Inspector general criticizes weak conflict-of-interest law

SPRINGFIELD — The law governing conflicts of interest by Illinois legislators is “a toothless tiger” that needs to be strengthened by allowing investigations, public censure and even fines, the legislature’s inspector general said Friday.

Tom Homer said the law urges legislators not to vote on bills that might help them financially but doesn’t actually forbid it. And even if it were forbidden, he said, the law doesn’t include any enforcement mechanism or penalties.

Homer, himself a former legislator, said he hears allegations of potential conflicts roughly once a month.

“I get complaints that people make in good faith that assume there’s some sort of recourse, but it’s clear there is none. It’s very frustrating,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press. “It’s not a satisfactory answer to say ‘I agree with you but there’s nothing we can do.’”

He urged the General Assembly to specifically bar legislators from voting on bills that would enrich them or their families. He said a legislative committee should review possible violations and issue public reports that might lead to official censure or fines. That should be coupled with extensive public disclosure about legislators’ financial activity and relationships, Homer said.

“We have something like this in Congress, but we don’t have it in our state legislature,” said Homer, a Naperville attorney who has served as the legislative inspector general since 2003. “It’s a toothless tiger. We’ve got some rules but no way to enforce them.”

Aides said House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton hadn’t seen Homer’s proposal yet and couldn’t comment in detail. The two Chicago Democrats will review the proposal, the aides said.

Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said the speaker is open to “common-sense” ethics legislation but that other public corruption laws might cover this issue already.

Rep. Chapin Rose, a Mahomet Republican and chairman of the Legislative Ethics Commission, agreed with Homer’s call for a stronger conflict-of-interest law, although he too noted that other laws may apply in some cases.

Illinois lawmakers have passed major ethics reforms in the wake of scandals involving former Govs. George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich. Some of the changes apply to their own activities. Political work on state time is now specifically prohibited. Gifts from lobbyists are restricted. Homer’s position of inspector general was created. Lawmakers face restrictions on leaving the General Assembly and going to work for special interests.

But Homer said none of those new laws address conflicts of interest. The 1967 law on the subject says it is a guide to proper conduct and definitely not a set of rules “meant to be enforced by disciplinary action.”

That means the law wouldn’t stop a lawmaker who owns a company that makes solar panels from pushing legislation to require all public buildings to install solar panels. Or a legislator married to a top executive in a highly regulated utility could vote to deregulate that utility, helping the spouse and the family’s pocketbook.

Echoing a common complaint from government watchdogs, Homer said lawmakers should be required to provide far more financial information to the public. The current disclosure form asks just a handful of specific questions, such as the name of any asset that produced a capital gain of more than $5,000.

Homer said the form judges fill out is a better model. It requires broad descriptions of a judge’s overall financial interests, including debts, employment information for everyone in the family and any financial relationships that could pose a conflict of interest.

Weak: ‘We’ve got some rules but no way to enforce them’