I, like you, have done my fair share of head shaking after reading scandalous headlines about certain state legislators and their questionable sense of ethics. There is a serious problem with some politicians who break the law by trying to scam the system, profit off of the taxpayer, or collect bribes, and it is an embarrassment for taxpayers and all those trying to do good work at the Capitol.

Honestly, I think a bit of our upstate, plain-spoken honesty would do wonders for Albany.

Ethics reform never seems to get the proper attention or the results needed to inspire change in Albany. Case in point, recently the governor inserted so-called ethics reform in the budget, but it was watered down and the only portion of the plan that had any teeth was pension forfeiture, which was removed altogether by the time the budget was passed.

The governor has been taking his victory laps on ethics reform, but fortunately, New Yorkers are too smart to fall for the lines being fed to them. A recent Siena poll showed that 62 percent of respondents believed this latest round of ethical reforms wasn’t going to have enough impact to keep politicians in line. There are too many convenient loopholes or omissions to meaningful ethics reform.

Since I became your assemblyman, I have been advocating for legislation that would enact the ethics reform our state needs. I sponsor the Public Officers Accountability Act, A.4617, which would set tougher rules for campaign finance, enact term limits for legislative leaders, limit the political use of public dollars through member-item reform, strengthen government oversight, and create a new crime for failure to report corruption.

What do we do, however, when public officials are convicted of felonies? Currently, there are dozens collecting millions of dollars in pensions and retirement benefits funded with taxpayer money. It is troubling to think that the very individuals who broke the people’s trust are still reaping undeserved benefits paid for by the public.

To put an end to this, I sponsor a bill, A.4643, which would strip pensions and retirement benefits from public officials convicted of a felony related to their office. No one should expect to break the law without serious consequences.

By enacting these reforms, New York government could once again give its full attention to serving the people. Remove the distractions of corrupting forces and, I believe, great things can be accomplished in our state.

I welcome your ideas on this or any other legislative topic. Please share them with me by emailing me at blankenbushk@assembly.state.ny.us, or by calling 493-3909.