Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Will DeWeese Face Electoral Defeat for Wrong Understanding?

Wonders never cease from Herald-Standard. Why the following "DeWeese's use of map a scare tactic," yet, the editor has yet to publish any opposing responses per glowing comments in Give Mahoney Credit, Re-election?

Word is many opposing views have been made, but remain unpublished to the page at the Herald-Standard, and they are circulating around the internet.

http://www.heraldstandard.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20087803&BRD=2280&PAG=461&dept_id=468562&rfi=6.

PennLive Forum linked to the Herald Standard opinion

http://www.pennlive.com/forums/capitol/

Lays out what's wrong with the view Give Mahoney Credit, Re-election

Grassroots PA continued discussion

http://grassrootspa.com/?p=7158#comments

Update

DeWeese's use of map a scare tactic
08/19/2008
Updated 08/19/2008 12:09:26 PM EDT
Email to a friendPost a CommentPrinter-friendly
As he did two years ago on the campaign trail, state Rep. Bill DeWeese is flashing a laminated postcard-sized map of the state with lines showing where "Pennsylvania Budget Leaders" are from. The card is designed to visualize two things: How eight of the 13 are from the southeastern area of the state (including Philadelphia), and how DeWeese is the only one from southwestern Pennsylvania.


To the extent that one man's voice can make a strong difference among 13 equals, it's fair to say that DeWeese is the region's only presence at the budget table. But any implication that without DeWeese the three counties he represents, or the region in general, would fall into disarray or neglect is at best untrue imagery. At worst, it's nothing more than a scare tactic.


Looking at DeWeese's little map, the Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Erie areas have zero representation at the all-important budget table. Are we to take from that omission a belief that they get nothing, in terms of state assistance or projects? A look at Pittsburgh's new sports stadiums, built with significant state tax money, shows quite handily that a region can do quite well without someone actually sitting at the budget table.

Certainly, it's indisputable that DeWeese has gotten two state prisons (in Franklin and Luzerne townships) for his 50th Legislative District, and the possibility exists of adding a third in German Township. But truthfully, while those jobs are much needed and welcomed here, they are not the type of employment some other areas will accept.

DeWeese is also telling anyone who will listen that he served as Speaker of the House from 1993-94, a rare distinction for his district and rural areas in general. He's correct on both counts, and we can't and won't dismiss the magnitude of that accomplishment.

But what DeWeese isn't quick to reveal is this: He lost the speakership in 1994 because of a defection within his own Democratic Party - and he couldn't reclaim the prize when Democrats regained control in 2007 for the very same reason. In both cases, fellow Democrats fed up with DeWeese's leadership style lined up against him. That, too, appears to be a historical rarity for his district and the region in general, if not the entire state.

Granted, as majority leader for the current session, DeWeese has had to focus on big-picture issues that advance his caucus' agenda, things like education funding, energy strategy, mine safety reform and revamping the state's open records law. But those are items the caucus would likely advance anyway, no matter who was their floor leader. We can't imagine Democrats abandoning their core principles on governance should DeWeese no longer sit at the budget table,...

http://www.heraldstandard.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20079722&BRD=2280&PAG=461&dept_id=468517&rfi=6


Updated below with response to a letter-to-the-editor writer who supports the re-election of Rep. Tim Mahoney.

Posting as Hold Them All Accountable, our commentary remains unpublished at the Herald-Standard possibly because references and links to document our material contains nothing from the Herald-Standard. That's because the Herald-Standard has not published anything pertaining to Rep. Tim Mahoney's legislation on open records that includes the original didn't apply to past records, and the Democratic controlled House version of open records was broadened to include "exemptions for electronic communications":

Leading Dem calls on DeWeese to resign post
By Brad Bumsted
STATE CAPITOL REPORTER
Thursday, August 21, 2008
...Dermody became the 13th House Democrat to call on DeWeese to step down. But none has done so since the first week of August. Asked why he waited, Dermody said he wanted to give DeWeese "every opportunity to see what he'd do."

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_584067.html


August 6, 2008 - 4:34pm
Tally board on DeWeese resigning leadership postionBy Wally Edge

http://www.politickerpa.com/wallyedgepa/1129/tally-board-deweese-resigning-leadership-postion


Update:

Grassroots PA continued discussion

http://grassrootspa.com/?p=7158#comments

Update: Not on the DeWeese leadership books???

$ for Green advice??

