GREENBURGH CAMPAIGN FINANCE COMMISSION
PUBLIC HEARING MEETING MINUTES
JUNE 05, 2000
(June 11, 2000 draft)
Present:
Andrew Goodman, Catherine Lederer-Plaskett, Claire Lee, Harriet Leib, Erin
Malloy, Susan Mancuso, Sally Schaadt, Charlotte Schienberg, Ervin Schliefer,
Francis Sheehan, Lester Steinman, Mary Tobias
Speakers (in order of first appearance):
Anne Nelson County Government Chair, League of Women Voters
Danny Gold President, East Irvington Civic Association
Chairman, Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations
Joseph Kiell Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Co-founder, Grassroots for Greenburgh
Jeffrey Gottlieb Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Carol Wielk President, Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Co-founder, Grassroots for Greenburgh
Ella Preiser Beaver Hill Civic Association
Secretary/Spokesperson, Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations
Co-founder, Grassroots for Greenburgh
William Pohlmann Chairman, Greenburgh Republican Party
Lorrin Brown President, North Elmsford Civic Association
Stephanie Bellino President, Lower Manor Woods Neighborhood Association
Observers:
Beatrice Gottlieb Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Gail Kiell Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Joseph Villanueva Tarrytown resident
Absent:
Elizabeth Daniel, Rev. Wilbert Preston, Mike Reynolds
The ninth meeting of the commission was called to order at 7:35 p.m., in the main meeting room at Town Hall, Town of Greenburgh, 320 Tarrytown Road, Elmsford. Copies of the May 23, 2000 minutes, which were distributed to members in advance of the meeting via e-mail, fax and/or personal delivery, were available. Since the sole purpose of the meeting was to conduct a public hearing, approval of the minutes was postponed. Copies of the commission's recommendations regarding cable access, ethics, and public finance were made available at the back of the room and distributed to everyone present. They were also made available to the general public in advance of the meeting via the Internet, at http://grassrootsforgreenburgh.home.att.net/cfc.htm.
Co-chair Catherine Lederer-Plaskett welcomed the attendees. She said the commission consists of concerned professionals, residents, and citizens of the town who have come together to develop recommendations that will foster increased public confidence in Greenburgh's elections. There are both positive and negative campaign practices in the Town of Greenburgh, as is the case in any election. The commissioners want to hear about local campaign practices, both good and bad, which is the purpose of the public hearing. The commission has already heard from invited guests, and now it is the general public's opportunity.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett asked the commissioners to introduce themselves, which they did as follows: Mary Tobias, Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations; Susan Mancuso, Greenburgh Town Attorney; Lester Steinman, Director of the Municipal Law Resource Center at Pace University; Francis Sheehan, Commission Secretary; League of Women Voters' member Harriet Leib, resident of Dobbs Ferry; Catherine Lederer-Plaskett, Democratic Party representative; Ervin Schliefer, Liberal Party representative; Erin Malloy, president of the Dobbs Ferry League of Women Voters; Claire Lee, treasurer of the Hastings-on-Hudson League of Women Voters; League of Women Voters' member Charlotte Schienberg, resident of Somers; and Sally Schaadt, Republican Party representative. (Andrew Goodman arrived shortly after the introductions had been completed and testimony commenced.)
Co-chair Harriet Leib said the commission has had many meetings. The commission broke into three subcommittees and those subcommittees met as well. Tentative recommendations have been made, reduced to writing, and distributed for public comment. The commission is asking for public comment on the tentative recommendations so they may be finalized and presented to the Town Board.
Harriet Leib explained the rules governing the public hearing. First, a speaker must legibly sign the speaker sign-up sheet at the back of the room. Second, when called, the speaker is to step up to the microphone and give his/her name and community, a more descriptive address is optional. Third, the speaker is not to include personality bashing and political commentary in his/her comments. Fourth, the commissioners will carefully listen, and not answer questions except for points of clarification-- this is the public's opportunity. Fifth, each speaker is allowed three minutes. Charlotte Schienberg will be the timekeeper. When one minute remains, a warning sign will be raised. When time has expired, a stop sign will be raised indicating the speaker should end after completing the last sentence.
Harriet Leib said the meeting is being taped for broadcast on channel 71, on June 8, 2000, in the evening. The Village of Ardsley's live broadcast of its Village Board meeting has pre-empted the commission's meeting from being broadcast live.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett invited anyone watching the June 8, 2000 broadcast who has questions or comments to call 421-0075.
