Sentences with phrase «diem system»

Astorino unveiled an ethics plan last month that would end the per diem system for state lawmakers as well as create term limits for the Legislature and elected officials.

Astorino's proposal would also scrap the per - diem system used by state lawmakers in exchange for a receipt system.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver says he's also interested in changes to the per diem system as part of the pay raise plan.

Cuomo is proposing a five - point plan, including public financing of campaigns, full and complete disclosure of lawmakers» outside income, and reform of the legislative per diem system where the governor says lawmakers come to Albany just to make money through the daily expense payments.

This year, both Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate GOP Leader Dean Skelos have expressed a willingness to consider per diem system reforms along with legislative pay raises.

State lawmakers so far have refused to introduced Cuomo's 30 - day budget amendments, which link appropriations to new disclosure requirements, such as revealing private business clients and reforming the per diem system of travel reimbursements.

And Heastie, speaking to reporters afterward, says he'll discuss reforming the per diem system with the other Democrats.

Among his recommendations, Astorino favors switching elected officials from the defined - benefit pension plan to a defined - contribution plan; replacing the per diem system for lawmaker expenses to one requiring stricter bookkeeping; and scrapping the state Joint Commission on Public Ethics in favor of a new independent ethics watchdog appointed by the judiciary.

The meeting came as state lawmakers have so far not introduced Cuomo's 30 - day budget amendments, which tie appropriations in the proposal to new outside income disclosure proposals as well as reforms to the legislative per diem system.

The state's per diem system to reimburse lawmakers for travel expense is again under scrutiny after the FBI collected records from an assemblyman who has racked up a very big bill.

But the per diem system has come under scrutiny after lawmakers linked to corruption scandals — including cases involving Assemblyman William Scarborough and former Assemblyman William Boyland.

Schneiderman, who was a state senator for several years, says it's not that hard to fix the per diem system.

The package also calls for reforms to the state's per diem system, which hands out payments to lawmakers for days they are in Albany but is loosely tracked and requires no receipts.

Mr. Schneiderman knocked previous attempts at reform as falling short, and called on Mr. Cuomo to press the legislature to ban outside income entirely and drastically overhaul the per diem system, among other proposals.

Lawmakers are pushing for their first pay raise since 1999, and Senate GOP Leader Dean Skelos says he'd accept a deal on a salary increase that would include reform of the per diem system.

Abuse of the per diem system has led to indictments of some lawmakers.

They'd like to change what's known as the per diem system, where lawmakers are paid a set rate for each day they are at the state Capitol.

«The Independent Democratic Conference has put forth a serious ethics package to ban outside income and reform the per diem system,» said IDC spokeswoman Candice Giove.

«If you think about the per diem system, this is in addition to travel expenses, this is not just travel expenses,» the AG continued.

Abuse of the per diem system has landed a number of state lawmakers in hot water over the years, the most recent of which is Assemblyman William Scarborough, a Queens Democrat who was arrested in October on charges he sought reimbursement for nonexistent travel expenses.

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has endorsed a pay raise for his former colleagues in the state Legislature, provided that they also approve reforms to the per diem system that has proved too easy for corrupt lawmakers to scam.

The state's per diem system is so lax that nothing prevents these property owners from collecting the money.

We hope that this prosecution helps bring an end to abuses of the state legislature's per diem system.»

Mr. Scarborough, who was first elected to the Assembly in 1994, is accused of abusing the per diem system that allows members of the Legislature to be reimbursed for their travel costs.

«We are hoping that with today's sentencing and with the result of this case that we are going to see the beginning of the end of abuses of the state per - diem system and perhaps improvement in the behavior of anyone who thinks that public service can be intertwined with self - service,» Hartunian said.

Keeping the ethics monitoring groups at current levels comes at a time when Mr. Cuomo, lawmakers and other state officials are all floating various ideas to strengthen existing ethics laws, including heightened disclosure requirements, increased penalties and an overhauled per - diem system.

The commission would also establish a cap for outside income and be tasked with evaluating the current per diem system and other benefits.

It would also amend the state constitution to require lawmakers convicted of corruption charges to surrender their pensions, make changes to the per diem system, and create a commission to examine the possibility of a pay increase for state commissioners and lawmakers.

Mr. Schneiderman has called for reforms in Albany that go beyond those adopted in Mr. Cuomo's budget — including ending the per diem system and banning outside income.

In a release sent out this afternoon, Heastie announced he would «introduce new accountability and transparency measures to the legislative per diem system.»

This per diem system, which gives legislators flat fees for time spent in Albany, has come under increased scrutiny in recent years.

Assembly Speaker Heastie, a Bronx Democrat who has been one of the top participants in the per diem system, released new regulations for Assembly travel reimbursement this spring, satisfying what had been agreed to in the budget.