'Wind' Letter Raises New Questions on Aubertine Ethics

Renzi Campaign Media Release

Renzi: 'Wind' Letter Raises New Questions on Aubertine Ethics
Senator tried to influence local vote on project that adds to his financial gain, Renzi campaign claims
WATERTOWN, N.Y., Oct. 22 — The Dave Renzi for State Senate campaign today released a letter written by his opponent that raises new and even more alarming questions about whether Darrel Aubertine has again ignored ethics laws, and put his personal profit before his duty as a public official.

The June 15, 2006 letter, sent by Aubertine to members of the Cape Vincent Town Board, urges officials to ignore ethics laws, and cast votes on a wind power measure, even though at least two of the five board members had a personal stake in the outcome of the vote.

“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.”

The “issue at hand” involved an effort by some board members that would have restricted where wind turbines could be built. Aubertine has had a secret contract since at least 2004 to build as many as 10 wind towers on land he owns. Aubertine told the Syracuse Post-Standard that the contracts could be worth up to $100,000 a year.

Two months before sending the letter, on April 12, 2006, Aubertine insisted in another news interview, that he had “deliberately stayed out of the local discussion on the project,” because of conflict of interest concerns.

“This letter raises serious questions about Darrel Aubertine’s willingness to bend and ignore ethics laws that interfere with his ability to make money for himself,” said Renzi for Senate campaign manager John J. Morgia. “It directly contradicts well-understood laws that prohibit elected officials from voting on matters that benefit them, as well as his own professed concerns about conflicts of interests and his public commitment to stay out of these local decisions.”

Within weeks of Aubertine’s letter, the Jefferson County Board of Ethics told the Town Board – in two separate opinions (Nos. 06-01 and 06-02) – that it was improper for members with interest in wind power to vote on the project – the exact opposite position as that taken by Aubertine.

“The ethics law concerning conflicts of interest and using your public position for personal gain is clear, but Darrel Aubertine has continually broken it, telling us one thing and doing another,” Morgia said.

“These questions demand answers, because voters deserve to know whose interests their Senator is trying to represent – ours or his own.”

While Aubertine’s letter to the Cape Vincent Town Board has raised ethical questions, it is interesting that he has not sent a similar letter to officials in the St. Lawrence County town of Hammond, where identical issues have been raised – and Aubertine does not have a personal financial stake. In that case, two board members with direct interests have recused themselves from wind power decisions, but Aubertine has not weighed in on that controversy.

Aubertine’s letter to the Cape Vincent Town Board is located on the sidebar of this blog