Ethics Reform
Testimony of Phil Sherwood
Before the GAE, Monday, February 25th, 2008
Good morning Senator Slossberg, Representative Caruso and other members of the GAE committee. My name is Phil Sherwood, I am the Legislative Director for the Connecticut Citizen Action Group (CCAG). CCAG has approximately 30,000 member families across CT and I appreciate the opportunity to comment on several bills before your committee today.
CCAG supports both H. B. 5504 AN ACT CONCERNING MUNICIPAL LOBBYING and H. B. 5505 AN ACT CONCERNING THE CITIZENS' ELECTION PROGRAM.
Hartford Courant - December 2, 2007
Bill Curry
December 2, 2007
Four years ago today, John Rowland told us he wasn't the sort of guy to take illicit gifts. A week later he said that wasn't exactly true. A month later he went on TV to admit he'd lied. He swore he did nothing for his benefactors — a monumental whopper made worse for being offered up in the midst of a supposed confession.
A year later Rowland admitted that and more to a federal judge. By the time he decamped for a 10-month stint in a Pennsylvania prison, we knew his greed had cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.
Everyone claimed to learn a lesson. Gov. M. Jodi Rell, Common Cause and the Connecticut Citizen Action Group leaned on reluctant legislators to enact comprehensive campaign finance reform and, after some misfires, less comprehensive ethics reform.
Time passes. Memory fades. We connect Rowland's name to the words "hot tub," but recall less about rigged bids, Enron and sweetheart deals. We forget our own numbness and mounting anger as stories of his clothes, vacations and credit cards dripped out.
Newsday - November 15, 2007
HARTFORD, Conn. - A new report says it's easier for the public to learn about state contracts, economic development subsidies and lobbying activities in Connecticut than any other state in the country.
The Washington, D.C.-based Good Jobs First organization released its study of the quality and quantity of state government disclosure on the Internet. The Nutmeg State ranks Number 1.
The group promotes corporate and government accountability. It looked at how easy it is to find information on the web, such as the state contracts awarded to specific companies. In the wake of the corruption scandal that ensnared former Gov. John G. Rowland, Connecticut has tried to make it easier to find such information.
But Tom Swan, director of Connecticut Citizen Action Group, says the state still lags behind in reporting economic subsidies.
Newsday - November 15, 2007
TOM SWAN
August 27, 2007 in the Hartford Courant
The Connecticut Citizen Action Group, like many others, was full of hope when longtime community activist Eddie Perez was first elected mayor of Hartford. His election provided promise for all of us who have worked to strengthen our democracy and toiled to transform Hartford into a capital city that will make Connecticut proud.
The news reports over the past few weeks have unfortunately led us to conclude that Mayor Perez must go. Given Eddie's grass-roots organizing credentials and his "boy makes good" story, our decision brings no satisfaction. CCAG has not and will not make an endorsement before the mayoral primary in Hartford.
The Connecticut Citizen Action Group (CCAG) had called for the formation of a bipartisan committee to review Mr. DeLuca's actions and praised the Senate for doing so.
August 30, 2007 - Litchfield County Times
The Hartford Courant - August 2, 2007
By CHRISTOPHER KEATING, Capitol Bureau Chief
The first Republican senator called Wednesday for the resignation of Sen. Louis C. DeLuca, only hours after top senators announced the formation of a special committee to investigate DeLuca's guilty plea for conspiring to threaten his granddaughter's husband.
Sen. David Cappiello, of Danbury, who has known DeLuca for 15 years, said calling for the resignation of the former top GOP leader was difficult.
"We all know Lou is a good man who got caught up in a bad thing," Cappiello said Wednesday night. "Many of us were hoping he would do the right thing and step down before further legislative action was taken. ... I think Lou, when he steps back, frankly will do the right thing. I don't want to see him, or my colleagues, go through what we would go through over the next three months."
Telephone:
(860) 796-2398
Group expresses Optimism that Senate Body Will Hold Fellow Senator Accountable
Hartford, CT – The Connecticut Citizen Action Group (CCAG) today commended Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams for proceeding with the formation of a bipartisan committee that will investigate and possibly discipline State Senator Louis Deluca.
“We are confident that this committee will professionally get to the bottom of the events involving Senator Deluca and a reputed mobster and his offering to use his elected position to further this individuals agenda,†said Phil Sherwood, Legislative Director of the CCAG.
In a letter recently released publicly, CCAG, on behalf of their 30,000 member families, called for the Senate to convene a bipartisan committee of inquiry to investigate Senator Deluca. CCAG urged the Senate to act by forming a committee similar to the one assembled to investigate Gov. John G. Rowland. CCAG noted that the potential scope and cost of an investigation of Senator Deluca would likely be much smaller than that of Gov. Rowland, but that the committee served as a good example as to how to proceed.
“While it would be inappropriate for us or anyone else to prejudge Senator Deluca, the disclosures of events surrounding Senator Deluca are quite unsettling and we are optimistic that the bi-partisan committee will make appropriate recommendations and that the Senate will act on them,†stated Sherwood.
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7-13-07 - One of the largest grassroots organizations in the state is asking for a State Senate investigation .. channel 8 reports.
Waterbury Republican-American - July 13, 2007
Copyright © 2007 Republican-American
HARTFORD A statewide advocacy group is urging the state Senate to conduct a bipartisan investigation of former Senate Minority Leader Louis C. DeLuca.
The Connecticut Citizen Action Group says DeLuca's admissions to conspiring with a reputed mobster and offering to use his position to help the suspected racketeer cast a cloud over the legislature.
CCAG Executive Director Tom Swan said Democrats and Republicans need to investigate DeLuca, R-Woodbury, to dispel public doubts and suspicions.
"I think there is a hesitancy to act," he said.
On Thursday, Swan wrote Senate President Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, and Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, asking them to appoint a bipartisan committee to look into DeLuca.
Williams and McKinney said they haven't reached any agreements other than to continue to discuss the idea.
Hartford Courant - July 12, 2007
The Connecticut Citizen Action Group is asking the Senate to convene a bipartisan committee of inquiry to investigate Sen. Louis C. DeLuca, who asked a trash-hauler with alleged mob connections to intimidate a man suspected of abusing his adult granddaughter.
In a letter sent today to Senate President President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, and Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, the liberal activist group urged them to appoint a committee similar to one employed by the House to investigate Gov. John G. Rowland.
"We are confident that you can follow this example and put together a committee that will get to the bottom of what really transpired and made appropriate recommendations," wrote Tom Swan, the executive director of CCAG.
DeLuca resigned as minority leader after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of conspiring to threaten, but he remains a member of the Senate. CCAG's request comes as new details were released in the DeLuca case.
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