Tag Archives: ethics

Audit says HISD isn’t cost sensitive enough

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

An audit of HISD’s procurement process says the district could be paying too much for some things. The audit, conducted by the nonprofit Council of the Great City Schools, found that the district’s purchasing standards “under-value” a vendor’s proposed price … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Drainage madness

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. A year ago, Taxpayers for Financial Accountability campaigned against Houston’s Proposition 1, which called for a pay-as-you-go fund to shore up the city’s drainage infrastructure in part through a monthly fee on … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

HISD tightens ethics rules

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Houston school board agreed Thursday to tighten its ethics rules to prevent trustees from meeting with vendors and from accepting certain campaign donations during open bids. […] Board members would not be able to attend meetings with vendors … Continue reading →

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The $25,000 question

Posted on October 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

What the hell? A $25,000 campaign contribution to a Houston school board member normally would raise eyebrows for its size. Add in the fact that the donation was not listed in the trustee’s financial disclosure forms, and the five-figure check … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD considers revamping ethics rules

Posted on October 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This all seems like a good idea. Houston school trustees, who now may accept campaign cash from anyone at any time, would face new restrictions under a proposal meant to curb improper influence in the school district’s business deals. The … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Jones saga comes to a close

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

At long last. A three-member panel led by Mayor Annise Parker has found insufficient cause to believe Councilwoman Jolanda Jones breached council ethics violations documented in a city investigation. In a four-page report, the panel also criticized the Office of … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Council’s code of conduct

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not sure what to make of this. City Council is considering imposing a code of conduct on itself that would give it the power to reprimand or censure members. It already has the ultimate enforcement tool – impeachment – … Continue reading →

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Larry Taylor’s conflict of interest

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

KHOU takes a look at State Rep. Larry Taylor. In four years, the co-chairman of oversight of a state insurance agency made more than $300,000 off the company he is supposed to oversee on behalf of consumers in Texas. State … Continue reading →

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Ethics ID

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

According to Martha, State Rep. Ken Legler (R, HD144) has filed HB1036, which would require two forms of ID to file an ethics complaint with the TEC. Who knew that ethics complaint fraud was so rampant in Texas? Clearly, our … Continue reading →

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Interview with David Feldman

Posted on January 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The main focus in Houston over the next few months will be Council expansion and redistricting. One of the people who will do the heavy lifting on this is City Attorney David Feldman. If you haven’t watched this video from … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

More on the new city ethics code

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Not everyone likes the city’s new ethics regulations. “Instead of enforcing ethics standards, all of these things seem to license unethical behavior,” said Craig Holman, a lobbyist for government watchdog Public Citizen in Washington, D.C. The exceptions to the city’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Revising the city ethics code

Posted on January 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know enough about the specifics of this to draw any firm conclusions, but it sounds reasonable enough from the description. The city is poised to significantly tighten its ethics rules, closing loopholes that allow lobbyists to avoid registration … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Travis County DA to investigate Double Dip Driver

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Republican wave helped him survive re-election this year, but State Rep. Joe Driver’s troubles aren’t over just yet. Assistant District Attorney Gregg Cox, head of the public integrity unit, which oversees official corruption cases, said Tuesday that prosecutors had … Continue reading →

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They picked a good year to have a scandal

Posted on November 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Reps. Joe Driver and Linda Harper Brown made it through the election and now just have to worry about what a prosecutor might think. The Travis County district attorney’s office is looking into Driver’s travel reimbursements. An official there last … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

TPJ files complaint against King Street Patriots

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: TPJ today filed a formal complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission alleging that the King Street Patriots and KSP/True the Vote have violated the state’s prohibition on corporate contributions to political parties and candidates. The complaint says … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Dirty deals, done dirt cheap

Posted on July 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So I missed this DMN story from the weekend about Rick Perry’s excellent fortune in the real estate market. Three years after Gov. Rick Perry’s biggest real estate score, questions persist about whether the governor benefited from favoritism, backroom dealing … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

TPJ files ethics complaint against Perry

Posted on June 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it. Texans for Public Justice, a nonprofit watchdog group, filed a complaint [Wednesday] urging the Texas Ethics Commission to require Gov. Rick Perry to provide detailed reports of campaign spending on … Continue reading →

