Tag: Colorado Independent Ethics Commission

Colorado’s independent ethics commission found a Republican state senator, Vicki Marble of Fort Collins, violated ethics rules because of her involvement in an event...

On Thursday, the Indy's Marianne Goodland joined Chuck Bonniwell and Julie Hayden on 710 KNUS to talk about the Independent Ethics Commission: just what...

The embattled commission opened itself up to more abuse when it ruled to dismiss a complaint against Democratic Governor John Hickenlooper and then declined to revisit a decision it handed down last year against Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler.

Eight years after voters created Colorado’s Independent Ethics Commission, the board is fraught with problems — lack of funding makes it hard for citizens to bring complaints and elected officials worry they won't be given sufficient tools to defend themselves against politically motivated allegations. Despite its mission to keeping politicians clean, the commission itself has been used – both inadvertently and intentionally – as a political tool.

Although critics say it would do more damage than good, in a building brimming with possible defendants, the bill might gain traction.

Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler on Monday cut a personal check to the Department of State for $1,278.90, looking to put an end to an ethics investigation that has stretched on since the middle of October and that seemed likely to continue attracting headlines and draining public funds for months to come.

Draft documents drawn up by Colorado Independent Ethics Commission suggest members will allow Secretary of State Scott Gessler to establish a private defense fund he hopes to draw on in the event that an investigation launched into his alleged misuse of public funds leads to criminal charges. The apparent nod from the ethics board comes despite harsh dissent of its chairman, Dan Grossman.

Hours before Election Day in Colorado, controversial Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler has become the subject of criminal and state ethics investigations for allegedly misappropriating roughly $2000 in state funds for personal travel and expenses.

The state's top ethics panel has turned over to the Denver District Court copies of all the notes and other records made during five secret meetings a judge said were held in violation of Colorado Open Meetings Law. The judge plans to review the notes and decide whether they should be made public in response to an open records request and lawsuit filed by The Colorado Independent.

DENVER — The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission violated the state's Open Meetings Law when it failed to convene a dozen closed-door meetings held earlier this year according to strict legal requirements, a Denver District Court judge has ruled. Because the ethics panel didn't follow the law, the court ordered the state's top ethics panel to "immediately" release all records of any improperly closed meeting, even those the commission claims are protected by attorney-client privilege.