Lawmakers in Albany released the final version of an ethics reform proposal that's part of the state budget on Tuesday afternoon. Immediately, the proposal was met with skepticism by good government groups.

WNYC's Karen Rouse spoke to Richard Hake about the "chaotic and secretive" process that led to a proposal that many are unhappy with. She said the proposal includes a variety of measures designed to deter legislators from abusing their positions for political gain, including a requirement that legislators and their spouses report sources of income over $1,000.

However — there are exceptions. 

"It does not look like legislators will have to report clients they had prior to taking office," Rouse said. Also, she said, "Legislators can apply to the state for an exemption if they think disclosure would violate attorney-client privilege. Criminal cases and divorce cases are also exempt — they don't have to report those."

Government watchdog groups say that the exemption loophole is large enough that legislators will basically be able to avoid disclosing who their clients are, Rouse said. Plus it doesn't limit the amount of outside income an elected official can learn.

Negotiations continued throughout Tuesday afternoon, but the details of those discussions were not released. 

"I think that for anyone who cares about democracy, and the idea that government and elected officials are working in the best interest of the people --it's been a little disappointing," Rouse said. "There were a lot of things left out of this bill – things like minimum wage, or the education tax credit....But the public can't even say why they were left out," because the negotiations were conducted in such secrecy, she said.