William J. Green, a Pittsburgh public relations consultant, has worked for House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese and the Democratic Caucus since last year, but the taxpayer-paid bills don't show up in leadership expense accounts.
"(Green) has advised us," said William Chadwick, a Washington lawyer paid by the House Democratic Caucus to oversee legal representation for a grand jury investigation of alleged corruption at the Capitol. Chadwick's firm, which is paid more than $800,000 in tax money, pays Green for public relations work. The caucus payments to Chadwick are public record...

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_582560.html

vial link from http://grassrootspa.com/


Post Will DeWeeese Face Electoral Defeat for Wrong Understanding
In response to a Pittsburgh Post Gazette article Top bonus recipients aided top Dems
80 of 100 largest raises went to staff who worked for or gave money to Veon, DeWeese campaigns Sunday, February 11, 2007 By Tracie Mauriello and Jon Schmitz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pennsylvania state Representative H. William DeWeese apparently penned or emailed or texted the following:

In praise of state bonuses Pennsylvania House Majority Leader BILL DEWEESE says bonuses for Democratic employees reward hard work and save money long term Sunday, February 11, 2007

Bolded segment highlighted for discussion and review.

When initially questioned about the staff payments by the media, I believed that the information already was a matter of public record, just like all staff salaries have been for years. However, my understanding of this matter was wrong. This was in no way an attempt to keep anything from the public; rather I misunderstood what information already was available to the public.


(Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, February 11, 2007, H. William DeWeese, "In praise of state bonuses" http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07042/760842-109.stm )


Brad Bumstead opinion as retained at fixpa also reprinted here for discussion purposes.

DeWeese's statement upon (July 2008) indictments handed down by Tom Corbett.

Veon, Ramaley charged in bonus scandal
By Brad Bumsted STATE CAPITOL REPORTER Friday, July 11, 2008

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_577061.html

Said DeWeese: "Today's announcement is an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long, and which I committed to changing upon my re-election in 2006. I share the outrage felt today by taxpayers across the state; however, I can assure Pennsylvanians that the reforms we implemented this session will safeguard against future abuse of tax dollars." [21] Thursday's "announcement is an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long, and which I committed to changing upon my re-election in 2006," said DeWeese, a previous House speaker who was first elected in 1976.[20]

Mr. DeWeese issued a statement calling the charges "an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long."[2]

Pennsylvanians deserve nothing less," DeWeese said. Although he was in charge of all the employees indicted, DeWeese said he did not have in-depth knowledge of all that they did.[4]

http://newsfeedresearcher.com/data/articles_n29/idn2008.07.14.00.14.35.html#hdng7


Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Timeline inclusive of the following

Jan. 27, 2007
The Harrisburg Patriot-News reports that some Democratic House employees received hefty bonuses accompanied by letters saying: "Since this bonus payment is of an extraordinary nature not widely received by your colleagues, we cannot stress strongly enough the need for you not to discuss this with any other person or member."

Jan. 28, 2007
Mr. DeWeese's office tells reporters that the bonuses are an "internal caucus matter" and won't discuss them or release copies of the letters sent to employees. Meanwhile, House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, R-Philadelphia, says he will order salary lists to be released.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08162/888801-85.stm


November 2006 election results

An "internal" "in-house" "investigation" conducted by Chadwick Associates at the behest of DeWeese as revealed by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. An internal, in-house investigation begun, according to the article, in March, (2007) (as the article is written Dec. 16, 2007)

E-mails show how Dems tied staffers' bonuses to campaign work
Sunday, December 16, 2007
By Dennis B. Roddy and Tracie Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
HARRISBURG -- E-mail messages exchanged by top aides in the Democratic caucus starting in 2004 make clear that taxpayer-funded bonuses were given to legislative employees for their work on election campaigns.

The messages, obtained by the Post-Gazette, are a key component in an investigation by Attorney General Tom Corbett into the bonuses and whether they constituted an illegal use of state money for political work...

...DeWeese investigation
Most of the e-mails and spreadsheets were first uncovered by House Majority Leader H. William DeWeese, of Waynesburg, who had delegated much of the day-to-day operation of the caucus to Mr. Veon. Mr. DeWeese, after accumulating information from state computers, provided thousands of e-mail exchanges, which are now at the core of the state attorney general's case.

None of the materials obtained by the Post-Gazette suggests that Mr. DeWeese was aware of the scheme. Mr. Veon did not respond to a message seeking comment.

