Town of Queensbury

QUEENSBURY OFFICIALS DEBATE ETHICS RULES:

Accusations flew when the Town Board met with the town Ethics Board on Monday night to discuss concerns about the impartiality of Ethics Board members and the possibility of updating the town ethics code and requirements for membership on the Ethics Board.

Councilman John Strough charged that two members of the Ethics Board could not have rendered an impartial decision in an ethics dispute between Strough and Councilman Tim Brewer last summer, because those two members had written letters supporting Strough's opponent, Leo Rigby, in the 2005 election.

In addition, the two members -- Tom Haley and Gordon Ostrander -- are members of the town Republican Committee, and Strough is a Democrat.

Strough has drawn up a proposal for new language for the ethics code that states that no member of the Ethics Board shall "Endorse, support, oppose, or work on behalf of any candidate or measure in a town of Queensbury election," nor should they "hold office in any political party or political committee or be a member of any organization or association organized primarily for the purpose of influencing legislation or decisions of public agencies."