Blair Horner
ALBANY—There might be movement on legislation restructuring the notoriously porous ethics enforcement in Albany. "My understanding is we're actually looking at a new bill that has elements from all of the different passages that have actually been presented and as I said before I think that is a positive development," said Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause. "Both houses have this problem, and both houses have to step forward jointly. No more one-house... READ MORE»
ALBANY—David Paterson's reported solicitation of World Series tickets from the New York Yankees--first reported this morning by Fred Dicker--was "dumb," according to a long-time ethics... READ MORE»
ALBANY—The State Senate decided, on ethics reform, that no loaf was better than half. Members of the chamber failed--along party lines, with Republicans voting against--to pass a bill requiring more enforcement by government watchdogs, prompting Democrats to lay aside another bill passed by the... READ MORE»
ALBANY—David Grandeau is delighted that the State Senate is scheduled to take up legislation blowing up the structure of ethics enforcement on Thursday, even as the head of the current Commission on Public Integrity made a public... READ MORE»
ALBANY—State Senator Ron Stafford has been dead for over four years, but that hasn't stopped his political... READ MORE»
ALBANY—Facing at least a temporary legal setback, Republicans are blasting a judge who overrode their injunction to prevent Richard Ravitch from exercising the powers of lieutenant governor... READ MORE»
ALBANY—While both sides in the fight over state senate leadership wait to hear from a judge, the 31-31 split in the chamber means things will have to get more bipartisan. Right? "It's not in their political D.N.A. to work in a bipartisan fashion," said Blair Horner, the legislative director of NYPIRG and a longtime Capitol observer. "I don't know how long it takes to get there, but if there's any hope for the session,... READ MORE»
ALBANY—While both sides in the fight over state senate leadership wait to hear from a judge, the 31-31 split in the chamber means things will have to get more bipartisan.... READ MORE»
ALBANY—Blair Horner, the longtime good-government advocate just stopped me in the halls to share this tidbit about the rules just enacted by the Republican "coalition" government. "They require 48-hours notice on any resolution," he said, smiling. "So their own coup wouldn't be possible under the new... READ MORE»
ALBANY—Blair Horner, the longtime good-government advocate just stopped me in the halls to share this tidbit about the rules just enacted by the Republican "coalition"... READ MORE»
ALBANY—The Commission on Public Integrity released its 2008 Annual Report, which shows, unsurprisingly that the amount of money spent on lobbying--and the number of lobbyists--has gone up again. "There's no surprise here," said Blair Horner, a longtime good-government advocate with NYPIRG. "The number of legislators stays the same but the number of lobbyists continues to mushroom. If they all showed up one day, it would cause gridlock." Overall, the total amount spent on lobbying increased... READ MORE»
ALBANY—The Commission on Public Integrity released its 2008 Annual Report, which shows, unsurprisingly that the amount of money spent on lobbying--and the number of lobbyists--has gone up... READ MORE»
ALBANY—A longtime advocate for good government said there was "no excuse" for Senator-elect Pedro Espada Jr. not to have correctly filed campaign... READ MORE»
