By Cate Plys
Evans showed up at the July 2 meeting, when the council was slated to vote on its new package of ethics regulations. Stubbornly refusing to recognize the irony of his own existence, Evans told reporters he supported the reforms. “I have no problem with that,” he said.
Elections were days away, and the aldermen were afraid to vote against ethics right before an election. Even so, they fought hard. Washington held up council debate on the ordinance for four hours, making last-minute compromises. He needed an ethics ordinance to spruce up his image, since his reform administration had spawned the federal Operation Incubator investigation into the awarding of city bill-collecting contracts.
Since then, the council has passed a few more restrictions here and there. Aldermen must fill out financial disclosure forms. They also have strict rules for expense accounts—expenses are paid using a voucher system through the city comptroller’s office. Committee chairs have to keep hiring reports, and committee workers fill out time sheets.
It’s not that the editorials enlightened Daley. As another alderman, speaking anonymously, puts it, “I think they felt like they were under a lot of pressure. Huels said [Sun-Times reporter] Fran Spielman was calling him every day. So they were beginning to think the difficulties in the council might rub off on them if they didn’t do something.”
Bruner calls the new ethics ordinance “a colossal joke”:
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After being questioned by the Sun-Times, Burke said another law firm would represent his clients in the city portion of their lawsuits and he wouldn’t accept fees for it. Burke claims the city isn’t a party in these suits because the nominal defendant is the Cook County treasurer’s office, which collects taxes and gives them to the various local governments and taxing bodies.
