Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Bring Transparency Right to the Bill, Itself

Let's move the our concern for conflict interest and campaign contributions  to where it will have the greatest impact -- to when the legislation is filed.

Having candidates disclose their conflicts at the time they file for office is okay. But I don't know that I have ever heard of such disclosures leading to anything. I've neither heard of them warding off a legislator working for the cause of those he has conflicts with, nor am I remembering any such disclosures leading to an office holder being "busted," shall we say, for any conflict of interest he or she has had.

Campaign contributions? Occasionally, there are news stories about their ties to political favors, but for the most part, no.

Now, we can see that conflicts of interest can be a bad thing, and special interest money a bad thing. Otherwise, we wouldn't have the laws calling for disclosure of them.

So, why not move the disclosures right up close, right to the point of impact, right to the bills themselves? Why not have legislators disclose as they file each bill which lobbyists lobbied for the legislation, and who out of those who gave them money are going to benefit from the legislation?

Why not? If we are concerned about the money and influence affecting our legislation -- and we ought to be -- why not bring the transparency right to the point where it can do the most good.

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