After initially being told by staff that the bonuses were routine seniority and holiday awards, Mr. DeWeese said he discovered that the bonuses amounted to $1.9 million. He then ordered an internal inquiry, calling in William Chadwick, a former prosecutor, in March, prior to the announcement of a criminal probe by the attorney general.

Mr. Chadwick's in-house probe resulted in the accumulation of tens of thousands of e-mails that had been automatically archived but which most employees thought had been deleted long ago.

In all, 31,000 archived e-mails thought to have been deleted were later recovered.

The inquiry also found that virtually every e-mail regarding pay bonuses sent on the caucus computer system in 2006 had been erased, as had all record of Mr. Veon's e-mails. What investigators later uncovered were e-mails from 2004 and 2005 that included an outline of the scheme that suggested it had been ongoing for several years.

The Post-Gazette obtained copies of some 2006 e-mails -- most of them sent by Stephen Keefer, director of the Democratic House Information Technologies department which oversaw the computer system used by caucus members. They reflect the level of political activity apparently taking place inside the Capitol offices, a place where partisan campaigning is legally forbidden.

They begin with a Feb. 27 dispatch to information technologies employees pressing them to work for Mr. Veon's primary campaign. In subsequent e-mails, Mr. Keefer speaks of "locking myself in the office today" to focus on Veon duties, and one week before the primaries assures colleagues who can't reach him, "sorry folks, only one more week." Mr. Veon's political committee, in fact, sent blast e-mails into the caucus accounts pressing for volunteers to come forward and work on his campaign.

The deletion of the 2006 e-mails and attempted destruction of documents in the Democratic Office of Legislative Research are among matters under investigation by the attorney general.

While the e-mails focus entirely on what appears to be a Democratic caucus practice of using state funds to pay volunteers for political work, Mr. Corbett's office is also investigating complaints of similar activities in the Republican caucus.

On Nov. 13 Mr. DeWeese forced out seven top House Democratic aides, including his chief of staff, Michael Manzo. He acted after receiving information from Mr. Chadwick, the Washington attorney and security consultant he had hired months earlier...

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07350/842079-85.stm


November 14, 2007

http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/press.aspx?id=3117


Pennsylvania AG Tom Corbett's statement announcing LaGrotta’s indictment
Corruption As Far As The Eye Can See
Let Freedom Ring (Free subscription) | 11/15/2007

http://www.wikio.com/us/states/pennsylvania/cities_and_towns/delaware_county


Former state Rep. LaGrotta indicted in corruption case
By Kori Walter, Times Capital Bureau
Published: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 11:00 PM EST

http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2007/11/14/news/top_stories/doc473bb47eeb1b2384764719.txt


DeWeese, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's December 2007 article E-mails show how Dems tied staffers' bonuses to campaign work Sunday, December 16, 2007 By Dennis B. Roddy and Tracie Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had hired Chadwick Associates who combed through legislative electronic communications prior to AG Tom Corbett's announcement of an investigation into staff bonuses and campaign work.


The messages, obtained by the Post-Gazette, are a key component in an investigation by Attorney General Tom Corbett into the bonuses and whether they constituted an illegal use of state money for political work.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07350/842079-85.stm


PennPatriot: DeWeese may just weasel his way out of bonus investigation
05 December 2007

In November the bonus investigation was front page news as DeWeese suddenly fired seven top democratic caucus staffers including his Chief of Staff, Mike Manzo. Apparently Manzo was the staffer who approved the hiring of former state Rep. Frank LaGrotta's, D-Ellwood City, sister and niece for phantom consulting jobs. The other members of the caucus staff were heavily involved in 2006 political campaigns and were responsible for distributing the 1.9 million dollars worth of staff bonuses. The same bonuses that came with a letter from DeWeese urging the recipients not to disclose them to anyone.

http://pennpatriot.blogspot.com/2007/11/deweese-may-have-found-way-to-weasel.html


DeWeese promotional website

http://www.billdeweese.com/content/page/id/198

and here

Letters to the recipients that bore DeWeese's signature instructed them to keep quiet about the supplemental payments. DeWeese has said he did not know about the letters or the scope of the bonuses. DeWeese was not charged, and Corbett declined to comment about him.

http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=104&sid=1438282


DeWeese asserts the AG determined a letter sent on DeWeese's behalf to staffers was forged.

Why should voters believe that Bill was not involved?

