In my 18 years in the Georgia Senate, I have fought for stronger ethics laws. In the early 1990s, I co-sponsored legislation to put a cap on the amount of money that could be donated to politicians. I fought for a measure that required lobbyists to file disclosures of meals and gifts to elected officials.
Elected officials should be accountable to the constituents in their districts. Residents should know measures are in place to protect the integrity of the political system.
In 2011, I authored Senate Bill 248, a clear and simple measure to limit the amount of money flowing from lobbyists to elected officials. It doesn’t seem like rocket science — either cap or eliminate the money used to influence legislators.
However, clear and simple is not wanted by many who work under the Gold Dome. Two recently touted ethics bills do little to change current practices. They do not effectively change the rules to restore the confidence of voters.
The bills contain too many loopholes to be considered effective and will just make lobbyists more creative with the ways they can split a dinner bill or expensive gift.
Take Senate Bill 391. This GOP-led measure proposes a $100 expenditure cap. If the language stopped there, the measure might meet with voter expectations of positive reform.
The bill states that any lobbyist can treat a legislator to any number of things — a meal, a concert, Braves tickets — as long as any one lobbyist doesn’t spend more than $100 per day.
It doesn’t take a mathematician to figure out that more than one lobbyist could split the cost of a meal or gift, as they have done in the past. Then a large amount won’t show up on a disclosure form.
Possibly more egregious, the expenditure cap would increase over time based on cost-of-living estimates. This language underscores the problem: Elected officials feel they are entitled to perks.
Our teachers haven’t seen a cost-of-living increase since 2009. Most public safety professionals haven’t seen one since 2008.
I find it distasteful that gifts and meals would be adjusted annually for inflation. If legislators in the future ever wanted to raise the amount, they should be forced to vote on it and get input from their constituents.
SB 391 also attempts to limit expenditures made by lobbyists to facilitate legislator travel. The bill sets the travel limit at $750. Once again, this figure allows for annual cost of living increases.
Moreover, the proposed legislation creates a committee composed of elected officials to evaluate any travel expense of more than $750 to determine if the limit can be exceeded. The limit can be waived for a “cultural experience.” If this isn’t an example of the fox guarding the henhouse, then I don’t know what is.
I am glad SB 391 has been introduced. Much stronger ethics measures introduced by Democrats have been buried and ignored. I am glad because it has increased the level of debate and attention to problems with current ethics laws.
I challenge legislators to fix the many loopholes and weaknesses in this bill. In its current form, SB 391 demonstrates how bad the problem has become and the need for serious reform.
For too long, our political process has been tilted in favor of private interests over public interest. Georgians have said time and again they want honest and transparent government.
Democrats believe we have an obligation to the public to provide sound alternatives to GOP initiatives.
In addition to SB 248, Democrats also have introduced legislation to create and fund an independent ethics commission composed of residents appointed by the courts.
True ethics reform needs to be addressed this session. We don’t need incremental fixes; we need to do it right and do it now.
Sen. Steve Henson is Democratic caucus leader.
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