TRENTON — Although Gov. Chris Christie prohibited state officials from taking tickets to concerts or sporting events in a series of strongly worded edicts last month, some members of government didn’t get the memo. As Christie was lecturing state bureaucrats that they shouldn’t receive perks that are not available to ordinary citizens, members of the New Jersey State Council...
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A file photo of NJPAC in Newark, the second most-frequented venue by members of the New Jersey Council on the Arts, records show. TRENTON — Although Gov. Chris Christie prohibited state officials from taking tickets to concerts or sporting events in a series of strongly worded edicts last month, some members of government didn’t get the memo.
As Christie was lecturing state bureaucrats that they shouldn’t receive perks that are not available to ordinary citizens, members of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts were seeking more freebies — not fewer.
In a request to the state Ethics Commission, the arts council sought a waiver that would allow its members to accept two free tickets to events, rather than the one currently allowed by the ethics code. Council members argued that they are required to go to theaters, concert halls or museums as part of their official duties and shouldn’t have to go by themselves or pay the cost of taking a companion.
"I can’t afford to travel around the state and pay for a companion ticket to facilitate what I believe is my charge as a council member," Amy Simon said after a May 18 arts council meeting in which the outgoing member encouraged her colleagues to fight to return the ticket policy to the way it was before the 2006 revision of the ethics code.
In addition to the two free tickets, the council’s April 30 letter to the ethics commission sought permission for two to attend fundraisers at reduced rates. The council also asked that members be given blanket permission to attend performances for the entire year rather than file individual requests for each event.
The ethics commission said no, no and no.
An analysis of council records and interviews with state officials and arts leaders show an agency that is a throwback to an era when free lunches and tickets were the norm. The review of site-visit reports reveals the arts council operates under its own interpretation of the ethics rules, and it also raises questions about how much monitoring of the arts the council members actually do.
The arts council is part of the Department of State under the leadership of Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno. It is composed of 17 volunteers appointed by the governor for three-year terms. Most live in northern New Jersey, many are retired, and some have political ties to the administrations that appointed them.
They are responsible for distributing $16 million in grants to hundreds of nonprofit arts organizations around the state. The grants, ranging from several thousand dollars to more than a million, are critical to the financial health of the arts groups because they leverage millions of additional dollars from private sources.
Arts council chairwoman Sharon Burton Turner said that while members are responsible for attending events, there is no "concerted effort" to coordinate their visits to ensure the all organizations are included.
"Part of our charge is to go out and see how our money is being used," said Turner, who lives in Montclair.
"I personally go to all kind of things ... others want to get to as many of those things that are in their area of interest."
In her letter to the ethics commission, Turner explained that council members attend dozens of events all over the state and afterwards submit "a written report that becomes part of the grantee file."
Records from the last decade, however, show council members visit the same organizations — most often the state’s flagship institutions — again and again. They visit institutions close to their homes, and seldom go to smaller and far-flung venues. Some members never file reports, while other submit them incorrectly. Reports from an entire year can’t be found, and there’s a misunderstanding about ethics code and little help explaining what’s required.
"It’s very confusing," said council member Kevin O’Brien of Morristown, who has served for two years. "It’s a weird process."
O’Brien said sometimes requests for permission to attend an event are not answered until after the event has occurred. Sometimes he receives no response at all. "It’s patchwork," he said.
Michael Drewniak, spokesman for Christie, said the governor expects the council to abide by the ethics rules.
"We understand there have been some disagreements with some members of the arts council," he said. "However, the decision from the ethics commission on tickets is the rule that they have been told to follow."
PAPER TRAIL GROWS THIN
In all, 237 site visit reports from arts council members were filed between 2001 and May. In any given year, no more than 10 of the 17 members submitted paperwork on their visits, for an average of 1.4 visits per council member each year.
Paper Mill Playhouse was the venue most frequented and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center was second. Council members prefer theater to any other art form, with 121 reports filed for attendance at plays or musicals. They went to only 10 dance concerts, and all but one was classical ballet, and they trekked to the state’s southern eight counties only 21 times.
Some arts leaders say the activity reflected in the visitation reports shows the council does not give equal attention to all arts disciplines and to the work of smaller organizations.
"(A visit) would matter a lot. We’d definitely play it up, let our board members know. It would be great," Melanie Clarke, executive director of the Princeton Symphony, said about the value of a visit by the arts council. "We’re so enveloped in what we’re doing, politicking with the council members has never crossed our mind."
Major organizations are expected to get the most attention, she said. "Those organizations are certainly important to the culture of our state, but there are a lot of organizations doing innovative things that the bigger organizations can’t do."
ONE-PAGE REPORTS
Instead of describing the quality of the art observed on the visit, the size of the audience, or whether the venue meets disability codes, council members are asked to fill out a one-page form that seeks only basic information. They are asked about how they learned about the event and to describe their outreach efforts (did they wear their council lapel pins, speak to staff or board members, leave a card when picking up tickets). They must indicate how the council was recognized for its support (was there credit in program/playbill, a public announcement, posters in the lobby, etc.) There are three blank lines for observations and comments that are seldom used.
Several council members did not return messages seeking comment, and two said there were instructed not to discuss the ethics waiver and referred questions to Steve Runk, the council’s executive director, who was also unavailable.
Shawn Crisafulli, spokesman for the Department of State, said council members file the reports "at their own discretion" and that they are required to fill out reports only if they accept complimentary tickets. As a result, the reports do not represent an accurate picture, he said.
It’s an opinion echoed by some arts leaders.
"No way only 237 visits in 10 years. That could be Carol Herbert by herself," said John McEwen, executive director of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance, referring to the past arts council chairwoman. Herbert submitted only eight forms. Herbert could not be reached for comment.
But Kathleen Wiechnik, executive director of the ethics commission, said paying for a ticket does not automatically exempt a council member from the paperwork. If an invitation is extended because of the member’s official position, a report must still be filed even if the council member paid to attend.
Crisafulli said the council members do their best to follow the rules.
"Is the process taken seriously? Yes. Have there been inconsistencies? Probably," he said.
Wiechnik said state officials who volunteer their time, as arts council members do, often have difficulty determining what role they are performing. "You are frequently attending things not in your official capacity, so the use of the form is not going to be frequent," she said. "The most you can expect from somebody is ... that he takes affirmative action to create the correct impression. That’s all you can ask."
Drewniak said the administration will look into the confusion regarding the rules, and that the requirements for filing reports will be enforced. "If they are required (to file reports), they will going forward," he said. "If that’s what is expected of them, they should just do it."