The Pennsylvania Attorney General's office reviewed tens of thousands of documents, read thousands of email communications, and interviewed more than 200 people, including those who worked most closely with Bill. The Grand Jury findings did not contain any indication that Bill knew about the behavior. In fact, the Grand Jury found that these people took great pains to conceal their activity - as would anyone committing a crime. Prosecutors alleged they even falsified a letter in Bill's name telling everyone to keep quiet...

http://www.billdeweese.com/content/page/id/198


DeWeese promotional site states DeWeese took action.

fired key people
eliminated staff bonuses


12 indictments announced Veon, Ramaley charged in bonus scandal By Brad Bumsted STATE CAPITOL REPORTER Friday, July 11, 2008

Said DeWeese: "Today's announcement is an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long, and which I committed to changing upon my re-election in 2006. I share the outrage felt today by taxpayers across the state; however, I can assure Pennsylvanians that the reforms we implemented this session will safeguard against future abuse of tax dollars."

Bill DeWeese, ahead of the avalanche
Sunday, November 18, 2007
By Brian O'Neill, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
With a former colleague indicted and seven of his top aides thrown over the side last week, state House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese would seem to have roughly the survival odds of General Custer...

...It's hard to see how Mr. DeWeese survives "Bonusgate.'' As this newspaper reported nine months ago, 80 of the 100 Democratic House staffers who were awarded big state bonuses last year either donated money to or worked on the campaigns of Mr. DeWeese or his right-hand man, former Rep. Mike Veon. Mr. Veon's Beaver County constituents booted him in the November 2006 election, before the $1.9 million tab for all these election-year bonuses even came to light.

But Mr. DeWeese does not intend to be buried by an avalanche of bad press. He characterizes himself as cooperating with Republican Attorney General Tom Corbett "since Day One'' of his investigation. After he felt misled by staff on the bonuses, Mr. DeWeese said, he hired William G. Chadwick, a former Philadelphia prosecutor and inspector general for Gov. Robert P. Casey, "to assess our operations and improve our internal controls.''

Mr. Chadwick's findings led to the sacking of the top aides, Mr. DeWeese said, and his office provided the evidence that led to Thursday's arraignment of former Rep. Frank LaGrotta. An Ellwood City Democrat who had been a reliable DeWeese ally for 20 years before his defeat in 2006, Mr. LaGrotta has been charged with two felony counts for hiring his sister and niece as "ghost employees.''

Mr. DeWeese pointed out that he fired Mr. LaGrotta from doing legislative research four months before charges were brought.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07322/834600-155.stm


Wednesday, April 09, 2008
PA House Leader DeWeese No Questions on Open Records Email Blanket Exemptions

http://netthetruthonline.blogspot.com/2008/04/pa-house-leader-deweese-no-questions-on.html


Open Records PA
(Patriot News) request to release employee payroll and staff bonuses (Also see Post-Gazette Timeline which gives the nod to the Patriot-News on the request for info)

DeWeese voted No while Mahoney, Kula and Daley voted yes.

Bumstead's Shh! More State Secrets November 11, 2007 Yes vote would have removed "blanket exemptions for legislative emails."

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/columnists/bumsted/s_537390.html

Absence of re-elected DeWeese's name from a December 2006 PA Newspaper Association's Brighter Pennsylvania "open records" effort

https://www.pa-newspaper.org/web/2006/09/brighter_pennsylvania_supporters.aspx


Bill DeWeese, ahead of the avalanche
Sunday, November 18, 2007
By Brian O'Neill, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Mr. DeWeese pointed out that he fired Mr. LaGrotta from doing legislative research four months before charges were brought...

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07322/834600-155.stm


Brain Scans Make for More Accurate Lie Detector Tests
by Noah Adams and Ira Flatow

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4197049


Don't Even Think About Lying
How brain scans are reinventing the science of lie detection.
By Steve Silberman

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.01/lying.html


Net the Truth Online

Forum: In praise of state bonuses
Pennsylvania House Majority Leader BILL DEWEESE says bonuses for Democratic employees reward hard work and save money long term
Sunday, February 11, 2007

In an effort to return the media and public focus on state government back to where it should be -- on important policy initiatives such as health-care reform, property-tax reductions, education and the development of alternative-energy sources, I offer the following background and explanation regarding House Democratic Caucus employee incentive compensation that was awarded under my watch.

