The Commission
The Commission consists of 14 members, three appointed by the Temporary President of the Senate, three appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Assembly, and six appointed by the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor. The Commission Chairperson is selected by the Governor. Terms for the commissioners vary and are set forth in the statute. The Commission appoints the Executive Director.
Daniel J. Horwitz, Chair
Mr. Horwitz is currently a partner at Lankler, Carragher & Horwitz, LLP, a boutique litigation law firm in New York City. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Horwitz was a partner in an AmLaw 100 law firm. He previously served as a New York County assistant district attorney for nearly a decade, where he investigated and prosecuted complex business crimes in the Frauds Bureau. Mr. Horwitz was recognized in the 2009-2012 editions of New York Super Lawyers and in The Best Lawyers in America, 19th Edition, in the area of White-Collar Criminal Defense: White Collar and Business Litigation. In 2012, Super Lawyers recognized Mr. Horwitz as a Top 100 New York Metro Attorney. Prior to his legal career, Mr. Horwitz served as legislative director to Congressman Thomas J. Downey. Mr. Horwitz received his J.D. cum laude from the American University Washington College of Law and his B.A. from Columbia University. Mr. Horwitz was appointed to the Commission by Governor Cuomo.
Patrick J. Bulgaro
Mr. Bulgaro completed a 28-year career in New York State government in 1993, during which he served as director of the budget, executive deputy commissioner of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, and executive deputy commissioner of the New York State Department of Civil Service. Between 1993–2001, Mr. Bulgaro served as president and executive director of the Center for the Disabled. Mr. Bulgaro presently operates a consulting practice in the areas of financial management, strategic planning, operations and systems analysis. During his career, Mr. Bulgaro was awarded the American Society for Public Administration’s Charles Evans Hughes Award for “Outstanding Career Achievement.” He has served on the faculty of Cornell University, Siena College, and the State University of New York. He is the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters and has been a trustee of various community organizations including Albany Medical Center. Mr. Bulgaro was appointed to the Commission by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Hon. Joseph Covello
Justice Covello has more than 30 years of experience in law and justice. Justice Covello stepped down from the New York State Appellate Division in 2011 to return to private practice as a partner in the Long Island firm of Lynn, Gartner, Dunne & Covello, LLP. Before his appointment to the Appellate Division, he served as a trial judge in the Supreme Court, Nassau County. Prior to that, he served on the Appellate Term for the Ninth and Tenth Judicial Districts, and as a trial judge in District Court, Nassau County. He spent 16 years in private practice before becoming a judge. Justice Covello is a veteran of the United States Army, having served in the United States Army’s Presidential Honor Guard. He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo and Hofstra University School of Law. Justice Covello was appointed to the Commission by Senate Majority Leader Dean G. Skelos.
LaShann DeArcy
Ms. DeArcy is of counsel to the law firm Morrison & Foerster, LLP, as a trial lawyer with a focus on complex commercial litigation. She also serves as a commissioner of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, as a member of the board of trustees for the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, an executive member of the Council of Urban Professionals, a member of the Metro Manhattan Chapter of the Links, Inc., and as a member of the Howard University School of Law Board of Visitors. For her work in promoting diversity in the legal profession, Ms. DeArcy was honored by the New York City Bar Association as a recipient of its 2009 Diversity Champion Award. Ms. DeArcy served in the United States Air Force and earned her J.D. magna cum laude from Howard University School of Law in 2000, and her undergraduate degree from Antioch College in 1992. Ms. DeArcy was appointed to the Commission by Senate Minority leader John L. Sampson.
Hon. Vincent DeIorio
Judge DeIorio resigned as chair of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to serve as a commissioner on the Joint Commission on Public Ethics. He is a graduate of Utica College of Syracuse University and the University of Buffalo Law School and maintains a private practice in Rye Brook, New York. He served as a district delegate to the 1966 New York State Constitutional Convention, as a judge of the New York State Court of Claims and chaired the 1992 Statewide Congressional Redistricting Commission. He continues to serve as an officer and member of several professional and community organizations. Judge DeIorio was appointed to the Commission by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo.
Mitra Hormozi
Ms. Hormozi served as the chairperson of the New York State Commission on Public Integrity, and is a partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP. She previously served as the special deputy chief of staff in the New York Attorney General's Office, where she supervised high-profile initiatives involving public integrity. Prior to that, she spent more than six years as an assistant United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York, where she was chief of the Organized Crime and Racketeering Section and received numerous top law enforcement awards. Ms. Hormozi is a graduate of the University of Michigan and the New York University School of Law. Ms. Hormozi was appointed to the Commission by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo.
