This Week's Attitude
No Holiday Gift This Year For Part-Time Legislators
By Neil S. Friedman

The New York City Council was at it again; they must think we're idiots! Twice in recent years, voters rejected extending term limits beyond eight years for its own members and other city elected offices, but recently, the council contemplated an end run to put yet a third referendum on a future ballot.

Term limits will result in 36 out of the current 51-seat council departing in 2009, in addition to Mayor Bloomberg and Brooklyn cheerleader, Borough President Marty Markowitz.

The last time I checked, this was a democracy. You know, a government OF the people. But a few arrogant politicians evidently thought they could thumb their noses at city voters in an obvious attempt at self-preservation.

Next thing ya know, they'll wanna be council members for life. Remember, these are the same part-time legislators who voted themselves a hefty 25 percent pay hike - raising salaries into six figures - just a year ago. Don't forget, many council members also have additional careers that subsidize council salaries, not to mention the money they earn for senior committee posts.

Fughedaboudit!!! The only term limits referendum on a forthcoming ballot should set in stone with two years for the mayor, each of the 51 council members and other elected city offices.

If two-terms is good enough for the presidency, it's good enough for New York City!

Ever since voters approved the consecutive eight-year limit in 1993 and again in 1996, the council has tried to evade the electoral process and increase it to twelve years.

As a matter of act, no sooner did term limits take effect six years ago, which helped a bunch of freshmen enter the council, than these rookies attempted something akin to a bloodless coup and tried to change the law behind closed doors. And their underhanded campaign to change the rules hasn't stopped - until this week.

Apparently City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, whose is rumored to be a 2009 mayoral candidate, has had enough of it. Earlier this week, Quinn, who has painstakingly initiated several overdue council reforms, said the term limits debate is over - once and for all. (Or at least until a future speaker decides to revive it.)

The mayor said this week he plans to speak with city lawyers about drafting a ballot referendum that would close any loophole in the current law that allows the repeal of the two-term limit.

With a growing undertone of resentment over repealing the two-term limit and Mayor Bloomberg announcing he opposed it, Quinn wisely decided repealing the law was not a bright idea, stating, "Overruling the will of New Yorkers would be antidemocratic and anti-reform."

Quinn has been trying to corral council members and reform outdated rules ever since she took the speaker's chair almost two years ago. At the time she pledged her colleagues she would work on altering repealing the term limits rule, but wisely abandoned the notion this week. After she proposed legislation to prohibit Council members' self-promoting advertising with taxpayer dollars, the City Council voted in October to ban the practice, which is most common around the holidays.

Most New Yorkers probably presumed city legislators paid for non-campaign ads, such as holiday greetings throughout the year, out of their own pockets, but that was not the case. They used money from their city council budgets, which, in retrospect, was outrageous. Now that they have to fork over personal funds most have pulled holiday ads using the flimsy excuse they can no longer advertise. Those Council members who no longer advertise are just demonstrating that they are - to put it nicely - thrifty! They can no longer spend tax dollars, but they can certainly dip into their own pockets or use campaign funds to pay for them.

There's a rumor afoot that one of the next reforms Quinn is contemplating is the elimination of outside employment while serving on the council. In other words, members will have to quit or shelve OTHER jobs while working for constituents. Not a bad idea since it's been reported a few Council members earn more from outside careers than their council salaries.

Council members who want to remain politicians should attempt to do so without skirting the law. Besides, under term limits, elected officials are under the gun that should encourage them to accomplish any goals in eight years, making them more accountable to fulfill campaign pledges. More importantly, despite the argument about any talent drain, the two-term limit allows novices with fresh ideas an opportunity to participate in government to assess if they want to be career politicians.

Last year, the council's raise was a nice present as the holiday season approached, but this year those part-time legislators' dreams of a sugar plumb term limit extension has turned to coal. And voters can't be more grateful.