Funny quote at the end of the story. "...should be above reproach." Thats hilarious. If people in this country, and especially here in the Fee State, would wake up and take voting seriously, we could get rid of these type of slimy politicos who are all about what they can get for themselves. Instead we get the same old same old from the people who vote simply based on party affiliation to those who vote because of a candidates race. Someone once said that we get the kind of leaders we deserve and truer words were never spoken.

what happen's now that the council members broke a state law, or do we just forget about it because they thought is was legal. most others that break the law receive some type of reprimand( fine , jail or at least pbj don't do it again).

He is a well know successful businessman who works crazy hours on our behalf for a joke of a salary. His landlord.....they have a large store on the developers property, gave him a ticket. He flew to Dallas and paid for the hotel himself. I think that was likely to happen to a large tenant regardless. It is so easy to sit back and hurl criticisms at these guys for issues that really don't deserve headlines. I know this man. He is good, hard working and honest. His family have been valuable community members for generations. He just didn't mention some tickets that every other politician is taking.....if he says he forgot...... then he forgot. I, for one, thank him for his hard work........ and i'm a Democrat!!! lol

Let's see, I can write you a check but not give you tickets to a game? Money is a gateway drug and that is simply our system.

Impressive reporting; thank you for your tenacity.

"Elected county officials need to consider the appearance of accepting such tickets, Spicer said."

This is part of the problem. These days, too much emphasis is placed on "appearances", and too little on real issues or actual accomplishments.

To be honest, I don't know anything about the guy, but there are much larger problems facing us today than a $200 Super Bowl ticket .

It seems that for many elected officials and their appointed staff, greed is the operative motivation. When considering their salaries, benefits and perks of office - they fair far better than their constituents and yet they need more. Lets help solve the budget crisis in Maryland by cutting salaries by 50% and reducing appointments by 50%. Reduce the perks to zero and make the elected officials work for a living like the rest of us. Spoiled rich boys and girls can do without the public tax dollar. If you have to sacrifice to serve - how many will step up to the challenge?

they all do this.. Take $$, signs etc from employers who mainly hire illegals.. No secret here. Don't know about shapiro but his name is surely familiar.. Will check him out. If he owns holabird east his hiring practice is questionable.

Forgot he went to the games and Super Bowl? The IRS and the State of MD should help him remember as they tax it.

I think that this is stupid , I know that he made a mistake but he is allowed. Come on now who would not take a ticket to a football game. We are lucky to have someone of his background to try and make a difference. I for one would like to thank Todd for his service . We all need to look around and be careful that we do not lose someone like Todd , who will help us all in his work for Baltimore County.

This was either bad or dumb, neither is good from an elected official that should know the rules. Like professional athlete's, professional elected public servants should know the rules of the game before entering the arena....I'd say dumb in this case...

Dear Councilman Huff:
I have sent you, all the other council members and Kamenetz at least one dozen copies of emails concerning my son who is stuck in this corrupt, broken, and disgraceful department of social services swamp that I call DUMBCASTLE. He has been sexually, physically and emotionally abused in three of four foster homes. The only council person who has tried to help is Councilman John Olszewski. His son delegate Johnny O, delegate Joseph Minnick and Senator Norman Stone and Fred Theiss has tried to help. No other Senator or Delegate in Annapolis has tried to help Benjamin or require compliance with the Maryland annotated code. Why Delegates and Senators?

Maybe as you and Kamenetz are enjoying these freebies, you can take a minute and respond to me about the plight of Benjamin and the incompetence by Secretary Teddy Teflon Dallas who has launched an all out cover up with the help of the Baltimore County Police Department, Dr. Branch, Judy Schagrin, Maggie Ferguson and Ben Levey.
This comment may be off subject; however, tell that to three year old Benjamin CINA 03 08 0000299

The Council needs to update the local law to conform with the state law now so there is no room for confusion among elected officials. I dont know what they have been waiting for. The letter to the County was sent in February. It is now May. This is important. That letter could not have been more clear about the deficiency.

All this happens when you have a Democracy instead of a Republic in which USA was founded.

Jeff Kern: interesting final statement "voting based on party affiliation/race" quick qstn: what was the party affiliation and race of the candidates that you've voted for locally and presidentially? I'm not clairvoyant, but I have an idea "Pot meet Kettle!"

How in the name of truth do you forget a trip to the Supper Bowl with a developer no less. That's not the only issue Mr. Huff forgot about.

Just simply nuts, state law (affecting state legislators) states you cannot accept sporting tickets. Talk about peanuts. Corporations and individuals can spend unlimited amounts on behalf of a candidate and it is perfectly legal (see Mitt Romney & Newt Gingrich)!? Wait until you see this fall's campaign.

A sporting ticket is a "gateway"? Our system has politicians being required to beg for campaign contributions in the thousands of dollars, perfectly legal, and we worry about this.