Marvin E. Jacob
Mr. Jacob is a recently retired partner of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, where he focused primarily on corporate financial restructurings. Prior to joining Weil in 1979 as a partner, he served as the associate regional administrator of the New York office of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. During his tenures at the SEC and Weil, he taught bankruptcy reorganization and securities regulation at New York Law School as an adjunct professor of law and published and lectured extensively. Since his retirement from Weil, Mr. Jacob's practice has focused primarily on mediations, arbitrations, public service and pro bono matters. From 2006-2009, Mr. Jacob served as a member of the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct and in 2010 was appointed to the Governor’s Task Force on Public Authority Reform. Mr. Jacob was appointed to the Commission by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Seymour Knox, IV
Mr. Knox is the CEO of Knox International, LLC, a New York-based marketing and consulting group. For twenty years, Mr. Knox served as vice president of corporate relations for the Buffalo Sabres. He has served on various boards including the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, Parks and Trails New York, Artpark in Lewiston, and the George Eastman House in Rochester. He graduated from Lake Forest College with a B.A. in American Studies and Art History. Mr. Knox was appointed to the Commission by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo.
Gary J. Lavine
Mr. Lavine is associated of counsel with the Syracuse law firm of Bousquet Holstein PLLC. Mr. Lavine served in the United States Department of Energy as deputy general counsel for environment and nuclear programs during the administration of President George W. Bush. He served as senior vice president and chief legal officer of Niagara Mohawk Holdings Inc. and senior vice president, legal and corporate relations of Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation. Mr. Lavine has served in a number of staff positions with the New York State Legislature, including legislative counsel to the Minority Leader of the Assembly; counsel, Senate Committee on Insurance; executive director, Senate Committee on Corporations, Authorities & Commissions; and assistant to the chair, Joint Legislative Committee on Reapportionment. He served four terms as a member of the United States Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad. He received degrees in both business administration and law from Syracuse University. Mr. Lavine was appointed to the Commission by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo.
Hon. Mary Lou Rath
Ms. Rath represented the 61st Senate District in Western New York from 1993 until her retirement in 2008. She was the first woman to serve in a leadership position in the Senate Majority and had numerous legislative accomplishments, especially in the area of health care. During her tenure, she co-chaired the Legislature’s Administrative Review Commission and authored the report “New York State's Bureaucracy: In Need of an Attitude Adjustment.” She also served as chair of the Senate Medicaid Reform Task Force’s subcommittee on long-term care. Ms. Rath has received many awards and honors in recognition of her distinguished public service in the Senate and as a member of the Erie County Legislature. Ms. Rath was appointed to the Commission by Senate Majority Leader Dean G. Skelos.
David A. Renzi
Mr. Renzi has been with the Watertown law firm of Brown, Dierdorf and Renzi since 2002 with an emphasis on municipal law, real estate law, business formation and estate planning. Mr. Renzi also currently serves as justice for the Town of Watertown. Previously, Mr. Renzi served as a Jefferson County assistant district attorney, and then as the Jefferson County Chief Public Defender. Mr. Renzi is a graduate of Syracuse University College of Law. Mr. Renzi was appointed to the Commission by Assembly Minority Leader Brian M. Kolb.
George H. Weissman
Mr. Weissman served as the managing general counsel of the New York State Dormitory Authority for nearly a decade and as assistant counsel in the Office of the State Comptroller. His previous positions also included working as program associate for the State Senate, and counsel with the New York State Legislative Commission on Critical Transportation Choices. He was formerly of counsel with Marsh, Wasserman and Associates, LLP. He received his J.D. from Albany Law School of Union University and a B.A. in Political Science at SUNY Cortland. Mr. Weissman was appointed to the Commission by Senate Majority Leader Dean G. Skelos.
Ellen Yaroshefsky
Ms. Yaroshefsky is currently a law professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and co-executive director of the Jacob Burns Ethics Center in the Practice of Law. She is a legal ethicist and expert witness, and an experienced attorney specializing in defense and civil rights litigation. She is a member of several attorney ethics review organizations, including the American Bar Association's Ethics, Gideon and Professionalism Committee, the New York State Bar Association's Committee on Standards of Attorney Conduct, and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Ethics Advisory Committee. Ms. Yaroshefsky was appointed to the Commission by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Ellen N. Biben - Executive Director
On February 28, 2012, the Joint Commission on Public Ethics appointed Ellen N. Biben as the first executive director of the Commission. Prior to assuming her role as executive director, Ms. Biben served as New York State Inspector General. From 2007 through 2010, she served as special deputy attorney general for public integrity in New York State Attorney General’s Office. Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, Ms. Biben served for more than ten years as an assistant district attorney in the New York County District Attorney’s Office, the last five years of which she served as deputy bureau chief of the Rackets Bureau. Prior to her tenure at the District Attorney’s office, Ms. Biben was a litigation associate with Sullivan & Cromwell, and a law clerk to the Honorable Alan H. Nevas of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Ms. Biben received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Wesleyan University and her law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center, where she was executive editor of the Law Review.