Why Do Council Side Gigs Matter?

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• Connor Barwin
• Courtney DuChene
• Charles D. Ellison
• Jon Geeting
• Anne Gemmell
• Jill Harkins
• Bruce Katz
• Jason Kelce
• Diana Lind
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• Larry Platt
• Jessica Blatt Press
• Katherine Rapin
• Roxanne Patel Shepelavy

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Why Do Quango Side Gigs Matter?

Councilman Bobby Henon is arguing that his marriage work was legal as he seeks a dismissal of his corruption charges. That, Philly 3.0's appointment director points out, is exactly the problem

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  Articles by Jon Geeting

Why Practice Council Side Gigs Matter?

Councilman Bobby Henon is arguing that his spousal relationship work was legal every bit he seeks a dismissal of his corruption charges. That, Philly 3.0'southward engagement managing director points out, is exactly the trouble

Jul. xv, 2019

Metropolis Council side jobs are back in the news this week, with Jeremy Roebuck reporting from federal court on the arguments over whether Bobby Henon'south salaried position with IBEW Local 98 amounts to a bribe past federal standards.

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"While prosecutors have portrayed Henon every bit a kleptomaniacal pol who sold his Council seat in exchange for a $73,000-a-year union chore, the attorneys maintained that state law allows for exterior employment. Henon's income from Dougherty'southward wedlock was no dissimilar than that of whatever of the viii other members of Council who agree other jobs , said his lawyer, Brian J. McMonagle.

"What has been alleged hither is merely not a crime," McMonagle argued during a hearing in Philadelphia. "If information technology is, and so a lot of people — whatever official that is on a salary from an outside entity — better head for the hills." […]

The indictment is filled with accusations that the labor leader leaned on Henon over again and once more to back policies or actions that benefited his union.

At Dougherty's asking, information technology says, Henon forwarded a 2022 complaint that led to the shutdown of a nonunion contractor installing MRI machines at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. That year, Henon also allegedly put Dougherty in the room when Comcast renegotiated its franchise agreement with the city — a deal that resulted in a lucrative contract for a union contractor favored by Local 98."

The affair about this is that regardless of whether or not it's ultimately deemed illegal, it seems undeniable why Local 98 pays Bobby Henon a total-fourth dimension salary: He is the person entrusted to be Local 98'southward eyes and ears, and safeguard their interests beyond city government. That is, arguably, the task.

Quango makes several times more than the median Philadelphia resident, and they're able to beget pretty comfortable lives making $130,000 as individual earners.

The second salary defenders say this isn't a bribe considering Councilor Henon isn't existence paid to do anything he otherwise wouldn't want to practise. Henon has very pro-union politics on and off the clock, and then the additional bacon from Local 98 isn't actually "buying" anything extra. They're only giving him more resources to practise what he would already be inclined to do. And as Henon's lawyer argues, he's been reelected and remains popular in the 6th District even with this information about the second salary being widely-known at this point.

The key question is: Who does Henon serve when the interests of his 2 employers—Philadelphia residents and Local 98—come into disharmonize? It'southward nifty to believe that supporting a pro-matrimony politics is broadly aligned with the public interest, but yous'd have to be a pretty major league ideologue to say the interests of the Philadelphia building trades and the broader public are always aligned. Or to try and read some kind of public interest rationale into things similar the MRI episode at CHOP, for instance.

This is where a prohibition on side gigs for the highest-paid large city legislature in the U.S. could really help provide some clarity virtually whose interests elected officials are representing in Quango, while fugitive the appearance of abuse and the corrosive cynicism that it promotes. Council makes several times more than the median Philadelphia resident, and they're able to afford pretty comfortable lives making $130,000 as individual earners. Regardless of whether or not this is establish to be in violation of federal law, information technology pretty clearly allows for some clear conflicts of involvement, and with everything that'south happened, it hopefully won't take a guilty verdict to create some momentum for a alter to the outside employment rules.

Jon Geeting is the director of date at Philadelphia 3.0 , a political action committee that supports efforts to reform and modernize City Hall. This is office of a series of manufactures running in both The Denizen and iii.0's weblog.

Photograph via Wikipedia

josephsexper.blogspot.com

Source: https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/why-should-we-care-about-council-side-gigs/

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