Harriet Leib said the commissioners will listen carefully to each of the speakers and also review a copy of the videotape. She asked that the speakers on the sign-up sheet be recognized.
Anne Nelson, League of Women Voters' County Government Committee Chair, said she met the commissioners at their first meeting. She was involved in the commissioner-selection process and helped convene the first meeting. The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan organization but it is an advocacy organization. The League of Women Voters advocates strongly for campaign reform. It is a difficult problem. She applauds the commission's hard work and respects its decision to avoid personality bashing and political commentary at the hearing. She thinks the commission is on the correct path. She is particularly grateful to Commission Secretary Francis Sheehan for his minutes, which are 14 pages, 17 pages, etc. Even though she has not been able to attend any meetings subsequent to the first one, the minutes have kept her up-to-date. She wished the commissioners well and hopes the commissioners can meet some kind of timeline.
Danny Gold, East Irvington resident, President of the East Irvington Civic Association and Chairman of the Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations, praised the commissioners for their work, stating that the recommendations drafted are very good first steps in trying to bring fair campaign practices to the Town of Greenburgh. Some of the recommendations may not be as strong as he would like but certainly there are very good steps being taken. The turnout for the meeting is small because there has not been much publicity about the hearing. He happened to get an e-mail from Carol Wielk earlier in the day. Other channels of notification need to be explored. He praised Paul Feiner for having a commission formed and said he hopes the Town Board will follow-up on the commission's recommendations. The commission's recommendations need to be implemented. The Town Board should hold its own public hearing on the final recommendations and then publicly vote on the recommendations so the public will know what will happen to the recommendations. He will be very upset, as he believes many residents will be, if the Town Board buries the commission's recommendations. The recommendations must be publicized through whatever means possible. The commission needs a communication's plan, calling for action by the Town Board, including holding a follow-up public hearing. Publicity is important to get the recommendations implemented. Referring to the subcommittee recommendations, Mr. Gold made several specific points. Regarding cable access, he said fair program scheduling needs to be considered when providing a baseline amount of access for all candidates. Providing an equal amount of airtime to each candidate does not necessarily make cable access fair. It is not fair for one candidate to get airtime on the eve of the election and another to get the same amount of time, but during a holiday period. Equitable and reasonable scheduling is needed. Regarding the Ethics Code recommendations, the provision that recusal occur "under certain circumstances" is very weak. It could be anything or nothing. It needs to be better defined. He understands each subcommittee worked on the recommendations separately, but the Cable Access Subcommittee and the Ethics Subcommittee both recommend a Campaign Oversight Committee be formed, while the Public Finance Subcommittee recommends a Fair Campaign Practices Commission be created. The committee and the commission seem to have overlapping responsibilities and the different committees/commissions are confusing. Clarification is needed. In general, he said the commission has done excellent work. He very much hopes the Greenburgh Town Board will consider and implement the commission's recommendations.
Joe Kiell, a Hartsdale resident, said he only recently became aware of the commission's work by reading Commission Secretary Francis Sheehan's minutes that are posted on the "Grassroots for Greenburgh" website. He does not have any specific comments on the recommendations, except to note that what the commission is doing is contrary to what is occurring in the town. The commission is tilting at windmills if it thinks the Greenburgh Town Board will change its ways, unless the commission engages in a very strong publicity campaign. A strong backing by the residents of the town is needed to create a roar that will be heard by the Town Board. Publicity is the only way to go.
Jeffrey Gottlieb, a Hartsdale resident, said he agrees with Mr. Kiell's comments and has no other comments at this time.
Carol Wielk, a Hartsdale resident and President of the Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc., said she echoes much of what Danny Gold said, not only because she admires him as a civic association colleague, but also because she agrees with much of what he said. Due to time-constraints earlier in the day, she didn't have a chance to better organize her comments. However, she said the subcommittee recommendations are really excellent, particularly the Cable Subcommittee recommendations. They are "right on". She applauds having the League of Women Voters or similar organization create the campaign oversight committee. Secor Homes Civic Association endorses it, as well as the other recommendations. She attended a commission meeting where an invited guest from the The Journal News didn't show up. She asked if the commission ever met with the The Journal News representative.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett responded that the commission had not.