The state budget provides each political party caucus leader with an annual allocation for staff compensation. Further, the 3rd Circuit Federal Court of Appeals has ruled that the Legislature has given caucus leaders the responsibility and discretion to spend the money needed to operate each respective caucus. The House Democratic Caucus pay scale is the lowest of all four legislative caucuses. In accordance with state law and House rules, the checks for last year were paid out of the annual appropriation allotted for House employee salaries, benefits, unemployment compensation and pensions.

Compensation in any organization is a very personal, emotional and divisive subject that lends itself to a plethora of subjective judgments. In the public sector, this is compounded by the additional challenge that our compensation is a matter of public record.

When initially questioned about the staff payments by the media, I believed that the information already was a matter of public record, just like all staff salaries have been for years. However, my understanding of this matter was wrong. This was in no way an attempt to keep anything from the public; rather I misunderstood what information already was available to the public.

It is my hope that the bipartisan Speaker's Commission on Legislative Reform will consider this issue in the coming weeks as they undertake a serious review of House rules. The full House of Representatives is expected to debate and vote on the group's recommendations during the week of March 12, and I fully expect that increased public access to House records will be part of that debate.

As the House Democratic leader, several years ago I instructed my staff to undertake a top-to-bottom study of the pay scales of all four legislative caucuses and the executive branch. As I said earlier, the House Democratic Caucus was, and continues to be, at the bottom of that list. Compensation incentives are one way to promote higher levels of productivity. I'm told that even the U.S. Department of Justice uses such payments to reward exceptional performance in U.S. attorneys' offices.

Compensation incentives to staff are but one tool organizations use to reward employees. We are no different. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, many other states make use of incentive payments because they can save on long-term payroll costs: They do not elevate base pay and, therefore, are not carried forward in perpetuity through pension increases. Most compensation analysts recommend incentive payments as a tool to drive increased productivity.

To recognize employees' efforts each year, the House Democratic Personnel and Procedures Manual allows special meritorious incentive payments to be awarded. These payments may be awarded upon the recommendation of mid- and higher-level managers to those employees whose salaries are capped, yet who still provide valuable service to the caucus, and for those who have done exceptional work.

Many individuals have received payments because they developed new tools to help our caucus members perform their jobs better for their constituents, spent late nights working when the House was in session, worked on holidays and weekends, and helped us to implement important policy initiatives including, but not limited to, such things as increasing the minimum wage, making historic investments in education and continuing our fight to provide health-care coverage for every child in Pennsylvania.

Also, near the end of each year, we have provided scaled "years-of-service payments" to every House Democratic Caucus employee who has been employed at least one year to recognize their faithful service to the caucus. I don't expect everyone to agree that compensation incentives are a useful management tool. Nevertheless, all of these payments have had a positive effect on morale and teamwork, and, I believe, have enhanced overall employee productivity.

First published on February 11, 2007 at 12:00 am

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07042/760842-109.stm



House miserly with payroll records By Brad Bumsted, STATE CAPITOL REPORTER, February 3, 2007

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_491624.html

HARRISBURG -- While lawmakers tout reform and transparency in government, the state House refuses to let the public fully examine its taxpayer-financed payroll.

A long-standing policy permits citizens to review only 15 salaries at a time. That means it would take more than three months to review all 1,700 House salaries if the chief clerk's office agreed to accommodate such a request each day.

Not releasing the full payroll has "just always been the policy of this office since the beginning of time," said Denise Johnson, executive secretary of the clerk's office. It's an "inner-office policy," said Johnson, who might release 20 names a day on a large request.

Asked how long it would take to get the first 15 House salaries, Johnson said Friday: "It would not be today."

Transparency emerged as an issue this week when House leaders disclosed that bonuses paid to staffers exceeded $3.6 million during the past two years, including more than $2.3 million for Democrats alone.

"No way," said Mable Mazza, of Allegheny Township, Westmoreland County, a retiree. "You should be able to see it, because it's public record."

She said the bonuses paid to legislative staffers amount to "theft by deception."

"There should be a better accounting. They should account for every dollar they get," said Stanley Shutok, 85, of Canonsburg, Washington County, a retired Air Force major. He thinks the House payroll policy and legislative staff bonuses are wrong.

"How do they get away with it? I thought it was supposed to be out in the open," Shutok said.

The Senate provides a complete payroll for inspection in Harrisburg, but typically after a delay of a few days or weeks.