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From the “Tell us something we didn’t know” department

Posted on April 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We don’t actually need the CREW crew to tell us that we have one of the worst Governors in the country. We’ve known that for a long time. But it never gets old saying it, and I must admit their … Continue reading →

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Again with KBH and term limits

Posted on January 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You do have to admire her lack of self-consciousness. Contending that Gov. Rick Perry has used the state as his personal playground, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison unveiled a government reform plan Monday that includes term limits for Texas governors and … Continue reading →

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Improving campaign finance disclosure

Posted on December 17, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This is a step in the right direction. The [Texas Ethics Commission] adopted new rules last week that, beginning this summer, will require anyone running for office to use 19 defined subject categories to describe any goods, services or other … Continue reading →

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Has the TEC grown some teeth?

Posted on November 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Well, no. But they do seem to be levying bigger fines, so maybe their gums are a little harder. By every measure, the agency is issuing more — and larger — fines, the records show. “There’s been a shift to … Continue reading →

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Parker hits Locke over potential conflicts of interest

Posted on November 17, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Annise Parker put out a strongly worded press release today that calls out Gene Locke for his work with the Andrews Kurth law firm, which has done a ton of business with the city, some of which was done by … Continue reading →

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Candidates’ personal financial statements

Posted on November 2, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to the campaign finance reports, candidates are required to file personal financial statements that disclose their income, investments, and other holdings so that any potential conflicts of interest can be identified. Texas Watchdog has been rounding them up … Continue reading →

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Ethics complaint filed against Bradford

Posted on October 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve received word via email that an ethics complaint has been filed against At Large #4 candidate C.O. Bradford, alleging violations in his October campaign finance report. The sender included a PDF of the complaint, but I’m not posting it … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

TPJ files complaint with Ethics Commission against Craddick

Posted on October 6, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Texans for Public Justice has filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission against former Speaker Tom Craddick, alleging that he obfuscated campaign donations made to several Democratic supporters of his prior to the 2008 primaries. From their press release … Continue reading →

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Eversole gets slapped by Ethics Commission

Posted on July 7, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

County Commissioner Jerry Eversole gets hit with a $75,000 fine by the Texas Ethics Commission for failure to accurately report expenses on his campaign finance reports. Eversole said he signed what is known as an “order and agreed resolution” so … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court approves ethics measures

Posted on June 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s something. The Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday approved a slate of ethics reforms, placing new controls on money and influence in government for the first time in years. After months of infighting and setbacks, the court unanimously and … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court tries again on ethics reform

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

They meet today to try to get something done. After months of political maneuvering, County Judge Ed Emmett is asking commissioners to approve a series of ethics reforms. They include the voluntary registration of lobbyists, online posting of officials’ personal … Continue reading →

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Once more with the vetoes

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry explains why he vetoed legislation to improve ethics in Harris County. “I was never for that bill. Now, there may have been some people on my staff who were of a different mind,” Perry said, responding to a … Continue reading →

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More on Perry’s vetoes

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry’s veto of SB2468, the “revolving door” restrictions bill for Harris County, has puzzled its sponsor. In his veto message, Perry said he rejected the ethics bill, authored by Sen. Mario Gallegos, because it addressed lobbying matters and related … Continue reading →

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And here are the vetoes

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the full list, with links to statements about individual bills, here’s his press release, and here’s his budget statement. A few points of interest: – Perry wimped out and allowed HB770, the Wayne Christian Homestead Bill, to become law … Continue reading →

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Ethics reform is hard

Posted on June 18, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s been a long and winding road for ethics reform in Harris County, and it isn’t getting any easier. Harris County Commissioner’s Court next week will consider a series of ethics reforms aimed at increasing accountability for and disclosure of … Continue reading →

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Hey, remember when we were gonna reform county ethics?

Posted on April 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

How’s that been going? Efforts to clean up Harris County government appear to be on indefinite hold as any serious debate about ethics reform has been derailed for months by infighting and political gamesmanship. Commissioners Court has yet to act … Continue reading →

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Lobby money

Posted on January 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

My first reaction upon reading this story about lobbyist spending on food and drink and entertainment for elected officials and their staff is the old chestnut about how government should be run like a business. People who say that, especially … Continue reading →

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