Scandalous Pensioners - NYTimes.com The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan is right to move to seize state pensions from lawmakers who are convicted of corruption charges, instead of waiting for the New York Legislature to act. On Tuesday, Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, said that he is designing a system of fines and forfeitures to deny convicted public officials retirements "cushioned by a pension paid for by the very people they betrayed in office." At a public hearing of the Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption, Mr. Bharara said that he sees his clawback program as a way to help discourage rampant corruption in New York State. His office will seek "appropriate fines" that match the pensions accrued while convicted public officials were engaged in criminal conduct. It will also consider federal forfeiture actions in some cases when defendants have failed to pay fines imposed by the court, as well as in pending and future cases. Mr. Bharara's plan to remove corrupt officials from the retiree payroll is yet another example of someone outside the Legislature taking the initiative to reform that body. The lawmakers themselves can rarely be counted on to carry out real reform. In his time in office, Mr. Bharara has been part of a widespread crackdown on corruption stretching over several years and involving more than 30 state and local politicians. This long, shameful line includes those who have been indicted or convicted of a crime or accused of misconduct like harassing women on the legislative payroll. Mr. Bharara's plan probably will not retroactively affect the handful of former public officials now in prison, but it could be part of a larger effort, going forward, to deal with the state's toxic political culture. Ultimately, the Moreland Commission must come up with more ways to clean up systemic corruption than frog-marching public officials to jail in front of the television cameras. The commission is expected to issue a report by early December outlining ways to reform the effects of money in state politics. Public financing of campaigns should be at the top of the list; other reforms should include stronger reporting requirements for campaign spending and stronger enforcement of campaign laws. Mr. Bharara's initiative is welcome, but without fundamental reforms, Albany's culture will not change.