Mar 20
2012
Seeking a third opinion …
Posted 13 years ago
Mar 20
2012
Mar 20
2012
State governments are susceptible to corruption, New York’s moreso than most, according to a new data-driven study done by the State Integrity Investigation. The study gave New York a “D” based on score of 65 out of 100. That ranked New York 36 out of 50 states. New York received a grade of “F” in four categories – state budgeting process, redistricting, ethics enforcement and pension fund management. The Empire State received its best grades for internal auditing (B+) and lobbying disclosure (B-). Corruptions problems are across the nation, according to the report: The stories go on and on. Open[...]
Mar 19
2012
Samual Radford is president of District Parent Coordinating Council, which has emerged the past several years as the most organized and vocal advocate of reforming Buffalo public schools. After a stint in the Marines, Radford, 45, became an activist and organizer on a number of fronts, including president of the student government at Erie Community College, a trainer with the Martin Luther King Institute for Nonviolence, and head of a youth detention center for at-risk kids and a homeless shelter for young women. He’s currently a program coordinator for the Community Action Organization of Erie County. The District Parent Coordinating[...]
Mar 19
2012
Mar 17
2012
Only tweaking the status quo Gov. Andrew Cuomo talked the talk – on pensions and redistricting, in particular – but pulled a St. Bonaventure and came up short at crunch time this past week. The New York Times provides a good analysis. What’s most striking: State employees can still pad their pensions by working a lot of overtime during the homestretch of their careers. Gerrymandered Senate and Assembly districts were accepted for a proposed bipartisan commission in 10 years that, The Times notes “would operate under the purview of the Legislature, unlike more independent redistricting commissions in Arizona and California.”[...]
Mar 16
2012
Mar 16
2012
George Maziarz is probably Western New York’s most powerful state legislator. The Newfane Republican represents the 62nd District, which includes all of Niagara County outside the City of Niagara Falls, Orleans County and the western portion of Monroe County. He has served in the Senate since 1995 and is currently chairman of the Energy and Telecommunications Committee and Vice President Pro Tempore. Maziarz’s stature has position him to raise a lot of campaign funds. Here’s Joe Friday’s look at Maziarz’s campaign contributions since January 1999, when the state Board of Elections began tracking donations online. Total contributions since 1999: $3,767,175[...]
Mar 14
2012