New York Ethics Panel Approves 2026 Legislative Agenda
By: Joseph T. Burns
The New York State Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government (COELIG) adopted its 2026 legislative agenda. COELIG’s 2026 agenda includes proposals that address topics as varied as public disclosure of candidate ethics filings to virtual Open Meetings Law (OML) access for advisory bodies.
Among the legislative agenda items approved by the members of COELIG are:
- Support for a requirement that all financial disclosure statements required to be filed with COELIG be filed electronically;
- Support for an amendment to the Executive Law and the Legislative Law to allow COELIG to impose fines on lobbyists and clients of lobbyists who fail to complete COELIG-mandated training;
- Support for an amendment to the Open Meetings Law to allow meetings of advisory bodies to be held virtually;
- Support for an amendment to the Executive Law to allow for a civil penalty to be imposed on those who aid a public officer or lobbyist in violating New York State’s ethics or lobbying laws; and
- Support for a proposal requiring that the financial disclosure statements of all candidates for statewide and state legislative office be posted on the COELIG website.
The 2026 state legislative session begins in January. Any or all of these proposals could be considered at that time.
COELIG was established by the Ethics Commission Reform Act of 2022 and replaced the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE). Like JCOPE, COELIG is charged with oversight, interpretation, and enforcement of New York State’s ethics and lobbying laws.
COELIG is led by a board of eleven commissioners comprised of three appointees of the Governor; two appointees of the Senate President and Majority Leader; two appointees of the Assembly Speaker; one appointee of the Senate Minority Leader; one appointee of the Assembly Minority Leader; one appointee of the Comptroller; and one appointee of the Attorney General. The appointees, however, must also be approved by an Independent Review Committee made up of the deans of New York State’s fifteen law schools. COELIG commissioners appoint an executive director who serves a four-year term.