Ms. Wielk said it is important for the commission to meet with the The Journal News representative for exactly the reason Danny Gold highlighted-- publicity. The "Grassroots for Greenburgh" website, a local grassroots website can only do so much. Many in the community know nothing about the Internet. She hasn't seen any coverage in the The Journal News.
Harriet Leib said that the public hearing was listed in the "Calendar" section in today's (6/5/00) paper and in the "Briefs" section in last Friday's (6/2/00) paper.
Ms. Wielk said that is fine but follow-up is needed. The Journal News must be made to understand how important it is to cover all the candidates in an election. It rarely happens. The Journal News is the key local newspaper in the Town of Greenburgh. The weekly Scarsdale Inquirer, with one Edgemont/Hartsdale page, does a good job but many do not get that newspaper. The League of Women Voters has considerable influence, even if it doesn't like to admit it. It is a very established organization. Anything the commission can do to prod the The Journal News to provide coverage of all local candidates would be helpful. With respect to the Ethics Subcommittee's recommendation to establish a campaign oversight committee, she urges that the League of Women Voters or similar organization create it, as was recommended by the Cable Subcommittee. The Public Finance Subcommittee's first bullet calls for more frequent disclosure. The term "more frequent" needs to be better defined. She doesn't have a recommendation to offer. The third bullet-- "participating candidates should pledge not to accept 'interested' contributions, such as from developers doing business before the town's boards"-- cannot be stressed enough. It is an absolutely essential recommendation. It is important for the commission to get the candidates, particularly the incumbent-candidates, to abide by it. She agrees with the commission that, at this time, taxpayer-financing of candidates is not welcome. She doesn't want to give any more money to the incumbents, who already raise a lot of money. Why should the taxpayers fund their campaign literature?, she asked. Before taxpayers are asked to finance campaigns, there has to be some evidence of voluntary cooperation. Regarding the proposed local Fair Campaign Practices Commission, she urges it also be created by the League of Women Voters or similar organization. She is very impressed with the League, more so than when the commission was originally constituted. She applauds all the commissioners for their work. She said she will call the telephone number given earlier if she has any other comments.
Ella Preiser, Beaver Hill resident, member of the Beaver Hill Civic Association and Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations Secretary, said she seconds Danny Gold's comments. She attended a few of the meetings and is impressed with the commission's work. There were questions raised at the meetings regarding the legality of holding a referendum. They have not been answered, at least not to her satisfaction. She is concerned about having a referendum on the ballot if it is not legal to have one on this issue. She is also concerned about the timetable, since initially the report was to be presented to the Town Board in June. She asked if that timetable is still likely.
Harriet Leib said the answer is dependent on how much can be accomplished in the next few weeks. However, the commission has decided that it would not limit itself, and will take more time if it is needed.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said Harriet Leib's statement is accurate. The commission will evaluate the comments heard at the public hearing and the previously drafted recommendations and work toward a consensus. It would be wonderful if those who spoke about the need for more press would submit recommendations for improving the commission's publicity. As Harriet Leib said, there is no set timeline.
Mrs. Preiser urged the commission to not terminate in June. After stating that the commissioners are entitled to some vacation time, she said the work needs to continue. The recommendations are a wonderful head start. She agrees with Carol Wielk's comment and, at this point, there is no way she could support using taxpayer-funds to finance town campaigns. There are so many logistical questions that first need to be addressed, some of which were eloquently addressed at the last commission meeting. The incumbents already have a bankroll that is obscene to run for a local office. Giving the incumbents even more money for their war chest would definitely not level the playing field for any challenger. Regarding the Ethics Subcommittee's recommendations, she is sorry the recommendations did not go further because the Ethics Code needs major revision. Perhaps the commission is limited to recommending only campaign finance related matters, but it should, nevertheless, pass along a recommendation to the Town Board that the entire Ethics Code needs to be revised. She was one of the organizers of the Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations' candidate debate, and greatly appreciates the League's debates. She urges the League to participate in doing more than one debate, adding at least one, during the primary season.
Mrs. Preiser said the power of the incumbency was very evident at a Town Board meeting last year, a month before the primary. A Town Council primary challenger asked the incumbents at the meeting if the meeting would be televised before the primary. When he received little or no answer, he said, "I guess that is the power of the incumbency." One of the Town Board members responded, "you betcha". It was crude but it was honest. The incumbents have a tremendous amount of clout and power that needs to be examined. She said she is not on the Internet. She picked up the recommendations at the beginning of the meeting and will reserve additional comment until she has had a chance to review them more thoroughly.