This week, Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, a Jefferson County Republican who has pledged to operate the Senate with transparency, made available in about five minutes the full payroll for Senate employees. Senate Republicans were the first caucus to release a list of staff bonuses.

Neither House Democrats nor House Republican leaders released their payrolls when producing the bonuses. Such records show how much staff members are paid annually, the legislators to whom they are assigned, where and what hours they work, and whether they are provided certain benefits.

Tom Andrews, spokesman for House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, D-Greene County, argued that payroll records are available in the House Chief Clerk's Office, even if they must be requested 15 at a time. Andrews, who received a $12,750 bonus last year, told reporters who wanted the information to check with the clerk's office.

The information House Republicans released on bonuses included a number that officials said showed what percentage of an employee's salary the bonus represented. There were 264 bonuses on the House GOP list -- only a fraction of the caucus' employees.

"They are just trying to make the process harder," said Rep. Tim Mahoney, a Uniontown Democrat who advocates open records.

Yet, House and Senate leaders say they'll support legislation to apply the state's Right to Know Law to the Legislature, which exempted itself when writing the law.

House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, R-Philadelphia, said a commission he formed to study legislative reforms should consider the policy allowing only piecemeal review of payroll information.

"I'm not trying to dodge this," O'Brien said in an interview this week. "They are issues we will submit to the reform commission for a recommendation and a response. I don't want to pre-judge. It's a policy issue they should look at."

The disclosure of staff bonuses was "almost a slap in the face, at a time when you are trying to put confidence back in the system," said Rep. Mark Mustio, R-Moon, who supports full release of payroll information. "I am for showing everything."

Brad Bumsted can be reached at bbumsted@tribweb.com or (717) 787-1405.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_491624.html

http://fixpa.wikia.com/wiki/Payroll


House leaders OK release of staff bonuses data
April 06, 2007
BY JAN MURPHY
Of The Patriot-News

HARRISBURG — The state Treasury is compiling House of Representatives payroll records relating to this year's staff bonuses that were requested by The Patriot-News, and it might release the information by next week, officials said...

http://www.openrecordspa.org/news11.html


Said DeWeese: "Today's announcement is an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long, and which I committed to changing upon my re-election in 2006. I share the outrage felt today by taxpayers across the state; however, I can assure Pennsylvanians that the reforms we implemented this session will safeguard against future abuse of tax dollars." [21] Thursday's "announcement is an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long, and which I committed to changing upon my re-election in 2006," said DeWeese, a previous House speaker who was first elected in 1976.[20]

Mr. DeWeese issued a statement calling the charges "an indictment of a culture that has existed in all four caucuses of the General Assembly for far too long."[2]

Pennsylvanians deserve nothing less," DeWeese said. Although he was in charge of all the employees indicted, DeWeese said he did not have in-depth knowledge of all that they did.[4]

http://newsfeedresearcher.com/data/articles_n29/idn2008.07.14.00.14.35.html#hdng7


An aside

Two House Democratic leaders -- Minority Leader Bill DeWeese of Greene County and Minority Whip Mike Veon of Beaver County -- secured apparent primary victories despite their roles as architects of the pay raise. Veon was the sole legislator to vote against repealing the raises.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_454252.html


Give Mahoney credit, re-election
08/21/2008
Updated 08/20/2008 11:04:35 PM EDT
Email to a friendPost a CommentPrinter-friendly
For the past few months I have listened to and read comments by political has-beens and wanna-bes making adverse remarks about our state representatives of the 51st and 52nd districts.


They have been especially critical of Mr. Tim Mahoney of the 51st district. His predecessor stated that Mr. Mahoney is not the author of the open records law that was recently passed by this Legislature.


He is correct. The present law is not as restrictive as the bill proposed by Mr. Mahoney.

There was no way that the powers-that-be in Harrisburg were going to permit an audacious freshman legislator to be the author of a law that should have been enacted years earlier. Therefore, they eliminated parts of Mahoney's bill, thereby changing it and creating a new authorship.

No matter how you cut it, Mr. Mahoney was the driving force behind getting the open records law passed. This has been acknowledged by newspapers throughout the state, including the Herald-Standard. Mr. Mahoney is more interested in results than who gets credit for them.

Mr. Mahoney is concerned more with the legislators representing our area joining together to benefit the people of our area than he is in personal recognition. For the first time in my memory, they are working in unison. I think they deserve re-election.

