SC

Mike Rose: Stop Special Treatment For SC Legislators

By Mike Rose || Soon after I joined the South Carolina Senate in 1989 an FBI sting, Operation Lost Trust, landed several S.C. legislators in jail for bribery. The remaining legislators passed a new ethics law considered then to be the toughest in the nation. Today a special Commission appointed…

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Mike Rose
Mike Rose

By Mike Rose || Soon after I joined the South Carolina Senate in 1989 an FBI sting, Operation Lost Trust, landed several S.C. legislators in jail for bribery. The remaining legislators passed a new ethics law considered then to be the toughest in the nation. Today a special Commission appointed by Governor Nikki Haley, and two legislative committees, are studying proposals to strengthen South Carolina’s ethics laws again.

A high priority ethics law change should be to give an independent state ethics commission authority to handle alleged violations by legislators, as is done now regarding the Governor and all other statewide elected officials – and as occurs in some form in thirty-six other states. That would replace the current practice of giving S.C. legislators exclusive authority to handle ethics complaints against themselves.

There are many good policy reasons to make this change. First it could help avoid the perception of legislators being treated differently than other officials – either more leniently or harshly. The public would have more confidence in an independent body judging legislators instead of legislators continuing to exclusively judge themselves. Legislators should be subject to the same laws they impose on others, including the same process for judging violations of the ethics laws.

Moreover, legislators should not be put – or want to be put – into the position of judging their legislative colleagues because of inherent pressures on them to be overly lenient or harsh based on friendships, personalities, fear of retaliation, favors, scores to settle, etc. Believe me when I tell you that some legislators retaliate and settle scores by withholding support because of their grievances against other legislators, real or imagined. For example, at the end of the last legislative term a Senator texted a message saying the following in part: “Based on last vote cast by [name withheld], it appears he does not want or need any help from me. He choose his friends poorly …”

In addition, having Legislators’ state ethics law violations handled by an independent body would provide an additional check on the current excessive powers of the S.C. Legislature. The Federalist Papers warned against excessive powers by state legislatures and advocated having a strong, separate but equal Executive Branch, to help check those excessive Legislative powers. South Carolina is no exception.

South Carolina should adopt a system, as in many other states, of joint jurisdiction whereby its House and Senate can punish its members for disorderly behavior, including violating House or Senate rules, within the Legislature, but allowing an independent state ethics commission to handle complaints against legislators for violating state ethics laws, as exists now for all other SC elected officials. That joint system is allowed and not prohibited by Article III. Sec. 12 of the SC Constitution, which states:

“Each house may . . . , punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member, but not a second time for the same cause.”

What happens in Texas is instructive. In that state all ethics law violations by Texas legislators are handled exactly the same as for all other elected officials in Texas. According to the Executive Director of the Texas Ethics Commission, whose remarks I tape recorded during a two hour interview, Texas citizens and legislators have been happy with this system since its adoption in 1991.

In Texas an independent eight person ethics commission handles ethics complaints against all Texas legislators and other elected officials at all levels. That commission is composed of an even number of members appointed 50 percent by the Texas Governor (from a list of ten nominees furnished by the Senate and House) and 50 percent by the Texas Legislature. That even composition of appointees by the Governor and the Legislature is deemed to comply with the separation of powers requirements of the Texas Constitution by preventing the Executive and Legislative branches from having excessive power over each other.

That Texas construes this set up to be constitutional should be precedent for South Carolina since Section 11 of the Texas Constitution states virtually verbatim what Art. III Sec 12 of the State Constitution says quoted above. Last year I introduced in the State Senate a bill to restructure the S.C. Ethics Commission patterned after the Ethics Commission in Texas.

There is additional precedent in the Palmetto State for allowing an independent body to judge legislators’ violations of state ethics laws. The Judiciary adopts specialized rules for its attorneys and judges, and handles internally violations of those rules. Similarly, the S.C. House and Senate adopt specialized rules and can discipline its members for violating them. However, members of both the judiciary and legislature can be arrested and disciplined by the Executive branch, and members of the Legislature can be judged by the Judicial branch, for civil and criminal violations of S.C. laws. Similarly, the requirement of keeping the Executive and Legislative branches separate should not prevent an independent ethic commission from enforcing violations by legislators of S.C. state ethics laws.

Mike Rose is a Summerville, S.C. attorney who served thirteen years in the South Carolina Senate.

