Common Cause/NY is the citizen's lobbyist and we speak up for clean elections and ethical standards for our elected officials. We stand up for responsive government. For years, we've provided a clear, strong voice for you and the citizens of New York.
Common Cause/NY is a non-partisan, non-profit citizens' lobby and a leading force in the battle for honest and accountable government. In the past three decades, by fighting together we have enacted real change and will continue to do so in New York and nationally.
Oct. 7, 2008: Discussing the inadequate filings of two political committees, The Journal News features CC/NY's Susan Lerner. An excerpt:
Two political committees aimed at getting rid of state Assemblyman Greg Ball, and initially funded by real estate heir Adam Rose, have filed only a July expenditure report with the state... The state Board of Elections last week supported Ball's claim but said it was limited in monitoring the 9,000 registered committees. A board spokesman said only candidate committees were policed during election season because the presence of a candidate generates warnings when reports aren't filed.
Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause of New York, a good-government group, said the board's approach was "nonsense." "It encourages a situation where people take their reporting requirements very, very lightly," she said.
CC/NY in "Business Backers Rally Around Bloomberg Bid"
Oct. 7, 2008: CC/NY is featured in this week's City Limits Weekly regarding Mayor Michael Bloomberg's attempt to circumvent voter-established term limits in New York City. An excerpt of the article:
But like other players in city politics—such as unions, nonprofit organizations and community groups—private-sector interests depend on their relationships with city government to do business. And some question the way ties between Bloomberg and his business backers are influencing the process. "If Mayor Bloomberg gets the blessing of the developers and the private interests of the city, he's able to go forward with it?" asks Chris Keeley, associate director of Common Cause/New York. "That's deeply disquieting. That's giving them a bigger say than anyone else in the city."
Albany Times Union editorializes for ethics reforms
Oct. 1, 2008: Somehow we missed this editorial from the Albany Times Union earlier this week, "It is the law, remember." An excerpt:
Here's an encouraging thought to consider as political campaigns go into peak season with just five weeks until Election Day. The state Board of Elections is doing what it's supposed to do, enforcing the admittedly lax laws that political candidates and their campaign aides are supposed to follow.
[...]
The truth is that almost any enforcement of the law by the Board of Elections is encouraging. This is an outfit that has made some of its biggest headlines by reminding New Yorkers what it couldn't do, not what it could.
We have yet to get over how, back during the most recent state elections, in 2006, the board responded to reports of some rather blatant violations of campaign spending limits by griping about how it lacked the resources to do much about them. The word came down that the board relied on Common Cause and other good government groups to be its eyes and ears, so to speak, about who wasn't following the election laws and who was.
Now, here's Common Cause, still calling for more vigorous election law enforcement, stiffer fines and more attention to the whole process.
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Bloomberg Likely to Press for Third Term; CC/NY Chimes in
Oct. 1, 2008: The media reported yesterday Mayor Mike Bloomberg is likely to announce that he will seek to change the NYC Charter through legislative action in order to serve a third term as mayor. If Mayor Bloomberg pushes for this legislative change, altering a law that was passed twice by voter referendum, it would apply to other offices as well, including borough presidents, comptroller, public advocate, and all members of the City Council.
CC/NY's Chris Keeley criticized the likely mayoral decision to modify the voter-established term limits through legislative action when he spoke with the The Associated Press and the NY Post. The AP article ran in USA Today, The Huffington Post, and in local and regional papers throughout the country.
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CC/NY Recent News Roundup
Sept. 30, 2008: Common Cause has been featured in a number of news articles in the last few days. Here are a few:
