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Motion of the Council of Allegheny County censuring Council Member Chuck McCullough for remarks made during the course of the November 4, 2009 Regular Meeting of Council which, in the judgment of Council, violate the standards established by the Allegheny County Ethics Code.
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WHEREAS, the Ethics Code of Allegheny County clearly establishes that all Council Members are to abide by the Code's standards for honor and integrity, and “[d]edicate themselves to the highest ideals of honor and integrity in all public relationships in order to merit the respect and confidence of covered persons, and the public;' and
WHEREAS, Article II, Rule M.9. of Council's Rules permits the censure of Council Members by motion for violating Council's own rules regarding decorum in the course of Council proceedings; and
WHEREAS, it is the judgment of Council that this Rule was not intended to foreclose the availability of the censure motion for violation of other ethical or legal standards of behavior that are applicable to the Council Members in the course of conducting County business; and
WHEREAS, during the course of Council's Regular Meeting of November 4, 2009, Allegheny County Council Member Charles McCullough engaged in debate on an amendment that he had offered to Bill No. 5154-09, authorizing the sale of certain County property to a private development consortium; and
WHEREAS, in the course of this debate, Council Member McCullough made certain representations regarding the effect of and ability of Council to amend or terminate the provisions of the amendment he offered that are not descriptive of the provisions of that amendment; and
WHEREAS, most notable among these representations are those appearing on Page 16 of the attached excerpt from the draft minutes of the November 4 Regular Meeting (Attachment 1), in which Mr. McCullough specifically asserts that revenues from the fund created by his amendment could be used for any operational purpose, even to the point of using such revenue for the payment of the County's light bills; and
WHEREAS, this assertion runs directly contrary to the provisions of the amendment itself (see Attachment 2), Section 5.D. of which clearly allows expenditure of funds from the proffered account for only four purposes, and expressly forbids expenditure of such funds for “any item which is lawfully or traditionally a charge to the County's general fund;” and
WHEREAS, in that same series of remarks, Mr. McCullough specifically indicates that the proffered amendment does not function to “tie [Council's] hands;” and
WHEREAS, this assertion also runs directly contrary to the provisions of the amendment itself, section 6 of which specifically requires a unanimous vote for any alteration or repeal of the amendment's provisions; and
WHEREAS, it is the judgment of Council that these representations were disingenuous and calculated to facilitate the passage of the proffered amendment; and
WHEREAS, it is further the judgment of Council that the disingenuous effect of these representations was particularly egregious, insofar as these remarks were literally the last substantive utterances made on the amendment prior to its final vote; and
WHEREAS, Mr. McCullough's other remarks on the amendment, taken as a whole, clearly indicate that the proffered amendment was merely a post-closing provision that simply provided clarity as to Council's role in administering the proceeds of the contemplated property sale; and
WHEREAS, upon thorough review of the provisions contained within the proffered amendment, it became apparent to the Council that the amendment in reality established a highly restricted fund with a perpetual balance of at least $4.9 million that: (a) could never be depleted due to the amendment's requirement for repayment of all revenues drawn down from the fund, (b) could only be tapped into via a supermajority or unanimous vote of Council, and (c) had a structure that could never be changed without a unanimous vote of Council; and
WHEREAS, multiple Council Member have stated publicly that they initially evaluated the amendment, which was not circulated for review prior to it being offered on the floor on the evening of November 4, based in significant part on Mr. McCullough's representations regarding its provisions; and
WHEREAS, upon thorough review of Mr. McCullough's remarks regarding his proffered amendment and the actual effects of that amendment, Council has no choice but to conclude that, on November 4, 2009, Mr. McCullough willfully and intentionally discussed his amendment to Bill No. 5154-09 in terms that were deliberately crafted to be misleading; and
WHEREAS, Council further finds that Mr. McCullough's conscious decision to hold his amendment secret until a point in time after all committee deliberations on Bill No. 5154-09 were concluded was specifically made in an effort to deprive Council of the opportunity to thoroughly discuss and evaluate the provisions of his amendment prior to voting on it; and
WHEREAS, Council additionally finds that Mr. McCullough consciously undertook these actions as part of a calculated plan to facilitate passage of an amendment that, if accurately described or thoroughly vetted in the regular committee process, may very well not have been approved by Council; and
NOW THEREFORE, IT IS MOVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY,
That Council Member Charles McCullough is hereby censured and reprimanded for willfully and intentionally engaging in a pattern of behavior regarding his amendment to Bill No. 5154-09 that was both calculated to be deceptive and ultimately functioned to be deceptive in fact, and, in the
process, violating the standards of honor and integrity applicable to his position as a Member of Allegheny County Council under the terms of The Allegheny County Ethics Code, codified at §5-1013.09 of the Administrative Code of Allegheny County.
PRIMARY SPONSOR: COUNCIL MEMBER FINNERTY