bad optics. It's why people have such poor opinions of government officials.
Zrinski reminds me of Fed Ed in some ways. She thinks it’s perfectly normal to accept goodies from ArtsQuest. If she didn’t, she wouldn’t be posting it on social media. I honestly believe Fed Ed thought pay to play was just how business was done. In his mind he did nothing wrong.
There are many who just outright think they are not only better than others, but that they are on the upper echelon. It is called arrogance.
I never have time to stop in the morning, because of who I am as a person (habitually late). But I often see sheriffs in line to pay around lunchtime.
But it could be that Wawa has a store policy of free coffee for officers in uniform, as many businesses do. In which case, it's available to all officers in uniform and would be permissable to accept.
Furthermore, no individual deputy is singularly responsible for or in a position to have a meaningful impact on Wawa's regulatory or fiscal dealings in the county.
I don't disagree with a gift ban, but this is not that.
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