KINGSTON – The handful who spoke at Tuesday’s public hearing at Kingston City Hall had nothing nice to say about Local law #5 of 2016, the proposed Ethics Law revision. Mayor Steven Noble called the hearing, just prior to endorsing the changes.
Kingston’s current Code of Ethics was created during the prior administration, by opponents of former Mayor Shayne Gallo. The document contains numerous procedural paradoxes involving financial disclosure, making it unworkable.
Critics took umbrage at the new changes, approved by the Common Council at the September 13 meeting. In particular, the Revolving Door provisions have been removed, allowing city officials to resign and immediately enter into the private sector. The previous language imposed a two-year hiatus.
“With the elimination of the future employment provisions, you are teaching that our public offices are for sale,” complained Andrew Champ-Doran. “You are teaching that public service is worth doing, only if it’s convenient. The minute you can make more money elsewhere, you should just quit and jump at the chance.”
Champ-Doran argued further: “It’s words over actions. You’re teaching them that wrong is really right, if you just narrow the definition of what is wrong. You and your representatives have argued that ethics are getting in the way of doing government, that the only way to do right is to lower your standards.”
Mayor Noble said he would announce his decision on Wednesday, regarding execution of the proposed revision. “We’ve heard the same stuff, over and over again, from the same people,” the mayor said after the hearing.
There was an ominous warning levied by resident Joe DiFalco, who vowed to haunt Mayor Noble for the rest of his administration. DiFalco is the person who filed a series of ethics charges against the mayor and some of his allies, resulting in the resignation of Third Ward Alderman Bradforth Will.
“What did I mean by that? I’ll be in his face every time he makes a decision,” DiFalco claimed. “And it better be the right one, because if it’s the wrong one, he’ll be brought up on charges again. Everyone says it’s a vendetta, because I’m going after Brad Will. He did everything to himself, nobody went after him; and he was so contemptible, he kept doing it. The Common Council sanctioned those things, and allowed a level of corruption to exist, because they knew about it. They didn’t bring him up on charges, and I see no reason why I had to do this.”
