Assemblywoman Galef Highlights Her Pension Reform Bill

Assemblywoman Sandy Galef has heard the call for ethics reform that resounds throughout New York State and in the halls of the Capitol in Albany. Among them, a call for a reassessment of the benefits allowed for those who have convicted felonies while in and pertaining to their elected office.

Galef introduced a constitutional amendment (A5884) that would change the way that pension and retirement benefits are handled in cases in which an elected official is convicted of a felony offense against the public during their time in office. They are now, in the wake of the convictions of Sheldon Silver and Dean Skelos, emphasizing the importance of passing legislation to reform the way pensions are treated after an official is convicted. The corresponding Senate bill, S1923, is sponsored by Senator Marcellino.

As the law currently stands, New York State does not have a policy that forfeits the pension benefits of elected officials who are convicted of felony offenses associated with their positions. This allows Silver and Skelos both to collect their pensions behind bars, as well as other state legislators that have been convicted of crimes. Although the legislature cannot change the law retroactively and remove pensions from specific individuals, they can act now to ensure that future offences have ongoing consequences. There have been previous iterations of bills intended to reduce or eliminate pensions of convicted elected officials, but these are inadequate as they are not intended to make a constitutional change.

“It is high time that Albany reevaluates how we treat elected officials who have broken the law, to the detriment of the people they are supposed to represent,” said Galef. “I believe it is imperative that we not continue to fund politicians who have abused their power.”