Let's see how all of the County Council members vote on land development issues when the developers who have wined-and-dined them ask for variances, exceptions and re-zoning of their property (or property they want to purchase) such that adjacent residential property values decrease, neighborhood open space is taken away, traffic is increased, a burden is placed on existing infrastructure, and schools continue to be overcrowded. The meek and humble property owner doesn't have the means to be heard by the Council members via Superbowl tickets and large campaign contributions like the developers do. And then there's the re-districting issue . . .

Bryan, tell Calm down to read the Article 7 in the county charter. I used it in my blog on the DRC ethics issue.

http://dundalk.patch.com/blog_posts/ethical-questions-raised-regarding-seagrams-and-zoning-hearing

It clearly states even the appearance of a conflict of interest is a violation.

I just want to point out that if the Council has passed the ethics law proposed by the County Executive in the first place, this would not be a point of contention at all. Even though the Council claimed that the ethics bill they passed is more stringent, it clearly is not, they have known since February 2012 that it is not, and they still have not fixed it. Are they waiting for the County Executive to propose revisions or is someone on the Council going to do it themselves and soon? The Councilmembers who filed the disclosures, which were filed after the letter from the State, were prudent and obligated to do so in my opinion. Councilman Huff should have done the same rather than rely on the advice of another Councilmember he has not identified or sought a written opinion from the County Attorney. Rookie mistake. I doubt there was any sinister intent on his part. He should file an amended statement.

Huff is bothered by having his integrity questioned? Wasn't it his integrity that he ran on to be voted into office? I guess it was something that just looked good on paper, but not put into action.

Although I have been a fan of Mr. Sears' stories up to now, I find this one to be a ridiculous witch hunt for the sole purpose of creating an attention grabbing story. Mr. Huff is a hard working businessman and Councilman who accepted a football ticket from his landlord. Considering the amount of rent Mr. Huff's business pays, I would think a gift of a Superbowl ticket from his landlord is more than justified. He didn't report it because he didn't need to. If that was a purposeful omission, maybe it was because he knew reporters like Mr. Sears would try to sensationalize it into some big corruption story about an evil Republican. The fact is, Mr. Huff broke no laws, end of story.

LMAO. I 'forgot' about that trip and those tickets.

No see, he was simply 'misremembering' it. Good thing most of the rest of the council members were in similar situations, and did not 'misremember' them.

So, he accepted tickets from his landlord, and county law (even AFTER the 2012 update) neither prohibits accepting tickets nor requires reporting the receipt of tickets. He obviously should be crucified, correct? Where's the story that we're all supposed to so upset about?

Who cares what the state standard is? If the county law purposefully didn’t and STILL doesn't follow the state standard, then that's the county's issue, not Mr. Huff's, and the county's responsibility to fix it. Mr. Sears, do you have any other personal laws you believe we should all be following? We certainly wouldn't want to end up being cornered in hallways for violating your personal laws, possibly thrown in Patch prison.

As first reported by Baltimore Sun writer Alison Knezevich, Huff and Moxley were the two Council members that didn't break the law. As to be expected, she did not pursue Moxley ( who also claimed he forgot ). Either because of party affiliation, race or tenor as a Council member. I have learned to expect this lack of journalistic integrity from The Sun but I have always expected better from you Brian. There are real issues that need to be adressed, we don't need to make-up issues. Fire in the theatre calls are regressive but along party lines in Maryland as usual. Ms. Knezevich missed out on ethics training at journalism school.

Oliver not Moxley.

Good reporting, Mr. Sears. Thank you.

Agree with Mr Sullivan. A non-issue that is, evidently, not illegal presented in an inflammatory article without balance or reasonable due deligence! All of this Instead of substantive reporting on the complicated rezoning issues Northern Baltimore County is struggling to understand. I grew up with real journalists......this is not journalism!

I think it would be public service if the media could show any benefits provided by our elected offficials to those who gave them donations, whether in the form of sports tickets or monetary contributions. Often the officials say such donations have no effect on their actions, i.e., no bribery is taking place. I think that's the essential point of these laws. Those who can afford big donations should not get preferential treatment, such as zoning their property for more development.

If anyone is surpised by anything elected officials will do once the Power sets up shop in their heads please contact me as I just happen to own a few thousand square miles of swamp in Florida I am trying to sell

After 68 years of B--l S--t politics of Baltimore County and the satate of Maryland I left "town" in utter discust. In the 3+ years that I have been gone it appears that nothing has change. God luck to y'all and may God help you!!!