William Pohlmann, Ardsley resident and Greenburgh Republican Party Chairman, said the recommendations are a start but he is not happy with them. He wants campaign finance to be a success. He wants all parties to participate. He believes, more and more, that decent campaign finance is needed to get the "big money" out of politics. Big money is corrupting the system. At the federal level, everyone knows $100,000 gets a campaign contributor an ambassadorship. They are bought and sold. Concentration must be on getting candidates more exposure. If a candidate has exposure, there is no need for 30-second commercials and some of the literature that is put out. Instead of shows such as those played last year prior to the election, debates should be played around-the-clock on all three stations that the town controls, at least on the Saturday, Sunday and Monday before the election. He objects to the Public Finance Subcommittee's recommendation that participating candidates should pledge not to accept interested contributions. The present law says such contributions are illegal. The recommendation is only a pledge. An illegality, if properly enforced, is better than a pledge. The recommendation weakens the existing requirement. He also objects to the provision that debates follow League of Women Voters guidelines because the guidelines prohibit empty chair debates. If an opponent refuses to show up, the debate should proceed. The candidate who shows up should not be barred from debating and should be able to make a statement that his/her opponent refused to debate and that statement should be played around the clock as punishment. And there should be more debates. He gives his undying devotion and heartiest support for the League of Women Voters' educational and informational work. He has a problem with their advocacy component since he generally finds himself on the other side of the League's positions. It is the League's informational and educational component he seeks to strengthen. He said he objects to the Public Finance Subcommittee's recommendation that disclosure by participating candidates be more frequent and more descriptive than state law requires. The Republican Party fundraisers, since he has been involved, have not been more than $40 per person. He has been told by potential contributors that they are worried about retribution in town should their names appear in print. He doesn't know if the concern is realistic or not. $40 is not going to corrupt the system. He has not had enough money to mail campaign literature to every voter in the town at any time during the last ten years. The present system requires disclosure for contributions above $99. The big money, the $1000 contributions, is the problem and that money in recent years has been going to fund a campaign that is not local. Since names are not to be used, he said he wouldn't use them, but everyone knows who he is talking about. There is more than enough money in his (an incumbent's) local campaign fund to last years. Taking the big money is the problem. The Ethics Code must be strengthened. He would like to be on the Ethics Board. It then would not be a "quiet board". The chairs of the three largest parties who are not in power, who are not in the party of the Supervisor, should be able to designate appointees.
[Secretary Note: At this point the timer rang. Mr. Pohlmann's name was the last on the sign-up sheet. Mr. Pohlmann was initially advised that he could have another minute and was then subsequently advised that use of the timer had been discontinued. No time limit was imposed on his presentation.]
Mr. Pohlmann said he objects to the Public Finance Subcommittee's recommendation to create a local Fair Campaign Practices Commission. The League of Women Voters already has a Fair Campaign Practices Commission and it does a good job. It has a member of every party in Westchester. There is no need to duplicate its function. If a local Fair Campaign Practices Commission is created, it should be bi-partisan, not non-partisan. Everything, it seems, is partisan. He is concerned about who will pick the appointees if a local commission is formed. Cable access, he said, is crucial. It is one component. The booklet distributed by the League of Women Voters is another component that, perhaps, could be expanded on a local basis to cover more issues. The print media-The Journal News, The Scarsdale Inquirer, and The Rivertowns Enterprise-should pose three or four questions and have candidates respond without being able to see each other's answers. All the answers could then be printed simultaneously for the public to see. In the last election, the Rivertowns Enterprise endorsed his opponent without ever interviewing him. The paper never put his picture in the paper once throughout the campaign. For the highest office for the largest town, he thinks the newspapers should at least go through the charade of interviewing the opposition candidates. Again referring to the Ethics Board, he said complaints have been made and they go no further. There must be a way for a complaint to be investigated. He suggests the Ethics Board be constituted as follows: three members selected by the Town Board, one member selected by the League of Women Voters, and one member picked by each chair of the three or four largest parties in which the Supervisor is not registered. If the Supervisor is of one party, then the chairs of the three or four other parties get to pick appointees. If a complaint is filed and the League of Women Voters member and the chairs of three or four parties agree it should be investigated, then it should be investigated. Currently, investigations do not go forward. It is a significant problem. Regarding the Public Finance Subcommittee's recommendation that "participating candidates should pledge not to accept interested contributions from developers or business owners doing business before the town", he said that non-incumbents do not know who are doing business with the town. He would have to file a Freedom of Information request. He doesn't know if he would be told. Since challengers aren't always given information, it would be hard to comply. However, the Ethics Code is the key. If someone else can raise a charge and an investigation go forward, it would be significant.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said everyone who signed the sheet has spoken and asked if anyone else would like to comment.
