POUGHKEEPSIE – Dutchess
County Legislature Democratic Minority Leader Micki Strawinski Monday
charged the Republican leadership with blocking for the third consecutive
month legislation to limit campaign financial contributions.
“By and large, the public wants more accountability and less influence from wealthy donors and big business,” Strawinski said. “We have a responsibility as a legislature to be responsive to the desire that our constituents have expressed – that we have a more accountable and ethically responsible government. The refusal to add this to the agenda raises many questions about campaign contribution and county contracts.”
Assistant Minority Leader Francena Amparo called on Chairman Dale Borchert
to allow the measure to appear in the Government Services Committee agenda.
“We cannot continue to allow corporations to have a controlling
interest in our county government.”
Amparo pointed to public records that showed the county Republican Committee
accepted $151,685 in contributions over the last six years from the same
23 companies that received $38.9 million in contracts with the county
over the same period.
“The resolution will not appear on the June Committee Agenda because
it was determined by counsel that the county lacks the authority to enact
such a proposal as it is written,” said Borchert. ” This has
been the consistent opinion of legislative counsel and his predecessor
dating back to 2000. As was made clear in his memo, legislative counsel
demonstrates that the scope of local authority over campaign finance is
limited to the implementation of publically financed political campaigns.
That was not included in this proposal and to this point the sponsors
have either been unwilling or unable to advance such a measure. While
I do not support the idea of public financing of political campaigns,
such a proposal would meet the requirements to be placed on the agenda
and would be given the courtesy of a full debate and vote.”
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