Judges do not have to submit annual statements of financial interest

By Stacy Brown | PA Independent

HARRISBURG — Information about credentials and the background of judicial candidates in Pennsylvania are readily available through a number of mediums, including websites, news organizations and the various campaign advertisements that sprout up at election time.

But, if voters want detailed financial information about judges, it will take more than just a click of the mouse. Those details could take a month to obtain, leaving voters a little less informed than they may want to be.

Because of a 1983 state Supreme Court decision, sitting judges are exempt from filing statements of financial interests with the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission, where every other public official and employee must file annual statements.

Judges, however, must disclose their financial statements with the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, or AOPC.

To see a judge's financial statement, a right-to-know request must first be filed with the AOPC. It could take 30 days or longer before the information is made available.

However, financial filings with the State Ethics Commission are available almost immediately on its website.

The law changed in 1983 when the state's highest court ruled that financial disclosure provisions infringed upon the judicial branch's powers, said John Contino, executive director of the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission.

Before the Supreme Court's ruling, the Commonwealth Court concluded that the law requiring judges to file the statements with the commission was unconstitutional, because it violated the doctrine of separation of powers, Contino said.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed that decision and since then, judges have been required to file their statements with the AOPC.

Opponents of the law say it allows judges to be accountable only to judges.

"There isn't any reason that everyone shouldn't file their report with the Ethics Commission," said Barry Kauffman, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, a Harrisburg-based nonpartisan open-government group.

"With the Ethics Commission, you basically have one-stop shopping. Now, if you're trying to follow the money, it is tough. It's not only illogical to do it this way (by filing a right-to-know request), but it is also the least convenient way to find the information. At minimum, the information should be online," Kauffman said.

Eric Epstein, founder of Rock The Capital, a Harrisburg-based political watchdog group, said financial disclosure is paramount for all candidates, including judges.

"I don't think the Supreme Court's record has been inspiring. If it is too difficult for a candidate to file financial statements, then that person certainly isn't competent to be a judge," Epstein said.

Art Heinz, a spokesman for the AOPC, said requests for financial records are granted eventually.

"The judges have to file annually with our office, and the documents are public," Heinz said.

The statements are kept in AOPC's Philadelphia office, he said. If filings are not made, disciplinary action, including fines and reprimands, could be handed down.

Two statewide judicial elections for the Superior and Commonwealth courts are on Tuesday's ballot.

A single vacancy on the 15-member Superior Court pits Harrisburg lawyer Vic Stabile, a Republican, against Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge David Wecht, a Democrat. The court reviews most civil and criminal cases appealed from the Courts of Common Pleas in the state's 67 counties. Judges on the Superior Court serve 10-year terms.

Democrat Kathyrn Boockvar, a Bucks County lawyer, will square off against Anne Covey, also a Bucks County lawyer, for the lone seat on the Commonwealth Court. The nine-member court hears litigation typically focuses on banking, insurance and utility regulation and laws affecting taxation, land use, elections, labor practices and workers compensation. Judges on the court serve 10-year terms.