Connecticut Local Politics

Several sources, including this one, are suggesting that ethics reform may not yet be dead. It may return, zombie-like, to a special session.

I’ll believe it when I see it, mainly because the problems that led to the bill’s original failure have yet to be dealt with:

There is now talk of acting on ethics in special session, but the same opposition and obstacles continue to threaten to thwart agreement on reforms, including pension revocation.

Democratic leaders already plan to call rank-and-file members back before June 30 to consider extending a local tax on real estate sales. (Hughes)

That session could be called within the month. If ethics reform is to happen this year, compromises need to start being worked out soon.

“Altercation Over Legislation”

Capitol Watch shows how the failure to enact the ethics bill laid bare the obvious dislike between Reps. Larry Cafero and Chris Caruso.

“Chris Caruso has tried to be a champion of the ethics issue,” Cafero said. “He has a trophy that he’s after – he’d be the first to admit it – and that’s John Rowland’s pension. And unless and until he gets his hands on John Rowland’s pension, no ethics reform will take place. And he told me he will make darn sure that happens. He said he would filibuster.”
[...]
“[[Cafero]] is the same ’saint’ who opposed campaign finance reform, opposed reforming the state contracting, and until they [convicted] John Rowland, he and the other Republicans never questioned what he was doing,” Caruso said. He said Cafero and the GOP don’t truly want pension revocation – which he has been pushing for years – so they passed a bill that they knew the House wouldn’t accept, just to kill it. “It’s easy to use me as a scapegoat, because they need to blame someone.”

There’s so, so much more. Go read the whole thing.

Source
Hughes, Paul. “Ethics bills may return in special legislative session.” Waterbury Republican-American 12 May, 2008.