More Chicago Creativity

Chicago politicians are endlessly creative. A few weeks ago I wrote about an alderman on the zoning committee who pushed for zoning changes to help developers who used his wife as their realtor. It turns out that his boss, William J. P. Banks, head of the zoning committee, is going to have a retirement party. The party's guests are being asked to send personal checks for $200 (or more), according to an article in yesterday's Chicago Tribune.

According to the executive director of the city's ethics board, the city's ethics ordinance prohibits gifts of $50 or more from anyone "with an economic interest in a specific business transaction" that an official has power over. But if you retire the day before the party, gifts from those you've helped are fine, and they don't have to be reported, as gifts to a political fund would.

The alderman's driver is holding the party. The checks, made out in the name of the alderman, are to be sent to the driver's address. And the alderman has recommended as his replacement none other than his driver.

Mayor Daley praised the alderman for being "very ethical, by protecting the integrity of [the council] at all times." And, according to the Tribune article, "at virtually every zoning meeting, Banks has pointedly abstained from voting on real estate proposals involving the law firm of his brother, Samuel Banks, and his nephew, James Banks. Even so, the firm for years has won more approvals from the panel than any other zoning lawyers in Chicago." What a coincidence that, of all specialties, they chose zoning law!

This is one of the limits of recusal:  if someone controls votes on a board or commission, or if the votes are controlled by the party or by someone else, his recusal will create only an appearance of propriety.

Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics

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