"Office of Mayor needs new financial rules" says Goldman. No more....

Goldman for Mayor - 07 August 08 - For Immediate Release


"Given what we know now, such arrangements as the Mayor remaining on VCU's payroll, even in a part-time capacity, should have been prohibited by the Elected Mayor."

"Additionally, without pre-judging any particular situation until all the facts are clear, it is also necessary that any hint of special benefits related to the sale, purchase or financing of real estate, as we learned may have been the case with several United States Senators, must be prevented especially given the current situation in the housing market."


(Richmond) - Paul Goldman, author of the Elected Mayor law, said that "the original draft of the Elected Mayor law prevented a Mayor from holding even a second, part-time job, but this provision was eliminated from the final draft of the current law. Given what we know now, it would have been wiser to have had such a provision in the law passed by the General Assembly in 2004."

"As someone who has been in the forefront in changing Virginia and Richmond for many years, I have always taken the approach of the greatest President of the 20th century, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who helped lift of the country out of our biggest economic crisis. He was never afraid to innovate, but likewise, ready to realize when improvements in approaches were necessary."

"Clearly, the minimum a candidate should do, after now having a chance to review the operation of things for roughly 4 years, is to lay out what he or she will do on a voluntary basis, whether the law is changed or not, whether anyone else will do it or not."

In a statement, Goldman listed the following voluntary pledges:

"I will not hold any other job, part-time or otherwise, while serving as Mayor.

I will not conduct any other business, or accept any other compensation or remuneration, including speaking fees or any such related fees, while serving as Mayor.

I will not accept any special preferences, either as a seller or a buyer, as regards any real estate transaction, in terms of below-market or above-market transactions, while serving as Mayor.

Hopefully, what I am going to do voluntarily will be put into the Elected Mayor law directly by the 2009 General Assembly. If given the privilege of serving as Mayor, I will be requesting that City Council ask the General Assembly to make these Charter changes since this is the process required for such legal enactments.

All things considered, it seems to me that going forward, this is in the best interest of the city of Richmond and in the best interest of the Office of Elected Mayor."