News Release On Wind

The news release was worthy of posting as received and here are some random thoughts that go along with the news release.

• The Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo has been actively campaigning for Senate Democratic candidates across New York State, but he has not made an appearance for Darrel Aubertine!

• Why has Aubertine refused full disclosure on his contracts? There should be nothing to hide and if he believes in reform then full disclosure should be the rule. Yes, they are proprietary like he states, but he is an elected official and his contract with the company should not be any different than other landowners who have contracts with the same company. 

As an elected official, he has different obligations than the general public and he has already violate his obligations by voting on wind power legislation in the Assembly, which he should recuse himself from and the letter encouraging others to violate the ethics decision of the county was wrong.  

RENZI HAILS ATTORNEY GENERAL'S NEW WIND 'CODE OF ETHICS;'
URGES OPPONENT TO RELEASE HIS OWN WIND CONTRACTS

Guidelines were prompted by reports of corruption involving officials with financial stake

State Senate candidate Dave Renzi today praised state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo for his announcement of a new "Wind Industry Ethics Code" designed to stop corruption by requiring greater transparency and disclosure by public officials who have personal stakes in wind turbine projects.

Among the provisions of the Attorney General's Wind Industry Ethics Code is the requirement that public officials disclose dealings with wind companies, including making public the details of contracts by filing them with the local County Clerk.

"Wind power promises to play a major part in our nation's effort to wean us from foreign oil, protect our environment, and help create an entire industry and jobs revolving around green energy," said Renzi. "But sadly this nascent industry has been tainted by scandal and questions of unethical self-dealing involving elected officials across the state."

"We need to hold our government leaders to a higher ethical standard. That's why I am urging my opponent today, in the spirit of this new Code of Ethics, to release the full details of his secret wind energy contracts, so that voters and local residents can judge for themselves if he has acted appropriately and in compliance with the law in his dealings with these companies," said Renzi.

Attorney General Cuomo's Wind Industry Code of Ethics sprung from his investigation into whether companies and public officials may have acted improperly in relation to wind power projects.

Darrel Aubertine has been accused of using his public position to improperly influence local actions involving a wind farm project in his hometown, Cape Vincent. Aubertine holds contracts with at least one wind company—worth as much as $100,000 a year, according to a report in the Syracuse Post-Standard.

But Aubertine repeatedly has refused to release the details of his contracts, or fully explain his dealings with the companies, concerning his secret deal.

The Code prohibits gifts from wind power companies to elected officials, requires companies to publish the names of all public officials with a financial stake in their projects and requires that all leases and easements for wind power be filed with the County Clerk.

Aubertine has filed two "memoranda of leases" with the Jefferson County Clerk for possible wind turbines on his property, but these contain almost no information about his financial stake in the project.

Aubertine vs. Ethics AGAIN

Darrel Aubertine's ethical judgment has been a centerpiece of the 48th district Senate race. Again, Aubertine comes toe to toe with ethics and again he comes up on the short side.

A letter to the Town Board of Cape Vincent written personally by Aubertine states; 
"While some may feel that these elected officials should abstain from voting on this matter, my belief is that they should not ... I feel it is ethically proper that in this case all board members should vote on the issue at hand." This is the direct opposite of an opinion by the Jefferson County Board of Ethics.

Even after the Board of Ethics opinion, and in this campaign as recently as last week, Aubertine has consistently said voting on an issue that will provide personal financial benefit to an elected official and voting on a budget that taxes everyone fairly is the same thing. Clearly, he is misguided, one is a conflict while the other is not.

It is the MO of the wind power companies to deal with landowners and get signed contracts prior to working with local governments to establish proper approvals and zoning. It is their intention that the lure of money is enough to blur the lines and set aside your responsibilities as an elected official. The public can decide if that is the right or wrong approach.  

Important to note, Renzi has supported alternative energy sources, such as wind, with a proper process in place. 

Here is the letter.