Last year Tom
O’Neill from New Jersey Policy Perspectives authored a report titled One
to a Customer. Which focuses on the political practice of dual office holding,
a practice all too common in New Jersey but also quite common in New York. In a
survey several years ago close to 30% of New Jersey legislators held other jobs
in government and when close relatives such as spouses were added on the total
rose to 44%
Dual office
holding occurs when one public official holds two (or more!) offices in a municipality
or holds offices in different jurisdictions. Offices can be elected or
appointed. For example, someone might be
a county legislator and a town district attorney. While dual office holding
poses problems because of conflicts of interest and personal enrichment
involved in holding more than one position, the real threat is due to a
conflict of duties involved in holding dual offices. For dual offices are often
incompatible offices, the duties involved in holding one office conflict with
the duties involved in other offices. Incompatible offices are always illegal,
but dual offices even when they are permitted pose major ethical problems for
government weaken our trust in the integrity and accountability of our elected
officials. That’s why 38 states have laws prohibiting many if not all instances of dual office
holding and groups like common cause oppose it. Extensive dual office holding
often goes hand in hand with patronage appointments, nepotism, cronyism and
unaccountable government.
O’Neill stresses
the American ideal of the citizen legislator, who takes time from his own work
to serve the community. As average citizens we want a government that is both
accountable and responsive to our wishes, and open to all. The ideals’ of the
citizen–legislator embodies the idea
that anyone with sufficient motivations interest and willingness to learn can
run for public office, and then after a time return to private life. While we appreciate disinterested public
service, we dislike the idea of permanent politicians who come to represent
entrenched interests Dual Office Holding, along with other forms of patronage
undermine the ideal of participation in public service.
On the most basic
level these practices, conflict with the idea that offices are open to everyone.
When public offices are held by a few officials in a close groups then citizens
are discouraged form participating in government. Dual office holding and
double dipping make political office holding seem more like a reward for loyalty and obedience than a service to the community, It tends to create government that is
secretive, closed and unaccountable. And most of all it raises questions about
the commitment and integrity of governments,
When public officials serve two masters
their ability to serve either is called into question.
Of the four
current town councilmen, only Rick Antelli is not employed by our county government.
Councilman Mike Barry is clerk to the county legislator, Bob Bilsky works in the county finance office and Jerry
Helfer is Assistant County Executive. In the past other town councilman have held positions of
authority in the county as well
More troubling
still Greece Town Government currently has not just one but two county
legislators serving in positions of considerable authority. Jeff McCann serves as both as a county legislator and as deputy superintendent, while Raymond Dirado
serves as Town Attorney and as county legislator.
The increasing interconnections
of levels of government authority complicate the problem of incompatible
offices. Increasingly, services and even sources of revenues are shared among
different levels of government. Under these conditions almost all dual offices
can have elements of incompatibility.
Promoting
widespread dual office holding and double dipping reflects badly on the ethical
judgment of the public “servants” who accept such offices, but they also
reflect very bad on the ethical
integrity of those who appoint
them or who turn a blind eye to
double dipping and condone a political culture of cronyism and patronage based
on an uncritical loyalty (at least in public) to the “boss” Both Greece
Supervisor Auber and County Executive Brooks need to clean up their act and
their governments