Lorrin Brown, North Elmsford resident and President of the North Elmsford Civic Association, said he missed Danny Gold's comments and apologized for any repetition. He agrees with Ms. Wielk's comment that the citizens do not want to pay more money to the town. The residents have paid enough. It is wrong to ask the residents to pay for campaign finance. In terms of cable access, he supports an organization such as the one in Larchmont/Mamaroneck, where the cable stations are not run by a political party, as is the case in Greenburgh. It should be independent. He echoes Ms. Wielk's comments.
Mrs. Preiser, after asking if she could speak again, asked about process. Mr. Gold raised the issue earlier. Is the commission planning on having different oversight committees?
Harriet Leib said that, although the subcommittees may have named it differently, the tentative plan is to have one campaign oversight committee.
Mrs. Preiser asked how the commission intends to present the report to the Town Board, will it be solely a written report or will there be a Town Board presentation.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said the commission has not gotten that far and asked for suggestions.
Mrs. Preiser said it should not be just a written document that could be placed on shelf. There is not a large turnout due to a lack of adequate publicity. Putting a notice in the newspaper on the day of the event does not work well. When the report is ready, she urged a formal presentation at a better-attended meeting be made so the public will learn of the commission's recommendations.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said publicity has been mentioned several times. The television stations were contacted, and all newspapers more than one week ago. It is difficult to get press, as anyone who has tried knows. The commission welcomes suggestions.
Harriet Leib said the commission also put the information on the Internet.
Mrs. Preiser said she has no idea how to "turn on" the Gannett newspapers.
Stephanie Bellino, a Hartsdale resident and Lower Manor Woods Neighborhood Association President, said that since the Town Board asked the commission to convene, it could have made an announcement about the commission's public hearing at the last Town Board meeting. If they had done so, residents with children or who work all day could have planned ahead. The Town Board also sends out a tentative agenda that goes out to some residents and organizations. It could be listed at the beginning or end of the agenda in bold print. The Edgemont Community Council had a meeting this evening and could not be here. She agrees with the previous speakers-- the report needs to be presented at a Town Board meeting so additional comments may be received.
Francis Sheehan said that he announced the commission's public hearing at the last Town Board meeting. However, the meeting was not in Town Hall and was not shown live at the usual time. Instead, the meeting was taped and later broadcast at an "off time", not when Town Board meetings are generally played. He said anyone present at the last Town Board meeting heard the announcement.
Mr. Kiell, commenting on the publicity issue, said the announcement in the newspaper said the meeting was about campaign finance. The low turnout indicates, "who cares" about campaign finance. If the announcement stated that Greenburgh Ethics Code changes would be discussed, or that Cable access changes would be discussed, or something that residents could understand, maybe someone would show up.
Harriet Leib read the press release that she sent to the The Journal News politics editor and to the calendar listing: "The Greenburgh Campaign Finance Commission has been studying for several months the issues having to do with campaign reform in the town, ..."
Mr. Kiell said it is too long. It is not catchy.
Harriet Leib continued reading the press release: "particularly those of ethics, cable access, and public finance. Invited speakers have presented their views...." The notice was printed today in the The Journal News' calendar listing. There was also a notice in the "Briefs" section on page two of Friday's Westchester section. The commission really wanted the website address that was part of the submitted press release to be printed as well, but it was not printed. Fliers were put up and the newspapers and television stations were informed. She agrees with Mr. Kiell's comment that there just may not be enough interest.
Mr. Kiell said the meeting was also listed on the cable access bulletin board but it only said there would be a meeting. No details were given.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said, along with the press release, she faxed a copy of the informative poster that was created. She agreed with Mr. Kiell-- the newspapers didn't pick up the story. She is eager to find ways to get people more interested.