Ralph A. Mazza

http://www.heraldstandard.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20083432&BRD=2280&PAG=461&dept_id=468562&rfi=6


Submitted August 21, 2008 as comment to Give Mahoney credit, re-election
08/21/2008 remains unpublished in the commentary section

The original Mahoney bill didn't apply to "past records." It was entered into the legislative record March, 2007.

Note by the time Bumsted's article appeared - October, 2007) the original Mahoney legislation still only applied to "future records."

Pennsylvania pushes to open records By Brad Bumsted Tribune Review Tuesday, October 16, 2007 Lawmakers said they are working on the exemptions to records that would be publicly released, such as those containing trade secrets, Social Security numbers, credit reports and details of ongoing police investigations.Advocates are concerned about a provision in Mahoney's bill that would limit release to future records, Wilson said. Any records from the past would be covered by existing law, Mahoney said. "Why do we want to go backward when we should go forward?" he said.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_532821.htmlWednesday, January 30, 2008

PA Open Records Reform: Exemption Central

http://netthetruthonline.blogspot.com/2008/01/pa-open-records-reform-exemption.html

In the same October , Tim Potts, Democracy Rising PA, tagged HB 443, the "Corruption Protection Act." It's unclear whether the critic commented when identifying the original bill contained over 2-dozen exemptions, retained application only to "future records," unlike comparable open records bills in other states, or after the House state government committee attached an amendment which broadened the bill's exemption for electronic communication.

The PA Newspaper Association didn't quite accept the bill in its entirety to begin with, though it did support and pushed for the "flip of presumption," in other words the records' requester had to show the record was accessible before but the legislation flipped that presumption.

Even with that, the PNA complained about the orginal bill's not applying to past records. And it was Potts who continued to query, along with a few others, unnoticed, what's to hide?

Right after the State Government Committee action, however, the PNA not only pulled its support from HB 443, it urged citizens to contact legislators to vote against the bill.

In October, 2007:

The PNA urges citizens to contact their legislators and tell them to vote “no” on House Bill 443. The public has a right to access its government. This bill closes more records than it opens and is not in the best interest of Pennsylvania citizens.

http://passopenrecords.org/2007/10/19/proposed-amendments-to-hb-443-would-not-make-pa-government-more-open/


According to Brad Bumsted in Shh! More State Secrets November 11, 2007 another amendment, the Josephs amendment was presented which would have removed the broad language - the "blanket exemptions for legislative electronic communications."

While Rep. Mahoney voted yes, to remove the language, as did Kula, and Daley, colleague and Majority Leader, H. William DeWeese voted No.

The measure was defeated.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/columnists/bumsted/s_537390.html

DeWeese was never asked to explain this NO vote nor was he asked after his re-election in 2006, in December, to explain his lack of support for PNA's Brighter Pennsylvania project.

Absence of re-elected DeWeese's name from a December 2006 PA Newspaper Association's Brighter Pennsylvania "open records" efforts.

http://www.pa-newspaper.org/web/2006/09/brighter_pennsylvania_supporters.aspx

Therefore the bill the Democratic-majority-controlled House sent over to the Senate both didn't apply to past records and "closed more than it opened."

After the PNA pulled its support from HB 443, it pushed for some changes to Republican Senator "Pileggi's decent bill.

Key Pa. Senate leader backs wider state open-records law June 4, 2007 By MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press Writer

http://www.openrecordspa.org/news21.html

The "flip of presumption" is one thing the House version can be credited with as comporting with Pileggi's Senate Bill 1. It's SB 1 that removed the House language pertaining to "blanket exemptions for electronic communication," and was retroactive, thus removing the House version's non-application to "past records."

http://senaterepublicannews.com/news/archived/2007/1107/pileggi-111407.htm

http://www.pasenategop.com/news/archived/2007/1107/pileggi-112807.htm

Recall in October, 2007, Mahoney stated at a Pass Open Records Press Conference:

"We don't need no more investigations..."

He has never been asked by this newspaper what he meant by the statement.

He's never been asked why the discrepancy in Yes votes among himself, Daley, and Kula and the No vote of DeWeese on Babette Josephs amendment.

It's as if these documented events and actual contents of both the original Mahoney HB 443 not applying to past records, and the broadened version which retained "blanket exemptions for electronic communication" (due in part to DeWeese's No vote) never happened.

Thing is, the actual record - open to the public - shows they did.

Hold Them All Accountable

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