Non-issue, Mr. Huff was and is a businessman long before he became a Councilman.He broke no law and took a trip with his landlord,which one can only assume is a cemented relationship on both sides.He is doing a fantastic job representing his constituents. Everyone wants the gov't running like a business, heard it over and over on this site. Well you have a businessman helping run the gov't with a common-sense approach and you try and tear him down over something that's not even illegal. This is so overblown. I love the way Bryan Sears pursued his subject but when asked directly about committments other councimembers made concerning the pension flap a month ago he went AWOL.Never got an answer,never got the questions asked. It unfortunately reinforces everyone's thought that the press, left, right and middle have an agenda. There was a way to tell this story there was no need to sensationalize. There are probing questions that could elicit his ideas about ethics reform instead we're left with another local "hit" piece.

Ron, why don't you do a blog on the new BC blog site. Maybe you should look at the State Law. Don't swallow your Twinkies when you read it. Of course when you blog you better cross all of your T's and dot your I's.

A man who forgets a trip to the Supper Bowl is voting on our county budget! Incredible!

Speaking of pensions I'm working on another blog that might cause you to sing a different tune. Look up 47-07? Can't wait to hear your reply on that one.

Your comment of, "This is so overblown.", just gave me another blog idea. Thanks!

I am not going to continue to electronically spar. I understand the points being made by those who want to cast Councilman Huff as some slick,unethical huckster who's out for himself and no one else. Sorry, Councilman Huff's not that guy. The point made was there were ways to get at the story without the "watergate" aspects of meeting at elevators and watching the elevator door close and he said he didn't remember, then he did. Please,everything I've seen and read about him suggests a common sense politician that doesn't see red or blue but just wants to get it right by his constituents. The article as I stated could have been written about the ethics rules and his opinions.His trip certainly should have been included in that article. But we were given an article that's so far from that .You've mentioned your work history numerous times on the patch. You know very well 2 reporters show up at an accident can write 2 completely articles,depending on how they want to take the readers. I don't happen to think this article was fair or balanced.

Ron, none of this stuff needs to be an issue if people learn to make their beds like we were taught.

Pardon my humor here, there are two sides to this story, the trip out and the trip back.

Don't shoot the messenger over the message. This man is a councilman and everybody makes mistakes but the problems occur when they try and explain them and you know that.

In this case the truth did hurt.

How many free doughnuts did you accept?

This is the most corrupt administration and county council in the past 30 years

And we're certain you have proof! Moe, as they said in Billy Madison, "...we were all just made dumber by (reading) your statement". Try and put some coherent thoughts together rather than sound like you work for WCBM.

Towson, MD, Annapolis, MD, Baltimore City, MD. To paraphrase Bugs Bunny, "what a bunch of maroons.

I think everyone is missing the point here. He accepted tickets to a Super Bowl featuring the PITTSBURGH STEELERS and the Packers! I say again, the PITTSBURGH STEELERS! Is Huff a closet STEELERS fan? Maybe that is why he 'forgot?'

I doubt, very much, he is saying he forgot The Superbowl. What he forgot was that on the trip he paid for.....his landlord gave him the ticket. He forgot he was given that ticket...that's all. This is demonstrating the power of a "sensational" headline, by an irresponsible reporter, to "FIX" a false impression in a reader's mind. he did nothing wrong, he didn't need to report any ticket, he added later he was given a ticket while on a trip he paid for......I certainly hope we can move past this "labeling".
I do want to say I've lived in Baltimore County all my life. It is wonderful. It is reasonably well run in tough times. The politicians are accessible and generally pretty good guys. Couldn't live in a better place!!!

The BEST thing Todd did was get the BCPD to run the BUMS off of our streets who were standing on the islands begging for money. I spoke with several police supervisors who I am friends with several years ago and they said that they had been told by their superiors that since some roads like York Road were state roads they were prohibited from enforcing this issue. When he was running for office, I visited one of Todd's locations (I have been a customer of Brooks-Huff for years) and I asked him to help get rid of the BUMS and get the BCPD to enforce the county's ordinance against begging without a permit. As soon as Todd was in office, I revisited my friends in the BCPD and they affirmed the fact that they are now authorized to enforce this ordinance. The BUMS are gone (back into that hell-hole to our south) to prey upon City residents. BRAVO Todd.

Todo never forgets about his $54,000.00 paycheck, his county car for his part time job

@Bryan, the so called "author" of this article. Instead of writing about "republican" politician getting tickets from his landlord, whom he probably pays a lot in rent over the year, which takes away from his business profits, write about something that affects ALL Marylanders...you know like the ponzi schemes that OWEmalley is using to "fleece" the maryland taxpayers, or how about the scam on the new so called "redistricting" map, or how about the racial motivated attacks (black on white) occuring in Baltimore and so on. Cut the crap, you fricking so called journalists are nothing but a bunch of idiots. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9XmrZeobmY

or how about this, the hypocracy of the left. why don't you report this crap? http://www.theblaze.com/blog/2012/05/25/hypocrisy-alert-obamas-top-spokesman-is-a-venture-capitalist/