By ADAM SICHKO
The Albany Business Review

The chairman of a state commission that regulates lobbyists has resigned, prompting calls to change the way the panel is structured.

John Feerick told Gov. David Paterson Monday that he will step down as head of the state Commission on Public Integrity. The 13-member panel was formed in early 2007 through the merger of distinct state commissions on lobbying and ethics.

In a letter, the 72-year-old Feerick told Paterson that "my health and energy have declined, and I no longer believe I can give my responsibilities the attention they require." Feerick's last day at the commission is Feb. 12.

Feerick, the former dean of Fordham University's law school, was appointed by former Gov. Eliot Spitzer and started serving in the position in September 2007.

Legislators combined the state ethics and lobbying commissions in a package of ethics-reform legislation.

To date, the Commission on Public Integrity has received the most attention - and criticism - for its handling of the "Troopergate" scandal over Spitzer's alleged use of the State Police to investigate former Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's activities in the summer of 2007.

The commission fined four state officials for their alleged involvement in the incident. Two of the four are contesting the fines, while the other two admitted violations and reached settlements with the commission.

Criminal charges are not being pursued.

Walter Ayres, spokesman for the commission, said Feerick's decision to leave has "nothing to do" with allegations that the state inspector general is investigating the conduct of commission members and staff during their investigation of Spitzer.

"John had thought about leaving last summer, and we were able to talk him out of it," Ayres said. "This time, we weren't as successful."

Paterson has the authority to appoint a new chairman. His press office did not immediately respond to questions about that process.

"The legislation that created this commission invested an awful lot of power in the chairman's role, far more so than the lobbying commission before it. Quite frankly, I think the governor's appointment here could have serious, long-standing ramifications to the well-being of New York state," said David Grandeau.

Grandeau ran the New York Temporary State Commission on Lobbying for 13 years before it was rolled into the Commission on Public Integrity. He was not invited to be a member of the new lobbying and ethics commission, and he has criticized the commission since it was formed.

Grandeau, who now runs a consulting firm in Niskayuna, said Feerick's decision to leave creates even more uncertainty for lobbyists who look to the commission for guidance.

"I don't think the lobbying community will see a lot of clarity or comfort that they have a level playing field," Grandeau said. "It's not the recipe that makes for a good meal; it's the chef doing the cooking. And so far, all we're getting is McDonald's."

Karl Sleight, who ran the former state Ethics Commission for six years, said the commission's problem is that it combines two "diametrically opposed" tasks: maximizing the transparency of lobbying efforts and giving confidential ethics advice to state workers.

"Thrusting the two together was never going to be an easy task," said Sleight, now a lawyer with Harris Beach PLLC's Albany office.

Troopergate highlighted the commission's "structural problems" of having to provide advice to people who could also be subject to an investigation, Sleight said.

Sleight said he hopes legislators change the format of the commission during this year's legislative session, which ends in June.

"Long-term, there needs to be some thought on what the government expects and needs from (the commission)," he said. "If you took the investigations out of it and just let them provide guidance and enhance transparency, that may improve the commission."