|
|
|
|
Moore votes for sweeping ethics reform Bans gifts; empowers ethics commission June 25, 2009 ... Completing a historic cycle of legislative reform, which includes recent approval of landmark pension and transportation reforms, Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge, and his colleagues in the Senate and House voted on Thursday to implement sweeping legislation that strengthens current ethics, lobbying and campaign finance laws, enhancing the integrity of the political process and helping to restore public trust. "I believe these reforms give Massachusetts the strongest ethics standards in the nation,” remarked Sen. Moore. “This legislation properly holds elected officials to the highest standards of conduct. While no law can guarantee the honesty of public officials or those who seek to influence public policy, it sends a clear message that violations of the public trust are very serious matters and will not be tolerated in Massachusetts!" The consensus bill not only bans gifts to public officials, but also increases the authority of the Ethics Commission to investigate and prosecute alleged ethics violations. “This ethics reform includes the best provisions of all three original proposals from the Senate, House and Governor,” Senate President Therese Murray said. “It sends the message that we are serious about ethics reform, and that violations of ethics and campaign finance laws come with steep consequences. Our intention has always been to craft a strong bill with input from a variety of stakeholders and constituents, and that’s what this final legislation does.” The bill has the support of the Attorney General, the state Ethics Commission, and the Office of Campaign & Political Finance. The legislation bans all gifts to public officials, imposing a hefty civil violation for gifts up to $1,000 and makes it a felony for anything with value greater than $1,000. The felony charge for gifts greater than $1,000 would carry a penalty of 5 years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both, and would apply to both the recipient of the gift and the giver. The consensus bill also provides the Ethics Commission with greater investigatory power to do its work, including enhanced subpoena power, expanded regulatory authority and an increased statute of limitations. Additionally, the bill allows the commission to impose heftier civil sanctions by increasing penalties for all ethics laws violations. A new lobbyist classification redefines and clarifies lobbying activities and captures actions that seek to wrongly influence official government activity. The legislation defines “lobbyist” as anyone paid to promote, oppose or influence, or to attempt to influence the decision of any officer or employee of the executive or legislative branch. It also requires strict performance rules for lobbyists, including registration with the Secretary of State, annual training and detailed reporting. The bill also closes the “success fees” loophole that awards lobbyists for a specific accomplishment. The bill also target reforms of the state campaign finance system, eliminating all “special committee” arrangements between a state political party and an elected official, allowing only individual contributions up to $5,000 to a political party. Additionally, the bill requires the disclosure of expenditures and funding for “electioneering communications” (those third-party mailings and ads that support or criticize a candidate or campaign). Furthermore, the bill prohibits individuals from making committee checks payable to themselves. The bill also does the following:
The bill is expected to be signed into law by the Governor. |
