Rockland County Senator Calls For Ethics Reform in Albany After Convictions

A state senator from Rockland County is among lawmakers from the Hudson Valley renewing their calls for ethics reform in Albany.

State Sen. David Carlucci , a Democrat who represents Rockland and Westchester counties, joined a call for passage of stronger ethics reform including bans on outside income during the next legislative session in Albany.
Photo Credit: *Tina Traster*

Jon Craig

12/21/2015 7:00 a.m.

Momentum to make sweeping changes follows recent criminal convictions of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, ex-Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and State Sen, Thomas Libous, a Binghamton Republican once in line to succeed Skelos.

Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, and Skelos, a Nassau County Republican, grew accustomed to lax prosecution over decades of ruling the roost in Albany.

"We need to change the status quo of how Albany functions,'' said state Sen. David Carlucci, a Democrat from Clarkstown who also represents part of Westchester County. "New Yorkers deserve representatives who tirelessly advocate for their needs, not the needs of special interest groups and those who use money to influence the political process for their own benefit."

"Joining my fellow members of the Independent Democratic Conference, I urge my colleagues in the legislature enact a ban on outside income and other commonsense reforms this upcoming session,'' Carlucci said.

"Reforming the New York State Legislature will not be easy; however, it must be done to win back the public’s trust," Carlucci added.

Libous was sentenced in White Plains on Nov. 24 to six months of house arrest for making false statements to the FBI during an interview in 2010 regarding his son’s hiring at a Westchester law firm, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

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