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10 comments

ceilidh10 January 23, 2013 at 11:36 am

I think we need another FBI sting targeting the GOP and GOP corruption in this state.

Will someone please call the President to get it going??

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Womp womp January 23, 2013 at 11:42 am

Title of this article is “Stop Special Treatment For SC Legislators”…. isn’t he taking the legislative pension that only legislators get?

Enjoy the $36k for the rest of you life, Mike. My pension won’t be that much.

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James Brown January 23, 2013 at 5:22 pm

$36k a year? Are you kidding? Are you sure? Better than some of my record contracts!

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say what?!? January 23, 2013 at 12:25 pm

Hey Fits, is it true that all legislators receive free medical treatment at MUSC for anything, such as MRIs, CT scans etc??

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Philip Branton January 23, 2013 at 1:08 pm

Dear Mike Rose…….. (yes YOU)

Bravo, you really know how to get someone to crack a smile. BRAVO…(Clap, clap, clap)

Mike, we find it rather pleasing that you have the utter gall (or guts) to pen this “open” letter to FITS about ethics..!!

Where have you been concerning Mr. Paul Thurmond…???

…..Lin Bennett…..??

….”Promenade Landfill”….???

…..SC State…??

..and most notoriously…the 900 Million silent auction to BOEING with out a PUBLIC review or vote…!?! (spit…!)

Mr. ROSE……you call yourself a Lawyer? Have you sir ever read the “Art of WAR”? Well my friend, how ethical has actions been in Mali or Syria or Argentina been lately..!? Mr. Rose, we feel sure your voters want you to think, act, and “Play” like a political warrior….are your voters LOSERS..!?

…and NOW you want to get ETHICAL..?! Maybe we need you to lead a delegation to Mali and ask some corporate supporters on BOTH sides of the “gas fight” about ETHICS and how much it is costing the American Taxpayers..!!

Mike we appreciate you sticking your nose out in this article but we highly suggest you take a look at some rather OBVIOUS corporate activity on both sides of the Atlantic and talk to them about ethics…!!! SC Pensions are depending on …WHAT..??

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toyota kawaski January 24, 2013 at 8:31 am

Hey Phil if you dont get help at Charter please get help somewhere

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shifty henry January 23, 2013 at 2:35 pm

…. I missed the photo of Mr. Rose sitting on a white cloud rising towards the heavens silhouetted against a golden sun when he retired.

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katrina January 23, 2013 at 5:22 pm

Ditto on the above. SC Lawyers have no credibility but they sure write pretty articles. All the lawyers i’ve sued and hired (except two) have mastered the art of opportunistically twisting manipulating, and expanding law beyond four corners, in repugnance of substantive intent.

No wonder. The lead lawyer of the state sets the lead. AG Wilson’s bullshit excuses why he’s not investigating Harrell. (see AG spokesman Powell’s comment in September 25, Post and Courier article, more http://laurenscountycitizenswatch.com/investigations/attorney_general).Anyone who can read does their homework understands Article 3 and 5 of the ethics code don’t have anything to do with AG authority in 14-7-1630.

Hey Mr. Rose, seems like a lawyer ought to be more concerned with corruption of lawyers than legislators, like when the County Attorney directed a private religiously charted organization to funnel a secret contribution to his escrow acccount through the City Manager and a government agency. (http://laurenscountycitizenswatch.com/investigations/county_attorney) and obstructed legislative authority and a bunch of other violations. Truth is an absolute defense against slander. I ought to be sued if what I’m saying isn’t true. It would be fun to have all the lawyer slimy shenanigans opened in Court. I’d move it to federal court though. No way would I stick around in SC Court of Clowns, Queen Jean and the rules amendment committee of legislators who ‘represent’ my interests in front of the Court.

Nothing personal. I understand most people don’t study law so when lawyers spew their own invented meanings, people just swallow.

Not me. I study law and I reserve swallowing for special occasions.

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toyota kawaski January 24, 2013 at 8:33 am

ah poor Katrina can only be a paralegal when it really wants to play with the big boys!!!

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Torch January 23, 2013 at 9:21 pm

“That commission is composed of an even number of members appointed 50 percent by the Texas Governor (from a list of ten nominees furnished by the Senate and House) and 50 percent by the Texas Legislature.”
Still controlled by the legislature. Note that 1/2 of them are from a list from the legislature and the other 1/2 are from the legislature. Shit, I’d just as soon have Dick Harpootlian appoint 1/2 and Jake Knotts appoint the other 1/2.

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