1987 - Feb 15 - Trib - Ethics Code Takes Aim at Alderman, Lobbyists

8/2/2019 1987 - Feb 15 - Trib - Ethics Code Takes Aim at Alderman, Lobbyists

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thics .cede takes aimat a lderm en ,.lobbyistsBy Ann Marie Lipinskiand James Strong~ The ethics code that battled itsway through two years of enemy. sniping at City Hall emerged lastweek with its guns poised largelyon two sometimes cozy groups:aldermen and lobbyists.Though the ordinances Iregula-ting professional b'ehavior alsoapply to the 9,000 city workersmaking more than $40,000 a year,the code breaks little new groundon that score, city officials said. -ltwill, however, invite increased. scrutiny of the city's 50 councilmembers and the men and womenwho make their living trying to in-fluence government action., "There are certain people whosebehavior you will not change withany kind of ethics 'code," said Mi-chael Holewinski, the aide toMayor Harold Washington wholed the administration's successfulefforts to pass the legislation."There are, after all, state and fed-eral regulations that people breakall the time."But Ithink this code will pro-vide a real eye-opener for a lot ofctivity. .J' It will pur lot ofwere not."The ordinance, which goes intoeffect July 1 but does not requirethe first disclosure filing until May1, 1988, affects aldermen on sever-al fronts. Among other things, itprohibits them from acceptinggifts valued at more than $50 andrestricts them from taking cam-paign contributions that exceed:$1,500. . , .It also outlaws a common alder-manic practice known as "wife-swapping" at City Hall by prohib- iting council members from hiringrelatives.onto the city payroll ex-cept for those employed on analderman's' personal staff. In thepast" aldermen have skirted nepo-tism charges by a quid-pro-quoprocess ?f employi,ng one. anoth-

tions with the corporation coun-sel's office they're going to betreated differently," Holewinskisaid.' .But a potential weakness in theordinance is an amendmentworked out hours before thecode's passage last Wednesdaythat, in effect, allows aldermen to1mind their own' store. Though, other city workers will be governedby a seven-member ethics boardappointed by the mayor, aldermenwill name their own committee topolice the council.. That concession was a result ofcharges from some aldermen thata mayor could use the ethicsboard as a witch-hunting arm topunish political foes. Orr, whofought against -this change, said it'could turn out to be the Code'sweakest,link."No one in the real world wouldexpect the city council to investi-gate itself," Orr said. He added,however, that vigorous oversight ofcouncil members' financial dis-'closures by the Cook Countystate's attorney and federal law en-forcement officials would compen-sate for that loophole, _ _" mvestigati


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!,~Ethics, \Continued from page 1would you sit on your hands for a I'year and take the heat for some- ~~~one else? Who's going to ~~, the i, v brave alderman who Willwear"the!: 'jacket and kill every investigationr that comes down the pike?" ,

Under the new code, the mayor;. 'city clerk arid treasurer could be".ousted from office for ethics viola- :" tions, but investigations of top city, Ir,officials would' be conducted by ithe mayor's ethics board, members '

I' .of which must be approved by' a I. city council vote. Moves to oust Ithem would have to be carried out< through the courts in the absenceof any state recall provisions., Washiagton 'was the target of an)msuccessful effort by oppositionaldermen to force him out of of-fice for being i5 days tardy infiling his 1983 statement of eco-

onomic interest under state statutes. II The disclosures required' of lob-byists in the code could turn 'outto be the most revealing. Lobbyistsare among the most influential butanonymous of City Hall's habituesand have long gone unregulated.The ordinance. will change that bymandating" lobbyists to file a re-port of "lobbying activities" and alist of expenses with the ethicsboard twice a year.Lobbyists also will have to makeannual disclosures of their clients'identities and the people or agen-eies they have sought to influence. I iFailure to file could result inpenalties of up to $100 a day.In addition, lobbyists will beprohibited from ,accepting fees tiedto the outcome of legislative' or ~administrative action."Lobbying is a legitimate func-

tion in the sphere of governmentactivity," Holewinski said, "but inI Chicago it's been totally unregu-: .!I!ed an5!iha~.resulted !n"a lo~ of '1-afto(lrn'.m,011s".m-fl\Jence,"p~e9dJjllI~~ donti nave the "fai~test"'idea rI~ho these people = right now. ' I '


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_ "It's just not perfectly clear yet- how this wilt shake out for com-mission and board appointees,"-Oberman said. ' jEven those who served on the iteam that wrote the ordinance dis- Iagree about this 'provision. ;According to Holewinski, people 'j 'sitting on the Chicago Transit Au-thority and the Chicago Housing I iAuthority boards and the Board of 'Education will be bound by the Icode and forced to disclose such I i

things as outside clients. If they re- Isigned, they would be excluded for)a year from participating as a law

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1987 - Feb 15 - Trib - Ethics Code Takes Aim at Alderman, Lobbyists