NY Governor Eyes Ethics Reforms, Term Limits, In First Proposal Of 2022

ALBANY – In her first proposal of 2022, New York’s Governor outlined a plan to institute term limits and ban outside income for statewide elected officials.

Governor Kathy Hochul announced the proposal on Monday, saying she wants the legislature to institute term limits for the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General and Comptroller.

Additionally, she also proposed a ban on outside income for statewide elected officials while serving in office in a push to increase accountability and trust in the integrity of State government.

“On day one as Governor, I pledged to restore trust in government and I have taken steps every day to deliver the open, ethical governing New Yorkers deserve,” Governor Hochul said in a statement. “I want people to believe in their government again. With these bold reforms, we will ensure New Yorkers know their leaders work for them and are focused on serving the people of this state.”

The Governor says she plans to introduce a constitutional amendment to set limits of two consecutive terms for statewide elected officials.

Governor Hochul will also propose legislation to impose a ban on earned outside income for the same statewide elected officials, with an exception for academic positions that must receive ethics board approval.

According to her office, Hochul has already rolled out the following reforms:

• Ethics Trainings: Governor Hochul signed an Executive Order requiring all State employees to take an ethics training course upon hiring and regularly thereafter.
• FOIL Reforms: Governor Hochul implemented reforms to the FOIL process to increase transparency with journalists and members of the public. The Governor also began requiring state agencies to identify and proactively post commonly requested data, to reduce the need for FOILs in the first place
• Recusal Agreements: The Governor and other senior members of her administration released the full recusal agreements they abide by.
• Transparency Plans: Governor Hochul directed more than 70 executive agencies and public authorities to release public transparency plans, which are publicly posted online.
• Combating Harassment And Discrimination: To improve the Executive Chamber’s response to accusations of harassment and discrimination, Governor Hochul retained an independent outside law firm to investigate all claims in a fair, unbiased manner and created a new Human Resources department.