Council Meeting: Pay-To-Play, Wheeling and the New Public Information Policy

If sitting on those uncomfortable benches in City Hall until 2 a.m. isn't really your thing, but you still want to know what happened at Wednesday night's council meeting, here's a re-cap. 

• The City Council passed the Mayor’s ethics package on first reading during Wednesday night’s meeting. Mayor Dawn Zimmer introduced the package last week, which also orders city employees to go through ethics training and anti-sexual harassment training. Part of the package is a nepotism clause that prohibits family members and spouses from being each other’s direct supervisors. Corporation Counsel Mark Tabakin explained that certain city employees, who currently work for family members (such as the kids of police chief Anthony Falco) will be “grandfathered in.”
• There was some discussion about the city’s , which involves that city employees have get approval from Business Administrator Arch Liston before making statements to the press. The policy also pertains to fire and police personnel. Third Ward Councilman Michael Russo asked if the new rule also applied to speaking at council meetings.  “To say that they cant speak to the press or can’t speak at public forums: I think it’s concerning,” Russo said. “It’s very concerning.”

• About the (but was voted down as part of a pay-to-play ordinance on Wednesday night) also got some attention on Wednesday. Council President Beth Mason defended her $13,400 donation to her council colleague Tim Occhipinti during the November election. “Provisions were added to resolution with the intent to target me specifically,” Mason said, “because I supported Tim Occhipinti.”
• An updated pay-to-play ordinance, as drafted by the People for Open Government, was passed on Wednesday night. Another ordinance, which was introduced by Fifth Ward Councilman Peter Cunningham and included the mayor’s proposed anti-wheeling legislation was voted down by the council majority twice, in two 5-4 votes.
• The City council did not pass a resolution to award a year-long contract to consulting firm Ferraioli, Wielkotz, Cernilo & Cuva, P.A. for General Municipal Auditing Services for $80,000 to perform the city audit. Some discussion occurred when members of the council majority said that the firm that was chosen—which first started working for the city when Judy Tripodi took over—which was not vetted properly. “It could have been a better collaborative process,” Cunningham said. Cunningham added, that this firm came “highly recommended.”