Mr. Gold suggested using Supervisor Feiner's e-mail distribution list. He endorses Mr. Pohlmann's proposal to have around the clock broadcasts of the debates done by the League of Women Voters or other non-partisan groups. Broadcasting the debates around the clock would end game playing by incumbents and allows everyone a fair chance to be heard. He said it is amazing how many people watch cable access. The Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations has a show that he hosts and he is frequently recognized in town due to his appearances on the cable access stations. Playing multiple debates continuously in the days leading up to the election, when residents might flip the channels and catch them, is an excellent idea.
Ms. Wielk said the comments related to publicity are well intentioned. The commission should not be defensive. A coordinated strategy is needed to keep up the pressure. The commission should be ongoing. The commissioners have been educated about what the community wants and could develop an educational program. People need to be made aware of the importance of campaign finance. It is a dry subject. Sound bites are needed even if the press was interested. There are so many issues battling for the public's attention. The term "campaign finance" causes people to just turn off. They don't realize how it relates to how they are governed and how their town is run. The people just don't understand that. The commission could help develop that educational program. She would be willing to help.
William Pohlmann suggested that Supervisor Feiner be contacted regarding the publicity issue because no one is more capable in the area of publicity than Supervisor Feiner, unfortunately.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said it is important for the public to understand that the commission went out of its way in the first meetings held to figure out how to be independent of the Supervisor's office. The commission was concerned that anything it did would result in fingers being pointed that it was not acting independently or was not being bi-partisan or non-partisan: When these recommendations are being made, that has to be taken into consideration and, to the Town Board's credit, they respected the commission's independence. They did not continue to issue press releases or anything else.
Mr. Pohlmann said that he was only recommending getting suggestions from Supervisor Feiner regarding publicity, not that Supervisor Feiner should do the publicity. He said the commission has worked well and hard, and the work is crucial for a vibrant democracy. He does worry whenever a non-partisan type committee is sought to be established. He said he has never seen a non-partisan committee. It usually results in the exclusion of Republicans. In a vibrant democracy, two or three parties is important. He likes the idea that a Liberal and a Republican is on the commission. However, on a commission, or Ethics Board, or oversight board, it is crucial that representatives be selected by the party chairs. It is likely a "friendly" Republican or a Democrat could be found. The League of Women Voters should be included. When the League of Women Voters formed the Fair Campaign Practices Committee they included every party, as well as League members. They deserve credit for doing so. With a so-called non-partisan board, he isn't sure there would be balance. In the last year, three members of the League of Women Voters left their non-partisan positions and are now running as Democrats. If he has a representative on a board he knows that representative would give a fair shake. It is in his best interest reform works because the Republicans have not won a local election in 27 years.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett asked if any commissioner wanted to speak.
Mary Tobias said that Mrs. Preiser raised the issue regarding the legality of a referendum. Ms. Tobias asked if it should be clarified that the commission is not considering a referendum issue.
Harriet Leib said the referendum issue is not the charge of the commission but no decision had been made. She asked Lester Steinman to respond.
Lester Steinman said that the reply was exactly on target. Whether or not there will be a referendum is a legal matter. Until the commission comes up with a proposal, the issue cannot even begin to be addressed. If there is financing involved, the town would have to get an opinion from its bond counsel before any bond issue could appear on the ballot.
Harriet Leib asked if anyone else had anything to say. There was no response.
Lester Steinman moved that the public hearing be closed.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett said she wanted to give out an address and phone before the public hearing is closed. Anyone with comments can write to the Greenburgh Campaign Finance Commission, 40 Birchwood Lane, Hartsdale NY 10530. The phone number is 421-0075.
Harriet Leib thanked those in attendance and those who spoke. She said the comments will be taken into consideration and she hopes the commission will succeed in developing recommendations that will be implemented and make a more level and fair campaign playing field in our town.
Harriet Leib moved the meeting be closed. Catherine Lederer-Plaskett seconded the motion, which was approved unanimously.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
[Note: Immediately after closing the meeting, the commission decided its next meeting would be held at Rochambeau School, 228 Fisher Avenue, White Plains, on Thursday, June 15, 2000, at 5:30 p.m., to discuss the public hearing comments and address pending issues.]
Respectfully submitted,
Francis Sheehan, Commission Secretary